MSNBC

Keith Olbermann: So, if Joe the non-plumber, really, was the big winner last night, what does that say about Senator McCain`s candidacy?

Christopher Hayes: Well, I think what it says is that, you know, for all their flaws, they still excel at throwing out chum in the water for the press to turn on. I mean, if you turn on the TV today, this guy has got like, you know, 10 satellite trucks outside his house and he`s being interviewed. And… more

First, analysts emphasize that the health reform plans offer citizens a general guide to the candidates’ views, but may be lacking in crucial details. 

“Campaign documents should be thought of more like the watercolors of impressionists instead of photographs or blueprints,” said Len Nichols, director of the health policy program at the New America Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy institute. LINK

OLBERMANN: What about me, what? The McCain campaign today said there is no doubt Senator McCain knew exactly to whom the question referred, begging the question, as with McCain's Sunni-Shiite gaffe, which meaning is worse, the unintended or the intended? One footnote, Zapatero's grandfather fought alongside the communists in the Spanish civil war since the age of 13. McCain has said his greatest hero is the fictional character, Robert Jordan, from "For Whom the Bell Tolls" who fought alongside the communists in the Spanish civil war, for real. 

more

“Leadership is only going to come from somebody using the bully pulpit to create a mandate, so this is the opportunity for leadership,” said Maya MacGuineas, director of fiscal policy at the New America Foundation and an adviser to McCain’s 2000 presidential campaign.

 “Otherwise, a crisis is what it will take. And that’s a real problem, because Wall Street is short-term focused,” she said. “The financial markets will make us deal with it, but it will be too late when they do.” LINK

Former Senior Director at the National Security Council and current Senior Fellow at the New America Foundation, Flynt Leverett, discusses how President Bush should handle Russia's invasion of Georgia, a U.S. ally. LINK to video

A Race for the White House panel featuring Gene Robinson, Chrystia Freeland, Rachel Maddow, and Reihan Salam debates: Where is Barack Obama weak politically and how effectively has the McCain campaign been capitalizing on those weaknesses? LINK to video

CHRIS MATTHEWS: We`re back with the politics fix. Let`s bring in the round table, MSNBC political analyst Michelle Bernard and the Atlantic magazine`s Reihan Salam, whose new book is called Grand New Party.What`s your book about?

REIHAN SALAM, THE ATLANTIC": It`s about the white working class and about how the Republican party needs to win them back…LINK

DAN ABRAMS: Joining me now, Steve Clemons, Senior Director of the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation, a nonpartisan think-tank… Are you telling me that there is a real possibility of war with Iran on the horizon?

STEVE CLEMONS, SENIOR DIRECTOR, THE AMERICAN STRATEGY PROGRAM: I think there`s a possibility of war on the horizon, but what I`ve written is that the president`s not there yet. The president is showing a diversity of options, some of them have… more

OLBERMANN: In 2003, when Mr. Bush still exhibited thorough optimism about Iraq, he spoke quite openly about what would come next...But the logic has since become inverted. Back then American success in Iraq was supposed to lead to success in Iran. Now we are told that we must succeed with Iran to ensure our success in Iraq. But even standing on its figurative head, the administration`s conclusion remains inviolate; something must be done about Iran.Let`s bring in the… more