TJ Walker breaks down the 2008 vice presidential debate. Biden's strength is policy knowledge and camera presence, but he talks too long and makes gaffes. Palin has likability and emotional appeal, but limited policy knowledge. Both will likely attack the presidential nominees instead of each other.
Is this how you feel the night before a big speech or presentation? If so, then world renowned speaking Expert and author TJ Walker can help you. Go to tjwalker.com and sign up for your free speech training course. Coming in 2009. The new book, TJ Walker's Secret to Foolproof Presentations.
The 2008 vice presidential debate is coming up. What should we expect? First, let's look at Senator Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee. Now, Biden has a lot of experience as a debater. He's been in the Senate since 1973. He's run for president a couple of times, very knowledgeable about policy, the way Washington works, the way campaigns work, knows a lot of foreign leaders. So these should come through as excellent strengths. He's also someone who can make a strong emotional connection and can look good and sound good on camera. But like everyone, Biden does have his weaknesses. For starters, sometimes he just speaks too long. He goes on and on and on and on. Now, he did get a lot better at that during the presidential debates this year that he participated in for the Democratic nomination. But he does have this tendency to go on too long. Another danger with him is that he can come across too strident, too much of like, I'm a know it all. I had 2 degrees and 3 degrees and all this stuff. He goes on and on and exaggerates sometimes with his resume. That's gotten him into trouble. And finally, the big trouble with Senator Biden is he has the tendency of gaffes to come out of his mouth. Doesn't mean they're mistakes. It means they are things that get him in trouble, things that are embarrassing. He really has to stay away from saying things like, well, Governor Palin's good looking, which is something he said just a few weeks ago. He's got to make sure that he doesn't get drawn in to a fight with her. What should he be doing during this debate? He needs to focus on his real enemy, which is Senator McCain. Historically, Vice Presidential candidates don't make or break a ticket. So the job for the vice president is, is to point out the flaws not with the opposing party's vice presidential nominee, but instead with the opposing party's nominee for president. So what Biden really needs to do is to create more doubts in the minds of undecided voters about John McCain. I predict he will not spend a lot of time attacking the credentials and the experience of Governor Palin because that just doesn't help, typically. So my prediction, you're going to see him be very nice, very pleasant to Governor Palin and focus his energy on attacking the McCain record and attacking the General Bush record of the last eight years. That's what he could be doing, should be doing. That's my prediction. Now, Governor Palin, what are her strengths as a communicator? Well, she has a lot. She comes across as likable. She is, and I can say this, I'm not Joe Biden. She is is good looking and that does help. She comes across as sincere when she speaks. She has a way of communicating so that you understand her ideas at the intellectual level, but at the gut level, the emotional level. And a lot of people can really relate to her. Her voice sounds good. It sounds warm. And I do think that she exudes a certain intelligence. Now, that doesn't mean she doesn't have weaknesses. In recent interviews with Katie Couric and other network anchors, she has simply been unable to answer basic questions of policy. She doesn't know a lot about John McCain's record. And if she goes through the debate and seems like she just is not up on the substance, there is a real danger that she becomes even more of a laughing stock. So the number one objective, the number one goal for the Palin camp has got to be can they somehow get through the debate without seeming like they're providing fodder for another Saturday Night Live sketch? Now, here's my prediction with Palin. You're going to see her mention the names of a lot of foreign leaders to sound intelligent. You're going to hear her really give a strong case of specific accomplishments from John McCain because those are areas where she's been weak when it comes to interviews in the past. And you're not going to hear her say that she's experienced about foreign policy because she can look out her window and see Russia. I don't think she's going to mention that at all. My prediction is that she, like her opponent, will not spend her time attacking Biden. She will spend her time making the case for why Senator Obama is not the best person to lead the country. So this will probably be cordial between the two main combatants, but you're going to see a lot of very, very specific attacks on the number one in each party. My other prediction about Palin is that she will have studied enough, prepared enough, that she's not going to make the sort of gaffes and do the embarrassing things that have happened to her in recent days in interviews because she'll have had a lot of time to prepare for this to get really Ready. So my prediction is she's going to sound knowledgeable. She'll be able to say a lot of foreign leaders names. She'll be able to give a strong case for what McCain has done as a reformer and that should strengthen her case. So what are the political implications from this debate? If Biden has a gaffe come out, if he says something embarrassing, if he talks about Governor Palin being good looking or something like that, that's going to be the headline. And believe me, so many writers, journalists and pundits are going to be looking for the gaffe. On the other hand, if Governor Palin says something that makes it seem obvious that she has no clue as to some basic element of fact that is assumed to be common knowledge, then that's the gaffe that will light up the TV screens, that will be the sound bite, that will be the parody on Saturday Night Live. So she has to watch out for that. Now here's where it gets tricky with the political analysis. It is entirely possible for the pundits, for example, to say, well, Biden clearly won. He showed more mastery over the subject matter because Senator Palin didn't know some element or Governor Palin didn't know some element of the Bush Doctrine. But it's entirely possible for her to communicate so well at an emotional level, at a sheer personal level, that undecided voters who look at her think, you know what, I like that woman. She's like me. I can understand her. I can relate to her. So it is possible that she loses on points and yet wins the political debate because she draws in more undecided voters. Now what's the real significance of this debate? It may go beyond this election if Governor Palin does well. Even if the McCain campaign loses, this performance could help define her whole political legacy and her whole image for years to come. If she does extraordinarily well and the McCain campaign still loses, this campaign debate may be the basis of her becoming the frontrunner for the 2012 Republican nomination. She could really use this opportunity to rally a strong base among conservatives, the religious right and other evangelicals who already like her for Senator Biden. If he does well, it will enhance his status whether he goes back to the Senate or whether he becomes the next vice president. Either way, it will be quite a showdown.
Is this how you feel the night before a big speech or presentation? If so, then world renowned speaking Expert and author TJ Walker can help you. Go to tjwalker.com and sign up for your free speech training course coming in 2009. The new book, TJ Walker's Secret to Foolproof Presentations.
