David Gergen

If people truly want to find a bridge to avoid the fiscal cliff, a way to get to the big issues, as David Walker says would have to come next year, I think they're the makings of it here.

I think the Democrats are the ones who are really trying to rub it in and almost humiliate the Republicans, and that's not going to get to a bargain.

I think right now they favor John Kerry as the next secretary of state.

The reason they didn't have the big -- didn't have the turnout they're looking for because they didn't have enough people out there who wanted to vote for them.

I think Gloria is right. The president ought to set the tone. But I also think Speaker Boehner, speaker of the House, he's got to come forward.

Some Republicans have been living in denial before the election and they're still there. They do have a serious demographic problem.

And I think when you're president, it's incumbent upon you... to set the tone for negotiations.

The president has got to unlock that now. That's what being elected to the second term.

I think we have no choice. I think Gloria's right. The president ought to set the tone. But I also think Speaker Boehner, speaker of the House, he's got to come forward.

I do, Anderson. I'm increasingly optimistic that we will not go over the fiscal cliff.

If the Republicans are willing to come to the table on some form of -- you know, of tax increases that don't come out of the middle class, and also the Democrats are willing to go along with entitlement reform, you could get the structure…

I do, Anderson. I'm increasingly optimistic we won't go over the fiscal cliff.

I think there is intensity on both sides. But there is, as John King keeps talking about, there's a noticeable difference from 2008.

If President Obama loses it's not because he didn't want it.

Can we stipulate upfront that there will be no mandate? Whoever wins? Whoever wins?

Well, my gut tells me that, Anderson, contrary to what we normally see -- normally in a final weekend, the electorate starts to break slightly towards the challenger. This weekend, it seems to be breaking for President Obama.

The polls show or the average of polls show that the president is clinging to a small lead in eight out of the ten battleground states.

I think his turnout operation is better in some of these states than Mitt Romney's.

The wind may go to the guy who has the last big play.

I think it's moved from a race that was heavily tilted toward Obama, the president was just beating Romney as a campaigner, and the debate has now made it much more of a horse race.

I think we saw that at the Democratic Convention. You know, the Clinton speech was the highlight of that convention, not the Obama speech.

I think this was a new Mitt Romney we saw last night or one we haven't seen before.

I thought there was a very subtle shift, Anderson, because coming out of this debate, the conservatives have really been fired up.

I think there is some damage that's come to the Obama campaign.

The narrative of this campaign has changed. Romney has changed it.