A small gaffe to be sure, but John McCain’s reference to his “fellow prisoners” today in Pennsylvania could not have helped counter the criticism that the Republican nominee looked his age in the face off with Obama last night. John Heileman believes that based on that performance, this race is almost over:

The moment the second presidential debate between John McCain and Barack Obama ended, I quickly tapped out e-mails to a half dozen name-brand Republican strategists not affiliated with the McCain campaign. The response was unanimous: Not a single one of these GOP heavies thought their party’s nominee had won. “Obama presidential … no narrative change,” was one of the replies. Another was, “We gained no ground … the generational contrast was stunning.” The rest were even more downcast. “McCain looked angry and anything but steady,” replied a Republican media maven who has been involved in more than one general-election contest. “Big win for Obama.”

I couldn’t agree more. McCain entered this debate facing a fierce headwind, slipping in both national and battleground state polls, laboring under the weight of a financial meltdown that is definitively not his friend. His central goal in the debate, therefore, was to alter the dynamic of the race in a dramatic way.

What was weird was that McCain not only failed to do so but that he barely seemed to try, contrary to expectations that he would go after Obama hammer and tongs. He seemed to me less irritable, less visibly ticked-off, than he did in the first debate. He expressed economic empathy more effectively, too. But he also came across as older, frailer, more rickety. The town-hall format was supposed to be his metier, but it worked to his disadvantage. He rattled around onstage looking slightly lost, making hokey jokes that fell flat in the hall, offering edgy barbs at Obama (and even Tom Brokaw!), and telling hoary stories that referenced Ronald Reagan, Teddy Roosevelt, Tip O’Neill, and Herbert Hoover — historically significant figures who reinforced the image of the Arizona senator as yesterday’s man. His much-noted reference to Obama as “that one” struck me less as disrespectful and more as grandfatherly (or even grandmotherly, the kind of epithet hurled at a misbehaving teenager by his dismayed nana).

Obama Closes the Deal in Second Debate

I missed the majority of tonight’s debate. Was there a winner?

First Sarah Silverman creates a funny video urging Jews to tell their grandparents to vote for Obama.

Now, Jackie Mason responds with an equally unfunny video urging people to vote for McCain. (Via Ben Smith)

Exhibit B: Condescending. Bumbling. Garbled. There were time last night when I was incredulous that Palin was even elected Governor. (Via Gawker.)

Ali asked for examples of Palin’s ineptitude last night. Here is exhibit A. Total nonsense.

I don’t know which debate the folks on PBS watched tonight. After the candidates’ closing comments were made their five experts, including David Brooks, thought Palin more than held her own against Biden.

But this armchair critic thought Biden was the clear winner.

Palin misspoke, displayed a clear lack of knowledge by refusing to answer certain questions, repeated herself countless times and occasionally came out with complete gobbledygook. (I’m sure within a few hours there will be more than enough videos to back me up.) She seemed incapable of firing more than a handful of shots at Obama and, crucially I thought, failed time and again to rebut Biden’s criticisms of McCain’s voting record.

Biden, meanwhile, was confidant, assured and in complete control of the facts. He hammered McCain’s record and policies time and again, and flatly contested a number of Palin’s assertions about Obama.

I don’t think there was any clearer indication of the two Presidential candidates’ judgment than their proxies tonight. And on that performance I thought Obama won hands down.

I’m desperate to get off this Palin tack but I just can’t help it with videos like this one doing the rounds. I’m only sorry I didn’t post it sooner.

How anyone can defend a person like this to be vice-president is beyond me.

(Via Clive Davis)