I'll drop my hat in but I'll bet people are afraid to tackle this. Its tough. Bush did much better this time. I basically just have disjointed comments:

1. The thirty second response format was annoying this time. Kerry in particular seemed sound bitey during those quick responses.
2. Bush seemed more personable. Kerry seemed smarter.
3. In my mind Kerry won the joust over partial birth abortions, but the thing is that most people aren't interested in the complexity of the situation and Kerry didn't underline it on an emotional level. Stupid people like stupid black and white choices. They are blinded by their convictions. You have to ask them how they would feel if their wife was going to die and the doctor had the power to save her but it was illegal. You have to reach for the throat to cut through the propaganda of the fundies.
4. They both seem to be buying my vote. The debate over middle class taxes was a little annoying. Am I supposed to eat the rich, Kerry? At least be subtle about it.
5. Bush did seem to spend too much time talking about Kerry and not enough time talking about what he plans to do.
6. I wonder if the fundies realize that Bush's religious references are calculated. I think no, and I think Kerry lost points there.
7. The debate, in general, made me feel more confident about the idea of Kerry as president. Kerry seems like someone who understands what is involved and has a clear plan to meet the challenges. Bush seems defensive and given to oversimplification.

I never commented on the VP debate so I'll do it now. It was very close, but I agree with Elonka. Edwards seemed like a salesman. Cheney seemed more intelligent and genuine. Cheney is the kind of conservative I wish I could actually vote for... Someone who would build a free market and a tough foreign policy without putting the fundamentalists in power over my personal life at the same time..

If there was a Kerry Cheney ticket I'd be sold. Unfortunately, I'm not voting for the Vice President...

(And unfortunate it is. Doesn't everybody realize that flipping a red/blue switch every four years is an insult to the idea of democracy? We should have a more granular ability to control our government. How democratic IS your country compared with others? Spare the patriotic bullshit and really think about it. How do you compare how democratic countries are?