VP Debate Thoughts
Oct. 2nd, 2008 11:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
zuptdI'm sure that many will beg to differ, but frankly I thought it was more or less a draw. Folks that disagree with one candidate or the other will think their man (or woman) won, but frankly, as I have problems with both of the tickets, I don't see either one as a winner or a loser.
Palin showed that the Katie Couric interviews were not the only spoken exchange to judge her by. Biden showed that he can encapsulate his answers and not get drawn into some stupid outburst or comment.
I was was annoyed by Palin's mis-pronunciations of Nuc-you-lar, and I-ran, and her Maliki and Talabani were questionable, but her Ahmadinejad was pretty impressive. I do think she suffers from an unfortunate informality of speech, especially her use of "ya" instead of "you", that makes her sound even more inexperienced than she is. It's a lack of polish, but also speaks to her having lived more or less a rural life....I'm not going to condemn her for that even though there's reason to want a polished vice-president.
As far as content, Palin dodged more than was good for her, and jumped back to energy too much. Biden had a tendency to need to respond to things a bit too much. My thoughts on policy are very mixed, but usually they are after any debate, as half the goal is to dredge up past actions and votes that usually had good reasons but look bad on the surface. There's a real need to visit the candidate websites and really look at the details of their stated policies and maybe compare to independent facts and sources. For at least some of the fact checking, check this Yahoo! news article.
Actually, I might give Biden a slight edge upon further thought, but the real challenge for Palin was just to demonstrate that the Katie Couric interviews were nto the final word, and I think she did that. So, Biden might have been more impressive, but Palin had a lot more ground to make up based on her previous week or two.
Palin showed that the Katie Couric interviews were not the only spoken exchange to judge her by. Biden showed that he can encapsulate his answers and not get drawn into some stupid outburst or comment.
I was was annoyed by Palin's mis-pronunciations of Nuc-you-lar, and I-ran, and her Maliki and Talabani were questionable, but her Ahmadinejad was pretty impressive. I do think she suffers from an unfortunate informality of speech, especially her use of "ya" instead of "you", that makes her sound even more inexperienced than she is. It's a lack of polish, but also speaks to her having lived more or less a rural life....I'm not going to condemn her for that even though there's reason to want a polished vice-president.
As far as content, Palin dodged more than was good for her, and jumped back to energy too much. Biden had a tendency to need to respond to things a bit too much. My thoughts on policy are very mixed, but usually they are after any debate, as half the goal is to dredge up past actions and votes that usually had good reasons but look bad on the surface. There's a real need to visit the candidate websites and really look at the details of their stated policies and maybe compare to independent facts and sources. For at least some of the fact checking, check this Yahoo! news article.
Actually, I might give Biden a slight edge upon further thought, but the real challenge for Palin was just to demonstrate that the Katie Couric interviews were nto the final word, and I think she did that. So, Biden might have been more impressive, but Palin had a lot more ground to make up based on her previous week or two.
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no subject
Date: 2008-10-03 06:43 am (UTC)Palin needed to do more than just survive, she needed to start making a dent in Obama's numbers. She didn't.
She may have tied the debate, but she lost the bigger goal.
no subject
Date: 2008-10-03 11:38 am (UTC)of the political dumpster and the Senator sounded knowledgeable about
complex issues w/o being sneering and elitist. But what really mattered was not style but the substance of their answers and when you
got past Palin's cutesy evasions ("Can I call ya Joe?" Pul-leeze!)
some of them were downright scary like her goal of EXPANDING the powers of the Veep. IF McC is elected (shudders and almost faints) we may end up actually missing Cneney who had a hard time hiding his contempt for that loser in the White House. IMHO the reason Sarah ("Can we call ya that, huh?" ) is so uber confident is that she really believes she was sent by God to save our nation from its sins. Now that IS scary! Ed
no subject
Date: 2008-10-05 08:07 pm (UTC)I still believe she is not ready for prime time.
As for not being enthused about either of the candidates, I understand, but I don't have high hopes for any of the politicians anyway really. I know that Obama/Biden will do no harm to the issues I care about and I can't say that about McCain/Palin. And watching Obama skillfully navigate some treacherous political waters has been nothing less than stunning - he's obviously smart, in tune with modern politics, and has the potential to be a truly great President. I'm not saying he will, but I think he has the potential.