"To quote Paul McCartney, it was a 'long and winding road' as Senator McCain meandered and took his time getting to the highlights of his speech Thursday night. The senator spoke for nearly an hour and it was mostly standard stuff. Then he took a turn and got emotional, explaining how he 'fell in love with my country' during his time as a prisoner-of-war. That was very effective. To state that his suffering led him to public service is a powerful point of view. And finally, Senator McCain revved up the crowd when he urged everyone to 'fight with me ... stand up for America.' A couple of things to wrap up both conventions - we have a race that is not only about issues, but about strong personalities. Obama, McCain and Palin are all very vivid people, and their personalities will sway millions of votes. But I also want very important issues to be considered and debated as well. That's why we will continue to demand specifics from all candidates."

News Link: McCain delivers acceptance speech at RNC

The Factor was joined by conservative radio host Laura Ingraham, who implied that McCain was overshadowed by Sarah Palin. "A lot of people were watching McCain," Ingraham said, "to see how he could possibly top Palin. He knows more than anyone that teleprompter public speaking is not his strength, so he laid out his personal narrative and the case for why his experience matters." Ingraham also critiqued the first installment of Barack Obama's venture into the No Spin Zone. "I thought he looked a little flustered, you intimidated him a little bit. He was never going to give you the admission that he was wrong about the surge, which would have become an instant campaign commercial for John McCain. And when he said the Iraqis haven't stood up and taken responsibility, I got mad. Province by province, the Iraqi people are bravely standing up and taking control of their country."

The Factor asked two political reporters for their analyses of the presidential race. "Both parties had successful conventions," said Time magazine's Karen Tumulty. "But they both got a big wakeup call Friday when we got the new unemployment rate of 6.1%, highest in five years. People are worried about health care and gas prices, and are looking for specific things. Most people think Democrats and Obama are better on the economy, but the debates are the next big test." Eamon Javers of Politico explained how each candidate is trying to frame the race. "John McCain is creating a story where this is a 'hero' versus a 'zero' with a limited resume. On the other hand, Barack Obama is going to tell the electorate this is Tiger Woods versus Grandpa Munster, that you want to bring in the sleek new guy who almost never makes a mistake." The Factor pointed out one distinctive aspect of this duel. "People are angry, and usually when that happens they go to the opposite party. But this year the new guy on the block has a lot of people doubting him. When I sat down with Barack Obama, I was impressed with the man and his presence, but there are still doubts about him."

The Factor welcomed Washington Post columnist Sally Quinn, who harshly criticized Sarah Palin on Wednesday's program, and who now admits to having second thoughts. "You pointed out the other night," Quinn began, "that I was being unfair by judging her before I heard her speak. I think you were right, and she was amazing. She was funny and smart and poised and confident and I think she's going to be a formidable opponent." Nevertheless, Quinn reaffirmed her doubts about Governor Palin's credentials. "I have not changed my mind about whether I think she's ready on day one, and I need to know as a citizen whether she'll put her country first or her children first." The Factor praised Quinn for reconsidering her position. "I admire you for coming here and being woman enough to say 'I was wrong and I'm going to give her another chance.'"

News Link: Sally Quinn does U-turn on Palin

With Barack Obama and John McCain basically in a dead heat after their conventions, The Factor spoke about the race with two leading pollsters. "We're seeing a bounce for John McCain," Scott Rasmussen reported, "but we're not sure how far it will go. Barack Obama got a fairly traditional convention bounce and I would expect John McCain to do the same. The race is very close and the Sarah Palin factor is going to take a while to sort out." Gallup's Frank Newport agreed that next week's polls will reveal a trend. "By Sunday we will have the results of interviews done Friday, Saturday and Sunday, all of which were after the convention. That's when we should begin to get a pretty good feeling of where things stand."

Tonya Reiman began her body language analysis with Governor Sarah Palin's Wednesday night speech. "You can see that she's very satisfied," Reiman said. "But the inward lip rolls that she demonstrates are a clear sign of arrogance on her part. She came across wonderfully, but I do see strong indications of arrogance." Reiman also watched excerpts from The Factor's interview with Barack Obama. "Look how close he gets to you. He wants to convince you, to bring you to his side, and it takes a powerful man to be willing to come that close to another person. He's not doing it in an aggressive manner, but he's trying to say just give me an opportunity."

Finally, Geraldo Rivera examined two situations in Florida, beginning with Casey Anthony, whose 2-year-old daughter has been missing since June. "Someone came up with $500,000 to bail this woman out," Rivera reported, "even as the forensic evidence mounts that the child was dead in the trunk of Casey Anthony's car. Who put up the money? I'll bet you it is a news organization or a book publishing company, someone with a commercial interest, that is trying to disguise its fingerprints." Rivera also provided an update on the storms approaching Florida. "Hanna is the lesser event, it will be a tropical storm or a minor hurricane. But Ike is a full-blown hurricane that will hit the Florida Keys on Tuesday." Finally, Rivera criticized Barack Obama's performance in the No Spin Zone. "He came off as small and not presidential. He looked tentative, he was trying to parse his answers, particularly about the surge and Iraq, and he came across as equivocal."

News Link: Hurricane Hannah hits coast

Friday's Patriots: Everyone who attended and participated in the political conventions in Denver and St. Paul. And the Pinheads: The mainstream media, which have taken a well-earned beating after their savaging of Sarah Palin. Nominate a Pinhead or a Patriot by sending an email to pnp@billoreilly.com.