I'll make this quick -- mostly because I really don't think any lengthy expounding is required.
Tonight Joe Biden mopped the floor with Sarah Palin.
What's more, he did it by not coming right out and mopping the floor with her. Biden was cordial, eloquent and uncharacteristically restrained, choosing not to attack Palin head-on but rather to allow her style versus his substance to highlight the very clear decision that voters have in November. There wasn't one moment that I didn't fully believe that Biden is not simply the right choice for Vice President of the United States but that he could easily step into the role of president if required. He proved that he's tough, knowledgeable, experienced, quick on his feet and, most importantly, that he has a singularly keen understanding of the issues facing this country, both foreign and domestic -- an absolute necessity for anyone seeking the second highest office in the free world (one it's positively mind-boggling that some Americans are actually disputing the importance of). He just plain knocked it out of the park.
Sarah Palin, on the other hand, strung two or three complete sentences together consecutively, which means that her performance will be roundly hailed as a success. The fact, however, is that no matter how much she said or how confidently she said it -- she really didn't say much of anything. The McCain campaign handlers -- and needless to say, that's whose hand was up Palin's ass the entire time -- pulled a really neat trick by having their girl make it clear almost right off the bat that she wasn't going to answer any of those pesky questions being asked of her by moderator Gwen Ifill because, well, Ifill's part of the mainstream media and, well, Sarah Palin is a maverick. (I guess that's what mavericks do -- they don't play by the rules and answer questions, despite having agreed upon the debate format ahead of time.) What this did though was allow Palin to filibuster about anything she felt like at any given time. It allowed her to essentially give an extended speech divided into dozens of small parts rather face the danger of being tripped up by honest, unscripted interaction.
And really, the thing about Palin's performance tonight is that it was just that: a performance.
Nothing that came out of her mouth -- no inflection or movement of her body -- was unscripted.
Nothing.
Every platitude; every cliché; every wink; every robotic repetition of the McCain camp's tired talking points and, inexplicably, George Bush's failed assertions and cheap one-liners, the stuff even he doesn't bother with anymore -- it was all aimed at bringing the conservative base back on point through vacant charm and sweetly silly folksiness. It was cute to watch, even if it did make your teeth (and your brain) hurt. But it damn sure wasn't vice presidential.
Palin had no idea what the hell she was saying most of the time, but she knew she looked adorable and mildly convincing saying it.
It was almost as if she actually morphed into Tina Fey's impression of her right before our eyes, albeit a more focused and amped-up version of it.
Bottom line though, regardless what you think of the debate -- of who scored big with what and how often -- one thing is absolutely certain after tonight: there's no mistaking the choice the American voters are being given this election.
The lines are drawn more distinctly than in any race we've seen in most of our lifetimes.
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