Biden lands some blows on McCain, but the convention as a whole fails to pack a punch

Joe Biden did go after John McCain tonight, drawing contrasts between McCain and Obama. His solution to the question of how you attack a man with McCain’s record of service was to paint McCain as a good solider at a time when America needs a wise leader. The contrasts Biden drew were effective and the speech was the most useful of the convention so far for Obama.

The section attacking McCain’s national security judgement was delivered with passion and should reassure some voters nervous about Obama’s national security credentials. At the end of the address, Obama joined Biden on the stage. The visuals looked good—Biden appeared a reassuring presence next to Obama. But the convention so far has not been as useful for Obama as the Republican one was for Bush in 2004. A strong convention for McCain could send him into the final sprint level-pegging, something few would have thought possible a few months ago.