John Dickinson: The Joe Biden Workout

In the vice presidential debate, Joe Biden found a way to be both a participant and the guy in the Barcalounger at home yelling at the television. He interrupted Paul Ryan, moderator Martha Raddatz, and even himself with interjections, sighs, and quips. He appealed to the heavens, he looked to the floor. With all the activity, he surely shed calories. When he wasn’t engaged in those antics, Biden laughed and smiled to himself as if Ryan had sold him something illegal that he’d just consumed. At times his treatment was so dismissive, he seemed only a few threads of restraint from reaching across the table and patting Ryan on the head.

Biden won the debate, but it was a qualified victory. He energized Democrats who had been down in the dumps since the president’s supine performance, but he also energized Republicans who found him rude and dishonest. Swing voters might have been turned off, too. But it probably doesn’t matter since they’re going to vote for the top of the ticket. It was close in the post-debate polls of undecided voters. It was close in the post-debate polls. In a CBS poll of undecided voters, 50 percent thought Biden had won; only 31 percent thought the same of Ryan. In the CNN poll, 48 percent thought Ryan won. Only 44 percent thought Biden came out on top.*


There’s an old line attributed to Bill Clinton: It’s hard for the other guy to talk when your fist is in his mouth. Biden was up to his elbow. That thrilled Democrats. Speaking of himself, Barack Obama said that he was “too polite” in the first debate. No one will say that of Joe Biden.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2012/10/vp_debate_joe_biden_tried_to_re_energize_democrats_with_his_attacks_digs.html