Did VP Debate Preview JD Vance's Future? | Pivot

1. 0:00 – 1:02

   VP debate reactions: civility, flashpoints, and the ‘fact-checking’ clash

   1. KSKara Swisher0:00

      Voters are split 50/50 after Governor Tim Walz and Senator J.D. Vance faced off in a VP debate on Tuesday, according to a political, politico poll. The two VP candidates discussed immigration, abortion, and other election topics. People s- kind of liked it. They said it was civil and interesting. Um, during the conversa... Although there were some moments. Uh, during the conversation on immigration, moderators cut the mics of both candidates when Vance interrupted to say the hosts were not supposed to be fact-checking him per debate rules. Uh, c- he shouldn't have done that, he looked like an idiot. Another stand out-

   2. SGScott Galloway0:28

      No, he, he looked strong there, Kara.

   3. KSKara Swisher0:29

      No, he did not.

   4. SGScott Galloway0:30

      I agree, disagree.

   5. KSKara Swisher0:30

      He looked dumb. Like, just answer the question. He was wrong. He was telling a-

   6. SGScott Galloway0:32

      They, they, they said they weren't gonna fact check, and that was fact checking.

   7. KSKara Swisher0:34

      No, they didn't quite say that. They didn't. It was, it was not necessary. What? I, how are you gonna roll on this here?

   8. SGScott Galloway0:38

      They said at the beginning of the debate, "We're not gonna fact check."

   9. KSKara Swisher0:41

      No. Lots of people did not think that.

   10. SGScott Galloway0:42

       And they fact checked, and he called them out for it.

   11. KSKara Swisher0:43

       No. Lots of people didn't like that. Um, another stand out moment, Vance refused to answer the question whether he believes Trump lost the 2020 election. This was a weak point, which, uh, Walz called a damning non-answer. But also, again, it was n- noticeably more civil than presidential debates. A lot of people were noting on that. What are your overall takeaways? You go first.

2. 1:02 – 1:32

   Scott’s verdict: ‘America won’—and why the format mattered

   1. SGScott Galloway1:02

      The biggest winner here was America. It demonstrated how our elected representatives are supposed to acquit themselves. They were respectful, they didn't interrupt each other a lot. I thought, uh, Margaret and, and Norah O'Donnell, M- Margaret Brennan did a fantastic job. And it just made me feel better about being American, and it contrasted the chaos and bullshit and childlike behavior that happens when Trump is in any room or in something like a debate. Uh, the next biggest winner was J.D. Vance.

3. 1:32 – 2:27

   Why Scott thinks Vance ‘won’: intelligence, agility, and playing a bad hand

   1. SGScott Galloway1:32

      He came across as very intelligent, reasoned, thoughtful. His agility around... I mean, you gotta keep in mind, he's playing with a much worse hand than Walz. Walz can say to him, "Hey, does your boss believe that Biden won the election?"

   2. KSKara Swisher1:50

      Mm-hmm.

   3. SGScott Galloway1:50

      And, and Vance was able to say, "Well, okay. First off, Hillary Clinton didn't, didn't, um-"

   4. KSKara Swisher1:57

      Very different.

   5. SGScott Galloway1:57

      "...believed there was election front." Uh, give me some mo- give me some running room. He, he counters with, "Hillary Clinton did the same thing and censorship is worse." Okay, you're right, that is the mother of all false equivalences. Secretary Clinton showed up at the inauguration and she conceded, right? Censorship is fucking ridiculous and this red herring. Anyone who claims censorship won't shut the fuck up and has a top podcast and is everywhere. But I gotta give it to the guy. He took, he took chicken shit and made it

4. 2:27 – 2:48

   Walz’s trajectory and both candidates ‘cementing their brands’

   1. SGScott Galloway2:27

      mostly chicken salad, and given the hand he's been dealt, he did really well. I thought Walz started off shaky, got better. They both cemented their brand as Walz's brand is likable and he's very, he was very likable, and Vance's brand is intelligent, and he came off as very intelligent. And the big winner here-

5. 2:48 – 3:00

   The bigger implication: Vance as a 2028 frontrunner and GOP ‘future’

   1. KSKara Swisher2:48

      Right.

   2. SGScott Galloway2:48

      ...other than America, was Vance, because quite frankly coming out of this debate, Vance, in my view, is probably the top contender for the GOP nomination in 2028. I thought-

   3. KSKara Swisher2:58

      Yeah, I think that's-

   4. SGScott Galloway2:58

      I think you saw the future of the Republican Party at that debate.

6. 3:00 – 3:47

   Kara’s counter: effective delivery, but ‘normalized’ lying and dark views

   1. KSKara Swisher3:00

      Yeah, I, I do. I th- uh, you know, he's a, he, he's a, he lies a lot, just more deftly. I'm sorry, he just-

   2. SGScott Galloway3:07

      Agree.

   3. KSKara Swisher3:07

      There's several lies he told tonight.

   4. SGScott Galloway3:08

      Agreed.

   5. KSKara Swisher3:09

      And that's not a good thing. Like, so he managed to normalize his lies, and I don't know if that's a positive thing. Um, he's certainly a serious contender, there is no question about that, and I think he acquits himself well. He's still a creepy person who does, has an issue with women. It's a real... Which he didn't let out, he didn't show that ma-, he didn't take the mask off on that thing. But some of his other comments are disturbing. If you go back in, in any interview, they're disturbing in the extreme. And so-

   6. SGScott Galloway3:37

      We were talking about the debate. I agree with you.

   7. KSKara Swisher3:39

      Yeah, the debate, yes. But that, th- the reason I'm saying it's disturbing is that he, he also is very good at masking himself as a normal person, and he's not normal. And so-

7. 3:47 – 4:50

   Masking, political performance, and what candidates can’t admit onstage

   1. SGScott Galloway3:47

      Yeah, but doesn't every politician have to do that?

   2. KSKara Swisher3:49

      Not like-

   3. SGScott Galloway3:49

      Who the fuck would want to do this?

   4. KSKara Swisher3:50

      I, I, when I look at some of these, you gotta go back and look at these interviews, Scott. They're dist- nobody talks like this.

   5. SGScott Galloway3:55

      No, I've seen them. I've seen them.

   6. KSKara Swisher3:56

      Um, and so I think he's able to normalize his very dark view of humanity in a way that, um, that... You know, I like, uh, he would, if he wasn't such a dark character, I would say this was a really nice civil thing and every politician lies, but he manages to take anything where there's a false equivalency and try to really... He, he cannot miss a moment of lying, like about something. Like, he just can't admit anything j- very much. He can't say, "Yes, this is a problem. No, this is..." And I w- want, would like our public officials to say, "I made a mistake," or that, "Yes, this was wrong." He, he cannot do that as a, as a person, and it's-

   7. SGScott Galloway4:38

      Yeah, but what is he gonna say? "I hate my mother and as a result I'm a deep, dark misogynist and I'm supporting a guy who I genuinely think is the American Hitler?"

   8. KSKara Swisher4:46

      No, there was-

   9. SGScott Galloway4:46

      I mean, I agree with everything you said.

   10. KSKara Swisher4:48

       I think-

   11. SGScott Galloway4:49

       He, he was very good.

8. 4:50 – 5:08

   So does it matter? Split decision, fast news cycle, but it builds Vance’s résumé

   1. KSKara Swisher4:50

      Yeah, he was. No, he is really good. I still don't think it matters in any way whatsoever, and I, but I do think it sets him up, up for the future, that's for sure.

   2. SGScott Galloway4:57

      It's a- it's already out of the news cycle.

   3. KSKara Swisher4:59

      Yeah.

   4. SGScott Galloway4:59

      It was, you know what it was? It was mostly, it was a split decision. A split dec-

   5. KSKara Swisher5:02

      Yeah.

   6. SGScott Galloway5:03

      A split decision amongst the VP debate is-

   7. KSKara Swisher5:06

      Mm-hmm.

   8. SGScott Galloway5:06

      ...pretty much a nothing burger.

9. 5:08 – 6:01

   Succession anxiety shifts to Trump: age, cognition, and uneven media scrutiny

   1. KSKara Swisher5:08

      Right, exactly. So, and it doesn't really matter. But I do, you do have to see who's gonna... You know, as you say, the actuarial tables show that this guy might be president, so that's why we're paying attention to him, right? Because Donald Trump is old-

   2. SGScott Galloway5:19

      Mm-hmm.

   3. KSKara Swisher5:19

      ...and obviously, speaking of which, addled beyond belief. This last speech he gave. And finally the Washington Post wrote about it, very, you know, they wrote about it with Joe Biden all the time. Donald Trump, it wasn't just a crazy word salad that he usually is, there's something-

   4. SGScott Galloway5:34

      Yeah.

   5. KSKara Swisher5:34

      ...happening to him cognitively that is very... I, I don't know what it is, but it was really pronounced this past week. Um, and it's, he's either drugged or, um, something is gone wrong and it's not his usual cup of crazy.

   6. SGScott Galloway5:48

      Mm-hmm. Nothing's gone wrong, it's called being 78. It's-

   7. KSKara Swisher5:51

      And with a history of Alzheimer's in your family, that's, I kept thinking, "What is happening to this guy's words?" Um, anyway, and I think we should call it out, because I called it out for Biden. I think Donald Trump is cognitively stabled.

   8. SGScott Galloway6:01

      Fair. Fair.

10. 6:01 – 6:09

    Closing takeaway: why the VP debate matters despite minimal immediate impact

    1. KSKara Swisher6:01

       Um, so this guy might be president, that's all I'm saying. That's why it matters.

Episode duration: 6:09