First Reactions To McCain's Speech

Taegan Goddard's Political Wire highlights some first reactions to McCain's acceptance speech last night.

Walter Shapiro: "His acceptance speech Thursday night was a mirror of McCain the contradictory political figure -- sometimes unorthodox and daring, sometimes plodding and pedestrian; rich in character, light in policy substance, much stronger in its sincere tone than in its rhetorical gloss."

Joe Klein: "More a valedictory than an acceptance speech -- more the end of a career than the beginning of a presidency."

Andrew Sullivan: "Quite a deflation after the drama of last night with the sportscaster-governor. It made me realize how much I am still fond of this guy. And also clearer about why this is not his moment. The specifics were very vague, and the entire presentation based on biography, nostalgia and a kind of strained, exhausted mildness. His performance at Saddleback was much, much better. He seemed very tired to me."

Jonathan Martin: "McCain hit all his message targets, eschewing partisan red meat to cast himself as a man who will work across party lines to reform a broken capital. But his delivery, especially in the first portion when he was discussing policy issues, was uninspired and did little to captivate the audience."

Michael Crowley: "...this is a very underwhelming speech. Familiar points explained in pedestrian terms. No overarching themes--right now it's sounding like a State of the Union laundry list. Even the crowd in the hall isn't jazzed. This is the sort of reception Tom Ridge got."

David Corn: "He offered an unexciting mix of GOP orthodoxy and declarations of personal maverickness--which was capped by yet one more long and detailed recounting of his POW days of forty years ago. Enough already."

Mark Halperin: "All in all, he came across as calm, honorable, and dedicated rather than fired up and ready to go."