After Tuesday night's vice-presidential debate, Donald Trump's team is hitting at Hillary Clinton running mate Tim Kaine's frequent interruptions and overall style, and Clinton's camp is going after Trump running mate Mike Pence for declining to defend some of Trump's more controversial statements and positions.
On Russia, for example, Pence called Russian President Vladimir Putin a "small and bullying leader," while Trump (and Pence) has been generally flattering toward the autocratic Russian leader, calling him a stronger leader than President Obama. On Syria, Pence proposed a no-fly zone to guard a safe area for civilians caught in the civil war and also U.S. airstrikes against Russian ally Bashar al-Assad's Syrian government forces. That goes "far, far beyond anything Donald Trump has ever said about what Trump has called his 'secret' plan for Syria," notes The Washington Post's Karen DeYoung. It's also beyond Clinton's policy, though (as Kaine noted) she has called for a no-fly zone. Tim Miller, a former communications director for Jeb Bush and the RNC, and former Bush White House deputy press secretary Tony Fratto noted this, too:
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This disconnect between what Pence promotes and what Trump advocates "means that while Pence triumphed on stage, the aftermath of the debate may help Clinton as much or more than it does Trump," suggests The Atlantic's David Graham. Rosie Gray at BuzzFeed News noted that the "sense of cognitive dissonance" when Pence "delivered line after line that could have been applied to a hypothetical Mitt Romney candidacy" bolsters Pence's prospects "for a potential presidential run in 2020 if Trump loses." No wonder Donald Trump is reportedly irked. Peter Weber
-
10 concert tours to see this winterThe Week Recommends Keep cozy this winter with a series of concerts from big-name artists
-
What are portable mortgages and how do they work?the explainer Homeowners can transfer their old rates to a new property in the UK and Canada. The Trump administration is considering making it possible in the US.
-
What’s the best way to use your year-end bonus?the explainer Pay down debt, add it to an emergency fund or put it toward retirement
-
Judge halts Trump’s DC Guard deploymentSpeed Read The Trump administration has ‘infringed upon the District’s right to govern itself,’ the judge ruled
-
Trump accuses Democrats of sedition meriting ‘death’Speed Read The president called for Democratic lawmakers to be arrested for urging the military to refuse illegal orders
-
Court strikes down Texas GOP gerrymanderSpeed Read The Texas congressional map ordered by Trump is likely an illegal racial gerrymander, the court ruled
-
Trump defends Saudi prince, shrugs off Khashoggi murderSpeed Read The president rebuked an ABC News reporter for asking Mohammed bin Salman about the death of a Washington Post journalist at the Saudi Consulate in 2018
-
Congress passes bill to force release of Epstein filesSpeed Read The Justice Department will release all files from its Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation
-
Trump says he will sell F-35 jets to Saudi ArabiaSpeed Read The president plans to make several deals with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman this week
-
Judge blasts ‘profound’ errors in Comey caseSpeed Read ‘Government misconduct’ may necessitate dismissing the charges against the former FBI director altogether
-
Ecuador rejects push to allow US military basesSpeed Read Voters rejected a repeal of a constitutional ban on US and other foreign military bases in the country
