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Author of How to Prep When You’re Broke and Bloom Where You’re Planted online course
If you tuned in to the vice presidential debate hosted by CBS last night, you may have walked away with a different opinion about both candidates than you started with. I know that I certainly did.
Here’s the debate, in case you missed it.
At first glance…
When the debate began, Vance came across as calm and confident. Walz, on the other hand, looked and sounded very nervous. Maybe this is to be expected in a contest of words between a Yale-educated attorney and a high school football coach, but Walz was outmatched, and he knew it.
Despite all this, both men were polite and courteous to one another. This wasn’t the insult-flinging debacle that we’ve become used to in these debates. Neither person directly attacked the other. They were both…dare I say it…nice.
Surprisingly, it started out with the moderators attacking a lie Walz had previously told, that he was present at the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Walz tried to tap dance his way around it by talking about riding his bike as a kid but the moderators didn’t let it go and pressed for an answer. Red-faced, Walz finally admitted simply, “I misspoke.”
Vance was gracious and didn’t bring up Walz’s track record of dishonesty throughout the entire debate. In fact, I felt that Vance clearly set the tone for it when he kindly pointed out the common ground between Walz and himself.
Things took a slight turn, however, the second time the moderators fact-checked Vance. I’ll let you see for yourself, below.
Vance completely took control of the debate from that moment on. This was the last time the moderators attempted to fact-check him, though they finally cut off the microphones when Vance refused to be subdued.
This made the rest of the debate far more enjoyable, and by the end, even the moderators were increasingly civil.
After the circuses of the past 20 years or so, I had forgotten that politics could be like this.
Vance adeptly sidestepped several minefield questions, such as his views on abortion. Walz attempted to sidestep a few questions but was visibly flustered. He also made a huge blunder when he said he’d been friends with several school shooters. (Talk about misspeaking!) Vance’s only clear stumble was when he was asked his thoughts on whether or not Trump had won the 2020 election.
When Vance talked about the biggest threat, censorship, and praised the First Amendment, I was thrilled. I do think taking away our ability to publicly disagree is an enormous threat to the way America is supposed to be.
What is the media saying
Unsurprisingly, much of the state-sponsored media disagrees with my takeaways. Here are some of the headlines you might find today:
CNN Instant Poll: No clear winner in VP debate between Tim Walz and JD Vance
NY Times: ‘He Made Trumpism Sound Polite, Calm and Coherent’: 13 Writers on JD Vance’s Debate Performance
Washington Post: At debate, Vance whines: You weren’t supposed to fact-check me!
MSNBC: ‘The most damning moment’: Vance seals debate loss by botching January 6 answer
The Atlantic: J. D. Vance Tries to Rewrite History
Some of them agreed with me, however, that the debate was civil and that Vance was the victor.
AP News: Vance and Walz keep it civil in a policy-heavy discussion: VP debate takeaways
Slate: The Brutal Tim Walz Tactical Error That Cost Him the Debate
Variety: Tim Walz and JD Vance Hold Civil Debate on Immigration, Economy and Jan. 6
National Review: Vance Dominates Walz in a Shockingly Substantive and Polite Debate
The Wall Street Journal: Vance Makes a Better Case for Trump Than Trump
The Daily Beast: First Flash Polls’ Shock Verdict on Vance-Walz Debate Clash Revealed
Who won the debate? The USA won.
This debate was quite refreshing. Both men were downright affable. Both men pointed out places where they agreed, and that’s something the United States of America needs right now. Vance could have decimated Walz, but he reined himself in, stuck to the facts, and saved his criticism for Kamala Harris.
The friend I was watching with and I both giggled when we could see on Vance’s face the moment Walz had given him the needed ammunition for a rebuttal. “Response loading,” my friend said. We also got a chuckle out of Vance’s habit of looking at the camera dubiously or glancing at us through the camera with a side-eye when Walz’s responses were dishonest or fumbling.
But here’s the thing, and this opinion may not be popular.
I walked away finding both men far more likable than when the debate began. I didn’t think that either of them showed themselves to be horrible people.
While I staunchly disagree with Walz on nearly everything, and he’s repeatedly shown that he doesn’t let the facts get in the way of a good story, I didn’t hate him. He seemed like a nice old man with whom I would never want to talk about politics but would happily chat on the subway about the weather and my favorite produce stand. This isn’t to say that I’d vote for him or that I want him to be a heartbeat away from the presidency, but I didn’t dislike him nearly as much as I expected to dislike him.
While I’ve found Vance to be unpleasantly abrasive and dismissive in the past, his actions at the debate have made me look a little deeper. He wasn’t hateful – in fact, he was kind to Walz, who was clearly out of his depth. He was firm but not rude about the moderators adhering to the agreed-upon rules, and that really set the tone for the entire event from there on out. He, too, was likable. I was also impressed with his intelligence and eloquence.
I felt like the real winner of last night’s debate was the United States of America. We were reminded that politics can be polite and we can agree to disagree.
Did you watch the vice presidential debate?
What did you think of the debate? Did your opinions on the two vice-presidential candidates change at all? What did you take away from the event?
Let’s discuss it in the comments section.
About Daisy
Daisy Luther is a coffee-swigging, adventure-seeking, globe-trotting blogger. She is the founder and publisher of three websites. 1) The Organic Prepper, which is about current events, preparedness, self-reliance, and the pursuit of liberty; 2) The Frugalite, a website with thrifty tips and solutions to help people get a handle on their personal finances without feeling deprived; and 3) PreppersDailyNews.com, an aggregate site where you can find links to all the most important news for those who wish to be prepared. Her work is widely republished across alternative media and she has appeared in many interviews.
Daisy is the best-selling author of 5 traditionally published books, 12 self-published books, and runs a small digital publishing company with PDF guides, printables, and courses at SelfRelianceand Survival.com You can find her on Facebook, Pinterest, Gab, MeWe, Parler, Instagram, and Twitter.
