Will first debate be Obama's historic moment?

Every presidential campaign has one -- a defining moment that cements a candidate’s image in the minds of voters.

Most famously was the 1960 Kennedy-Nixon debate, when JFK’s youthful appearance and Richard Nixon’s flop sweat pushed the young Massachusetts senator over the top.

Twenty years later, Ronald Reagan buried Jimmy Carter’s re-election bid when the former actor looked into the camera lens and asked Americans if they were better off than they were four years earlier.

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And 20 years after that debate, Al Gore damaged his White House campaign by sighing, whining and crowding in on George W. Bush. These were all surely defining moments because Saturday Night Live had such a great time mocking Gore after those debate missteps. (Remember “Lockbox”?)

This week, the American people (and SNL writers) will be watching the Democratic debate on MSNBC, all looking for those moments that will define the campaigns of Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards. More importantly, they will see how Obama compares next to Hillary—a woman every bit as experienced as the young senator is green.  If he is to prove he belongs in the senator's league, he better do well Thursday night in South Carolina.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCBP leaders cut out of Trump ad buy decision

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAmerican passenger drafted goodbye texts to her family as Flydubai plane plummeted

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCornell rape allegation pushes embattled New York prosecutor into national spotlight

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAbdul El-Sayed tries to woo MAHA voters as Democrats seek inroads with RFK’s supporters

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKratom-like substances are popping up in a typically benign supplement

FOR SUBSCRIBERSGOP super PAC increases its spending for Sen. Jon Husted in tough Ohio race

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRecords reveal tumultuous marriage between slain New York Times executive and wife

FOR SUBSCRIBERSFrom clean energy warrior to ‘wall of shame,’ James Talarico reverses on a fossil fuel money pledge

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCongressional staff planned official trip with luxury stops in Italy and France weeks before election

FOR SUBSCRIBERSA harrowing ordeal aboard an Israel-bound plane

FOR SUBSCRIBERSOpenAI CEO Sam Altman to skip congressional hearing on rogue AI agents

FOR SUBSCRIBERSKey DOJ lawyers departed Trump ‘grand conspiracy’ probe amid pressure to produce, source says

FOR SUBSCRIBERSTrump’s new AI chatbot often links to a site launched under Clinton 26 years ago

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAt MAHA summit, industry CEOs the movement once vilified take the stage

FOR SUBSCRIBERSThis Paralympian has two goals: Win medals and give away $500,000 to her teammates

If Obama fails his first big test, expect MSNBC’s debate to provide another one of those historic moments that define the future of this presidential campaign.

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