Poor Joe Biden: A senator with 36 years of experience who is Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, nuanced and conversant in all the issues of the day, has to stand on stage with Sarah-the-Mary-Kay-Sales-Lady for 90 minutes and pretend there is a 'debate'. So sad for the USA.
The VP debate was painful to watch. I find her infuriating to listen to. She reminds me of the worst aspects of small-minded people in the midwest, where I lived for 15 years: self-righteous, simultaneously arrogant and clueless but utterly convinced of her own opinions. A brow never creased by doubt. And most infuriating: winking at the camera and trying to be cute, rather than just answering the questions. Good lord: If someone did that in a job interview I'd throw them out in a second!
Thankfully the polls seem to indicate that viewers saw through that act. Sullivan:
Biden didn't put the boot in; he didn't come off as sexist; he didn't make any obvious gaffes. Palin didn't collapse and pushed through the debate with enough speed not to wobble. But it felt as if she needed the speed in order not to wobble. Her inexperience showed; her tone worked best at first and then began to grate. I don't think this debate changed the direction of this election campaign, and I think Palin's performance will buck up base Republicans but actually unnerve some independents.
The campaign's trajectory remains unaltered. Palin's inability to answer real questions, her capacity to avoid follow-ups, her slightly manic quality, and her inability to relate to working class voters came across. Biden did not talk too much; he made no sexist gaffes; he didn't appear to be overweening; he seemed like a nice guy. I think she managed to avoid a tailspin; he reassured. It will stem the GOP collapse a little. But it won't change the race.
What we need now is a press conference with Palin. She needs to be forced to answer follow-ups. She needs to be made accessible to the press and thereby the American people.
Fat chance that she'll do a press conference now. Except for staged appearances I'm guessing they will sequester her away until election day.
and I loved this summary (via dkos):
For her part, GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin – speaking with the programmed cadence of a GPS navigation system — used forced folksiness to deliver crammed material in the manner of a high schooler looking to score a good grade on a Spanish test. The kid may escape with a B-minus, but he wouldn’t be able to order a cup of coffee in Spain a week later.
Interestingly, every home on my street seemed to have the debate on their television, and those commuting home were tuned in on their car radios. I guess it is human nature to watch a high-wire act. After her disastrous interviews, people were expecting her to poop her pants onstage or something. Congratulations for not doing that, governor.
I love the flow-chart. I wish I'd thought of that ;-)
Posted by: Trish | October 05, 2008 at 06:55 PM