Palin stops blood loss, but dodges questions in debate with Biden
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http://onelittlevictoryblog.comSarah Palin didn’t come in and drool on herself, and she didn’t burn the building down. By those standards, her night was a success.
It was also a success in that was able to forcibly project herself to the viewers. And someone not paying close attention to the content might well have been impressed with her presence and confidence. But make no mistake, none of that was off the cuff. She was well-prepared and scripted throughout.
Her strategy was simple… attack, attack, attack. Don’t answer the questions that are asked and raise and answer her own questions. Act folksy and repeat tired lines and lies. To those paying close attention to the content, Palin didn’t fare well. She did not defend McCain’s positions well other than to say what a great guy he was. And some of her answers were downright scary and bizarre.
Let there be no doubt - Biden won this one on points, handily. Every time Biden brought up Bush and McCain;s connection to Bush, Palin accused Biden of looking backward. Biden sharply pointed out that “past is prologue,” while Palin wants us to simply ignore inconvenient policies and records. If you are looking for a metaphor for the night, then I have a fitting one; Palin was the chihuahua (not pit-bull) that latched on to Biden’s ankle… she was more annoying than doing any real damage.
It’s been a long evening, so I will do a shorthand analysis of the debate. Once again, each question is on a ten point system.
Question One: Bailout
Biden hit the major points of the failures of the past eight years, nailing de-regulation and what it has unleashed on Wall Street. he echoed the criteria detailed by Obama in the first debate. Biden made a direct bid to connect with the middle class.
Palin also went to connect with the middle class, talking about talking to people at a kid’s soccer game. She then accused the federal government of not providing oversight (failing to point out the Republican pattern of de-regulation) and held up McCain as a reformer. Amazingly, she talked about how he brought people together over the past week, despite a fair amount of evidence to the contrary.
Biden 7 Palin 5
Question Two: Political Polarization
Biden noted his own bi-partisan accomplishments in the Senate and pointed out that until two weeks ago McCain thought that the economy was sound. He noted that one morning at 9am McCain said the economy was strong and then two hours later talked about the economic crisis we are faced with. As Biden noted, McCain’s not a bad guy… he’s just out of touch.
Palin reiterated the nonsense that McCain was talking about American workers when he talked about the foundation of the economy. She then made her first of a thousand mentions of McCain being a maverick and that together they were a team of mavericks. She chided Obama on voting on party lines, while failing to note that McCain voted with Bush more than 90% of the time.
Biden 7 Palin 4
Question Three: Sub-prime lending meltdown
Palin laid the blame for the crisis on predatory lenders and the corruption of Wall Street. She got folksy with her “Joe Six Pack” and “Hockey Mom” references, and talked about the importance of people living within their means. No where did Palin recognize the need for greater regulation.
Biden argued that Obama had warned two years ago of the coming crisis while McCain acted surprised and helped let Wall Street run wild through de-regulation and hoped that Wall Street would regulate itself. Biden pointed out McCain’s call to bring the same “reforms” to health care.
The two then went back and forth, with Palin laying tax increase allegations on Obama, repeating the lie that Obama would tax people earning as little as $42,000. Biden then applied that same standard to McCain, noting that he voted to increase taxes 477 times. Palin’s response was to talk about the tax cuts she initiated as Mayor of Wasilla and as Governor of Alaska, before erroneously stating that McCain had been a champion for tougher regulations.
Biden 6 Palin 3
Question Four: Class warfare through taxes
Biden said raising taxes on the wealthy is called fairness. The middle class is struggling and McCain’s tax plan gives nothing to the middle class, but benefits the wealthy and the corporations. Biden reiterated that Obama’s tax cuts would benefit everyone under $250K. As Biden repeated several times, when the middle class benefits, everyone benefits.
Palin shot back that Obama’s policies would harm small businesses. She slammed Biden’s previous statement about paying taxes being patriotic. She talked about the need to lessen the tax burden on the private sector and called Obama’s plan backwards. She then pulled out the health care plan, stating that McCain would grant a $5K tax credit to get health care. She said that was better than a government run program.
Biden seized on that and correctly pointed out that that McCain’s plan, for the first time, actually tax us on our health benefits, thus resulting in a net loss even against the $5K tax credit. As he put it with one hand McCain would giveth, while he would taketh with the other. He also pointed out that the money would go directly to the health insurance companies and lead to many more people not being covered by health insurance.
Biden 8 Palin 4
Question Five: What promises won’t be kept?
Biden at least partially answered the question and talked about a delay in foreign assistance and in providing some tax relief. He then copied Obama and talked about the things that wouldn’t be delayed, such as health care, energy and education.
Palin then launched an attack on how McCain doesn’t say different things to different audiences. She talked about her record in Alaska on energy and oil companies, and said there was nothing she would take off the table. She also attacked Obama for an energy plan vote.
Biden countered the energy vote by providing context; Obama voted for the bill because it included a commitment to alternative energy, and in a separate vote tried to strip away the tax breaks that the oil companies got. he noted that Palin had been successful because she imposed a windfall profits tax in Alaska, and noted that while Biden and Obama would enact such a strategy, McCain opposes it.
Biden 6 Palin 3
Question Six: Bankruptcy bill
Palin credited McCain for seeing the financial problems coming two years ago and again cited his ability to bring people together in the past week. She called Wall Street a toxic mess, but simply didn’t seem to have an understand the changes provided in the bankruptcy bill, and failed to address the question.
Biden hit the policy portion by noting the insignificant impact of the bill in terms of today’s crisis. He cited Obama as the one who truly recognized a crisis was coming, while McCain acted surprised. Biden called for allowing courts not just to negotiate interest rates on mortgages, but to negotiate the principle as well. he noted that McCain opposed that.
Palin denied this point, and then somehow brought the question back around to energy policy and rambled on this unrelated point… once again, she answered the question she wanted to, rather than the question she was asked.
Biden 6 Palin 3
Question Seven: Climate Change
Palin cited both natural and man-made causes of climate change and stated she didn’t want to discuss the causes (how convenient). She then stated generally that we need to clean the planet, reduce emissions, commit to alternate energy and conserve energy.
Biden stated clearly that the problem is man-made and made the observation that if you don’t understand the cause, you don’t how how to come up with a solution. He noted the U.S.’s disproportionate use of the world oil supply and then noted McCain’s consistent pattern of voting against bills for alternative energy. He talked about the need to create and export clean energy sources and noted that the answer was not limited to drilling.
Palin chided him on the “drill, baby, drill” battlecry and stated that Obama and Biden opposed tapping domestic energy resources. Palin kept pumping up McCain’s commitment to alternative energy, which Biden questioned based on McCain’s voting record.
Biden 6 Palin 6
Question Eight: Same Sex Benefits
Biden stated there was no constitutional or legal difference for same sex couples, and that they should have legal rights such as hospital visits, insurance, etc.
Palin stated that she was tolerant of others and that people were free to choose their own partners. But she also stated the she opposed anything that would move towards redefining marriage. Biden then concurred.
Biden 5 Palin 5
Question Nine: Iraq exit strategy
Palin stated that the surge and counter-insurgency was working. She accused Obama of voting against funding the troops. She called against an early withdrawal and then stated that we are down to pre-surge troop levels, an absolute lie. There are currently about 17,000 more U.S. troops in Iraq than before the surge.
Biden stated that Obama has a clear plan and favors phasing in transfer of the pwer to Iraq within 16 months. He noted that Obama’s position was consistent with what Iraq was working out with the Bush administration and that only McCain was out of touch on this. He then called out McCain for also voting against the troops and voting against protective gear, because the bill had a timeline attached. Biden pointed out that we are spending $10 billion a month in Iraq while they sit on $80 billion in oil profits and called for Iraq to assume responsibility for itself He stated that with McCain, there is no end in sight to this war.
Palin then seemed speechless, and then artificially pulled out a line where she accused Biden of waving a white flag of surrender… this is completely out of touch with reality. She then fell back into the surge rhetoric, reminded Biden how much he had previously stated his admiration for McCain, and said that Obama was not ready to lead. Biden slapped back with the reminder of McCain’s cote against the troops, before he pulled out a modified version of Obama’s commentary on how wrong McCain had been on everything related to the war.
Biden 7 Palin 5
Question Ten: Worse threat - Nuclear Iran or Unstable Pakistan
Biden noted that both were dangerous, but pointed out that Pakistan already has deployed nukes, making this an immediate concern. He noted that a nuclear Iran would be de-stabilizing to the region. Biden then went after McCain for saying that Iraq was the central point in the war on terror, while noting that if we are again attacked, it will be from people currently plotting in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He pointed out that we needed to support a stable, democratic pakistan and that an Obama administration would go after bin Laden.
Palin also answered that both were dangerous. She then reiterated the nonsense of patreus and al Qaeda agreeing that Iraq is central to the war on terror. She said that a nuclear Iran could not be allowed and that Israel was in danger. She then made the mistake of repeating McCain’s comments on meeting with our adversaries without preconditions, noting the same lack of understanding the McCain had demonstrated.
The question was then modified by Gwen Ifill to include the recommendations of previous secretaries of state to engage with our adversaries. Palin said they were right, and again misrepresented what it meant to meet without preconditions. Biden shot back with the obvious comment that the McCain/Palin camp didn’t seem to understand how Iran worked, in knowing who to meet with. He reminded Palin that our fiends and allies have been asking us to meet with our adversaries and that the Bush administration has finally relented on this point to meet with Iran. Biden then pulled out Obama’s comment on McCain’s gaffe that he wouldn’t even meet with Spain, a NATO ally.
Biden 9 Palin 4
Question Eleven: A two state solution in Palestine?
Palin stated her support fr a two state solution in Palestine, but then proceeded to butcher than answer, calling for a movement of the capital and of the embassy. She made sure to get in the plug about not allowing a second Holocaust, failing of course to recognize that Israel is a nuclear power.
Biden then stated his own history of support for Israel, and noted that the Bush policy in this area has been a failure . he cited both Hamas and Hezbollah as examples of the Bush failures and called for more thoughtful diplomacy.
Palin shot back that Bush’s policy was not a failure. She then tried to pass off looking “back” at Bush policies as focusing on the past, trying to distract viewers from the realization that McCain’s policies are no different… and of course she got in the required “maverick” remark. That’s when Biden landed a good body blow with the statement that “the past is prologue.” He asked how McCain was any different than Bush. He cited a string of McCain’s policies that would be completely consistent with that of George W. Bush.
Biden 9 Palin 4
Question Twelve: Nuclear Proliferation/Use
Palin seemed to misunderstand the question and went only in the direction of focusing on rogue nations and how they cannot be allowed to attain nuclear weapons. She said we need a stable Afghanistan and then urged that the surge tactics should be applied there, misrepresenting an Obama statement along the way. She also called for sanctions against both North Korea and Iran.
Biden pointed out that the facts matter, and the facts were that a surge strategy would not work in Afghanistan, correctly citing the statements of General McKiernan, who Palin repeatedly referred to as General McClelland. Biden pointed out that nukes require arms control, and that McCain voted against nuclear test bans and other productive measures. he pointed out that Obama had worked across the aisle with Dick Lugar to address the issue of proliferation through the passage of “real legislation.”
Palin countered with her version of what General “McClellan” said. Biden shot back with the fact that two years ago McCain had told the media that the reason we didn’t hear about Afghanistan any longer was because it had succeeded.
Biden 6 Palin 5
Question Thirteen: Interventionism
Biden indicated he had been right on intervention in Bosnia, something McCain initially opposed. he then defended his Iraq vote, noting he had given the President authorization but also warned against an unprovoked war with Iraq. Biden also stated that we cannot allow genocide to continue in Darfur and that we should rally the world to act.
Palin used this as a chance to lay the flip-flop “were for it before you weer against it” line that had worked well in previous elections. It fell flat here. She said that Biden supported McCain’s strategy in Iraq, and out and out lie that Biden corrected. When talking about Darfur, Palin also tried to take credit for Alaska’s divestment from its investments in the Sudan, which actually hasn;t happened yet. Palin never truly addressed the original question with her response.
Biden stated clearly some conditions for intervention, including genocide and the harboring of terrorists. Biden pointed out that when it came to being wrong-headed about the Iraq war, McCain was in lock-step with Dick Cheney. Palin shallenged Biden on whether or not Biden had supported McCain;s strategies in Iraq, noting the pundits tomorrow would reveal the facts (yes they will, Sarah… yes they will).
Biden 8 Palin 3
Question Fourteen: Being a “heartbeat away”/different from own candidate
Biden said he believed in Obama’s platform and would carry it out, reciting several major parts of the platform. He looked at the camera and reminded voters that this is the most important election that you will ever vote in, and that he agreed with every major initiative of Obama and the need to bring change.
Palin went immediately back to the “team of mavericks” line and said she had no disagreements with McCain’s platform. He cited McCain;s good work and then tried to lay the tax increase label on Obama and Biden again.
By the point, Biden seemed ready to rip into Palin. he asked whether or not people on main Street would claim to be better off now than eight years ago, and asked how McCain was any different than Bush. He said the people were getting the short end of the stick and it was time for that to change.
Palin’s only response was to fall back into the folksy crap with “Say it ain;t so, Joe…” and tried to say he was looking backwards rather than forwards. She then went off into talking about education and the need to improve No Child left behind.
Biden 6 Palin 4
Question Fifteen: Role of VP
Palin said that her role would be to preside over the Senate. Then, in the most bizarre comment of the night, she said that she wanted more authority in the Senate in order to support the President’s policies. She said she would also take on tasks that relate to her strengths, including energy policy.
Biden noted his history of getting things done with bi-partisan support and said he would be the point person for legislative initiatives. He said Obama would rely on him for advice, because Obama values independent judgment.
The question was then modified to ask if the Vice President was part of the executive or legislative branch. Palin unbelievably pulled a Cheney, saying that the founding fathers wanted flexibility for the position and implied the VP was a part of both branches. Biden ripped this answer, saying that Dick Cheney was the most dangerous Vice President in US history, and the Article I of the U.S. Constitution was pretty clear on the fact that the VP is a part of the executive branch, only having Senate authority in cases of a tie vote. he noted the primary role of the VP was to support the President. he called the idea of Cheney being in both branches “bizarre”.
Biden 9 Palin 3
Question Sixteen: Achilles’ Heel?
Palin completely blew off the question, launching into a distribe about America being the shining city on the hill. It was an incoherent answer to a relatively clear question.
Biden noted that he can demonstrate excessive passion, but noted that he was not going to change this. He then stated that he had a record of change that he would gladly compare with his opponents. Responding to Palin’s attempt to paint Obama and Biden as not understanding of how people struggle, Biden went into a very emotional recount of his own struggle after his wife and daughter died, how he almost lost a son, and how he was a single dad raising two boys. Biden said he knew that people were looking for help, not looking for more of the same. It was an emotional high point for Biden.
Palin returned to the tired “maverick” line and completely overstated her less than two years of experience as Alaska governor. She conveniently talked about getting rid of partisanship while acting in a a partisan way.
Biden then shot back with his best comment of the night. He said that McCain had been a maverick on a few items, but none on things that mattered to the people. he cited a list of areas in which McCain was no maverick… health care (including children;s health care), education, college, or anything else that affected people at their kitchen tables. It was a decisive comment that reached out directly to middle class voters.
Biden 9 Palin 3
Question Seventeen: Example of change?
Biden noted that he used to believe that judicial temperment and personal standing were the only factors in determining the qualifications of judges, but that he had changed to consider ideology and philosophy, recognizing how these appointees directly affected the lives of American citizens.
Palin really had nothing, talking about how she caved on a few budgets that were passed, thus missing the premise of the question. She then went off into another monologue not related to the question.
Biden 7 Palin 3
Question Eighteen: Demonstrating Bi-partisanship and changing the tone
Biden stated he has regularly worked across the aisle. he also noted that he learned an important lesson (via Jesse Helms) about questioning the judgment of others, but never their motives. It was a compelling answer.
Palin stated that she had appointed people regardless of party affiliation, but then once again dove into the line of claiming that Obama would raise taxes.
Biden 8 Palin 5
Final Score: Biden 129 Palin 72
Summary:
If you liked Palin before tonight, you were thrilled with her performance tonight. If you didn’t like Palin before tonight, you would be impressed with the fact that she didn’t shoot herself in the foot, but not much else. It was fairly clear that in terms of policy, Biden was well ahead. And Biden was able to effectively counter the fake folksy crap with heartfelt statements on both his family and an experience he had in the Senate. Biden did nothing to hurt himself tonight and has a much better command of policy matter would make him a more effective president. I doubt that this debate will change many voters minds, and we have two more presidential debates to come.
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