*The Debatewise Blog
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder
Seems like one's view of who won last night's VP debate is uncannily similar to one's preference for the presidency. Fox News thinks Palin won, the Huffington Post goes for Biden. Nothing surprising in that though, we see what we want to see and disregard the rest. Does make you question the value of debates though doesn't it?Well sort of. Debates, especially political debates, are less about getting people to change their minds than getting them to make up their minds. The key polls are not what Republicans or Democrats thought, but whether the uncommitted voter has been persuaded one way or another.
Early indications are that Biden won this battle. He didn't attack Palin directly – and so couldn't be accused of bullying. He tied McCain to Bush, spoke clearly and succinctly, came across as being highly knowledgeable and actually answered many of the questions.
Palin exceeded expectations, though that wasn't hard given how low they were. However, neutrals aren't yet convinced she's up to the job; a CBS poll found the percentage of people who thought she would make an effective president increased by only nine percent. Biden's score rose by 25 per cent on the same question.
I see this as proof of the value of debating. People looking to make up their mind weren't convinced by the folksy, 'ordinary mom' approach and instead leant towards the person who engaged with the debate. Republicans may have fallen back in love with Palin, but neutrals aren't much more likely to vote for her.