Partisan conclusions favor their man; neither credited with a knockout

Friday's presidential debate drew intense interest on the North Coast but in the end seemed to disappoint those hoping their candidate would land a knockout punch.

"If you went into it liking Barack Obama, you liked him even more. If you went into it liking John McCain, you were very satisfied with his performance," said Doug Bosco, a Santa Rosa attorney and former congressman.

As political theater, Sonoma State University political science professor Dave McCuan likened the debate to a hockey match.

He wasn't referring to the fistfights and body slams one normally associates with the sport.

"Nobody watches hockey. Only insiders know what that blue line is," the professor said.

His review of the debate format and content?

"Boring. Boring."

He said Obama didn't do enough to focus the debate on the economy, an issue that is perceived as a strong suit for the Illinois senator, if recent polls are to be believed.

As for McCain, McCuan said the Arizona senator got too immersed in the details of what he was trying to convey.

"Neither candidate got an A," McCuan said.

Kim Anderson and his wife, Mary Jo, gathered at her 89-year-old mother's home in Fountaingrove on Friday to watch the debate.

An Obama supporter, Anderson said he thought the Illinois senator came across as presidential, whereas he found McCain to be a "grumpy old man."

"He's not a maverick. He's a cadaverick," said Anderson, a technical marketing specialist at a semiconductor equipment manufacturing company in Petaluma.

Shauna Laurell, on the other hand, said the debate only reinforced her recent decision to ditch Obama in favor of McCain.

"He's got so much more wisdom," the Santa Rosa radiation therapist and mother of eight said of McCain. "He's just so much more savvy."

Mike Harris said he thinks McCain will get a bump in the polls because he "won" the debate.

Harris, for the record, is a Petaluma councilman and deputy regional chairman of McCain's campaign in eight North Coast counties.

On the issues, Bosco said he was disappointed that both candidates stated their support for offshore oil drilling, an issue that resonates on the North Coast.

"I think the danger signal has gone up," Bosco said.

Paula Dean, a registered Democrat and Santa Rosa elementary school teacher, said she thought Obama did a better job of explaining foreign policy issues.

"He knew what was going on," she said.

In the end, however, neither candidate appeared to do anything remarkable to give their staunch supporters cause for concern or delight.

Bottom line?

"We have to wait for round two," McCuan said.

You can reach Staff Writer Derek J. Moore at 521-5336 or derek.moore@pressdemocrat.com.