Local professor analyzes VP debate

DENVER - The 2008 vice presidential debate pitted a man against a woman and a seasoned senator versus a governor who, until recently, received little media attention.

9NEWS asked Metropolitan State College Political Science Professor Richard Moeller to rate the debate performances of Sen. Joe Biden and Gov. Sarah Palin. We asked Moeller to focus on three categories: Connection to voters/viewers, addressing questions on the big campaign issue of the economy and then overall performance.

When it came to connecting to the viewer, Moller says Palin edged out Biden. Moeller says Palin’s “light” personality came across well. He also noted that Palin’s consistent turning to face the camera also helped her “connectivity.”

“She looked at the camera a lot, she was folksy like she is, and with an 80 percent approval rating in Alaska for her, I think she knows that it works,” said Moeller.

The first topic for questioning in the debate was the economy. Moeller says, despite attempts from Palin to convey that she has a grasp on the economic woes on Wall Street, Biden emerged as the winner on this topic. Moeller pointed to Biden’s active role and vote in the Senate’s version of the “bailout” bill.

“He's very scripted here and he knows all the facts because he's in that debate right now. He's been doing this not over the last week, he's been doing this his whole career, he's a legislator. She's an executive she doesn't do the same types of jobs that we're talking about with the rescue plan, bailout, buyout, whatever you’d like to call it,” said Moeller.

Some media outlets billed the debate as the “Showdown in St. Louis.” Moeller says if fireworks were expected, Palin and Biden didn’t quite deliver them. Moeller says neither candidate had a performance that would definitively crown himself or herself as the debates winner.

“They did what they set out to do. Palin didn’t have one of those moments where she was expected to freeze and not know the answer. Biden didn’t come across as heavy-handed, and perhaps more importantly, long-winded,” Moeller said.