Biden's Pressure Moves UP

(Newser) - Will Joe Biden make it to November? The talky senator has so far managed to avoid major damage to Barack Obama’s campaign, despite a number of close brushes. But, notes Bill Nichols in Politico, there’s a week to go. While Biden’s favorable ratings are high and the Obama staff has been impressed with his ability to connect emotionally, the stream of minor gaffes is near-constant. More »

(Newser) - If there’s one thing Joe Biden is famous for, it’s his ability to talk. And talk. And talk some more. But after ABC’s Diane Sawyer showed the Democratic VP nominee a clip of Saturday Night Live lampooning his debate performance, Biden laughed so hard he was rendered speechless for a good spell, the Washington Post reports. "Oh God. I wish I had that much hair," he said, eventually. More »

(Newser) - Last night's debate will provide "no fundamental change" in the race, writes James Fallows in the Atlantic, which is much better news for Obama than McCain. Here are some other quick takes from Fallows: Moderator Gwen Ifill was "terrible." She seemed not to care at all about "looking for ways to follow up the unanswered questions or self contradictory answers." More »

(Newser) - Joe Biden won last night’s debate, polls from CNN and CBS show, but Sarah Palin held her own, improving her image with many responders. Some 51% of viewers polled told CNN that Biden did “the best job,” compared to 36% who preferred Palin. In the CBS poll, uncommitted voters—who may have a preference but aren’t settled on a candidate—said Biden performed better by more than two-to-one. More »

(Newser) - Sarah Palin worked her perky just-plain-folks act to the nauseating end in yesterday's debate, Dana Milbank grumbles in the Washington Post. It promised to be "long night" when Palin, "wearing a glittery flag pin, blew a kiss to the audience." But Palin "had no problem meeting exceptionally low expectations" at her "public IQ test," notes Milbank. More »

(Newser) - When the two presidential campaigns agreed that Gwen Ifill would moderate tonight's VP debate, it was already known that she was writing a book on contemporary black politics. But yesterday the right wing blogosphere erupted with claims that Ifill is biased toward the Democrats and should pull out. As the New York Times reports, however, strategists on both sides think that bashing the moderator is a tactic to encourage Ifill to go easy on Sarah Palin, or to mitigate a possible bad performance. More »

(Newser) - David Letterman was not kind to the Republican vice presidential candidate last night—his Top 10 list  focused on "Things Overheard at Sarah Palin Debate Camp." Among the highlights: "Any way we can just get Tina Fey to do it?" "Maybe we'll get lucky and there won't be any questions about Iraq, taxes or health care." "Let's practice your bewildered silence." Watch the full list or click the link below. More »