Having watched the first presidential debate a couple of times now, and having reviewed the transcript, I am inclined toward the opinion that Sen. Barack Obama secured an unexpected victory over Sen. John McCain – however he won it on points, not by knockout. At no point did either candidate completely overwhelm and dominate any single foreign policy issue, but rather it came down to the question of stylistic exposition. This is very interesting for several reasons. Firstly, the foreign policy debate was meant to be the one for McCain to dominate, and Obama’s unexpected competence in this area will require some major adjustments from the Republican campaign to get some points back in the upcoming two debates. I need not even remark upon the predicted outcome of the vice presidential debate, as there are even some rumors among Republican operatives that I know talking about pulling Sarah Palin off the ticket. I don’t attribute much credibility to that rumor, but the fact that people are even quietly talking about it doesn’t give one much confidence for the outcome of the debate. With regard to Russia, both candidates were exceedingly strong and critical.