Voters' Views: Jessica Ross

White House hopefuls Barack Obama and John McCain have clashed over foreign policy and the economy in their first debate.

Here Republican and Democratic voters from across the US reflect on how the candidates performed.

Jessica RossStudent | Democrat

This debate has made me a stronger supporter of Barack Obama

Age: 23 Lives: Langhorne, Pennsylvania Occupation: Student and administrative assistant Last election voted: Republican In 10 words or less: Compassionate, spontaneous, opinionated, patient, idealistic, Christian, loving, frank, objective Voters' Views: main page

McCain came off as arrogant, referring to himself as a maverick while dropping names left right and centre.

What stuck out in my mind the most was how John McCain said that Ronald Reagan was one of the people he looks up to the most.

Any African-American person should have shuddered when they heard that statement. Ronald Reagan was very much against the civil rights movement and the changes it brought to this country.

Obama made many good points, including addressing the problems of the economy, the mistake of invading Iraq, and the mishandling of health care. He did a great job in confronting McCain over the mistake of invading Iraq.

Both candidates did a good job in clearly presenting their points: McCain in highlighting Obama's lack of experience; and Obama in highlighting the mistakes the Republican party has made under the Bush administration.

This debate has made me a stronger supporter of Barack Obama."

You can add your comments and questions on Jessica's views using the form below:

Your comments:

Jessica, you bring up very good points. I too became a stronger supporter of Obama after the debate. McCain was very patronising, intelligent individual is what we need as a leader and I'm afraid. McCain won't be able to provide what we need.
Aisha Rahimi, Walnut Creek, California

I don't know what debate she was watching, but in the one I was Obama wouldn't even answer the questions he was asked about economics. When asked what spending he would cut as a result of the bailout, he changed the subject. John McCain quickly said a possible spending freeze
Wyatt, Omaha, NE, USA

Hi and thank you for your comments. Wyatt - I did not say that Obama did a perfect job, both he and McCain danced around a few subjects. To the "what do you need to change in the budget due to the economic crisis" question, Obama basically said it is too soon to really know, which I think was an honest answer. McCain, under pressure from the moderator to get a direct answer, proposed a spending freeze. Obama then responded to McCain's idea of a spending freeze, pointing out that it was not a logical idea considering many things in the budget are simply too important to freeze spending.

Aisha, I agree that McCain was very patronising and condescending. While this attitude may be appealing to the die-hard republicans it is not going to sway the independents.
Jessica Ross, Pennsylvania

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The readers' panel has been selected from as wide a cross-section of people as possible and may not be representative of wider US public opinion.

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