Changes

As the negative articles on Palin continued to intensify, some of which just quoted celebrities who had never met her calling her "whacko" or a "hater of women", her first major interview with Gibson was a turning point.  Gibson asked Palin about the Bush Doctrine, but wouldn't define it for her even as she asked questions for clarifications.  When she then answered with her understanding, Gibson rebuked her by implying that she misunderstood the doctrine.  In truth, since the term is only a press invention, it has taken on different meanings at different times and the definition that Palin gave matched one that Gibson himself had used years earlier.  Nevertheless, it was a moment and was jumped on by the press.  Those who saw the interview voted heavily that they were now less likely to vote for Palin.  The attack on her had muted her effectiveness, even if it was unjustified.

As the negative articles on Palin continued to intensify, some of which just quoted celebrities who had never met her calling her "whacko" or a "hater of women", her first major interview with Gibson was a turning point.  Gibson asked Palin about the Bush Doctrine, but wouldn't define it for her even as she asked questions for clarifications.  When she then answered with her understanding, Gibson rebuked her by implying that she misunderstood the doctrine.  In truth, since the term is only a press invention, it has taken on different meanings at different times and the definition that Palin gave matched one that Gibson himself had used years earlier.  Nevertheless, it was a moment and was jumped on by the press.  Those who saw the interview voted heavily that they were now less likely to vote for Palin.  The attack on her had muted her effectiveness, even if it was unjustified.

Stemming the tide of the McCain campaign's lead became a strong swing for Obama with a series of events that went to the Democratic nominee's favor.  Firstly President Bush sounded a major alarm on the economy and proposed a huge 700 billion dollar rescue plan for the mortgage industry, which sent shock waves through the American populace and swept them with even more fear on the economic picture.  Bush called both Presidential nominees to meet with him and Congress.  It gave Obama a boost in legitimacy, his previous achilles heal.  While he had a weak record in accomplishments and showing leadership, the chance to be propelled to a position of prominence handed it to him on a silver platter.  Moreover, the plan was more problematic among Republicans than it was among Democrats, giving Obama another boost merely by supporting it while putting McCain on more shaky ground.  Both candidates supported it once again blurring McCain's advantage in experience if both men were seen as interchangable in their reaction.

Stemming the tide of the McCain campaign's lead became a strong swing for Obama with a series of events that went to the Democratic nominee's favor.  The polls began to tack to Obama's favor with the collapse of Lehman Brothers and a subsequent 500-point drop in the Dow Jones Index.  Then, President Bush sounded a major alarm on the economy and proposed a huge 700 billion dollar rescue plan for the mortgage industry, which sent shock waves through the American populace and swept them with even more fear on the economic picture.  Bush called both Presidential nominees to meet with him and Congress.  It gave Obama a boost in legitimacy, his previous Achilles' heel.  While he had a weak record in accomplishments and showing leadership, the chance to be propelled to a position of prominence handed it to him on a silver platter.  Moreover, the plan was more problematic among Republicans than it was among Democrats, giving Obama another boost merely by supporting it while putting McCain on more shaky ground.  Both candidates supported it once again blurring McCain's advantage in experience if both men were seen as interchangeable in their reaction.

McCain chose to suspend his campaign until a deal on the bailout was reached, a mistake.  The Democrats could add pork to the plan and make it even more unpalatible to the Republicans, and they did.  As the first debate loomed and no deal had been reached, McCain was in a quandry.  He chose to attend the debate under the view that the plan was well under way to being passed.  After the debate the plan was actually defeated and wouldn't be adopted, with more changes, until the following week.

McCain chose to suspend his campaign until a deal on the bailout was reached, a mistake.  The Democrats could add pork to the plan and make it even more unpalatable to the Republicans, and they did.  As the first debate loomed and no deal had been reached, McCain was in a quandary.  He chose to attend the debate under the view that the plan was well under way to being passed.  After the debate the plan was actually defeated and wouldn't be adopted, with more changes, until the following week.

McCain's debate with Obama went well and he was viewed as having done better than expected.  Unfortunately for him, Obama was also viewed as doing better than expected and was seen as looking Presidential, further cementing his standing and locking in a lead in the polls that had become rather substantial.  The Vice Presidential debate was the most watched in history and Palin was given high marks for her performance, but unfortunately for the Republican ticket, Biden was also on his game that night and also came across well.  There were no changes in the polling numbers and the number of undecided voters began to quickly dwindle.

McCain's debate with Obama went well and he was viewed as having done better than expected.  Unfortunately for him, Obama was also viewed as doing better than expected and was seen as looking Presidential, further cementing his standing and locking in a lead in the polls that had become rather substantial.  The Vice Presidential debate was the most watched in history and Palin was given high marks for her performance, but unfortunately for the Republican ticket, Biden was also on his game that night and also came across well.  There were no changes in the polling numbers and the number of undecided voters began to quickly dwindle.