It's Our City is a project that uses TV, Radio and Web
to promote civic engagement in the Philadelphia region.Philadelphia area Twitter members react to VP Debate
Friday, October 3rd, 2008 at 1:28 am - by Brad Linder. Filed under: Politics, Transportation.
Updated 12:40am
Updated 11:45pm
Thank you to the hundreds of Twitter participants in the Philadelphia area who posted comments on the Vice Presidential Debate.
If you missed the debate here’s a downloadable Mp3 file of tonight’s debate.
What follows is a collection of comments re-posted from Twitter participants that WHYY follows. With these comments we created a real-time Philly-centric record of real people sharing their thoughts during the debate. Because no permanent record of past Twitter comments exists, this list captures a historic debate through the means of a developing medium. Four years from now, Twitter could look much different, or may not exist at all. So to all who participated, thanks.
Many of the posts you see have my name on them because I had to manually post Twitter comments under my account. I’m in the process of changing the name to Twitter to more easily reflect the source.
——————Original post——————–
Welcome to the WHYY Vice Presidential public forum
EVERYONE IS INVITED TO POST A COMMENT
YOU CAN POST AS MANY TIMES AS YOU WANT
NO NEED TO REGISTER
TO POST A COMMMENT: TYPE IN THE OPEN BOX BELOW AND CLICK SUBMIT
My Name is Alan Tu, and I’ll be your moderator tonight. Mainly I’ll be sorting through the Twitter members in the Philadelphia region who are posting comments minute-by-minute reactions to tonight’s VP Debate. I’ll also be on the lookout for anything that exceeds the boundaries of common decency. I have a dump button right here if I need.
Many of the posts you will see my name, but I’ll use the word Twitter to indicate it came from our tracking efforts on the Twitter website. Let’s have some fun and thank you for visiting WHYY’s website tonight.
Also, I’ll be posting an MP3 shortly after the debate for anyone who wants to hear all or parts of the debate again.
Related Links:
October 2nd, 2008 at 8:45 pm
15 minutes to go.
October 2nd, 2008 at 8:56 pm
roschelle Gwen Ifill is writing a book about black politicians. It’s not just about Obama. This woman is a professional and will moderate accordingly
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:00 pm
ThurmanHart ready for the debate - wish I had a beer to make it tolerable - scotch makes me sleep too deeply
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:01 pm
easternpa Cspan is the only way to watch the debate. No idiot talking heads. Well, providing analysis at least.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:02 pm
The debate has begun
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:03 pm
navaja1cortes I think Palin will lash out “inappropriate” comments. Either that or make herself look dumb
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:03 pm
Gwen asks about the Bailout Bill
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:04 pm
ChanelOrth Gov Palin looks very nervous
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:04 pm
babygirlzbox “Can I call you Joe?”
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:05 pm
televisionarie oh i just hate sarah palin’s voice and everything else about her so much. so very, very much.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:06 pm
MyohMy23 here we go… i’ve got my popcorn!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:07 pm
bebe_blazfemi Palin a bit “moose in the headlights”
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:08 pm
charlesthomas Watching the debate- one questionin, and so far Sarah Palin hasn’t f***ed it up. My expectations have been exceeded. #debate
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:09 pm
peskymac Hahahahahahaha! She actually brought up McCain’s campaign suspension when it clearly didn’t net him any support.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:09 pm
LoriHC Icon_red_lock She did a good job memorizing her lines.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Gwen ask who’s to blame for the sub prime meltdown
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:10 pm
jesslaw screw the debate, PHILS WON!!!!!!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:11 pm
sanspoint Phils win. Let’s debate!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:11 pm
heldincontempt Craving something new? Like the guy who’s been in the Senate for 26 years?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:12 pm
peskymac If americans are craving something new, why the hell would anyone vote for Republicans? Jeebus.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:12 pm
reyna_elena Biden was right! it was the stupid deregulation that caused this subprime shit!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:13 pm
babygirlzbox I knew she would say Joe six pack and hockey moms, but this soon!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:14 pm
originalstatia How many times is she going to mention soccer moms and hockey moms?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:15 pm
navaja1cortes Biden stares at Gwen = casual, Palin stares at camera = creepy
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:15 pm
Gwen asks about Tax Policy
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:16 pm
bebe_blazfemi Palin looks terrified and is kind of shaky
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:16 pm
carriegorn Sarah, did you just say you might not answer the question!?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:17 pm
reyna_elena Palin did not respond to the deregulation, i “betcha” she did not understand hahahahaha
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:17 pm
lindseybaron I am utterly speechless. Is this real? Is someone playing a huge joke? Yeah, she looks good, but jeesus. Answer an ef’n question, will you?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:18 pm
jkholland Biden’s “Are you kidding me with this?” smile is really pearly white on hi-def.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:20 pm
peskymac Yes, by all means, give us the details….coherently
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:20 pm
chrismcbreen thinks Joe Biden looks like the devil.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:21 pm
Gwen asks what promises would your administration not be able to keep
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:22 pm
LoriHC Icon_red_lock Nice bridge dig, Joe
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:22 pm
canarymegan #vpdebate Boy has she rehearsed her lines. Doesn’t matter what the questions are-she’s on script.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:22 pm
katia511 I wonder if Palin is making up these numbers as she goes?!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:23 pm
supercres The ultimate bridge to nowhere. Nice one, Joe. No mixing words on healthcare.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:24 pm
bebe_blazfemi Palin acts like a gossipy housewife
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:25 pm
9columbussquare I would really like to know what exactly qualifies her as an energy expert.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:26 pm
christies1968 No one give a shit about what she did in Alaska
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:26 pm
ChanelOrth If you are watching cnn you can see that Biden is favored among women and Palin among men. Interesting
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:27 pm
vixnix Palin has that look she had when Couric was hammering her.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:29 pm
etu Bless those oil guys’ hearts, they’re going to do what they need to do
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:30 pm
JDobs Ah man the longer this is going the more unsure she is at the beginning of each answer. By 10 she’ll be asking for a word box
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:30 pm
polexa Oooh,v way to change the subject palin! Did you not have time to study the bailout cue cards?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Gwen ask about climate change
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:31 pm
TheUrbanian #current Is Palin selling Avon products after the debate
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:32 pm
handsome_pete We get it. You only studied up on energy. Anything else?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:33 pm
gijyun hey palin - IT’S CALLED THE KYOTO PROTOCOL - AND YOUR PARTY CONTINUES TO IGNORE IT.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:33 pm
TechCrusader I knew she’d blunder the climate change question. #vpdebate She obviously doesn’t know what “climate change” is
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:35 pm
quinnelk Ifill should ask Palin if she knows what a hydrocarbon is
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:35 pm
justindula drill baby drill
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Gwen ask about same sex marriage
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:37 pm
WHERESMETRO Sarah Palin is adorable. Possibly the end of our country, yet adorable.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:38 pm
OroroDC uh oh! same sex benefits topic.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:38 pm
katintherat #vpdebate #current “I’m tolerant” but same sex couples don’t deserve equal benefits
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:39 pm
Gwen turns to foreign policy and an exit plan for Iraq
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:40 pm
msilbey Straight up- I’m tolerant, but not of gay marriage. Unfortunately, both parties take the same position.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:41 pm
cscoville Palin AND Biden just threw gays under the bus
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:41 pm
katintherat #vpdebate #current Next up: Palin appreciates diversity because she has a black friend
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:42 pm
msilbey If we have to wait to make progress in Afghanistan until we win in Iraq, we’re in real trouble
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:44 pm
notgay i am not voting for either of this twits, RONPAUL
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:44 pm
excourier Why won’t anyone just say that the Iraqi people don’t want us there?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Gwen ask about Iran and Pakistan
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:46 pm
jesslaw this debate is highly entertaining
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:46 pm
jkholland Oh no! Biden’s mom supports McCain! We’re doomed!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:47 pm
LoriHC Icon_red_lock Why does Gwen always go to Biden first?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:47 pm
peskymac You can almost imagine Palin thinking “What’s a madrassa?”
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:48 pm
gbr4k You can’t mess with Biden on forigen policy…it’s his job
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:48 pm
TedC
TedC @justindula She crammed too hard. This is Talibani
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:49 pm
bretterlich Wow. Palin can say Ahmadinejad, but not nuclear.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:49 pm
chiyokosan She probably didn’t even know these guys names, before last week…
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:50 pm
peskymac The Castro brothers? Are they like the Blues Brothers? I’m on a mission from god
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:51 pm
melraff “our respect for womens’ rights” my ass!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:53 pm
Gwen ask about Israelis and the Palestinians
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:54 pm
Joe’s gettin’ hype!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:54 pm
televisionarie i’m a jew and palin is not allowed to use my tribe for her political purposes. go away crazy bitch! we don’t want you!
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:55 pm
lindseybaron Can Palin see Israel from her house?
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:56 pm
TechCrusader If Biden gives his “boy, am I disgusted” sigh one more time, I’m going to leave a negative comment on his blog.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:56 pm
Gwen asks about Nukes
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:57 pm
jkholland The mic just caught Biden taking a deep, cleansing, “This woman will NOT make you lose your cool” breath. Good for him
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:00 pm
etu Biden: Our general in Afghanistan says the surge principals will not work. Three weeks’ expenses in Iraq exceed seven years in Afghanistan.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:01 pm
bdelmuto every biden response should be, does anyone know what she is talking about?
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:01 pm
chuise i’m really torn right now… it’s always sunny in philadelphia is about to come on.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:02 pm
jefflouella Biden said Obama never said he would meet with dictaors without preconditions. Well, here it is on youtube. http://twurl.nl/1ms4yx
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:03 pm
DoctorJ_ Palin is not coming off as badly as I thought she would and Biden is not coming off as well as I thought he would
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:03 pm
avery33 I’d give this one to Biden, but neither of them are impressive and neither of them are people that I’d want to see in the President’s role
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:04 pm
mcalvinwilson ummm I’m bailing on this debate to watch its always sunny
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:04 pm
heldincontempt Did he just say “Bosniacs?”
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Philly_news Third of the debate is over. Edge to Biden, but Palin has not stumbled
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:05 pm
polexa are bosniacs related to wozniaks?
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:07 pm
quinnelk Palin said she watcehd the Democratic debates, but we all know they don’t get that kind of cable in Alaska
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:07 pm
seanodotcom #vpdebate -2 Palin “Oh man… I’m just a Washington Outsider” … prefacing her complete lack of knowledge or interest in foreign affairs
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Gwen asks the candidates what would change if they had to takeover as President
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:09 pm
MyohMy23 interesting question. she’s asking them to disagree with their running mates
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:10 pm
stribs Biden speaks in specifics, Palin in strings of vague, non-specific unsupported yet confident assertions; fake it ’til you make it
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:10 pm
OroroDC What war to McCain win? Vietnam?
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:11 pm
ebradlee10 Palin just winked at the camera.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:12 pm
duganinja Team of mavericks? That’s an oxymoron like the lone ranger!
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Gwen asks what the candidates think the job of VP is?
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:15 pm
lynnbailey Is she winking at me?
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:15 pm
pinknebulous Palin is fantastic.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:16 pm
maxknee @amandamello shes winking at you
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:17 pm
LoriHC Icon_red_lock Oh, so she supports the Cheney Doctrine at least. VP RULES
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:20 pm
SmokeInDaEye Watching a debate that is much more fun than I had anticipated. And only 11 “maverick” references by my count
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:20 pm
autumn i’ll give extra credit to anyone who can diagram one of Sarah Palin’s sentences
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:21 pm
jstogdill I’m gonna need my run on sentence decoder ring. Say what
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:22 pm
Biden tears up reflecting on a personal tradgedy
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:24 pm
TechCrusader did biden just break out the tears??
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:24 pm
nomad00 RT @djstangl if McCain is a Maverick that means he’s an unbranded range animal, especially a calf that has become separated from its mother
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:25 pm
shane_onegoodie maverick maverick maverick blah blah bla
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:25 pm
OroroDC Wow. I almost choked up with Biden’s words
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Philly_news Palin has the focus group tested lines down pat
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:27 pm
Gwen asks how do you break the partisan gridlock in Congress
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:29 pm
Gwen asks for closing statements
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:30 pm
seanodotcom #vpdebate +4 Biden for passion in his speech re: family
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:31 pm
jccoach good night…i need a shower after that debate
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:33 pm
Gwen thanks both the candidates and says goodnight to the television audience
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:34 pm
babygirlzbox Now she’s dissing the media. Is she telling me I didn’t hear what I know I heard in her interviews???
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:34 pm
shipslaunching #vpdebate Palin needs to stop quoting Reagan everytime she doesn’t have an opinion of her own. Holy crap
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:35 pm
margo_alicia “DRILL BABY DRILL” “MAVERICK” “MAVERICK” “MAVERICK” “MAVERICK”
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:37 pm
coltonperry Watched the debate with @juliewisdom Palin actually did extremely well
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:37 pm
gregs #vpdebate Winner of debate = Biden. Most adorable candidate = Palin
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:38 pm
gbear712 Someone get the McCain camp a thesaurus! There must be another word to use besides ‘maverick’
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:39 pm
christian_82 She definitely held her own!
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:40 pm
seanodotcom #vpdebate I guess Palin “wins” because she didn’t pull a Couric
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:40 pm
sanspoint Biden: Victory
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:42 pm
Geraldine Ferraro speaking on NBC just now says she thought both candidates did well. Neither candidate lost. Ferraro is a former democratic vice presidential candidate.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:43 pm
cryptorobert Given the couric performance, I gotta say I don’t know where Palin got it, but she pulled a solid performance out. Weird. Downright weird.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:44 pm
peskymac Pat Buchanan thinks Palin was phenomenal.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:45 pm
OroroDC Overall, Palin better than I thought she would be, but Biden won. You don’t get to pick and choose questions to answer. Biden had passion
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:46 pm
adambarber Good work Sarah! You didn’t diverge from those talking points once, even after Biden called you out on being wrong
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:54 pm
Palin took cheap shots and was always off topic to her own agenda. She took control of the dialogue, speaking to hardcores that were glad she was misbehaving, and airheads. In a way she’s perfect for that part of America that wants to emote rather than think, prefers opinions to facts, and confuses slogans with issues. Palin’s best attribute: high cheekbones.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:54 pm
rtsnance palin was super awesome
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:55 pm
ChanelOrth They both did well. Biden won, but Palin did much better than expected
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:58 pm
phillyeventsguy @phillyevents - While I think Palin won the “didn’t answer the question directly” game - Biden did his fair share of redirecting, too
October 2nd, 2008 at 11:05 pm
dekoposh duh…Biden Won
October 2nd, 2008 at 11:06 pm
pospischil Confidence restored, McCain-Palin you have re-earned my vote
October 2nd, 2008 at 11:07 pm
Quoting someone else’s tweet: “Biden was spectacular, but because Palin reached her goal of forming more than one declarative sentence, we must award the debate to Palin.”
October 2nd, 2008 at 11:29 pm
poggibonsi99 At least she’ll tolerate people who choose to be gay
October 3rd, 2008 at 6:45 am
I really liked Biden. I cannot tolerate Palin’s voice for too long. If I heard “maverick” one more time, I was going to scream - what is so maverick about their position? Biden was speaking our language - we could relate to what he was saying. I did notice how he got choked up when he spoke of not knowing if his kid was going to survive - I’ve been in a somewhat similar situation, so I could relate to that, made him seem more real to me. Palin just didn’t seem to give any solid answers … her reference to what McCain did for the “tobacco industry” just left me cold. Her references to ANWR and citing her experience in Alaska as being a “big state” also left me cold. Biden is from Scranton, I get that - but he still sounds Philly to me - small town, “old days” - back when times were good. He gave me the feeling that he remembers those days and could help bring them back. I think it was the nostalgia that I heard in his voice and maybe others might hear also - not that HE can do it, but the promise that he was trying to give in the “Obama/Biden” ticket. I don’t hear that one bit in McCain/Palin - I hear George W. Bush and utter disaster, like we have now.
October 3rd, 2008 at 7:52 am
Sarah Palin must have finally found some good PR people. There is a clear distinction in her performance when she is prepped (the debate) from when she is not (Couric interview and previous). I’m really tired of her telling me what the American people want. She doesn’t speak for me.
October 3rd, 2008 at 1:09 pm
Valerie - I hear ya loud and clear on that one - that irritated me also. And just because she’s a mom and has a special needs child - doesn’t mean she can or should speak for me, and, no, I don’t want her as my ‘advocate’ in the White House. We both have children with special needs - but otherwise we are worlds apart in many ways.