When the night began Sarah Palin turned her mic on a bit early, (perhaps not intentionally, but I think so) leans into Joe Biden and says, "Hey, can I call you Joe?" to which Joe Biden replied, something like "Absolutely no problem." The reason it's not listed in the transcript is because Joe Biden did not turn his mic on until the debate had actually started. A great swing by Palin, likely thought up by Karl Rove or someone similar. This was a good stab at Barack Obama's calling John McCain, "John" while not asking permission as she made sure everyone knew she did.
In the beginning:
The answering of the first question pretty much set the tone of the entire debate. The question was:
The House of Representatives this week passed a bill, a big bailout bill -- or didn't pass it, I should say. The Senate decided to pass it, and the House is wrestling with it still tonight. As America watches these things happen on Capitol Hill, Sen. Biden, was this the worst of Washington or the best of Washington that we saw play out?
A great first question with two very different answers.
Joe Biden:
I think it's neither the best or worst of Washington, but it's evidence of the fact that the economic policies of the last eight years have been the worst economic policies we've ever had. As a consequence, you've seen what's happened on Wall Street.
If you need any more proof positive of how bad the economic theories have been, this excessive deregulation, the failure to oversee what was going on, letting Wall Street run wild, I don't think you needed any more evidence than what you see now.
So the Congress has been put -- Democrats and Republicans have been put in a very difficult spot. But Barack Obama laid out four basic criteria for any kind of rescue plan here.
A great opening answer that actually answered the question. On the other hand, Sarah Palin had this to say:
Sarah Palin:
You know, I think a good barometer here, as we try to figure out has this been a good time or a bad time in America's economy, is go to a kid's soccer game on Saturday, and turn to any parent there on the sideline and ask them, "How are you feeling about the economy?"
And I'll bet you, you're going to hear some fear in that parent's voice, fear regarding the few investments that some of us have in the stock market. Did we just take a major hit with those investments?
Fear about, how are we going to afford to send our kids to college? A fear, as small-business owners, perhaps, how we're going to borrow any money to increase inventory or hire more people.
The barometer there, I think, is going to be resounding that our economy is hurting and the federal government has not provided the sound oversight that we need and that we deserve, and we need reform to that end.
Now, John McCain thankfully has been one representing reform. Two years ago, remember, it was John McCain who pushed so hard with the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reform measures. He sounded that warning bell.
While this answer wasn't a terrible answer, it never answered the question and led into what John McCain thought, not Sarah Palin. This would continue to be the theme of the night for Gov. Palin. A lot of talk about McCain, not enough talk about her own views. Despite this, however, she did very well overall.
Getting the ball rollin':
Both candidates did decent jobs of answering the next few questions without any real substance being the issue for both. Sarah Palin listed off canned answers that she gave her own "rootin' tootin', down home hillbilly" spin as an attempt to seem "more authentic" and "more like us." As is always the case, I don't want a President who is "just like us." I want a President who I look up to as being better than me in many areas. Despite this, I still feel I could have a beer with any of the 4 candidates.
Joe Biden was not the pillar of perfection, either. While Palin ignored what she herself thought about issues, Biden spent too much time saying who John McCain isn't, instead of who Barack Obama is. However, he did finally even up Palin's first swing with this:
Joe Biden: (The question was on Healthcare)
Now, with regard to the -- to the health care plan, you know, it's with one hand you giveth, the other you take it. You know how Barack Obama -- excuse me, do you know how John McCain pays for his $5,000 tax credit you're going to get, a family will get?
He taxes as income every one of you out there, every one of you listening who has a health care plan through your employer. That's how he raises $3.6 trillion, on your -- taxing your health care benefit to give you a $5,000 plan, which his Web site points out will go straight to the insurance company.
And then you're going to have to replace a $12,000 -- that's the average cost of the plan you get through your employer -- it costs $12,000. You're going to have to pay -- replace a $12,000 plan, because 20 million of you are going to be dropped. Twenty million of you will be dropped.
So you're going to have to place -- replace a $12,000 plan with a $5,000 check you just give to the insurance company. I call that the "Ultimate Bridge to Nowhere."
A great response that put things back to even on my scorecard.
Lies:
Debate Flow:
It is in the flow of the debate I felt Joe Biden did well enough to keep the race against Palin's "I'm not near as bad as everyone thought" experience. While she appeared to do better because the bar was set so low, Joe Biden silenced all the critics by not gaffing or being long winded. It was the flow of how he debated that caused him to pull ahead in the end.
Sarah Palin, on the other hand, seemed very nervous and her voice quivered at times. I almost got the sense that she didn't believe what she was saying with a passion that could have convinced many more people to get behind her. While she did a good job debating, as I predicted, she was still not the debate winner. Unfortunately, throughout most of the debate she SEEMED like she was the winner because of the bar being set so low. Thankfully, Joe Biden came to compete and did so without offending anyone, attacking Palin personally or giving in to his critics with long, painful answers and a forked tongue.
Raw, Real, Respectable Emotion:
Joe Biden got choked up during the debate when speaking of his son in Iraq and his wife and infant daughter who have passed on. He did this because that's the type of guy he is. It is this type of emotional thinking and empathy that makes him the great man he is. He is a man of the people, who is for the people and lives like the people. His net worth is roughly $100,000. He doesn't live beyond his means and he only has one house, just like Obama. It was this emotion that won Joe Biden the first and only Vice Presidential Debate of 2008.
When Biden got choked up thinking of his family that has passed on and his son in Iraq, he did so with grace and a raw truth that nobody can dispute. Sarah Palin, unfortunately, did not show any sympathy whatsoever. She didn't apologize for his loss or express empathy in any way about her own situation or his. Instead, she rattled off another McCain sound bite in a poor attempt to change the subject. While I think she was smart to change the subject and not attack back, she should have at least said something to the effect of "Mr. Biden, I am extremely sorry for your previous loss and you have my most sincere condolences. We both have children in Iraq and that is why this war must be won." This would have put her back in the lead. She didn't do it so she didn't win.
Conclusion:
This was a great debate that did not bore me like the last one did. I was entertained and informed throughout the broadcast. Both candidates did well even though, in my opinion, Joe Biden took the trophy at the end. Not only did each candidate treat each other with respect, but they even had a nice chat afterwards showing that, politics aside, people can get along.
Joe Biden is a very nice man and is well liked on a personal level by man members of Congress. He has a great air of bipartisanship that many in Congress could take a lesson from. Sarah Palin also seems like a nice person. From what I could see she has the potential to be bipartisan and work with anyone. While I don't think she is ready yet for the position she is interviewing for, I think with enough study and real world experience, she may be one day. All in all I give the entire debate an "A."
Now that Palin has said she had a great time and wants to do it again, let's see if they let her give a press conference and finally put to rest once and for all if she can handle herself in a high pressure situation where you literally have ZERO clue what will be asked next.
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