Sarah Palin lost this debate when she was unable to summon even a scintilla of human kindness after an emotional answer from Biden.
The defining moment came towards the end of the debate,right after Joe Biden's deeply felt claim that fathers had the same feelings about their children in peril as mothers did. Biden even choked up a little bit, reflecting on the auto accident that killed his wife and daughter, and left his two boys in the hospital.
It was Biden's most authentic moment in the debate. It was THE most authentic moment in the debate.
And how did Palin answer in reply?
She proceeded in her zombie debate-prep mode. Not a shadow crossed her face. Not a single word in recognition of the emotional quality of Biden's story about his own family. No indication that she was even in the same room.
It was the only point in the entire debate where there was an opportunity to respond to something that wasn't in her scripted answer book. She couldn't, or wouldn't, do it.
If a friend told you a story like the one Biden told, and your response was to start talking about yesterday's vote at City Hall, you'd think there was something wrong with your friend. There's something wrong with Sarah Palin.