On issues that varied from Libya, Iran and Afghanistan to taxes, debt, Medicare and Social Security, Biden blunted the Romney-Ryan assault on the Obama-Biden record, point for point, spin for spin, and threw in some counter-punches of his own.
Among the highlights: Biden was at his most ferocious in defending Social Security and Medicare, partly to clean up some damage Obama did by sounding too conciliatory the previous week, especially on Social Security.
Biden, responding to a question from moderator Martha Raddatz of ABC, highlighted the differences between the two campaigns on what may be the government's most popular program.
"With regard to Social Security, we will not privatize it," Biden said, recalling President George W. Bush's unsuccessful attempt to offer future recipients the option of investing in the stock market in 2005. The more Bush promoted it the more unpopular it became. It never reached the floor of Congress. "If we had listened to Romney, Gov. Romney and the congressman during the Bush years," Biden said, "Imagine where all those seniors would be now if their money had been in the market."
Ryan was compelled to assure viewers that his earlier support for Bush's changes in Social Security are "not what Mitt Romney's proposing."
Biden's most memorable moment may have been in his response to Ryan's use of a favorite Republican talking point, the failure of Obama's economic stimulus to produce more jobs.
"I love my friend here," Biden said before announcing that Ryan had sent two letters requesting stimulus money for companies in his home state of Wisconsin, letters that said the stimulus would "create growth and jobs."
Ryan acknowledged the letters as part of "what we do" to service his constituents.
This gave Biden a chance to extend a cordial assurance that "Any letter you send me, I'll entertain."
To which Ryan replied just as cordially, "I appreciate that, Joe."
See? We can all get along.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/ct-oped-1014-page-20121014,0,6771979.column