History judges debates more by demeanor than content of answers.
And McCain lost big time on that scale. Debates that have changed opinions significantly rarely were judged by the content of the answers. Reagan was folksy. Bush 1 was irritated, caught looking at his watch. Gore had better understanding but was undone by his famous sighs. GWB came across as somebody with whom people would rather have a beer, while Kerry came across as stiff and intellectual (he clearly won on content but that didn't matter).
McCain came across as petulant and angry and the fact he never looked at Obama has been noted all over the msm. It seemed that he felt annoyed to have to be there.
Imho McCain lost the election last night. The debate will be remembered by his attitude.
1. But, if you heard the debate on radio, you don't see McCain's mannerisms.
Pundits say that Nixon won the debate over Kennedy according to radio listeners; Kennedy won the debate according to TV viewers. The TV viewers saw Nixon sweating and looking haggard. He had undergone surgery only a few days earlier.
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