POLITICO: … [Bob] Schieffer, who spoke to POLITICO from his beach house in Sea Island, Ga., was very happy with the debate, and with his performance: “I thought this was a debate worthy of the presidency,” he said. “The point was for people to get a better understanding of the candidates, and I think that happened.”
Schieffer rarely spoke during last night’s debate, other than to keep time and ask questions. His performance was widely praised, but even he acknowledges they drifted off-topic at times — to the economy, education, the auto bailout. But Schieffer said it was the candidates’ responsibility to determine the course of the conversation.
“This is the candidates’ campaign. These are the two guys running for president. If they think something is important, you have to give them some leeway,” he explained. “So if they wanted to talk about education — and personally, I believe education is our first line of defense — I let that run its course, and then tried to get them back on foreign policy.”… (more)
