Joseph Biden won 51 percent to 36 percent over Sarah Palin among undecided voters in an early CNN poll based on random sampling, and yet…
On MS-NBC, Patrick Buchanan kept talking about how Palin won hands down, connecting with ordinary Americans in her folksy way.
Charlie Rose’s panel On PBS came to the happy accord that it was a draw.
Anderson Cooper’s panel voted that Obama won handily, but Ed Rollins, the lone holdout who conferred a lopsided victory on Palin, dominated the primetime analysis, insisting that Palin won bigtime.
On fair and balanced Fox, meanwhile, a text-messaging poll in which the network’s famously biased audience keyed in their opinions in one of the most rigged polls I’ve ever witnessed, Palin won by… let’s see, 85 percent to 12 percent ! last time I jotted down results, long about midnight.
And so it went. For the second week in a row, undecided voters overwhelmingly judged the Democratic candidate the dramatic winner of a debate and still mainstream media insisted on calling it a draw. One of these days such handicapping will come back to haunt the world in tragic fashion. Wups, you’re right. It already did. In 2000. Again in 2004. Think of the lives saved, the treasure preserved, species rescued, had the media not settled on narratives that disguised the ineptitude, mistaken notions and perverse ambitions of George W. Bush, maybe the worst president of all time. But I digress.
Even with a horse-race mentality dominating media, however, all polls that matter are swinging Obama’s way.
I admit I’m biased. Heck I could even be wrong, but I’m pretty sure Biden won. In a nutshell, here’s why:
First, he won in the polls, but let’s play the MSM game of setting those aside.
Biden was on the side of science when asked about global warming, one of many subjects Palin danced around, denying there’s a human cause, yet suggesting we should curb greenhouse gases anyway, for unspecified reasons. Huh?
Biden was on the side of history when it came to war in Iraq, while Palin fell back on cliches about victory–without bothering to define it–while accusing Obama of "waving the white flag of surrender" and not "supporting the troops." Biden chewed such allegations up, pointing to McCain’s own votes that could be twisted and characterized as "not supporting the troops" and serving up a history lesson about why the main front in the war on terror shouldn’t even be in Iraq.
Biden answered all questions head on, while Palin talked free-form, without even bothering to answer at least half the questions Ifill posed. For instance, when asked to describe the McCain plan for disengaging from Iraq, Palin used the opportunity to belittle Obama’s rejection of the Surge. When asked to name her own Achilles Heel, she seemed unfamiliar with the concept.
Biden answered such questions with specificity, pointing out, for instance that, when it comes to tax dollars, we spend as much every three weeks in Iraq as we’ve spent in nearly seven years in Afghanistan.
It’s true Palin helped herself. Polls reflect that many voters thought so, but it was mostly just by showing up and not, say, falling off the stage. Ifill helped by not asking her about witchcraft or the Rapture or Supreme Court decisions or Troopergate, and Biden was gentlemanly enough not to call her on recent faux pas.
Palin had dug herself in deep in recent weeks, calling McCain’s judgment into question with each snafu she made. The country had taken to laughing at the GOP ticket, thanks in part to Letterman and SNL and Jon Stewart, and once the people begin laughing there’s not much anyone can do for you. Palin’s public performances had been so week that many predicted disaster in this debate. Instead, she acquitted herself well enough–barely–to allow McCain to fight another day.
Unfortunately for McCain the tide of this election is not likely to turn, barring an October Surprise of monster proportions. Not to be glib but the economic crisis has been manna from heaven for Obama’s political purposes. It’s crystalized issues, reminding us all that Republicans have been at the helm during four fiascos–9/11, War in Iraq, the Katrina debacle, and now the banking crisis. Recent polls track a swing of 15 to 20 points in Obama’s favor, and many battleground states–Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Florida–are falling into his column as Election Day draws near.
Don Williams is a prize-winning columnist for "Knoxville Voice," professional blogger at Knoxvoice.com and a contributing editor to Media With Conscience (MWCnews.net). He is a also a short story writer, freelance journalist and the founding editor (more...)
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.
By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist
More bad news for John McCain: Two quick, post-debate polls agree that Joe Biden was the better performer in his debate Thursday night with Sarah Palin.
-- CBS used uncommitted voters, who gave Biden the edge in early numbers, 46-21 percent, over Palin.
More polls will be released early Friday. But they will likely show most Americans were not impressed with Palin's performance in her one and only debate with Biden.
That news is not going to help McCain. He was counting on Palin at least holding her own with Biden Thursday night. And she didn't.
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JC Garrett (40 articles, 65 quicklinks, 7 diaries, 604 comments [10 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 at 2:30:11 AM
And here's a really key number from CNN. While a startling 84% said Palin did better than expected, it still wasn't enough for her to clear her basic hurdle tonight: Only 46% said she's qualified to serve as president, up only four points from before the debate. And a clear majority, 53%, say she is not qualified.
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JC Garrett (40 articles, 65 quicklinks, 7 diaries, 604 comments [10 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 at 2:39:33 AM
I don't know who won VP debate. I refuse to partake in the joke of the Republican Party. This woman is ill suited to be Govenor of Alaska, let alone #2 in country
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kato krause (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 3 diaries, 216 comments [1 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 at 8:48:32 AM
How Dare Y'all Pick on our GOP Savior, Madame Moosebrain?
Shame on ALL of you meanspirited Liberals! Sister Sarah is the new champion of Joe Six-Pack, and us guys with guns in our truck back windows and our Confederate Bumperstickers, and all of the poor soccer moms who have been ignored by all of you supposedly high-powered and over educated Liberals with your MBA's and your Lexus Cars! Sarah, as Mick Jagger said: "THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A PLACE FOR YOU IN MY PARKING LOT!" The USA just needs another decade of getting dumbed down and you will become then the Maggie Thatcher of the New Millennium, the Golda Meir of the Future, the Joan of Arc of the next 25 years! Sarah says there are enough Moose and Caribou up there to open up new McDonald's chains just serving Mooseburger and Moosebrain Stew! If she was good enough for Reverend Dobson, she is good enough for America. Doncha know the GOP has a severe drain in its labor pool, and Sarah has come along to save us! Now, please: just let me go barf for a minute....
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Stephen Fox (96 articles, 3 quicklinks, 11 diaries, 802 comments [33 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 at 12:37:16 PM
After she's through with this gig she'll be able to parlay herself into a nice place on K-Street. And McCain will ride out his public service to bigger spots on a think tank and maybe corporate boards. He'll need something to do while his wife is helping him spend her money, which means they can have a nice non-profit foundation attached to their names.
Meantime, back on Wall Street, what caused the Dow to erase all its earlier wins for the day. Before and after finalizing the bailout vote. Is it Friday afternoon housekeeping? Cleaning up some short sales? Or is it political finger in the wind?
Whatever. Looks like no extension of unemployment benefits.
And I sit here wondering what will happen to all those new bank buildings in downtown Maryville, Tennessee. In these days of electronic funds transfer, they are surely computer ready. Anyone want to start a business? Space should be plentiful.
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Margaret Bassett (45 articles, 2909 quicklinks, 42 diaries, 1849 comments [99 recommended, 0 rejected]) on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 at 4:36:16 PM
CNN is a liberal station..... what do you expect... Fox news had Sarah at 75% and Obiden at 21% . Fox is more balanced . If Obama and Obiden win , we can all sing Welcome to the New USSA .. what works in Russian should work in America .. please let's vote for the change Obama has promised
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don bybee (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 206 comments) on Friday, Oct 3, 2008 at 6:00:37 PM
No! And the Founders would have also agreed. In fact, they're rolling in the dam graves!
This so called debate was a total sham, period! Palin is as bellicose as the day is long and is a very dangerous woman. And why is it that Gwen Ifill allowed her to twice say that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad threatened to wipe Israel off of the map? That isn't what he said. He words were intentionally misconstrued, and now here's Sarah Palin using them in a Vice presidential debate, fomenting yet more anger and hate in the Middle East. And when's the last time Iran attacked another country?
And as far as Joe Biden is concerned, how long has he been in DC? Too long!
In 2002 as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Joe Biden stated that Saddam Hussein was "a long term threat and a short term threat to our national security" and that United States has "no choice but to eliminate the threat".
In 2005 he said, "We can call it quits and withdraw from Iraq (but) I think that would be a gigantic mistake, or we can set a deadline for pulling out, which I fear will only encourage our enemies to wait us out--equally a mistake."
Unless we can elect a third party candidate as President, then our withering America is only going to sink further into this contrived abyss, with more war death and destruction.
Lastly, why is it that neither Joe Biden or Sarah Plain could deviate from their script to talk about World Peace? Not once was it mentioned during "the debate." I know, I know, peace is so yesterday. And besides, it isn't profitable. Who needs Peace anyway!
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Munich (1 articles, 86 quicklinks, 14 diaries, 1125 comments [86 recommended, 1 rejected]) on Saturday, Oct 4, 2008 at 12:56:04 AM
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