Blog Buzz: John McCain in the 'Cone of Silence' and Barack Obama's Abortion Comment at the Saddleback Forum

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'Cone of Silence' a Bust for McCain

After learning that John McCain was not in the "cone of silence" during Barack Obama's segment at Saturday's Saddleback Forum, liberal bloggers are wondering whether he could have cheated and heard a preview of the questions the Rev. Rick Warren would ask during his segment. In defense of McCain, spokesperson Nicole Wallace reminded everyone of McCain's POW status, a move that liberal bloggers find preposterous. Conservative bloggers point out that both candidates knew some of the questions ahead of time and say McCain didn't cheat; he was just better than Obama at the forum. For its part, the McCain campaign has fired off an angry letter to NBC after Andrea Mitchell reported that "McCain may have had some ability to overhear what the questions were to Obama."

Abortion Question Above Obama's Pay Grade

Another point of contention from the Saddleback Forum is Barack Obama's answer to the question of when a baby gets human rights: Obama said that question "is above my pay grade." Liberal bloggers think it's obvious Obama was referring to God, while conservatives called it evasive and a "rhetorical misfire." Rick Warren said the response wasn't "clear enough." Obama's also getting plenty of flak from conservative bloggers for what they call lies about his record on the Born-Alive Protection Act abortion legislation.

—Gretchen Hannes