Vice President Debate 2008

The vice presidential debate is something that I really looked forward to watching/hearing/reading. This is almost as interesting as the actual ballot casting itself. Both candidates are somewhat unheard of. Biden has the popular vote, but Palin has a more obvious history of actually getting things done. Both candidates have an opportunity, but they each are coming in with a very different background.

"Darn right it was the predator lenders, who tried to talk Americans into thinking that it was smart to buy a $300,000 house if we could only afford a $100,000 house. There was deception there, and there was greed and there is corruption on Wall Street. And we need to stop that...Let's do what our parents told us before we probably even got that first credit card. Don't live outside of our means. We need to make sure that as individuals we're taking personal responsibility through all of this. It's not the American peoples fault that the economy is hurting like it is, but we have an opportunity to learn a heck of a lot of good lessons through this and say never again will we be taken advantage of." -Palin

As great of an answer this was, it was not completely right, sure there was deceit, and it is hard for people to sometimes see it. Given, it is, to some extent, the American peoples fault that the economy is hurting us like this. The economy is shaped by the Americans for the most part. However, Americans are not at fault of the lower, not low, economy, just in the same way we are effected by global warming. These things are things that naturally happen, but can be affected by those who are effected, we have to deal with it, but can in many ways, make things a little easier to deal with. Technically the economy is not down (as of this debate), but it was just lower than it previously was (which was noticeably high). What is odd in all of this is that the value of the American dollar has improved.

"Number two, with regard to bankruptcy now, Gwen, what we should be doing now -- and Barack Obama and I support it -- we should be allowing bankruptcy courts to be able to re-adjust not just the interest rate you're paying on your mortgage to be able to stay in your home, but be able to adjust the principal that you owe, the principal that you owe." -Biden

This sounds great in theory, but will probably not be that wise of an idea when it is fulfilled. People need to experience their consequences. I think that it is a good idea to lower the interest rates as a way to teach responsibility while still allowing people to in a way suffer slightly for their stupid actions. If we lower the principal debt, we are not teaching responsibility, but giving a break for stupidity, and in a away giving the message that we will pay for your mistakes, literally. People need to face what they did, but definitely in a much more reasonably manner with lower interest rates.

"But in that tolerance also, no one would ever propose, not in a McCain-Palin administration, to do anything to prohibit, say, visitations in a hospital or contracts being signed, negotiated between parties." -Palin

While both canidates support the rights of those in non-traditional marriages, I got the idea that Biden did not just tolerate, but almost embraced these marriages because he had no response in agreement when Palin said

"But I will tell Americans straight up that I don't support defining marriage as anything but between one man and one woman, and I think through nuances we can go round and round about what that actually means."

As much as I like the way this came off, I think that Palin should have used other words than "straight up", possibly "very direct".

"Barack Obama offered a clear plan. Shift responsibility to Iraqis over the next 16 months." -Biden

This would not be a very good idea at all, look at what happened when we shifted power back to Afghanistan, even Obama realized that now we need to go back to reestablish our work in Afghanistan.

"John McCain has been dead wrong. I love him. As my mother would say, god love him, but he's been dead wrong on the fundamental issues relating to the conduct of the war. Barack Obama has been right. There are the facts." -Biden

Very dangerous road, this is obviously a bad thing to say no matter how you rearrange the words, or no matter who is to say this. Both candidates have been very wrong on particular issues, and had their share of good ideas, but neither "has been right." There are the facts!

"You also said that Barack Obama was not ready to be commander in chief. And I know again that you opposed the move he made to try to cut off funding for the troops and I respect you for that. I don't know how you can defend that position now but I know that you know especially with your son in the National Guard and I have great respect for your family also and the honor that you show our military. Barack Obama though, another story there. Anyone I think who can cut off funding for the troops after promising not to is another story." -Palin

I really like the fact that there has already been conflict with Obama and Biden, and that Biden did not just agree with Obama because it was his party, instead he did what was best, not popular.

"I think the American public has the stomach for success. My recommendations on Bosnia. I admit I was the first one to recommend it. They saved tens of thousands of lives. And initially John McCain opposed it along with a lot of other people. But the end result was it worked. Look what we did in Bosnia. We took Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks, being told by everyone, I was told by everyone that this would mean that they had been killing each other for a thousand years, it would never work." -Biden

Just because it worked, it did not mean it was successful, I am personally not to sure on this specific issue, but often, many people assume that just because something works, it is good or excellent.

"John McCain knows how to win a war"-Palin

John McCain may have fought in the war, and have been a POW, but regardless, it does not mean he knows how to win a war. Participation is not mastery, and under any circumstance, we cannot just choose a soldier and say they know how to win a war because they have fought in the war.

"Can I respond? Look, all you have to do is go down Union Street with me in Wilmington or go to Katie's Restaurant or walk into Home Depot with me where I spend a lot of time and you ask anybody in there whether or not the economic and foreign policy of this administration has made them better off in the last eight years. And then ask them whether there's a single major initiative that John McCain differs with the president on. On taxes, on Iraq, on Afghanistan, on the whole question of how to help education, on the dealing with health care." -Biden

First of all I really like the idea of learning about Biden or Palin for that matter by meeting the people who know them best. The problem is that often this does not reflect their policy as most presidents or vice presidents are normal people besides their job. I do not think that Biden was trying to imply this idea in any way, however I do not agree with the idea he was trying to make...completely. I am not so sure that the survey of one town, especially the one which Biden is most likely to be influenced by, is the best way to evaluate an idea or study. Its not that great of an idea to form a theory, and then go back and test or challenge that theory on whatever it was that brought about the creation of that theory.

"People aren't looking for more of the same. They are looking for change. And John McCain has been the consummate maverick in the Senate over all these years."
"He's taken shots left and right from the other party and from within his own party, because he's had to take on his own party when the time was right, when he recognized it was time to put partisanship aside and just do what was right for the American people. That's what I've done as governor, also, take on my own party, when I had to, and work with both sides of the aisle, in my cabinet, appointing those who would serve regardless of party, Democrats, independents, Republicans, whatever it took to get the job done." -Palin

What Palin needed to say is, "because he's had to take on his own party when _______."..."That's what I've done as governor, also, take on my own party, when I had to _______." Palin should have just given an example of how she took her stand, and how McCain has taken his stand (against a popular vote or partisanship based bill). Palin clearly knows how to do this as she recognized Biden for doing such a thing earlier in the debate.

Both parties generally did well, but Palin was a little asier to understand by just listening to and not having to read the transcripts. The best line had to be that of Ifill said "Governor, Senator, neither of you really answered that last question about what you would do as vice president. I'm going to come back to that..." What I did like about both canidates ist that they recognized the other party for what they did well.