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Biden Wins, Hands Down

That "debate"! - that is, between Sarah Palin and Joe Biden. So, who won?

Ari Berman in The Nation sums it up this way:

"Joe Biden was substantive, thoughtful and in command. Sarah Palin ignored virtually every question and stuck to generalities and platitudes.

Yes Palin didn't stumble as she did during the Katie Couric interviews. But she didn't impress, either. It was all boilerplate--like she was giving a scripted pep talk, not proving she could handle the toughest job in the world.

Biden kept his cool, even though he clearly had a much greater mastery of virtually every subject discussed. He kept the heat on John McCain--where it should be--and forcefully defended Obama when Palin made ludicrous claims about transferring the surge to Afghanistan or "waving the white flag of surrender" in Iraq.

I'm a little surprised to see the talking heads on TV talking about what a great job Palin did. Maybe they just want this race to be closer than it currently looks. But most swing voters, in an instant snapshot, thought otherwise.

According to a CBS poll, 46 percent of uncommitted voters who watched the debate tonight thought Joe Biden was the winner. 21 percent thought Sarah Palin won, 33 percent thought it was a draw.

According to a CNN poll, 51 percent of voters though Biden won, compared to 36 percent for Palin.

(Only voters polled by Fox, surprise surprise, gave it to Palin.)

Before the debate, 54 percent of CNN voters said Palin was unqualified to be vice president. After the debate, that number (53 percent) only changed by a point.

Maybe, for once, substance prevailed over style."

Meanwhile, The Independent reports that the British Ambassador to the US has described Obama as "uninspiring":

"The British ambassador to Washington faces calls to resign after he described the US Presidential candidate Barack Obama as "uninspiring" and said his policies are "still evolving".

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