Biden Speechless? SNL Lampoon Does the Trick

Plays flute for the 'talent portion'

(NEWSER) - Comedian Tina Fey clobbered Sarah Palin in yet another dead-on Saturday Night Live skit yesterday, reports the Chicago Sun-Times, skewering the candidate's stance as a maverick, her relentless folksiness, and repeated feints at last week's debate to dodge questions. Asked what she would do about the economic crisis, Fey/Palin, winking, explains: "Gosh darn it, we're gonna ask ourselves, 'What would a maverick do in this situation,' and then, you know, we'll do that." More»

Shatters the 56.9M for Ferraro-Bush in 1984, and well above McCain-Obama I

(NEWSER) - Last night’s vice presidential debate drew 69.9 million viewers, shattering the record for such an event, Broadcasting & Cable reports. The 1984 encounter between VP candidates Geraldine Ferraro and George H.W. Bush drew 56.9 million; the record for a campaign debate is 80.6 million for the 1980 showdown between Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. More»

Palin didn't lose, didn't win

(NEWSER) - Think Sarah Palin's performance was folksy and colorful last night? Pundits reached to do it justice:

• "I always wondered what a wolverine would sound like chewing through plywood," writes Howard Fineman of Newsweek. "Now I know: like Sarah Palin 'debating' Joe Biden."
• “Somewhere in heaven, Norman Rockwell is smiling,” writes David Brooks in the New York Times.

She succeeded by discussing whichever topic suited her

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin made last night's debate work for her by answering whichever questions she wanted, not the questions she was asked, writes Christopher Beam in Slate. The Republican seemed to barely notice her opponent and the moderator, at one point telling Joe Biden, "I may not answer the questions that either the moderator or you want to hear, but I'm going to talk straight to the American people." More»

Noonan: She's a little transparent but still very effective

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin starred in her own political "infomercial" last night and once again revived John McCain's flagging campaign, writes Peggy Noonan of the Wall Street Journal. Palin looked "not petrified but peppy," her style far more suited to a debate than a cerebral interview. Biden seemed to be waiting for her to make a fool of herself. She didn’t. Instead, she talked straight to the people in a baldly populist, if transparent, pitch to “soccer moms” and “Joe Six-Pack.” More»