5 takeaways from the Vance-Walz VP debate

From The Hill.com (Oct. 2):

Ohio Sen. JD Vance (R) and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) met face-to-face in New York City on Tuesday in the first and likely only vice presidential debate of the election cycle, a high-stakes moment that comes a little more than a month before Election Day.

The two candidates clashed on a range of issues, from abortion to immigration to foreign policy. But the forum was notably more civil and policy-focused than the debate between Vice President Harris and former President Trump that took place last month.

It’s unclear how much the event will move the needle, but it could be the last time voters will see a debate involving the top of the ticket before November. Harris has pressed her rival for another showdown, but so far Trump has insisted he won’t do another.

Here are five takeaways from Tuesday’s vice presidential debate. 

Vance shows his debate skills

Vance went into the debate with arguably higher stakes than Walz. The Ohio senator has stoked controversy and ridicule for promoting unfounded conspiracies about Haitian migrants eating pets in Springfield, Ohio, and for past remarks about “childless cat ladies.”

But Tuesday night, Vance put to rest — at least temporarily — any doubts as to why Trump picked him to be his running mate.

A Yale-trained lawyer, Vance was clearly in his element Tuesday night, easily batting away potentially tricky questions and at one point challenging the moderators over their fact-checking of his Springfield remarks.

His polished delivery drew a stark contrast with Walz’s sometimes rocky performance, while his emphasis on his humble upbringing in Ohio was a clear effort to appeal to the sort of voters who might have been turned off by the controversy surrounding him.

It was just the sort of shot in the arm Vance needed, having entered the debate with lower favorability numbers than his Democratic counterpart. 

Walz stumbles with answer on China story 

The Minnesota governor had a more uneven night Tuesday, something that was underscored by his awkward answer regarding claims that he had been in Hong Kong during the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989.

News outlets including APM Reports and Minnesota Public Radio recently reported that evidence suggested Walz was actually in China later that year, in August, contradicting his claims.

Asked to address the discrepancy between his remarks and recent reporting, Walz struggled to offer a succinct answer, noting that he could sometimes be a “knucklehead.”

“Look, my community knows who I am,” Walz said. “They saw where I was at. They — look, I will be the first to tell you I have poured my heart into my community. I’ve tried to do the best I can, but I’ve not been perfect, and I’m a knucklehead at times, but it’s always been about that.”

Pressed again, Walz said, “All I said on this was, is I got there that summer and misspoke on this, so I will just — that’s what I’ve said.”

“So I was in Hong Kong and China during the democracy protest, went in, and from that, I learned a lot of what needed to be in governance,” he added.

Republicans have ramped up scrutiny on details of Walz’s life since he joined the Democratic ticket, including his military service and his family’s fertility journey.

Walz also failed to land any knockout blows on Vance, whose performance many commentators praised after the debate. [read more]

Vance won the debate. He did real well. Although, he should've not accepted the Left's "gun violence" premise that it's the gun's fault not the person holding the gun. People have been killing each other way before the invention of gun powder.

As for not remembering that Walz didn’t go to China during the Tiananmen Square protests, that’s a lie not a misstatement.  A misstatement is saying he’s “friends with school shooters.” What a knucklehead!

Other articles about the VP debate:

• Five takeaways from the Vance-Walz VP debate: Deportation, China and making nice
• Ridiculous ‘fact check’ of a true statement during CBS debate
• Beyond ‘Defining’ To Shining: 5 Ways JD Vance Flipped The Script
• Senator Vance’s Triumph: President Trump’s Vindication
• O'Reilly Reacts to the Vice Presidential Debate [video]