Joe Biden it is all on you, no pressure. That is the
sentiment that exists a few days before the one and only Vice Presidential
Debate of the 2012 campaign season, and the stakes couldn’t be any higher.
I am on record and therefore have taken a lot of heat from
fellow Progressives for saying that President Obama came up relatively short in
the first Presidential Debate. The amount of times Mitt Romney stuck out his
chin and told the President to hit him with all of his lies and distortions
wasn’t as baffling as the President’s unwillingness to do it, or to at least do
it aggressively.
Nevertheless last week is now in the history books and the
Democratic Ticket is in desperate need of a good showing. Mr. Vice President
you are now on.
To use a sports analogy Biden is being asked to be the ace
of a Baseball’s Team pitching staff, go out and shutdown the other team and
take away the momentum that they have. No one the left side of the political
ledger should think this is going to be an easy task at the same time no one
should doubt old Joe.
Biden’s years spent as a Senator in Washington D.C. should
serve as the perfect guide on how to destroy Paul Ryan, he has seen it all and
done it all, as Jonathan Martin of Politico puts it “when Joe Biden was going
through the debate process for the Presidency in 1987 and 1988 Paul Ryan was
still in High School.”
Speaking of the so-called deficit hawk Ryan, he is the
perfect opponent for Biden. Biden who has been playing attack dog for the
campaign since the start of the year will have no problem attacking the
Congressman of his lack of substance, specifics, and consistency.
It was Ryan who a couple of weeks ago was taken the carpet
by Fox News’ Chris Wallace for his lack of specifics on his and Governor Romney’s
proposed budget, clearly frustrated he even at one point offered up an “I don’t
have time to go into the specifics” I can so see Biden saying “Congressman I
will gladly give you my time to explain.”
The fact is Paul Ryan must look like a juicy piece of steak
to the Vice President and the Obama campaign. Biden will not be burden by having to pull
punches the way that he was in 2008 when debating Sarah Palin. The possibility
of coming off as a bully against Palin was very much a real possibility. Given
the penchant that both Romney and Ryan have for lying holding back will not be
a problem for the Vice President or the American People.
Biden for the last few years has been unfairly characterized
as a gaffe machine, particularly by the right. It would be awfully fitting for
the Vice President to now be seen as the guy who saved the Obama campaign’s
re-election effort. So much for gaffes.