Don't believe the McCain spin as he tries to lower debate expectations. Despite what the GOPers will be saying this week, McCain has a very strong debate track record. He won the first debate among the GOP candidates in May of 2007. So said Dick Morris at FOX News:
John McCain bounced back in the first Republican presidential debate and breathed new life into his faltering candidacy.McCain debates very, very well. Creepy Dick Morris isn't the only pundit who praised McCain's debating prowess. Chuck Todd and Chris Cillizza saw it, too. Let's not start pretending otherwise now.
His answers were strong: he faced the camera squarely, and scored big with his circa-2000 attacks on pork spending and special interests. He was both passionate and articulate. His sole bad moment came with his fumbling answer about why he opposed the Bush tax cuts. But for a candidate who seemed to have lost his way, McCain did very, very well.
