Transcript of presidential debate  —  WASHINGTON (CNN ) — Sens. John McCain and Barack Obama debated on the campus of the University of Mississippi Friday night.  The moderator for the debate was Jim Lehrer of the NewsHour on PBS.  What follows is the full transcript of the debate:

TWS Exclusive: Kissinger Unhappy About Obama  —  Henry Kissinger believes Barack Obama misstated his views on diplomacy with US adversaries and is not happy about being mischaracterized.  He says: “Senator McCain is right.  I would not recommend the next President of the United States engage …

Round 1 in debates goes to Obama, poll says  —  OXFORD, Mississippi (CNN) — A national poll of people who watched the first presidential debate suggests that Barack Obama came out on top, but there was overwhelming agreement that both Obama and John McCain would be able to handle the job of president if elected.

Excerpts of Mark Halperin's Report Cards for the First Presidential Debate  —  Obama  —  Substance: His arguments were hard to follow at the beginning, but he found his voice as the debate progressed, although he never seemed fully in control of his message... If he truly knows more about the world …

Why Voters Thought Obama Won  —  TPM has the internals of the CNN poll of debate-watchers, which had Obama winning overall by a margin of 51-38.  The poll suggests that Obama is opening up a gap on connectedness, while closing a gap on readiness.  —  Specifically, by a 62-32 margin …

Focus Groups, Undecideds For Obama  —  For what it's worth: The Frank Luntz and Stanley Greenberg focus groups went overwhelmingly for Obama.  And a CBS poll of undecideds went for Obama 40%-22%.  Update : The CNN polls goes to Barack, 51%-38%.  — Isaac Chotiner

The Mac is back  —  John McCain was very lucky that he decided to show up for the first presidential debate in Oxford, Miss., Friday night.  Because he gave one of his strongest debate performances ever.  —  While Barack Obama repeatedly tried to link McCain to the very unpopular George W. Bush …

McCain's Economics  —  Don't ask me who won the debate in terms of persuading formerly undecided voters to fix an allegiance.  The number of undecided voters who understand the difference between financial and fiscal is minuscule, and the number of those who think that the difference actually matters is probably zero.

Initial Polls Show Obama Winning The Debate  —  Okay, we thought that McCain had a slight upper hand tonight (though we also said it wasn't a game changer, which is basically another way of saying that McCain didn't do what he had to).  But the initial polls suggest that viewers give the nod to Obama in a big way.

Paul Newman dies at 83  —  (CNN) — Paul Newman, the legendary actor whose steely blue eyes, good-humored charm and advocacy of worthy causes made him one of the most renowned figures in American arts, has died of cancer at his home in Westport, Connecticut.  He was 83.