OBAMA JUST SAID CLARENCE THOMAS DIDN’T HAVE ENOUGH EXPERIENCE TO SERVE ON THE COURT: Kinda ironic, huh? (Scalia’s qualified, but Obama wouldn’t have nominated him). Just turned off the TiVo and his appearance with Rick Warren was on.

UPDATE: Ouch: “Rick Warren seems more interested in being pals with whomever winds up president than getting real answers.” Will that hold true for his McCain interview, too? Probably.

ANOTHER UPDATE: Ann Althouse is liveblogging it.

MORE: Reader Jacob Allen thinks the criticism is unfair: “I think it’s important to remember that Warren isn’t going into this with a journalistic mindset. He’s a pastor, not a pundit. His purpose (no pun intended) is solely to provide the forum, ask the questions and let the audience judge the answers. I imagine he’d argue that the follow-up and critique is a job left to others–like KLo.”

STILL MORE: McCain’s answers are certainly a lot shorter.

MORE STILL: John Podhoretz thinks McCain did well. “If John McCain can perform during the three debates the way he is performing tonight with Rick Warren, he will win this election.”

I have to say that I think the format was very good, with the same questions and the candidates not hearing each others’ answers. It sort of sounded like a game show, but it worked.

FINALLY: Rich Lowry: “They both were very good, but in entirely different ways.” TalkLeft: “Obama held his own, I think, but McCain’s performance was the crowd favorite, my friends.”

And Allah goes to the video on Clarence Thomas. I’m standing by my call — biting the word in half isn’t the same as not saying it. In fact, it kind of underscores things that he recognized the error himself, doesn’t it? “Holy crap, I can’t say that!“