Vice Presidential Debate Party @ Sonny's, 10-2

By Eric Wall
eCampaign Director

First I'd like to acknowledge and thank the owners and management of Sonny's for allowing us to watch the debate there and the efforts of Cindy Barry, the "button lady" as she is affectionately known, to make this event happen.

There was a good turnout of 40 local Republicans for the single Vice Presidential debate held in St. Louis, MO. Leading up to the beginning of the debate there was a little apprehension among the crowd about Gov. Palin's debating skill after the spate of interviews that were panned by the mainstream media. The party began with the Pledge of Allegiance and an invocation by Chairman Ted Haney before the debate began. We watched the Fox News broadcast of the event.

Sarah Palin started off a bit tentatively, seemed a little bit nervous, and both candidates stuck to their talking points in their opening statements. What stood out initially was that the "parents talking at a kid's soccer game" line in her opening statement was direct and effective.

Later, Palin really found her stride, and started taking shots at Biden, which got quite a few laughs from the local crowd at Sonny's. Biden seemed flummoxed at times. Some of the key phrases used by Gov. Palin was "never again" in regards to the subprime crisis, and how Americans were "craving something new".

Palin's only real struggle was having to defend parts of John McCain's record, as she is more effective on the attack. She would have slam-dunked this debate if she were the top of the ticket. Palin's a masterful debater and the evening's memorable moments all belonged to her. Everyone in the room laughed when she called him "Senator O'Biden". On foreign policy the exchanges were quite contentious and I would call that part of the debate a draw.

Judging impartially, overall not a real knockout blow for either side, but the line about "Say it ain't so, Joe. There you go again." got the biggest laugh in the room, and made me think of the Reagan-Mondale debate in 1984. She even referenced John Kerry's famous "I voted it for it before I voted against it" gaffe.

You have to give the win to Gov. Palin. She went toe-to-toe with a 36-year Senate veteran and managed to seem capable, while maintaining the common touch that has inspired so many people. The infamous Couric interview on CBS and the SNL skits will quickly be forgotten.

After the debate I talked to a few local Republicans and here are their responses.

Ken Ford-"It was a real serious debate. Sarah Palin held her own. She came prepared and scored some points."

Teresa Eaton-"She helped herself a lot and did very well!"

Richard Plantec-"She hit it out of the park. I thought Biden was quite smitten (with her)".

Beth Williams-"Palin was very positive and really on top of it. She definitely had her ammunition. She kept him on his toes."

Chairman Ted Haney and Vice Chairman John Salak were very pleased and agreed with Mr. Plantec that she hit it "out of the park!"

As for me, will all the negative coverage of her in the last two weeks, I feel that in the areas of preparation, style, personality and body language, Gov. Palin was the clear winner, and that Senator McCain must be very proud of her performance.
McCain-Palin 2008 tonight issued the following statement on tonight’s debate:

"Tonight, Governor Palin proved beyond any doubt that she is ready to lead as Vice President of the United States. She won this debate, putting Joe Biden on defense on energy, foreign policy, taxes and the definition of change. Governor Palin laid bare Barack Obama's record of voting to raise taxes, opposing the surge in Iraq, and proposing to meet unconditionally with the leaders of state sponsors of terror. The differences between the Obama-Biden ticket and the McCain-Palin ticket could not have been clearer. The American people saw stark contrasts in style and worldview. They saw Joe Biden, a Washington insider and a 36-year Senator, and Governor Palin, a Washington outsider and a maverick reformer. Governor Palin was direct, forceful and a breath of fresh air."

--Jill Hazelbaker, McCain-Palin 2008 Communications Director

Republican Party of Florida Chairman Jim Greer released the following statement today regarding the Vice Presidential Debate between Governor Sarah Palin and Senator Joe Biden:

“Tonight, people in Florida and across our nation learned more about Governor Palin’s real-life results and executive experience. With her signature plain-spoken style, Governor Palin contrasted her record of reform with Joe Biden’s smooth-talking, empty insider rhetoric, and the difference between them couldn’t have been clearer.

“Along with John McCain, Sarah Palin has clear convictions and knows what Americans want and deserve in our leaders: reform, a shake-up of the status quo, and bold leadership to get our economy back on track.

“Tonight, Governor Palin further energized Floridians by articulating her executive experience in an energy producing state, and talking about her strong support of international free trade, alternative energy and lower taxes for families and businesses - McCain-Palin policies that are critical to Florida’s economic prosperity.”

“Governor Palin laid out her vision to shake up Washington with John McCain, and we are more ready than ever to fight in Florida to send this team of mavericks to the White House to get to work for America.”