Campaign 08: The Full Story

Newsweek has published a FASCINATING report on the entire 2008 campaign.  Embedded reporters followed Obama, Hillary and McCain around for the past year or more recording every scrap of detail on condition they would not reveal it until after the election.  Well, the election is over and the full story is a terrific soap opera of behind the scenes action.

• Insights into Obama's decision making: He never let his advisers know what he was thinking.  He made the decision himself, against his advisers' recommendations, to give his speech on race.

• Insights into McCain's honor: He drew bright lines of not to attack Obama on Jeremiah Wright or to attack Michelle Obama.

• Descriptions of debate prep: Obama studied intensely as if for a Bar exam.  McCain watched tape of Biden and Palin and thought Biden came off as a cranky old guy....and McCain didn't get the irony.

• Dirt on Palin: Oh yeah, she spent that much money and more on designer clothes and she spent it herself.  She also was peeved at her handling and therefore refused some interview prep before the Couric interview.  Palin started the Ayers attacks on her own initiative.

• Cute behind the scenes anecdotes:  Palin's daughter Piper would scramble over Lindsay Graham to reach her mother.  Obama playfully and in a nerdy way teased Michelle about her accessories.

It's a long article and it's all good stuff.  (If you'd rather watch, Charlie Rose interviewed a Newsweek reporter and editor who elaborated on the long article).  As for the website/article, it's terrific reading.  The first page gives you tempting "highlights," and the rest of the reporting divides into seven chapters.  Happy reading!  (And find an embed of the Charlie Rose interview after the jump).