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7:16 p.m.: A few closing thoughts. Rick Warren did a remarkable job. Very well done. Second, Sen. Barack Obama was good. He was personable, answered the questions thoughtfully, and showed humor, intellect and depth. Sen. John McCain was even better. His rich life experience took the forum from mono to stereo, from black-and-white to color. I’m a fence-setter voter, but this forum put me on the McCain side. While Obama may be the guy I’d like to have a drink with, McCain is the guy I’d want to lead me into battle. I’m still keeping an open mind, but for now, McCain’s my man.

7:14 p.m.: What would you say to people who oppose me asking these questions in the church? McCain pandered too much to the religious crowd. Score: 2.4.

7:12 p.m.: Why do you want to be president? question: McCain again (this is getting repetitive) hits it out of the park. “I’ll always be my country first.”

7:10 p.m.: The adoption question: Again, Rick Warren has made U.S. policy by getting commitments from both presidential candidates to agree to setting up an adoption organization for orphans around the world.

7:07 p.m.: I love the way McCain addresses his listeners as “my friends.”

7:05 p.m.: Congratulations to CNN for letting this forum to go into overtime.

6:58 p.m.: I’m loving John McCain right now. Question: What’s worth dying for? “There’s tyranny and tragedy throughout the world, but we can’t right every wrong” … But we need to a beacon of hope throughout the world … The most precious asset is American blood.” Score: 9.6.

6:56 p.m.: If I were Rick Warren’s stylist, I’d recommend that he lose the goatee (so 5 minutes ago) and the Italian tablecloth shirt).

6:52 p.m.: McCain, who provided shorter answers than Obama, gets an additional question. When privacy rights and the right for national security collide, what takes priority? McCain — and I don’t have a horse in this race — does another good job with his answer. If Jack Bauer of “24″ were to vote for president, I know he’d pick McCain (who’s actually had a walk-on role on the show).

6:47 p.m.: McCain is killing it. Question: What’s rich? He first says that anyone is rich who has a family, a job, a house and a good future for their kids. Then he says he wants everyone in America to be rich, keep taxes low and stop so much government spending.

6:45 p.m.: A thought. Should McCain stop the modified comb-over and go with a buzz? I say yes.

6:43 p.m.: Question: Merit pay for teachers. McCain supplies a short and popular answer: Yes! And then repeats “Choice and competition” and throws in “home schooling.” He’s cementing the conservative vote right now. Score: 8.8.

6:40 p.m.: Question: Federal dollars for faith-based initiatives. McCain, perhaps playing to the audience (and base), glosses over some of the problems inherent in faith-based initiatives. Score: 3.4.

6:38 p.m.: Question: Which Supreme Court justice would you have NOT nominated? McCain quickly ticks off several liberal judges and says there should be no legislating from the bench — and gives a good word for Roberts and Scalia. Score: 8.5.

6:34 p.m.: The question of evil. “We must totally defeat it.” McCain hits another out of the park. Promises to track down Osama bin Laden “to the gates of hell” and ties the defeat of radical Islamism to the war in Iraq. Score: 9.6.

6:32 p.m.: Stem-cell question. McCain answers this with intellectual honesty. Score: 9.2.

6:30 p.m.: The definition of marriage. McCain again gives the base what it wants. Warren goes off-script to ask about an upcoming California initiative. Score: 5.0.

6:28 p.m.: Abortion question: when does a baby have rights? Answer: At conception. Wild applause ensues. I can’t believe McCain believes that the instant a sperm and egg unites it has total human rights. But the base LOVES it! Score: 4.3.

6:26 p.m.: But McCain’s emotional recounting of his Christmas encounter with his Christian Vietnamese God brought tears to my eyes — and his.

6:25 p.m.: New drinking game. Have a shot each time McCain mentions his POW experience.

6:24 p.m.: What does being a follower of Christ mean to you? McCain: It means I’m saved and forgiven. From a Christian standpoint, that’s the perfect answer. Score: 9.8.

6:22 p.m.: Why didn’t these candidates buy commercial time of CNN and run some inspirational commercials?

6:21 p.m.: These are two very appealing presidential candidates in a setting like this.

6:19 p.m.: “Most gutting-wrenching decision you had to make” question. Another home run by McCain, who said he refused a chance to be released from his POW cell and basically sentenced himself to another three years in prison. It’s clear that a military man and long-time U.S. senator has more life experience than the much younger Obama.

6:16 p.m.: On the flip-flop question. McCain talks about off-shore oil drilling — this issue polls well, and strikes me as a political answer. He had more profound changes of mind during his career, but instead with a hot-button issue. Score: 2.2.

6:12 p.m.: Softball question from Warren. Get me an instance where you’ve gone against your party… McCain hits it out of the party, touching on torture and going against President Reagan’s plans to send troops to Lebanon. Score: 9.6.

6:10 p.m.: Biggest moral failing, personally and America’s. McCain’s personal failure: My first marriage. Heartfelt. But then he, by his own admission, panders and recites the first line from Warren’s book (the very same line Obama quoted). Political trick. Score: 5.0.

6:07 p.m.: Three wisest men questions (btw, what’s with Christians and their fascinated with three wise men?). McCain’s answer: Two military men, including Gen. David Patraeus, and a female entrepreneur (Meg Whitman of E-Bay). Score: 9.5 (two bonus points for not mentioning his wife or another family member).

6:05 p.m.: Another proposed drinking game: Have a shot each time a person of color is spotted in the audience of Saddleback Church.

6:04 p.m.: I think it’s a disadvantage for McCain to go second. Audience may be fatigued when hearing similar answers. We’ll see.

6:01 p.m.: Sen. John McCain introduced. I wonder if he ditched his tie at the last minute after looking at Warren and Obama. Maybe this will be a Clark Gable moment (he didn’t wear an undershirt in a movie and led to the near-extinction of undershirts). I think I speak for all guys who would cheer the the near-extinction of the tie.

5:59 p.m.: Great last question: What would you tell the American public is you knew there would be no repercussions? Obama’s answer about energy independence was great, too. Score: 9.5.

5:58 p.m.: Self-serving question from Warren, but I loved it: What do you say to people who oppose me asking you these questions? One thing Obama doesn’t lack is self-confidence. I keep wondering if he’s the Democratic Ronald Reagan, someone who can make people feel better about America again. I only wonder this when I see him in a setting like this. Score: 9.0.

5:55 p.m.: Terrible question from Warren: In one minute, why do you want to be president? But Obama’s answer saved it. Score: 8.8.

5:52 p.m.: Human trafficking question. Obama’s controversial answer: “This has to be a top priority.” I don’t like the question. It’s like saying, “Murder is a problem in the world. What would you do about it?” Score: 5.0.

5:52 p.m.: The usually tasteful graphic artists at Saddleback could have done better with the set and backdrop. It looks a little cheesy.

5:50 p.m.: “Pastor Rick” is making U.S. policy by asking for a commitment from Obama to set up a system to get the world’s orphans adopted. Savvy. Obama’s answer was good. Score: 8.5.

5:47 p.m.: Obama will regret his answer to the “when do you intervene in a genocide” by saying we should get UN approval.

5:45 p.m.: What’s worth dying for? HE ASKED MY QUESTION (kind of). But Obama whiffed on the answer by mouthing some very generic stuff. Score: 2.1.

5:42 p.m.: Is it too early to admit I was wrong? This forum is compelling.

5:41 p.m.: Dang, no school voucher or home schooling question. Warren: Define rich. Obama: If you sell 25 million books … Nice sense of humor. Big points. Score: 9.2.

5:40 p.m.: Pay for teachers question. Prediction: School vouchers or home schooling questions will be next.

5:38 p.m.: Obama did a nice job with explaining the nuances involved in federal dollars funding faith-based initiatives. Score: 8.5.

5:36 p.m.: A presidential candidate calling his interviewer “Pastor Rick” is really annoying. How about just “Rick”?

5:34 p.m.: Obama comes across as a really likable person in a one-on-one setting.

5:31 p.m.: Which Supreme Court justice would you have not nominated? A home run question and a bombshell answer with Clarence Thomas. Score: 9.5.

5:29 p.m.: I wish Obama or any candidate would just tell religious people who oppose stem-cell research that they are nuts, stand in the way of scientific progress and doesn’t cause any harm to human life. Obama failed with his wishy-washy answer. Score: 3.5.

5:26 p.m.: Having an evangelical leader ask questions should makes for different, straight-forward questions — wedge issues that separate conservative Christians with others. Warren’s latest: How do you define marriage? Again, Obama looks uncomfortable but he answered well. Score: 8.9.

5:24 p.m.: The abortion question by Warren is his best so far by a mile: At what point does a fetus (I think he used the word “baby”) have human rights? Obama really struggled with his answer — at one point, trying to avoid it by saying “It’s above my pay grade” to supply an answer. This will haunt him. Score: 2.3.

5:22 p.m.: Wow. A straightforward religious question: this is great, but Obama’s answering that being a Christian means that his sins will be “hopefully washed away” is off base. If Christianity is real and Obama is a Christian, his sins will be washed away.

5:22 p.m.: 200,000 questions submitted by Warren’s followers. The man generates big numbers — and doesn’t mind advertising it.

5:20 p.m.: This is more interesting than I thought it would be, but it’s frustrating the Rick Warren isn’t going to ask pointed follow-up questions.

5:18 p.m.: Just been informed by someone smarter than me that Warren hasn’t wore Hawaiian shirts for a while now. Note: I need to get to church more often!

5:16 p.m.: How many times will Obama bring up the fact that he opposed the war from the start? This could be a good drinking game. “Toughest decision” score: 3.2.

5:14 p.m.: “Example of a flip-flop” score: 8.1. Nice job to admit he’d been wrong about work-to-welfare reform.

5:12 p.m.: Not going to war in Iraq was actually a popular view within Obama’s district.

5:10 p.m.: Obama playing well to the crowd. Mentions “it’s not about me” and then cites a piece of Scripture. His revelation about his biggest moral failings — too much alcohol and drugs in his youth — was hardly revealing. Score: 7.4.

5:08 p.m.: “It’s not about me” is the first line from Warren’s best-selling “Purpose Driven Life” book.

5:06 p.m.: Score for Obama’s first question (out of 10): 5.6 — too long, too cliched.

5:04 p.m.: Is it me or is Barack Obama’s hair turning gray overnight?

5:03 p.m.: Rick starts out his first question with Scripture (nod to his audience, I’m guessing). The three wisest people in your life? Nice first question.

5:01 p.m.: What, no Hawaiian shirt? At least Rick didn’t put on a tie.

4:57 p.m.: Prediction: Pastor Rick Warren, who is moderating the forum, will do better with non-policy questions that give an insight into the candidates’ character — such as how do you handle the burden of sending soldiers into battle knowing that some of them will be killed?

4:36 p.m.: It’s late notice, but I decided to blog live the presidential forum today at 5 p.m. (PST) at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest. If you happen to be reading this in real time, just refresh this post frequently. If you’re getting to this afterward, you may want to read from the bottom.