ALL PENCE ALL THE TIME – AT 9:52 A.M. ET:  There is almost universal agreement this morning that Mike Pence, with his steadiness and refusal to be baited, won last night.  Democrat Tim Kaine, acting the bully and armed with rehearsed attack lines, was the loser. 

The question being widely asked is whether Trump can build on Pence's success in Sunday night's debate. 

I thought Scott Johnson's summary of last night's debate, at Powerline, was superb:

The vice-presidential debate between Senator Tim Kaine and Governor Mike Pence last night gave us two sides of Kaine: Kaine can’t and Kaine cant.

Kaine can’t say he’ll be Clinton’s right-hand man. No, he’ll be her “right-hand person.”

When it comes to men, Democrats are riding the culture wave and would prefer not to distinguish between men and women for certain purposes. Announcing himself Hillary Clinton’s right-hand man wouldn’t be prudent. It would be insensitive. It would be exclusionary. Tim Kaine loves you, in your many genders and varieties and manifestations, even if Hillary Clinton will be our first woman president and not our current presidential person.

And...

Kaine’s cant also featured several assertions that the Iran deal has stopped Iran’s nuclear program. As always, the Democrats seek to exploit the profound ignorance of their prospective supporters. Iran’s nuclear program not only continues, the Iran deal funds it for the indefinite future.

And...

Kaine seeks to present himself as a nice guy. His performance showed him to be a phony (as he is a phony moderate). The nice guy thing is his persona; he’s a jerk following orders or simply a jerk. I’ve met a lot of politicians like him and I hate the type.

Pence presented a strong critique of Clinton on conservative grounds. He maintained his presence of mind through Kaine’s constant interruptions. He touted his own record as governor of Indiana (without objection or response). He disparaged Kaine’s record as governor of Virginia (without objection or response).

And...

I wished Pence could make a difference in the election and I wished he were the candidate at the top of the ticket. He seemed to me to show the appeal of the conservative case against the Obama era that Clinton promises to deepen and extend.

COMMENT:  Read the whole thing.  It's worth it.

October 5,  2016