Students crowded into the Rathskeller at Memorial Union Friday to watch the first presidential debate.
The debate between Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and Republican presidential candidate John McCain focused mainly on the economy and foreign policy.
Both candidates agreed that the current economic crisis is one of the most important problems facing the nation today and vowed to get spending in Washington under control if elected.
The candidates differed greatly on the war in Iraq. McCain said the war may have been mishandled in the beginning but the United States has made strides in Iraq with the troop surge.
This strategy has succeeded. And we are winning in Iraq. And we will come home with victory and with honor,"" he said.
Obama, on the other hand, said Iraq has taken U.S. attention away from the threat of Afghanistan. He said as president he would never hesitate to use military force to keep the country safe, but it must be used intelligently.
""We have to use our military wisely. And we did not use our military wisely in Iraq,"" Obama said.
McCain and Obama agreed an alliance with Russia is important, but said Russia must understand military action against Georgia was wrong.
McCain said the United States wants to work with the Russians but has the right to expect Russia to respect ""international boundaries and the norms of international behavior.""
Student groups were on hand Friday night registering students to vote. UW-Madison student Hangatu Omar from the advocacy group Progressive Future said 15 to 20 people registered to vote before the debate even began.
Omar said student interest is at an all-time high because people are very curious to see what the candidates have to say.
""This is a really crucial year, and this is one of the biggest elections we'll ever see in our lifetime,"" she said.
UW-Madison senior Rachel Breck said young people will play an important role in this election.
""I think this election has a lot of impact on what is going to happen in the next four years, and there's really been a large effort to get the student vote out,"" Breck said.
