Back in 2012, Vice President Joe Biden debated Rep. Paul Ryan in that election’s VP debate. Four years later, all I can remember from that debate was that Ryan was the calm, cool and collected debater, while Biden came off as insolent.
But apparently I had it wrong, because pundits and viewers (aside from staunch Republicans and conservatives) agreed that Biden won the debate.
Biden spent the debate smirking, shaking his head, laughing and generally acting childish while Ryan spoke. Yet somehow he won. Flash forward to 2016, and Sen. Tim Kaine was the one acting rudely (he constantly interrupted Gov. Mike Pence). This year, however, pundits and viewers so far seem to agree that Pence won the debate, as he was the poised one.
I can only speculate as to why this VP debate ended in a different result than the one in 2012, but I have a couple theories.
For starters, just last week was the first presidential debate, in which GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump constantly interrupted Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Only the most insanely biased observer could excuse Kaine’s interruptions while blasting Trump’s. Kaine ended up looking like Trump in the VP debate, and that’s not good.
He also, as media consultant Beverly Hallberg pointed out, ended up failing to complement his unlikable running mate. People don’t like Clinton, and instead of appearing affable, Kaine seemed as unlikable as her.
Meanwhile, Pence appeared to be the polite, pragmatic ying to Trump’s bombastic yang.
Secondly, I think part of the reason Kaine’s insolence lost him the debate while Biden’s won his debate has to do with personal knowledge of the candidate. Everyone knew who Biden was, and knew him as the lovable oaf referred to as “Uncle Joe.” Seeing him act the way he did in the debate seemed out of character, and was easy to dismiss. Kind of like when one of your friends upsets someone they just met and you cover for them by saying “he’s usually cool.”
But in Tuesday’s debate, most people didn’t know either Kaine or Pence, so their first introduction to them saw a polite Pence and antagonistic Kaine. Without knowing what Kaine is like outside of the debate, viewers and pundits who haven’t followed him closely weren’t able to rely on his larger persona.
VP debates don’t usually move the needle for one candidate or the other. Even though many thought Pence won, it didn’t help Trump. Pence may have succeeded, however, in setting himself up for a future in the conservative movement.
Ashe Schow is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.