by Frank James, updated at 12:45 pm
Sen. Barack Obama has a knack for having momentous events in his presidential campaign fall on important historic events.
His convention acceptance speech occurred on the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech.
And today, the scheduled date for the first presidential debate between Obama and Sen. John McCain is the 48th anniversary of President John Kennedy's famed 1960 debate with Vice President Richard Nixon in Chicago.
Of course, we're not sure if today's planned debate will actually happen since McCain has made the debate hostage to the negotiations over the proposed $700 billion Wall Street bailout occurring in Washington. At this stage it looks like it may not be Obama-McCain. More like Obama-empty chair.
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Updated: Now we know that the debate will occur, at least if McCain doesn't change his mind again. McCain is headed to south and is scheduled to be in Oxford, Mississippi for his 3 pm walkthrough and mic check. So there won't be an empty chair after all, though it was fun for a while to consider the possibility
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Comments
Senator McCain faces a no-win situation of his own making. Either he backs-down and shows up for the debate, or he doesn't show up and leaves it all the Senator Obama. It is the consequence of rash and irrational thinking.
Posted by: JimBob | September 26, 2008 10:44 AM
What is McCain doing to our political process. I don't care if he is a Senator, he needs to show the American people how he will do against our next president, Obama!
http://www.boppoll.com
More of the McSame! Let my debate go!
Posted by: Empty Head! | September 26, 2008 10:45 AM
Country Last-McWorse's slogan
Posted by: chimpymcflightsuit'snavigator | September 26, 2008 11:13 AM
The way the repubs have hijacked the bailout, if Obama does go to the debate without McCain and at the time of the debate a bailout solution is found, McCain would be made out to be some kind of hero. What a bunch of crap that would be.
Posted by: Redeye | September 26, 2008 11:24 AM
McCain has painted himself in a corner so perfectly that even Carl Rove can’t figure out how to get him out. If I was Sen. Obama, I would give McCain a couple options to help him out the tight spot that he now fins himself:
Option 1: let our respective VP candidates debate the issues in Mississippi so that McCain can stay in Washington DC and save the country. This would also allow Palin to show that nation that she has a mastery of the issues and can step in at anytime in the event that McCain has other pressing national matters to attend to.
Option 2: If McCain cannot make either himself or Palin available in Mississippi this evening, then Obama should offer him the option to debate in Capital Hill tonight. I am sure McCain can find two hours this evening in DC to debate Obama on Capital Hill. Site preparation won’t be necessary because the facilities are already available for immediate broadcast.
Let’s stop the games and give America some straight talk!
Posted by: Ben | September 26, 2008 11:28 AM
Hey, don't sell the empty chair short. I'm sure the it'll do about as well as McCain would.
Posted by: Tom O | September 26, 2008 11:30 AM
I think it is a great idea. Even if Senator McCain were to attend, which I don't think he will, it would still be an empty chair. It's gimmicky, but that seems to be the only thing Bush-McCain Republicans seem to understand, they use them so often !! What do think his bowing out of the debate is, a gimmick. The real tragedy is the use of the Banking Scandal for political purposes and timed so perfectly for our presidential elections !! There must be a provision in the so-called " bailout ", it should be called a " payoff ", for the arrest and prosecution of those that pulled off this scam. Nothing less will do !! If you want the same nonsense for four more years, than, by all means, vote for McCain-Who. They will give our nation, some more of these Bush-Cheney tainted politics !!
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS, BRING THEM HOME, ALIVE AND WHOLE. NOW.
Posted by: Don Fitzgerald, Chicago | September 26, 2008 11:43 AM
Ben....The only trouble is that sure as shooting, the GOP (mcBushs own party) will all of a sudden claim that McBush has convinced them to sign on. All hail McBush. His statesmenship...wink...wink...was all America needed. Think about it...it is his own party holding out. This smells!
Posted by: bill r. | September 26, 2008 11:54 AM
At least McCain won't look as bad as Nixon did because McCain is using "American Idol" makeup girl Tifanie White at a cost of $5,583.43 for her services.
source: http://www.usmagazine.com/news/john-mccain-uses-american-idol-makeup-artist
Posted by: BC | September 26, 2008 1:06 PM