Biden On Offense Scolds, Exposes Ryan's "Doctored Facts"

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In the end it was not a contest. Not even close. Of course, CNN, Fox 5 and all the instant polling types said that it was a draw, a tie or the Republican Vice Presidential candidate won. I'm talking about the recent Vice Presidential Debate.   Vice President Joe Biden was "ole Smokin' Joe" taking the fight to GOP Veep candidate, Paul Ryan, who looked lost at times. The guy was no match for a hyped up Biden who delivered a blistering set of verbal blows to his younger challenger.

But, the punditocracy and debate experts were not satisfied. Boy, these guys are hard to please. So at the end of the debate nary a word about the mountain of lies, half-truths and stupidity that came forth from Paul Ryan's mouth. And Vice President Biden? Hear them: He laughed and smiled too much; he interrupted too much -- 82 times; he was rolling his eyes; he was grinning and smirking too much".blah, blah, blah. On and on, ad infinitum.

So now we judge debates only by PERFORMANCE standards and they must confirm to what the media says those standards are. To them, Joe Biden lost because he smiled too much and attacked too much and interrupted Ryan too much. For the edification of all: A debate is a method of interactive and representational argument. But scratch that. All over the place Republicans are shouting at the top of their lungs that Biden was rude, smirky and obnoxious. And how he interrupted too much.

What are these guys yakking about? Listening to them you would think that this was a sermonizing contest with the Almighty. Damn it, it's a debate and the objective is to win by convincing arguments backed up by facts. Rhetoric is about persuasion. But more than that a debate is a mental contest. In short, you have to psychologically upset and unbalance your opponent with body language, words and reaction to statements.

Biden did just that. Its debate tactics and strategy 101. And Republicans are now howling about how he was disrespectful. To whom? To Paul Ryan? The same man who called hardworking Americans moochers? The same guy who supports his boss's 47 percent insult? The same guy who routinely insults women by supporting a bill that would redefine rape and who opposes abortion even in cases of incest and rape?

So if you're a Republican like Mitt Romney you get to interrupt the President of the United States, lie to the American people 27 times in 38 minutes on national television, and rudely jab your finger at President Obama time and time again and that's all right. You stand and smile when the president is speaking and it's a smile, not a smirk.

But ole "Smokin' Joe" Biden was not about to let old, tired lies and half-truths, and GOP talking points go unanswered. And Republicans don't like that. However, I liked this one. Biden called out Paul Ryan, who has consistently criticized President Obama's stimulus package. Ryan is on record calling it "crony capitalism." Biden exposed his utter hypocrisy and lies on national television saying that Ryan wrote two letters asking for a share of stimulus dollars for companies in his district in Wisconsin -- while he was publicly criticizing President Obama's stimulus package to save the economy.

Ryan's answer? An unintelligible, tortured response. But I like it better how Joe Biden summed it up: "I love that," Biden went on. "I love that. This was such a bad program and he writes me a letter saying --­­ writes the Department of Energy a letter saying: "The reason we need this stimulus, it will create growth and jobs.' His words. And now he's sitting here looking at me."

That's substance. That's not rude. That's great debating skills and research. Ryan walked into the trap and got slapped around. Joe Biden delivered a shellacking on Paul Ryan who looked as if he wanted to be someplace else. And all these talking heads, pundits, experts and commentators can talk about is that he was rude and laughed too much? God help us. What's wrong with these people?

These same people would gloss over Paul Ryan's spin and inability to say just how he and Mitt Romney would do what amounts to a flat tax (though it's not called that) by closing loopholes. Again, like the first presidential debate, the moderator did not press Ryan on specifics and when Biden tried to get an answer he just reverted to good ole GOP talking points about how President Obama shifted $716 million from Medicare to pay for so-called Obamacare -- a thoroughly and totally debunked and discredited statement.

Thing is Joe Biden's honesty and integrity is impeccable. After all he's not a Republican. Everybody knows he says what the thinks and nobody can doubt his sincerity. For Romney, Ryan and the Republicans lying has become a way of life and their modus operandi.   They have to tell a lie to cover a lie and then another to cover that one. Soon they forget how many lies they told to who, when and where. That's why Mitt Romney has to "walk back" so many statements. They simply are not true. So for the media and its gaggle of pundits if you're a Democrat in a nationally televised Vice Presidential debate, the only appropriate response to a dishonest opponent is to nod respectfully and thank him for his forthrightness.

Heck if you're a Democrat, all hell will break loose if you challenge the guy or try to correct the record. And if you laugh at claims that are so off the wall or become amused by an opponent who continues to repeat over and over again the same old malarkey (Biden's description) in canned and scripted answers, then you run the risk of being called rude, snarky and mentally challenged.

In the end the media got it wrong. Joe Biden's smiling (they said too much) was not to minimize the seriousness of the debate. It was just too much to hold in when he was bombarded by Ryan's list of "doctored facts." Hell, I would have burst into fits of uncontrollable laughter had I been the one to listen to these really crazy and zany ideas coming from the Republican side. I kid you not; this party has gone so far to the right that there are many, many people who need to be seriously checked out for mental competency.

Remember Newt Gingrich? Remember his colony on the moon in his second term if elected to the presidency? Remember Rick Perry's senior moments? And Rick Santorum's war against education? And Sarah Palin's "death panels?" There is much to laugh at because these folks are deadly serious about this unadulterated nonsense.

Ryan is not as bad as these folks; he has some sense. But lest he alienate the crackpots in his party he has to take some really spooky and, yes, laughable positions from time to time. Joe Biden could not help himself and so he laughed, smiled or smirked -- call it what you will -- because that's a normal reaction to a statement or position that defies comprehension, logic and common sense. That or you shake your head and pity the poor soul's predicament.

But no amount of nitpicking over the style and performance of the Vice Presidential debate will hide the fact that Joe Biden gave Paul Ryan a real shellacking (President Obama's word).   And that, my friend, is no laughing matter.

Authors Website: http://www.CSG2017.com

Authors Bio:

MICHAEL DERK ROBERTS
Small Business Consultant, Editor, and Social Media & Communications Expert, New York

Over the past 20 years I've been a top SMALL BUSINESS CONSULTANT and POLITICAL CAMPAIGN STRATEGIST in Brooklyn, New York, running successful campaigns at the City, State and Federal levels. I'm a published author and award-winning journalist. I've been honored and recognized for my deep, hard-hitting analytical work on socio-economic and political issues confronting the United States in general and New York City in particular. I'm he Senior Consultant, COMMONSENSE STRATEGIES (www.commonsensestrategies.biz ), a Marketing, Social Media & Communications company based in Brooklyn. I also host two weekly podcasts at www.blogtalkradio.com/shangoking .The first, aired on Saturday mornings is called BTS -- Business, Technology and Social Media and the second, The Roberts Report, is aired on Sundays. You can also follow me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mdvroberts. (347) 279-6668.