V.P. Debate 121008

Style vs. Substance and the V.P. Debate

There is an old saying, commonly known among trial lawyers: “If you have the facts on your side, pound on the facts; if you have the law on your side, pound on the law; if you have neither, pound on the table.”  Despite the dramatics portrayed by Hollywood, pounding on the table rarely works in real life.

Since last Wednesday’s presidential debate, the consensus seems to be that Governor Romney won convincingly on style, in part because President Obama was not on his game and was unprepared for Romney’s aggressiveness.  I have a slightly different take.  I agree the President was not at his best and that Romney got more style points.  But why?  Over the last four years I have repeatedly been told President Obama is literally one of the most intelligent presidents in our nation’s history, and that his oratory skills are second to none.  Maybe his problem Wednesday had less to do with style than with substance.

The problem for Obama is that when confronted with his record he has nothing to say.  The reason he fidgeted and looked down at his notes and seemed discombobulated is because there is no defense for the state of this nation’s economy, and deep down inside he knows it.  Allow us to consider just a few facts this President was forced to defend.

1.             Unemployment over 8% (on the date of the debate);

2.             Millions more underemployed or too discouraged to even look for work;

3.             $16 trillion in national debt;

4.             Deficits in excess of $1 trillion forecast as far as the eye can see;

5.             Millions of individuals and thousands of small businesses are becoming aware of the debacle that is Obamacare;

6.             Business investment and expansion on hold due to the uncertainty of federal tax policy and suffocating regulation.

Romney’s mission was simply to shed light on the fecklessness of this president and then provide a reasonable alternative.  He did both very effectively.

So what does this mean for Representative Paul Ryan as he goes into the “ring” with Vice President Joe Biden?  All he needs to do is heed the instructions from good old Joe Friday: “Just the facts, ma’am.”

Vice President Biden is stuck trying to defend the same abysmal record that hamstrung President Obama.  And during the past week or so, Biden made it even more difficult for himself by admitting the middle class has been “buried” during his boss’s tenure.  And he finally conceded that allowing the “Bush tax cuts” to end is tantamount to a tax increase, which Obama has conceded is a bad idea during a time of economic distress.

Most analysts are of the opinion that vice presidential debates have little, if any impact on the outcome of a presidential election unless there is a major announcement or serious gaffe.  However, if Paul Ryan is able to drive home the failure of this administration, the message will be a continuation of what America learned during the first presidential debate.  And if Americans are constantly reminded of what this Administration has done to this nation, November 6th might be a very good day for conservatives.  Just the facts, sir.