Dueling in Danville

After last night's debate, it's clear that the Obama administration has been rocked by the events of the last several weeks. The tragedy and ensuing misinformation coming from Libya, the confirmed $1.1 trillion deficit for FY 2012, the growing foreign campaign contribution fiasco, and the President's, to put it politely, lackluster engagement in the first presidential debate, have all taken their toll on the Obama campaign. Romney's surge this past week has obviously thrown a wrench in the Chicago machine, and they are scrambling to make up ground any way they can. Nowhere has this been more evident than in last night's Vice Presidential debate between Paul Ryan and incumbent Joe Biden. It was clear from the outset that the Democratic game plan was to duck, dodge, deflect and dismiss anything that could be construed as a valid point from Congressman Ryan. The Vice President continually talked over the Congressman, huffed and puffed at his answers, smirked arrogantly at rebuttles, and refuted proven facts. It's pretty obvious that there were two goals here: convince Americans that Paul Ryan, and Mitt Romney by extension, are filthy lying liars, and project an enthusiastic "don't take no crap from no one" attitude to restore lost confidence from the democratic base, as well as left drifting independents. We all know how this came across. Righties were disgusted, lefties were emboldened, and center liners...well what about those independents? To this onlooker, I can see independent voters looking at last night's debate and seeing a man making a comeback for his team. O can also see them experiencing a bumbling stuttering moron that wanted to suppress opposition. To me it's going to come down to the smirks, the sniffs, and the annoyed laughter coming from the left side of the screen. Ryan came to make points and show the American people who he and Mitt Romney are, and what they plan to do for Americans. Joe Biden came to keep viewers from getting that message, and to throw a few jabs at random points in an effort to seem like a substantive candidate. The complete lack of disrespect for Congressman Ryan, the office of the Vice Presidency, and the American people, from Joe Biden was simply unprecedented in my mind. Ryan made points, allowed responses, and showed respect. He was not perfect, and I saw areas that deserved further exploration, but Ryan presented himself in a professional manner. Biden did not. That's the bottom line. Biden looked weak on Benghazi and foreign policy in general. He looked weak on our economy. He did a classic Liberal dive away from abortion. Ryan was direct and true to himself and his cause. This was no knockout bout, but the win definitively goes to Paul Ryan. Wham Bam to Paul Ryan, VP Debate