Brodie's Public Policy and Global Governance Blog

Last night viewers had a tough choice - watch Canada's party leaders face off in the english language debate or tune in for Biden and Palin's Vice Presidential debate. I was able to flip between the two but caught the majority of the Canadian leader's debate. Elizabeth May, leader of the Green Party impressed me the most out of all the federal party leaders and Biden clearly won the Vice Presidential debate although he could have probably done more to discredit Sarah Palin. Instead Biden was clearly on the attack against John McCain, trying to paint him as more of the same.

What was eerily similar with both debates was the divide between candidates. There were those who are brave enough to make bold choices and espouse policies that they feel are in the interest of their respective countries, and there were those who are especially skilled in using populist, nationalist rhetoric to capture the attention of the masses. Unfortunately, it appears that in both cases it will be those politicians who are looking out for their employment status rather than the average citizens in their country that will be elected.

Here is my take on each of the candidates in both elections as well as my picks:

Canada:

Stephen Harper (Conservative Party of Canada): Harper maintained a calm tone throughout the debate and was able to capitalize off the fact that most of the attention was directed towards him. He was dishonest with the people on a number of issues. He labeled the mission in Afghanistan as a United Nations mission when in fact it is a NATO mission that has UN approval - very different then how he was painting it knowing that Canadians have an affinity for the UN. He also made Stephan Dion's Green Shift look as though it would be an increase in taxes, leaving out the fact that there would also be cuts to corporate, income and consumption taxes. Harper was also able to ruffle Dion's feathers on a number of occasions and noticeably laughed when Layton questioned why Dion had propped up Harper's government for so long.

Stephane Dion (Liberal Party): Dion did a good job at articulating the reasoning behind the Green Shift and dispelling some of the myths that have been circulated by the Conservative Party regarding his plan to tax carbon. English is not Dion's strong suit and stumbled with almost every question. Some have noted that he is quite the eloquent speaker in French but has difficulty with English having only learned it a few years ago. Dion focused largely on the Green Shift which may have hurt him considering that this puts him in competition for NDP and Green Party votes that he is unlikely to get.

Jack Layton (New Democratic Party): In my mind, Layton is out of touch with how the world actually works. He has proposed 50 billion dollars worth of new spending and based on what he had to say last night, would put Canada in the largest deficit it has ever seen. He proposes that we enact a "Buy Canada Act" similar to the Buy America Act in the US which makes little economic sense and ignores the reality of a global economy. I think Jack needs to take Econ 101 as well considering he wants to create a "Jobs Commissioner" that would rush in to try and save plants that are going to close before they relocate elsewhere. Gains from trade are the basis of modern prosperity and given Canada is a small economy, certainly the basis of Canadian prosperity. Job losses in the manufacturing sector were his primary preoccupation and gain I think this shows his fundamental misunderstanding of the direction the Canadian economy should be going in a global economy especially considering the rise of global India and China.

ElizabethMay (Green Party): It was a delight to see Ms. May at the table and she certainly impressed me the most out of any candidate. She did not engage in any nonsense and even encouraged others to move past issues that had already been settled. She showed a solid understanding of Canada's place in the world and offered eloquent and thoughtful policies responses for some of the most pressing issues facing Canada. I particularly enjoyed how she argued that we need to dispel the myth that addressing climate change will hurt the economy when many are in fact now saying that we could create thousands of jobs and billions of dollars addressing the climate crisis.

Gilles Duceppe (Bloc Quebecois): Gilles Duceppe was a class act as always. I understand why he has been the leader of the Bloc for over a decade now and have always liked his no-nonsense style. He was the first to shake all the candidates and the moderators hand after the debate and was brutally honest throughout the debate. When the leaders were asked what their first act as Prime Minister of Canada would be he bluntly replied that he knows he will not be the Prime Minister and so do three of the other people at the table but they aren't likely to admit that. Duceppe was adamant that his questions were answered and demanded Harper give him a straight answer on a number of occasions when Harper danced around the issue.

My Pick - Elizabeth May: It is obvious why Harper and Layton did not want her at the table. She clearly knows the issues, Canada's role in the world and how to best look out for the best interests of the average Canadian and the country as a whole.

United States:

Senator Joe Biden (Democrat): Calm, cool, collected and knowledgeable, I don't think I have ever seen someone as impressive in a debate as Joe Biden. As former and current Chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Biden knows his stuff. He provided thoughtful, nuanced answers to the response to tough issues like the crisis in Darfur, the war in Iraq, nuclear Iran and broader issues throughout the Middle East. Biden did not sugarcoat any answers and gave substantive responses to every question. While he did a good job at painting McCain as more of the same, he did not attack Palin as hard as he could have. Perhaps one of his smartest moves was answering Sarah Palins assertion that the Obama-Biden ticket has focused on the past to be about real change by saying "past is prologue." He was also quite successful in discrediting the idea that Palin and McCain are the original "mavericks"  - a term that annoys me to no end.

Governor Sarah Palin (Republican): Most pundits are arguing that while Biden clearly won the debate Sarah Palin was able to rebound from the criticism she has been receiving following her horrendous interview with Katy Couric. Where Biden was eloquent and thoughtful, Palin came across as a country bumpkin. Her informal style irked me as it almost seemed like she was making light of very serious and pressing issues. It is obvious that she was briefed with talking points and knows very little about how to bring America out of its current financial funk or any foreign policy issues for that matter (when asked whether a two party solution is the only answer to the Israel-Palestine conflict she couldn't even call up the names of the leaders of these two countries). Despite her lack of substance it seems that Palin is full of charm which has garnered a lot of support for her. I don't know how many times she winked into the camera but it appeared more like she was campaigning for the position of head cheerleader than Vice President of the most powerful country in the world.

My pick - Joe Biden: I could care less if Barack Obama knew the difference between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea,  Biden is a Washington veteran who has a solid handle on issues of foreign policy and could be entrusted with repairing America's tarnished reputation in the world. He is a thoughtful, nuanced speaker and a solid choice for Vice President. Some have criticized Obama's choice of Biden as a running mate but I think Joe's performance in the debate will silence and critics for a while.

See the Canadian Leaders' debate streaming

See the American Vice Presidential debate streaming