TONIGHT
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Fight Night
As the historic debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin approached, it began to seem more and more like a title fight. The air of pugilistic spectacle surrounding the vice presidential match-up was palpable. It wasn't the heavyweight event, which had happened the week previous between McCain and Obama, but if anything that only added to the excitement. As every fight fan knows, the heavyweights may pack bigger punches, but the smaller fighters are all the more vicious, and all the more fun to watch.
And so it was on Thursday that Biden and Palin stepped into the ring together to duke it out over our economy, the bailout, the war in Iraq and the future of American policy. From where I sat, the widespread expectation had been for Palin to take a beating, the greenhorn put up against the salty old veteran. More than anything, this had to do with Palin's recent performance with Katie Couric, when she stumbled over simple questions of foreign policy and voting history. As it turned out, though, she'd been hitting the heavybag all week, while sequestered at John McCain's ranch, and was in prime fighting shape.
What's that line? The difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom? Oh yes, of course, LIPSTICK! Palin had hers on last night to be sure, and, like the feisty contender she is, she came out swinging. Landing a number of jabs about Obama's voting record and Biden's past disagreements with the Illinois senator on issues of policy, Palin made it clear from very early on that she was not to be underestimated or bullied into a corner.
Biden too held his own, coming up with hard numbers and history to block her assaults. His fighting style was to take her hits, then come back with some more hard ones of his own, often asserting that Palin was just plain wrong. Her responses tended to be more deflective, dodging around some questions and distorting others before hitting back with lines about the surge, "Joe Sixpack" and the "Maverick" John McCain.
At the end of a number of frenzied rounds, both opponents returned to their corners, still standing, no doubt each with a different idea of who had won the bout.