Lanny Davis, the former counsel to Bill Clinton, called Congressman Paul Ryan’s performance in his first debate before a national audience a home run, and said vice president Joe Biden did little to change the view of President Barack Obama.
Pointing to positives in both Biden and Ryan tonight, Davis said he would call the debate a draw, based on Biden not being able to change the image of the President no matter what he said and Ryan clearly being green.
"I think this was a home run for Paul Ryan tonight, I think Joe Biden was superb and I’d call it a draw," Davis said.
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“I think they both won,” he said. “This was a serious discussion of the issues. There was very little in the way of personal attacks.”
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Davis said he was pleased that both of the vice presidential candidates also distanced themselves from some “nasty and distorted” recent campaign ads during the debate.
“I didn't hear Joe Biden defending the ad that accused Mitt Romney of killing somebody with cancer, which was completely false and disgusting,” he said, “and I didn't hear Paul Ryan defend the ad that accused Barack Obama of being responsible for all that was wrong in the economy when in fact he inherited a big mess.”
Biden’s debate performance was about Joe Biden, he said, and not about Obama, despite Biden doing a great job. Obama’s performance in Denver - looking down at his notes instead of at Governor Mitt Romney, and his lack of enthusiasm - can’t be changed by his second-in-command doing a good job.
“Barack Obama has to change the image of Barack Obama,” Davis said. “Joe Biden did a great job tonight but it doesn't affect the impression that Barack Obama left and that's what he has to change in the next debate.”
Although Ryan reminds Davis of a “high school student body president,” Davis said he doesn’t understand why Romney and Ryan don’t campaign on college campuses trying to appeal to the younger voters who seem to flock to Obama.
“Ryan is very attractive to a younger generation,” Davis said, adding that the Congressman is “a smart young man, maybe a little too young.”
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