To listen, click on the blue Blog Talk Radio box to the right.

To listen, click the blue Blog Talk Radio box to the right >>.

My political pals have all been whispering to me about how insulting it is that Bill is just now stepping in at the last dirty second, and I don’t doubt their observations. Still, whenever I watch the former Prez at game time I can’t help but salute the master. Barackstar has studied his predecessors well, blending his inspirational oratory skills with Reagan and Bill’s moderate language and (subtle) Joe Six Pack delivery, plus a healthy dose of Howard Dean’s internet savvy. I’ll be flabbergasted if this doesn’t equal a win next Tuesday.

After the giggles, Campus Politico’s Ben Adler discusses what youth organizers are doing in the final days of the Obama and McCain campaigns. Ted also asks Teresa and I to weigh in on Barackstar’s 30-minute infomercial tonight (is it a risk that could backfire?), as well as Biden’s run-in with the Orlando, Fla., reporter who confronted him about Republican charges that an Obama administration would be a socialist regime.

Listen here or on the blue Blog Talk Radio player to the right >>.

Apart from one obnoxious quip (”With all due respect to Joe the Plumber, those types of messages are a bit draining …”) it’s a good segment. I am so saddened by thought that Obama’s grandmother might not be here to see him win. I am praying that she can make it through.

A CNN poll indicated that 57 percent of undecided voters thought Obama won the debate, as opposed to 31 percent for McCain. John King busted out the electoral map post-debate, indicating that even if McCain wins the six or so toss up states, Obama still pulls away with the electoral college majority. With fewer than 20 days left in the election, it’s clear that four more years of Republican policies are not going to resonate with voters. 

The previous two debates were a toss up. Tonight, although I thought McCain had an ‘American President’ moment with his ‘I am not George Bush’ proclamation, it was Obama who delivered the consistent, thoughtful responses. He clarified his affiliations with Ayers and Acorn, he discussed (again! blah) his health care policies, dismantled the ‘trickle down’ Republican economic philosophy, and reminded us why (when we’ll finally have budget to allocate to domestic issues after we terminate the Bush Doctrine) it is our inherent responsibility as a country to fight for the rights of our underprivileged brethren.

We all agreed on tonight’s Wilshire & Washington that both candidates stepped up with the passion and clarity we were looking for. After three taxing rounds of debates, it is now a matter of ideology: Americans must ask themselves if the ‘Trickle Down’ philosophies of deregulation, so-called “personal responsibility,” pre-emption, and the influence of the evangelical right are the core positions we want to espouse to the rest of the world. It’s still unclear to me who these undecided voters marking the little line graphs on CNN are, but it’s not ambiguous at all what needs to happen in three weeks. Barack Obama is the candidate that offers fresh ideas, thoughtful discourse, diplomacy, equality and a little bit of HOPE in trying times.

This fired me up. To think of the great risk Obama takes every time he walks on a stage somewhere to speak, and that some Republicans (particularly the ones at the top of their ticket) are not outspoken against their lunatic supporters is absolutely horrifying.

Listen to it here, and check out Lizzy’s blog here.