My friends, the election is over:

People would rather watch a football game with Barack Obama than with John McCain — but by barely the length of a football.

Obama was the pick over McCain by a narrow 50 percent to 47 percent, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo! News poll released Friday that generally mirrored each presidential candidate’s strengths and weaknesses with voters.

Is there any more germane or essential criteria with which to choose the next president (assuming watching football would include drinking a few beers as well)?  Honestly, I can’t think of any off the top of my head, but feel free to e-mail with your wild hypotheses.

The terminal weakness of McCain’s candidacy is eloquently expressed by this McCain supporter:

“I think he’d be fun to sit back with and hear his experiences, all his stories,” said Kyle Ferguson, 28, a Republican from Santa Rosa, Calif., who picked McCain. But reflecting a sense some voters have of McCain based on the complaints of a few Senate colleagues, he added warily, “I bet he’d probably get pretty angry and lit up if his team was losing.”

Um, yeah.  We wouldn’t want McCain throwing something through the PMI’s new 100 inch plasma should his team lose.  A real risk considering McCain is a Cardinals fan. 

This biting critique of the candidate’s qualifications is also entirely, totally relevant:

Democrat James Smith, 29, of Asheville, N.C., picked Obama because he believes he and the Democratic senator from Illinois have more in common.

“With McCain, I have such an age difference,” said Smith of the Arizona senator, who is 72. 

Well that, and who wants the awkwardness when McCain nods off in your recliner and starts drooling on the upholstery.  Unless you were thinking along the lines of the girl tranny that jacked Gabby Schwartz.