Positions Defined in Biden-Palin Debate

Vice Presidential Candidates Faced Off on Issues

Oct 3, 2008 Rosemary E. Bachelor

The Biden-Palin debate clarified differing positions as the two faced off on the war in Iraq, the financial crises, energy issues and other policy differences.

Candidates emphasized that we are at a crucial point in American history, challenged by issues that may have lasting impact on our ability to deal with terrorism and regain a vibrant, growing economy.

Opposing Strategies for Iraq War

The biggest opinion gap was on the Iraq War. Biden pledged to end the war. Palin said the Obama-Biden plan amounted to waving a white flag and surrendering. Palin insisted the United States is close to winning.

Biden said the Iraqi government should be spending its surplus funds on achieving stability; he supports the 16-month withdrawal plan the Iraqi president espouses. McCain, Biden said, has no exit strategy.

The Financial Crisis

Biden claimed Obama warned two years ago about possible negative impact of sub-prime lending rates, charging that McCain wants to deregulate health care the way Republicans deregulated Wall Street. Palin countered that Obama voted more than 90 times against tax reduction. Biden said that is untrue.

Palin said McCain warned people two years ago about Wall Street greed, but Biden said McCain didn’t foresee how it would play out. Biden would like to see legislation permitting people facing foreclosure to pay principle only.

Energy Policy

Palin complained that people who don’t like us provide our oil instead of us drilling for the large Alaskan supply. She referred to Alaska’s natural gas pipeline, which she took credit for in her convention acceptance speech. (It will be many years before it could be in production.) Biden noted the United States has 3% oil reserves and uses 25% of all oil produced worldwide. He also said that if you don't understand causes of global warming, you can’t eliminate it, alluding to the fundamentalist stance that man isn’t causing global warming. Palin, waffling a little, conceded some global warming may be caused by man. Biden noted that McCain consistently votes against funding alternative energy initiatives.

Other Issues

Palin touted a $5,000 health care credit, saying Obama’s health plan is unworkable. (Someone watching the debate noted that with an outpatient angiogram costing more than $10,000, the $5,000 wouldn’t go far.)

Biden said an Obama presidency would stand for all same sex couples having rights all people are guaranteed under the constitution. Palin claimed tolerance of all lifestyles, but defines marriage as only being between one man and one woman. Biden implied he wouldn't call for any new marriage definition.

There was heated interchange about the advisability of sitting down with Iran’s president Ahmadinejad to negotiate Iranian agreement to not produce nuclear weapons. Biden said friends and allies, plus five previous Secretaries of State, advised such negotiating. Palin said such a meeting would be naïve, irresponsible and dangerous bad judgment. Palin reiterated her belief that the big threats are Al Qaeda in Iraq and Ahmadinejad’s threat to blow Israel off the map.

Both candidates claimed experience with bipartisan tactics to move legislation forward. Palin said she has put party aside and chosen people who can do the job, but in Alaska she has been criticized for putting high school friends in jobs they aren't qualified for.

Debate Tone

Candidates were polite and there were no below-the-belt blows. Early on, Palin didn’t provide answers specific to questions asked, instead pushing things she wanted included in the night’s rhetoric. She was more spontaneous and on topic the last half of the debate.

Joe Biden’s years of experience and knowledge of issues were apparent. He showed awareness of problems faced by ordinary Americans and empathy for housing crisis victims.

Palin adopted a folksy mien, referring to “Joe six-pack” and her experiences as a mother. There was an implication that all that’s needed to solve complex problems is common sense. She was most comfortable speaking about her Alaskan record and said she was happy to debate Biden so she could give her positions eliminating “the filter of the media.”

There is a companion article on criteria for selecting effective leaders.

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