October 17, 2000 -- The final, high-stakes round of the presidential debates Tuesday night had Democrat Al Gore back out swinging and carving out the "huge differences" between himself and Republican George W. Bush. The dominating charge between the vice president and the Texas governor in the 90-minute face-off at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, was who's the "big spender."

The third debate brought back some of the combativeness of the first, thanks in part to the town-hall forum. The candidates were more animated than in their second sit-down debate, often standing and even circling each other as they took questions from undecided voters. PBS's Newhour anchor Jim Lehrer moderated along strict rules as in the other two debates, but he allowed for a little more give and take by permitting some rebuttals and asking a few follow-ups.

A hand-picked group of fence-sitters posed the questions, and the first one out of the chute was on health care. Both candidates called for a patients bill of rights, but squabbled over which version to institute. In that initial exchange, Gore jumped up to stand startlingly close to Bush and stared him down as he was talking. The Texas governor gave him a wary glace and returned to his answer. The incident signalled that vice president was back on the offensive after taking flack for his passive performance in debate two.

Economics
The two engaged most actively on taxes and spending. Gore defended himself against Bush's "big government" charges, pointing to his federal down-sizing record and denouncing the Republican's huge tax cut plan as a gift to wealthiest one percent. Bush warned against Gore's pick-and-choose tax approach and his plans to "federalize" health care and education. He insisted the American people should decide how to spend their money. Listen to the exchange.

Guns and the Death Penalty
Questions about gun control and capital punishment had Bush on the defensive. One voter said he worried about an ad suggesting the National Rifle Association would "work out of the White House" in a Bush administration. Bush assured him the spot came from the enemy camp and that he supported some gun safety laws and more gun law enforcement that the current administration. Another audience member said in the last debate, Bush seemed to "overly enjoy" Texas' record as first in executions. Bush said it was not something he was "proud" of but reiterated that he'd never condemned an innocent person. Gore said he too supported capital punishment for the "most heinous crimes" and both agreed that the sentence was a powerful deterrent. Listen to the exchanges.

Credibility
While the last round ahead of the November 7 vote was more animated, it generally steered clear of the personal. Bush jabbed at Gore's credibility by insisting Americans needed someone in the White House "who will tell the truth." He also wound up his closing statement by vowing to "uphold the honor and dignity" of the presidency in a veiled swipe at President Bill Clinton's sex scandals. Gore pointedly noted his military service --which Bush avoided -- and charged that Bush couldn't possibly keep his campaign promises as his economic plan offers the same $1 trillion to two groups of people. Listen to the exchange and their closing statements.

For more on the debates, check out NPR host Neal Conan's analysis.

For more on the debate and complete audio archives, check out our Election 2000 Debate section.

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