Joe Biden Won the Debate
(Blog author just sighing and shaking his head)
Article on web has been totally rewritten from what's in my paper, of course!!!!
"No fatal slips as Biden, Palin tussle for the title of reformer" by Susan Milligan and Scott Helman, Globe Staff | October 3, 2008
WASHINGTON - In their sole debate, vice presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin battled last night for the title of defender of the middle class, arguing over taxes, Iraq, and the mortgage crisis as each claimed to represent the force for change and reform in Washington.
Both candidates largely avoided making direct attacks on each other, but they sparred over the presidential nominees' positions - in particular, whether Republican candidate John McCain deserves the moniker of "maverick" that Palin repeatedly said would characterize a McCain-Palin administration.
While Palin frequently cast her running mate as a rogue politician eager to take on Wall Street, oil companies, and even his own party, Biden described McCain, his longtime Senate colleague, as a man who constantly voted for President Bush's agenda on matters ranging from regulation to education and funding for a children's health program.
Neither candidate committed the kind of serious error that some pundits had predicted.
Not one the MSM deems reporting, anyway:
"At 9;53 EDT, Joe Biden said "We (sic) kicked Hezbollah out of Lebanon!"
Uh, Joe, Hezbollah is STILL IN LEBANON!!! They LIVE THERE!!!!!!
Biden, the veteran Delaware senator, avoided the run-on speeches and gaffes that have gotten him into trouble in the past.
Oooookay, obfuscating MSM!!!!
Palin, the Alaska governor whose inexperience and uneven performance in recent interviews led to questions about her credentials for the job, for the most part delivered clear and folksy responses on topics familiar to her.
Translation: She won!
And while gender was a constant undercurrent in last night's matchup, it was Biden at the center of perhaps the most poignant moment of the debate, choking up when he referred to his own personal tragedy to display his concern for struggling families.
"I understand what it's like to be a single parent. When my wife and daughter died, and my two sons were gravely injured, I understand what it's like as a parent to wonder . . . if your kid's going to make it," Biden said, referring to the car accident that killed his wife and child weeks before he was set to take his first Senate oath of office decades ago.
"I am much better off now, but the notion that somehow, because I'm a man I don't know what it's like to raise two kids alone," Biden continued, stopping briefly. "I know what it's like to have a child and not be sure that he's going to make it."
For most of the debate, the vice presidential contenders were careful to avoid attacking each other, a tactic that kept Biden from appearing to bully his female opponent and allowed Palin to maintain the regular-mom, friendly demeanor that brought new energy to the McCain campaign when she was picked in late August.
Biden sought to establish McCain as an heir to the policies of President Bush, who is deeply unpopular with the public.
"All you have to do is go down Union Street with me in Wilmington or go to Katie's Restaurant or walk into
Lines like that drew gentle rebukes from Palin throughout the night.
"Say it ain't so, Joe. There you go again, pointing backwards again," she said at one point. "Now, doggone it, let's look ahead and tell Americans what we have to plan to do for them in the future."
The debate was a critical test for Palin, who had performed well in debates in Alaska but was under pressure last night to show her range of knowledge. While Palin several times gave one-sentence answers to questions, then followed with a longer discourse on a topic to her liking, such as energy, she did not commit a major stumble.
Translation: She won!
From the debate's opening moments, Palin immediately sought to employ her down-home approach when asked to assess the economy. Filling her remarks with "darn right" and promises to "talk straight," Palin underscored the ordinary-mom credentials that have made her a political icon of social conservatives. "Go to a kids' soccer game on Saturday," she said. "Turn to any parent on the sidelines and ask them: How are you feeling about the economy? I bet you're going to hear some fear in that parent's voice."
We are tired of MANUFACTURED FEAR, girl!
The McCain campaign had hoped that Palin, with her spunky speaking style and solid conservative credentials, would win over conservative women, Westerners, and evangelicals. But recent polling indicates that she, too, is losing ground among voters, a majority of whom, according to some surveys, question whether the former small-town mayor is qualified to take over as president.
Here's what was cut:
That is in part due to a handful of unflattering TV interviews Palin has given since McCain tapped her as his running mate, in which she could not name any magazines or newspapers she regularly reads, could not cite a Supreme Court decision other than Roe vs. Wade with which she disagreed, insisted Alaska's proximity to Russia gave her foreign policy experience, and struggled to offer cogent answers on the economy and geopolitics.
With surveys showing that voters put more faith in Obama to fix the economy, McCain has seen his support drop both nationally and in critical battleground states such as Virginia, Colorado, and Pennsylvania. In a surprise move, McCain's campaign disclosed yesterday that it is effectively pulling his campaign operation out of Michigan. The states of North Carolina, Indiana, and Florida -- once considered long shots for Obama -- are newly competitive.
Adjust your map accordingly, readers.
Also see: Obama Surges in Swing-State Polls
Now back to the web article:
Looking squarely into the camera, Palin went after Obama on matters ranging from energy - an issue familiar to her as Alaska's governor - and foreign policy, a strong suit for Biden, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In words that almost exactly echoed McCain's, she attacked Obama's expressed willingness to meet with rogue leaders without preconditions, saying it "goes beyond naivete, and goes beyond poor judgment. A statement he made like that is downright dangerous." --more--"
Those seconding Sarah's win say "aye":
"Rivals shine, Palin a bit more brightly" by Joanna Weiss, Globe Staff | October 3, 2008
Of all of the things the public had gleefully expected from last night's vice presidential debate, substance was probably far down the list.
But in an evening nearly free of gaffes, large or small, the biggest surprise was how much information Joe Biden and Sarah Palin managed to pack into an hour and a half. It even produced some genuine moments of agreement.
Thanks to the presence of Palin, the matchup was colloquial, too, almost casual at times. Especially when talking about domestic policy, she peppered her remarks with phrases like "Darn right." She declared that "Joe Sixpack, hockey moms across the nation, I think we need to band together." She gave a shout-out to third-graders at an Alaska elementary school. At least twice, she winked.
Translation: She won!
Look for a jump for McCain in the next batch of polls, even though
"Obama now leads McCain by 17 percentage points among women"
Heard it here first.
Most strikingly, she seemed to be having a good time - a stark contrast to her recent, damaging interviews with ABC's Charlie Gibson and CBS's Katie Couric, when she came across as stiff, stilted, and fearful, wedded to canned lines and prone to awkward pauses.
The format and pace of last night's debate played to a skill Palin could capitalize on: She studiously avoided answering questions directly, changing the subject with ease. And unlike Couric, who doggedly pressed at questions Palin had evaded, moderator Gwen Ifill let most of the meandering go.
Palin seemed almost gleeful about this new format, which gave her ample chances to talk directly to the camera. "I like being able to answer these tough questions without the filter even of the mainstream media," she said at one point.
Biden's weakest moments came when he tried to match Palin's colloquialisms, tossing out lines like," As my mother would say, God love him but he's been dead wrong." He frequently referred to "my neighborhood," citing hardscrabble towns where he hasn't lived in awhile. At one point, he referred to "Bosniacs."
But NO GAFFES!!! Pfft!
With so few mistakes, a clear winner was hard to determine. On CNN, a real-time measure of reactions from a group of Ohio voters - which took up nearly a fifth of the screen - rarely dipped into the negative, no matter who was talking. But throughout it all, Palin was the one who smiled most broadly. Even the flag pin on her lapel had sparkles. -- more--"
Oh, then SHE DEFINITELY WON, huh?
Mind what I said about the polls, readers.
