Media Spin

Sam Hananel of the AP has an early story that focuses on the candidates statements on Foley and Iraq.  

Deirdre Shesgreen of the St. Louis Post Dispatch has a lengthy account of the debate and offers insight into the most "uncomfortable moments" of the MTP "spotlight."

For Talent, one of the most uncomfortable moments of the debate seemed to come after Russert played a series of clips of Bush praising Talent, noted that Talent had voted with the president 94 percent of the time, and then asked the senator if Bush would be a great president. Talent wouldn’t give a clear answer. "History judges presidents," Talent said, sitting beside a gleeful McCaskill . "History is going to say there are some things he did right and some things he did wrong." McCaskill ridiculed Talent’s response and when asked the same question about former President Bill Clinton, she quipped: "He’s been a great leader, but I don’t want my daughter near him." McCaskill came in for a little squirming herself when Russert asked her if she would apologize for saying that Bush let people in New Orleans die because they were black. At first, she did not back down, saying that she was voicing how "millions of Americans felt," although she added, "I do not believe the president is a racist." Pressed again, she said, "Maybe I shouldn’t have said it that way …. but the feelings are real." She said "our citizens died because we couldn’t get them through the water. This is not an administration that's ready to protect us."

Campaign Spin

The McCaskill campaign was the first to spin the debate on their website:

In today's "Meet the Press" debate, Senator Jim Talent could not distance himself from his record of rubberstamping President Bush's failing agenda, as U.S. Senate Candidate McCaskill pledged to be a strong and independent voice for Missouri in the style of former Missouri Senator Harry Truman. While Senator Talent was on the defensive about his support for "staying the course" in Iraq, opposition to lifesaving stem cell research, and his record as a Bush rubberstamp, McCaskill aggressively laid out her vision for changing Washington.

Clearly, they are trying to channel Harry Truman - who is mentioned five times in the press release.

Blogosphere Reaction

The conservative blogger Nathan Moore argues that "McCaskill is Awful."  He focuses on Russert's question about McCaskill's claim that "George Bush let people die on rooftops in New Orleans because they were poor and because they were black" - a claim that McCaskill didn't deny in the debate.  

Over at Pub Def, readers are offering kudos for the mention by Russert regarding the McCaskill quote on the Bush-race-Katrina question.

Blue Girl, Red State has a few astute observations:

I have watched all of the debates between senate candidates on Meet the Press and Claire did something that not one single Republican candidate has done - when she was asked a question by the moderator. She gave an unqualified "Yes" or "No" answer and then spoke. No frustrating screams at the telly to just "answer the damned question, already!" were necessary.... The best moment of the debate, however, came at the very end. As the camera pulled back, Claire smiled brightly, turned to talent and offered her hand. Totally took him by surprise. This one went to Claire, without a doubt.

The Ostroy Report says McCaskill "hits a home run:"

All in all, Talent appeared the product of a scared, desperate, scrambling party whose back is to the wall with very few, if any, options. The mounting problems from the war; the recent NIE which reported that Iraq is fueling terrorism; the explosive, damaging revelations in the new Bob Woodward book; the resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan; the sagging economy; high gas prices; and corruption and scandal will likely make for a very, very difficult November for Republicans.

Mark Kilmer at RedState zeros in on the stem cell portion of the debate and Russert's "goofy hypothetical:"

On NBC's MTP, Russert talked to Senator Talent and his Dem opponent about Mark Foley, Iraq, and human embryonic stem cells. What if you rushed into a burning building and could save only a Petri dish with stem cells or a 3-year-old with juvenile diabetes? (It's a moral dilemma which we as Americans must face every day in your weird little dream world, Tim.)

Carol Platt Liebau calls McCaskill an "unacceptable risk," and writes this assessment of her debate performance:

Her statements were little more than a stumblng amalgam of Democratic talking points and orchestrated attacks on Jim Talent and the President. She lacked the clarity and conviction of Jim Talent, especially when it comes to the war on terror -- and above all, was clearly trying to portray a more moderate image than the history of her statements, as quoted back to her, would suggest.

Media Matters offers a critique of Russert's questioning on the Foley scandal.

On Meet the Press, Russert quoted Hastert from an October 4 Chicago Tribune interview asserting,"The people who want to see this blow up are ABC News and a lot of Democratic operatives, people funded by George Soros," then added that Soros "has given millions and millions of dollars to Democratic causes." He then asked Missouri State Auditor Claire McCaskill, a Democratic candidate for Senate, "Have any Democratic operatives been involved in spreading this information?"