Obama or Romney? - St Paul's High School

Volume 66, Issue 2 October 31, 2012Kentucky, Paul Ryan and JoeBiden debated a number of topics,including foreign policy in Libya,Iran and Syria, the U.S. economy,Medicare, and the role of theirreligion in their lives. The firstquestion was about Libya. Bidenwas defensive and aggressive fromthe beginning of the debate. Hespoke very well about the issues inLibya, making two “commitments.”His first commitment was to findthose responsible for the assault onthe U.S. embassy in Benghazi andbring justice to the victims’ families,and Biden also promised that themistakes would not be made again.Biden convincingly stated that thatunder the Obama administrationthe issues in the Middle East werehandled efficiently: they found andkilled bin Laden, ended the warin Iraq and scheduled to removetroops from Afghanistan in 2014.Ryan said that setting a date forleaving Afghanistan was projectingweakness abroad, saying enemieswill just mark their calendar. Ryanthen spoke patriotically about howAmericans must stand up for peaceand not cut defense spending.Biden consistently laughed atRyan’s statements, calling them“a bunch of stuff.” Ryan was alsonot afraid to go after the president,questioning why it took two weeksfor Obama to call the attack on theembassy a terrorist attack. Ryan’scriticism was effective; he was ableto make his points in a composedand organized fashion. Biden, onthe other hand, was interruptive andconsistently talked down to Ryanand sarcastically referred to himas “my friend here.” The two thenwent back and forth on Iran as anuclear threat. Ryan and Biden havedifferent debate styles, and eachwas not holding back during thebeginning of the vice-presidentialdebate.The candidates wereasked next if they could get theunemployment rate to under 6%,and how long it would take. Bidenbegan by criticizing Mitt Romneyfor his now infamous statementthat 47% of Americans do not takeresponsibility of their lives. Thisnumber represents the number ofAmerican ElectionAmericans that do not pay incometax. Obama did not bring upthis quote in the first presidentialdebate, but Biden devoted much ofhis two minute segment to say thatthe Romney-Ryan team only caresabove the upper class. Biden madedecent points, but the economy isPaul Ryan’s strongest field. Ryanoutlined the five point economicplan that the Republicans would useto improve the U.S. economy andbalance the budget. Ryan spokewell about the economic crisis andthe plan for reform.Biden and Ryan went on todebate Medicare, taxes, Afghanistanand Syria. Much of the discussionabout health care overlapped withthe October 3 presidential debate.When asked about tax rates, Ryansaid that all tax rates could belowered 20% and by adding jobsto the economy and changing theMedicare system, he claimed thatsix studies showed that this mathwould add up. Biden said that themath simply does not add up, addingthat the Romney administrationis seeking to allow the wealthy tocontinue paying low tax rates. Thecandidates then were asked foreignpolicy in Afghanistan and Syria.Biden made some very good pointsthroughout these segments, and wasvery convincing. Ryan was able toremain composed despite Biden’sattacks.begins at conception. Ryan saidthat he and Romney would makeabortion illegal except for a handfulof exceptions. Biden said thatpersonally he is pro-life, but “refusesto impose on others unlike my friendhere.” The candidates then movedon to discussing the negative toneof each other’s campaigns, followedby closing statements.As noted by moderatorMartha Raddatz of ABC, this isthe first time that two Catholiccandidates have run for vicepresident.The candidates wereasked about their personal religiousviews on abortion. Ryan’s argumentwas very logical, saying that faith inyour private life cannot be separatedfrom your public life, and echoingthe Catholic church’s belief that lifeOverall, each vice-presidentialcandidate spoke very convincinglyof their running mate and theirviews. A C.N.N. poll taken afterthis debate showed that undecidedvoters felt Ryan had a slight edge,but the debate was close. Vice-President Biden was able to connectwith lower and middle classAmericans using personal storiesand a very convincing debatestyle. Congressman Ryan remainedpoised, and made strong argumentson all nine topics. The case couldbe made for either candidate havingwon the debate.Congressman Ryan andVice-President Biden are not onlydifferent in terms of political views.At the age of 69, Biden has muchmore experience than Paul Ryan.Joe Biden is a good debater, he isaggressive and at times interruptive,and he is very convincing. His viewson foreign policy and commitmentto Americans were very well spoken.Biden has been very critical ofboth Romney and Ryan throughoutthe campaign. He brought a lot ofenergy to his debate, making up forObama’s first debate. Ryan, on theother hand, is only 42 and alreadyon the country’s largest politicalstage. His economic proposals arethe reason for his success, and heoutlined his economic plan wellin the vice-presidential debate.Ryan sticks to the facts and comesacross as a composed and intelligentdebater.Paul Ryan was able tocontinue Mitt Romney’s successfrom the first debate. Joe Bidenbrought some energy that Obamalacked and spoke very well. Pollsleading up to November 6 show thatthe election will be very close. Asidefrom political views, Joe Biden’spersuasiveness and energy, or Ryan’scomposure and intelligence couldhave influence on undecided voters,and ultimately help determine theresult of the election.Picture is from Associated Press(David Goldman)40