Both candidates arrive at tonight’s debate in Denver with problems to shed: Romney must erase the public perception that he is an out-of-touch elitist, while Obama’s campaign was recently shaken by a secret videotape in which the President reveals that he is black.

The debate begins at 9 p.m. — and Sam, Darron, Jake, Sara, and Stephen are here to bring you all the highlights. Stay tuned!

10:33 p.m.: That’s the end of the debate! Our takes:

Darron: Romney’s tie was crooked the whole night.
Sam: They both looked pretty bad.
Jake: Obama was stuttery and Romney was unlikeable.
Sara: I fell asleep, but from what I could tell Jim Lehrer won.
Stephen: Why was there no arm wrestling match?

Thanks for tuning in! See you next time!

10:32 p.m.: Romney’s closing statement, in a nutshell: A second Obama term will bring indescribable darkness to America.

10:30 p.m.: Obama’s closing statement, in a nutshell:  The American people are awesome. Also, (the Christian) God is awesome. I’m Barack Obama.

10:27 p.m.: Obama just gave Romney a little slap. “One of the important things about being a leader is being principled, not just saying you’re gonna sit down.”

10:25 p.m.: Obama pulls a “You’re likeable enough” with Lehrer.

10:23 p.m.: Romney gets in a good zinger by pointing out Obama is rich. “You have a plane!”

10:22 p.m.: Hey everyone, Obama is President. If you weren’t sure, he has reminded us a few times tonight.

10:19 p.m.: SilentJimLehrer is now a thing as well. This has been a good night for fake Twitter accounts.

 @SilentJimLehrer …yeah…al..right…

10:16 p.m.: Obama says Romney hates teachers. Romney: “I love great schools!”

10:13 p.m.: From FunnyOrDie:

“Poor Jim” is trending worldwide. So at least Jim Lehrer has that going for him. #debate2012

10:10 p.m.: Obama’s “is it because they’re too good?” joke fell pretty flat. We know the feeling.

10:07 p.m.: We’re told that thump backstage was libertarian candidate Gary Johnson trying to rush the stage.

10:04 p.m.: Romneycare vs. Obamacare: one plan enters, only one plan can leave!

10:01 p.m.: Via @eric_donahue:

holy shit this is so cringe-worthy it’s like watching that annoying kid in lecture who talks over the professor but didn’t do the reading”

and from @GooglePolitics:

 Top 5 debate-related rising searches so far: 1) Clean Coal 2) Simpson-Bowles 3) Romney 5 Tril Tax Cut 4) Debate Fact Check 5) Jim Lehrer

9:58 p.m.: And @bigbirdromney already exists. Meanwhile, Mitt Romney says “expensive things hurt families.”

9:55 p.m.: Mitt Romney complains that people received mortgages who were not qualified, suggests a 2-house prerequisite for getting a mortgage.

9:52 p.m.: Romney calls Dodd-Frank the “biggest kiss to banks I’ve ever seen.” How many bank kisses has he seen? ;-)

9:51 p.m.: Politifact:

Debunking Medicare attack lines, part 1 http://ow.ly/ecy3b part 2 http://ow.ly/ecy6L

9:50 p.m.: And Romney also name-drops Bill Clinton! Drink!

9:47 p.m.: Obama claims he’s opposed to calling seniors. What about those death panels then Mr. Hussein?

9:44 p.m.: MediScare time! Romney will never stop talking about this fictional $716 billion cut that his Vice Presidential nominee also supports.

9:41 p.m.:  Jim Lehrer: THIS IS SEGMENT 87 AND I’M THE MODERATOR. THAT MEANS WE ONLY TALK ABOUT MLS SOCCER. That means you don’t talk while I’m talking.

9:40 p.m.: Politifact tweet:

 Obama’s plan would reduce deficits by $4 trillion? Half True.http://ow.ly/ecLEo  <http://t.co/6EBwJgbg> #debate

9:38 p.m.: Ever the gentleman, Mitt Romney politely informs Jim Lehrer that he does not intend to abide by the time limits.

9:36 p.m.: “Take a balanced approach” is the new “Hope is on the way.”

9:34 p.m.: Is Donald Trump watching? Because he’s getting a lot of shout-outs.

9:31 p.m.: Since Obama has the straw man award, we’re creating a new one: Most Creative Way to Avoid Getting Cut Off by the Moderator. Who will win?

9:28 p.m.: Mitt Romney: “I like Big Bird.” New campaign slogan?

9:26 p.m.: Hey did anyone think they would be hearing this much about math tonight? We’re five seconds from Romney whipping out a pencil to do some back-of-the-envelope calculations.

9:25 p.m.: The best part of this debate so far: Jim Lehrer fighting with the candidates.

9:21 p.m.: Romney seems angry tonight. Maybe the Obamas have already regifted his anniversary present?

9:19 p.m.: The night’s first mention of Bill Clinton comes from President Obama. Does no one even REMEMBER Monica?

9:18 p.m.: We saw a study that said studies are wrong.

9:15 p.m.: Politifact is fact-checking this thing. Here’s what they said about that last exchange:

Reputable study found Romney’s tax plan can’t reduce overall rates AND raise same revenues. Our check:http://ow.ly/ecpR4  <http://t.co/ipqxeUyV> #debate

9:12 p.m: Romney is asked to ask Obama a question. Instead, he asks no one a question — Channeling Clint Eastwood?

9:11 p.m.: President Obama is lucky that millions of schoolkids can’t vote after he mentioned his plan to hire 100,000 new math and science teachers.

9:09 p. m: Drink for every mention of small business. But first call CAVA and tell them you’re going to need them in about five minutes.

9:06 p.m.: Obama takes the controversial position of being pro-jobs. We’re only on the first question and Obama may have already won the award for “best knockdown of a straw man.”

9:05 p.m: New rule! Drink if Obama mentions his anniversary! Drink drink drink!

9:03 p.m: The candidates are greeting each other. “You’re gonna lose!” “No you’re gonna lose!” “No you are!”

9:00 p.m: And we’re underway. “Thousands of people have suggested topics via the Internet,” but Lehrer has the final selection. Will our suggestion make it in? (Our suggestion: Boxers or briefs?)

8:55 p.m: There are a lot of debate drinking games going around out there, and we’re making up our own. A few rules, which will be added to as we go along:

1. Candidate uses a “zinger”: one drink
2. “Zinger” gets crickets: one drink
3. Solyndra mentioned: one drink
4. “Solaris” (the movie starring George Clooney) mentioned: five drinks
5. Someone yells at moderator Jim Lehrer: one drink
6. Jim Lehrer yells back: two drinks

8:51 p.m: Both candidates have spent weeks preparing for the debate. In Romney’s preparations, Obama was portrayed by Ohio Sen. Rob Portman. In Obama’s rehearsals, Romney was played by Sen. John Kerry. Kerry was the ideal choice, advisors said, because of his plentiful experience as a rich, white, socially awkward presidential candidate.

8:49 p.m: We’re watching this debate on Fox News (for real!).

8:45 p.m: We’re hearing that both candidates have opted for a debate instead of the physical challenge. Bold move.