Comments about ‘Letter: Vice presidential debate was an outright argument’

Translation: Joe Biden won.

Martha Raddatz did a much better job of moderating and controlling the vice-presidential debate than Jim Lehrer did with the 1st presidential debate.

Sorry the format did not fit your notion of what a "debate" should be, but this one was not intended to be a formal debate like you find in scholastic debate competitions. It was meant to be less structured and more free flowing and interactive.

And by the way, debates by their very nature are "arguments."

Ryan needed some smackdown. It wasn't supposed to be pretty. I wish they could have done it like the Stewart/Oreilly 'debate'. Joe would have had fun with a bit more open format.

Martha Raddatz was terrific. I wish she had moderated the first presidential debate.

Jim Lehrer is a fine older journalist but simply didn't have the necessary energy and quickness. As David Letterman pointed out, Lehrer pays extra at airport check-in because of the bags under his eyes.

It was a vigorous exchange of views. Loved it. Martha Raddatz did a marvelous job, kept it going, kept it focused.

The "problem" could be easily fixed. How about using a switch that allows only one microphone to be active at any time?

Biden abused the rules. His goal was to interrupt Paul Ryan. He succeeded in interrupting, but he failed when he tried to cause Ryan to loose his "train of thought". Who, but Biden, would try to confuse someone. An honest man would want to hear the arguments. An honest man would want to show that "his plan" was better than his opponent's. Biden only wanted to stop his opponent. What a childish way to act.

The "problem" could be easily fixed. How about using a switch that allows only one microphone to be active at any time?

Mitt abused the rules in the first debate. His goal was to interrupt President Obama and to ignore time limits and attempts by Jim Leher to moderate. He succeeded in interrupting, but he failed when he tried to cause Obama to loose his "train of thought". Who, but Mitt would try to confuse someone as he has done throughout the campaign with his flipping and flopping. An honest man would want to hear the arguments. An honest man would want to show that "his plan" was better than his opponent's. Mitt only wanted to stop his opponent. What a childish way to act. Mitt is depending upon the lack of informed voters and those who are incapable of independent thought to elect him.

@ one old man,

Obama had four minutes MORE than Mitt Romney. It wasn't Romney who was abusing the rules. It wasn't Romney who "cheated". Check the time-line. Everyone who watched the debate, all 60,000,000 of us, saw Obama "cheat".

J, which debate did you watch?

Perhaps your tinfoil hat was short circuiting again.

@ one old man,

It's is inconceivable that you would refute the FACT that Obama had four minutes more time than Romney in the first debate. That's something that even a 1st grader can verify. Why would you pretend otherwise? Is Obama allowed to make up his own facts? Is he allowed to change "time"? Is Obama allowed to tell us how many minutes he had vs Romney? What criteria do you use to tell us differently? The FACTS tell us that Obama had four minutes more than Romney. No amount of "explaining" can change that fact. Obama was a bully who used his position as President to get more "air time". That didn't change the outcome. Romney won the debate. Both Democrats and Republicans agree. Read the news sources!

Not really a surprise, but Radditz did a lot more putting question to Ryan and pushing Ryan for answers to questions in that "debate" then she did to Biden. Even when Biden is her guy, she still should have been a little more of a moderator, then an advocate!

@one old man - seems you're a little bitter that Mitt was successful at overcoming the false caricature Obama and his media accomplices had determinedly painted of him over the past year. Of course, to you Mitt should have taken more dishonest swipes about him without challenging them.

Good on Mitt for persisting in an unfiltered forum to set the record straight, without resorting to an unprofessional exhibition like we saw from Joe Biden.