9:00 - Here we are, coming at you live. It's your number one source for semi-informitive analysis.
My expectations: Obama and Hillary clashing, and everyone else trying desperately to make themselves relevant.

9:01 - Obama takes the opening speech and shows his characteristic charisma. Then he turns on Hillary and calls her a hypocrite. There's actual clash in this debate? Nice.

9:04 - Hillary responds. Takes a strong anti-Republican stance. A Clinton which is anti-Republican? Shocking.

9:05 - Staying on the topic of hypocracy, John Edwards is talking about honesty and integrity. Now he's attacking Hillary. I see a trend emerging here...

9:07 - Hillary responds by defending herself. I'm not surprised to see the front-runner taking a defensive stance.
She then tells people that Social Security is broken because of George W. Bush, despite the system being the same, fundamentally, since 1981. What a load of bull.

9:09 - Now Tim Russert is attacking Hillary. She's trying to straddle the fence on Iran. Says sanctions are a part of "vigorous diplomacy". Yet more defense. Looks like we could be in for a "World vs Hillary" night.
She then, essentially, says the Republicans are dedicated to rushing to war with Iran. Once again, what a load.

9:12 - More attacking Hillary on Iran.

9:15 - Obama says we need to use diplomacy with Iran. Hillary says the same, using that term "vigorous diplomacy" again. What does that even mean?
She then totally dodges the question on what her "redline" is for Iran. Apparently she won't even consider war with Iran. Interesting coming from a person deploring the Bush administration for limiting our foreign relations options.

9:19 - John Edwards talks about Congress saying they'll refuse to allow Bush to attack Iran. A presidential candidate talking about having Congress dictate foreign policy. Wonder how he'd feel about that if elected president.

9:21 - Bill Richardson is pushing for compromise based off of allowing Iran to have nuclear energy in exchange for them not having nuclear weapons. Wait, he's trusting the government of Iran to be honest to the west?
Now he's using the term "vigorous diplomacy". It sounds good. What does it mean?

9:22 - Kucinich is talking. You can stop paying attention for the next few minutes.
Me? I'm gonna make some ramen.

9:24 - His ignorant ramblings about the Constitution are done. You may resume paying attention.

9:25 - Hillary tries to sidestep a question about pledging to keep Iran from getting a nuclear weapon with all the grace of a drunken cow. Edwards follows suit, as does Obama, but with his characteristic Obama charisma, turning to just about every important topic ever.

9:26 - Biden makes a pretty good point about nukes in Pakistan. Finally, something I can agree with.

9:28 - More talk on Iran. The question is still "Do you pledge to keep Iran from getting nuclear weapons if elected President", and nobody has said "Yes" or "No" yet.

9:30 - Now Kucinich is talking. He's talking about the media. Now he's saying the US should get rid of all their nuclear weapons. What a twit.
He's like the Democratic Ron Paul, but not as amusing.

9:31 - Hillary opposes the war but not the soldiers. Hooray, no return to Vietnam level self-loathing!

9:34 - Obama calls Hillary a hypocrite again. He is on the attack tonight! Makes this a more interesting watch. Much better than the Dearborn debate.

9:36 - Edwards is attacking Hillary, trying to make her look like a Republican on the Iraq war.

9:37 - Hillary doesn't know where to start. Says this is all an overblown semantic different in regards to Edward's differences, talks about attacking Al Qaeda. Maybe she is kinda Republican on this...
Says she wants to end the war "responsibly". Indirect slap in the face towards Edwards. I'm loving it.

9:39 - Commercial break. Grab a snack or a beer or something, settle in.

9:42 - And we're back! Talk of Guliani questioning Hillary's experience. She then talks about her time in Arkansas, the White House, and in the Senate. Guliani was asking about her experience in terms of directly governing over people. She flys off the handle against Bush and Cheney.
The important question has been sidestepped. The debate may continue.

9:44 - Russert is asking about the National Archives releasing her communications with Bill Clinton as First Lady. Hillary says she's fine with it.
A candidate directly answered a question! Someone pinch me!

9:46 - Obama is blasting Hillary for being secretive... kinda like GEORGE BUSH! Democrats are trying to make Hillary look too Republican, Republicans are trying to make Hillary look too liberal...
This is a "Hillary vs Everyone" dynamic! I called it!

9:48 - John Edwards is saying the Republicans want to run against Hillary. The electability issue. Nice.
Now he's talking about the political system as being "corrupt" and "broken". Says the winner is the one who's raised the most money. Shades of his "Two Americas" rhetoric. It didn't work in 2004, it won't work in 2008. Someone please tell him that.
Bonus: he says he believes in the Tooth Fairy and in Santa Claus.

9:49 - Forget shades of, this is his "Two Americas" rhetoric. It doesn't work in America, John. Deal with it.

9:50 - Applies the "Guliani Question" to Obama. He talks about his experience as someone who reached across the aisle.
Flashback: So did Dubya back in 1999-2000. Don't buy the hype people.

9:52 - Now Edwards, Hillary, and Obama have rallied against special interests. Wonder if that includes unions...

9:53 - Richardson talks about a "holier than thau" attitude towards Hillary and says it's bad. People, please ignore this man. It makes the debate much more interesting.
Says people elect Governors, not Senators. Then talks about his experience as a businessman, a diplomat, etc. Says he has the most experience. He's actually quite well spoken and makes good points. Now if only more people cared about people beyond Hillary and Obama.

9:55 - Cris Dodd is talking about Hillary's electability way too fast. Now he's talking about other stuff. Guess he's trying to make up for the lack of time he's getting. Sounds kinda out-of-control, though.

9:56 - John Edwards says he's not perfect. Nobody is surprised.

9:57 - He just said that the founding fathers decided that the power should not lie with the rich. Perhaps someone should explain to him that the founding fathers were the monied elite, not the common everyman.
Earth to John Edwards. Are you there?

9:58 - Kucinich is attacking John Edwards. He sounds kinda... not crazy.
Now he's talking about forcing a not-for-profit universal health care system. Says he'll cancel NAFTA and the WTO.
Everything I just said about John Edwards not being centered in reality? I take it back. This guy really puts things in perspective.
And I don't mean that in a good way.

10:00 - Biden talks about Rudy Guliani and makes a pretty good quip about him touting 9/11. But he's also talking about him not having experience. I guess he's looking at a different New York City.
Another person working in some kind of different reality. This is absurd.

10:01 - Social Security questions! Oh boy!

10:02 - Russert is calling Hillary a hypocrite on Social Security. This is really entertaining. Now she'd talking about balancing the budget to solve Social Security. Too bad for her that won't make Social Security any more solvent in the future.

10:05 - Russert calls out Obama on changing his mind. Obama then turns and attacks Hillary.

10:07 - Obama says the Democrats have the facts on their side. Hilarous!

10:08 - Hillary is talking about a bipartisan solution to Social Security. This is just 6 minutes after he's essentially calling the Republicans untrustworthy on Social Security. Anyone else confused?

10:09 - Obama says he isn't afraid of getting "swiftboated". Says that people said that nobody would vote for Obama for Senate. Anyone who thought that Alan Keyes could beat Obama in Illinois is a genuine fool.
I can't help but wonder if these people are real or just a rhetorical strawman.

10:11 - Commercial break #2. Hope everyone's hanging in there just fine.

10:14 - We're back! Part 3 begins!

10:15 - Lightning round! Dodd is asked what can be done right now to lower costs of energy. He responds to talking about investing in alternative sources of energy. Doesn't sound that immediate to me.

10:17 - Biden blames high oil prices on Bush. A Democrat blames Bush for stuff. Shocking.

10:17 - John Edwards talks about investigating oil companies and asking Americans to be patriotic and sacrifice by conserving energy.

10:18 - Hillary wants a move towards energy efficiency and conservation.

10:18 - Obama talks about risk costs for oil and increasing fuel efficiency standards on cars. Telling unprofitable companies to make more costly products? Huh?

10:19 - Kucinich is talking. 30 second break, everyone!

10:20 - Richardson wants an Apollo program for energy. Talks about some pretty big changes, but there's actual substance instead of rhetoric and Bush bashing. I'm really starting to like this guy. May not agree with him that much, but he's realistic and offers real, substantive answers.

10:21 - Dodd wants to tax carbon emissions by companies. Now he's complimenting Al Gore on his environmental standards. Someone should tell him about Al Gore's massive carbon footprint.

10:23 - John Edwards is talking about the national community in regards to national disasters, and leads it right into more "Two Americas" rhetoric. This guy is just a one trick pony. What a joke.

10:25 - Hillary talks about the Alternative Minimum Tax. And now she's bashing Bush. Surprise. Says Republicans haven't delt with the AMT because it hits people "below their concern". God dammit, now she's using "Two Americas" rhetoric!

10:29 - Obama wants to reform the tax code to get rid of loopholes for companies, using a single mother strawman. Then details a plan and talks about repealing the tax cuts.

10:31 - Kucinich time! Imagine some bizarre, pseudo-reality anti-business rhetoric and that's what Kucinich is saying.
Scratch that, it'd be probably more interesting than what Kucinich is saying.

10:33 - I'm starting to fade, folks. Everything is starting to blur together. It all sounds the same.
... oh wait. That's just John Edwards talking about Bush, lobbists, and "Two Americas" again. This debate is making me bitter and dismissive about the Democrats. ...well, moreso. That's not good.

10:34 - Official Lightning round! I won't even try to blog this.

10:41 - Commercial break #3. Truth be told, I just don't care anymore. I'm doing this for the people who read this! That's right the two or three people that'll actually read this. I care about you!

10:44 - We're back! More Lightning round, I'll try and blog the more interesting responses.

10:45 - Question about the medical profession and cost/earnign issues. Answers range from malpractice reform to universal healthcare to twisting the arms of insurance companies. Nothing too groundbreaking here. Even Kucinich's whackiness is starting to sound repetitive.

10:50 - Questions about airline service. Obama doesn't realize its a lightning round. Hilarity ensues. 10:51 - Hillary talks giving illegal immigrants drivers licenses. Says it would cause illegal immigrant drivers to be safer drivers. Question: If they didn't care about the immigration laws, why would they care about driving laws?
But in the end, she won't give a straight answer on the question. She's trying to have it both ways. Edwards and Obama were calling her out on doublespeak, and she just proved them right. Way to go, Hillary.

10:53 - Chris Dodd and Hillary are having a spat about giving illegals driver licenses.

10:55 - John Edwards is talking about doubletalk in regards to Hillary, Obama chimes in and agrees. The anti-Hillary vibe continues right until the end.

10:56 - Tim Russert is asking Dennis Kucinich about his sighting a UFO. Even the hosts are treating him like a joke.

10:57 - Obama is asked if there is life in outer space. Obama uses that question to bash the Republicans. Kind of a one track mind in my opinion.

10:59 - Hillary doesn't pledge to be the President that defeats cancer, but uses it to insult Bush.

10:59 - John Edwards wouldn't decriminalize marijuana, Chris Dodd would to reduce the pressure on jails.

11:00 - Two hours and we're still going! Biden would stop any and all imports from China. In other words, he just pledged to create an economic recession if elected President.

11:01 - Obama is says he's thinking about going dressed in a two-faced Mitt Romney mask for Halloween. Get it?! Because he's two-faced! Hahaha... seriously, Obama. You could've done so much more with that question.

11:03 - And two hours and two minutes later, we are done! Good night!

Some closing thoughts:
Hillary: Shot herself in the foot. Obama and Edwards were attacking her for doublespeak, and that's exactly what she does when asked about giving drivers licenses to illegals. That could come back and bite her.

Obama: Very charismatic and effective attacking Hillary. However, he really didn't offer up a good amount of actual in-depth conversation, sticking mostly with a laundry list of issues. It's kind of what I expected from Obama: all flash, no substance.

Richardson: I was really impressed by this guy. Gave a good amount of substance in his conversation while maintaining a steady, confident, and professional tone without coming across as practiced or canned. Also, in a unique act of graciousness for a politician, he defended Hillary from the attacks of others. I am really impressed, far more than I would've expected. This guy should be the nominee, not Hillary or Obama.

Edwards: Speaking of coming across as practiced or canned, has this guy changed at all from 2004? It's the same "Two Americas" rhetoric regurgitated to fit into every situation. It's class warfare over-and-over, and it doesn't work. His saving grace in 2004 was his charisma and his potential. It won't save him this time.

Kucinich: This guy is even more of a joke than Ron Paul. Tim Russert asked him if he believed in UFOs and he said yes because he saw one. Why is this guy even allowed in these debates?

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed my unique brand of commentary and insight.
Or perhaps it's just mindless drivel.

You decide.