Biden Comes Out Swinging in Rally

Proving herself hampered her ability to attack Obama

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin acquitted herself at last night's debate with her charm and a show of basic coherency, writes Adam Nagourney in the New York Times. Her face-off with Joe Biden didn't prove to be a point of no return for the faltering McCain campaign, but neither was it the decisive blow against Barack Obama that McCain needed. More»

VP candidate Biden largely drowned out by Palin, economy

(NEWSER) - Joe Biden’s freewheeling style makes him a big hit on campaign stops, and he usually draws front-page headlines in the towns he visits. But often, those stories carry word of the VP hopeful’s latest slip-up. Biden has lived up to his reputation as a gaffe machine, contradicting his running mate and misstating facts time and again, the Washington Post reports. More»

May emphasize McCain's virtues and fare well against Biden

(NEWSER) - Vice-presidential nominees usually have little direct effect on the outcome of an election, writes Karl Rove in the Wall Street Journal, but Sarah Palin could be the exception. Rove consults two experts, who agree that some VPs can have an unusually large “indirect effect,” as they underscore a candidate’s virtues and flaws. McCain chose Palin as "someone who shares his maverick outsider attitude and is willing to challenge party orthodoxy and politics-as-usual." More»

If McCain lets veep pick be herself, a 'mold-breaking example' will be born

(NEWSER) - Democrats will launch one patronizing strike after another on Sarah Palin in the coming weeks, but make no mistake: Liberals are—and should be—terrified of the GOP veep pick, William Kristol writes in the Weekly Standard. Palin is “a compelling and mold-breaking example for lots of Americans,” with hard-core conservative values and a gripping story that could win the election for John McCain—if his campaign lets her be herself. More»

(NEWSER) - Joe Biden accepted his party's nomination to be vice president tonight, then took to the podium to pound the theme that John McCain will offer nothing more than a third Bush term, CNN reports. "John McCain doesn't seem to get it," said Biden, stressing his own humble roots and decrying the dire financial straits of blue-collar families. "Americans need more than a good soldier," he said, referring to McCain's war record. "They require a wise leader." More»