Last night Joe Biden revealed how intelligent, passionate, sincere, and thoughtful he really is. He gave us "Joe being Joe" and he couldn't have done better.
Sarah Palin did well, as many expected she would in a venue that lent itself to brief formal speeches punctuated by moderator questions. She deserves credit for that.
Many times Palin tried to bait Biden into taking a defensive posture, but he deftly avoided such traps. Her request, "Can I call you Joe?" was an attempt to get him to refer to her as Sarah -- to establish a false familiarity that would have been beneficial to her. Biden didn't take that bait. He also maintained his cool when, several times, she claimed that he had contradicted past statements, even as she criticized him for looking backwards ("Say it ain't so, Joe"). He could have responded angrily. He didn't. He could have backed off both Bush and McCain failings of the past. He didn't. Instead he told us again and again ways that the two men are much the same.
He was both courteous and centered. He used phrases such as "with all due respect" and meant it, but he also asserted, "I didn't hear a plan" and "This is simply not true." He drove home key points using the word "fundamental," slowed his words for emphasis at times, and repeated what he wanted us to hear and remember. He focused on the issues and did not respond angrily or attack Palin personally even when she attempted to provoke him ("white flag of surrender").
There were two myths that Biden took to task in a way that has not been done before. He should do this again and again too. When Palin used the mom card, Joe Biden reminded us that he is a dad who raised two boys alone for a while. He too loves his children and wants what's best for them. He elevated the status of dad in political discussion. That was long overdue.
Sarah Palin repeated the "maverick" myth many times during the debate. The McCain campaign attempts to cloak itself in this myth to excuse impulsive, contradictory and questionable actions of both McCain and Palin. Joe Biden waited until nearly the end of the debate to debunk the maverick myth by powerfully enumerating many ways that McCain has been Bush's man not responsive to people's needs.
Sarah Palin may have redeemed herself, but Joe Biden shared his and Barack Obama's vision of how to redeem America's role in the world, reinforce our core democratic values, save our economy, respond to man-made climate change, focus our military efforts on America's true enemies, and rise from the devastation of George W. Bush's eight years by doing what is "fair" for all Americans. He did so with remarkable heart, intelligence, intensity and calm. He also did well for Barack Obama, impressively so, by focusing on doing well by us.
Dr. Reardon also blogs at bardscove.