There is no question that Obama did a masterful job last night in defining himself. He went farther than the Clinton's and Biden in defining McCain, but I felt he could have nailed the latter's coffin shut with a few more points because they would have forced Mccain to play defense as he did last week during count-a-house.

McCain, like all faux-populist Republicans since Nixon wants to present himself as the friend of the little guy and someone who stands up for the troops.

Obama could have drawn greater attention to McCain's votes on bread and butter issues---raising the minimum wage, legislation that affects unionization, and I'm sure countless others, to show he does not care about the working class. Low-information voters need concrete examples of McCain's real loyalties---to the already wealthy.

Obama could also have pounded on McCain's voting against the new GI Bill and other veteran's  issues.

He might have noted all the Republican colleagues who have noted McCain's erratic temper and how this is not a good  trait to have in someone making critical foreign policy decisions.

Obama missed a chance to say he did not categorically reject some new drilling as part of an overall energy program, something he said on the campaign trail. The drilling meme has benefited Mccain and Obama could take that card away by coopting it.

Finally, I wish Obama doesn't truly believe that Russia is to blame for the Georgian adventurism. The two areas in dispute do not want to be part of  Georgia and Obama should understand that. And he should be careful about expecting too much in any focus on Pakistan and Afghanistan. If we get militarily involved in  a big way there we'll end up like the Russians did after 1979 and Iraq will seem like a picnic.



It's not enough to say that he favors the rich in an abstract way.