By Emily Larsen
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/author/emily-larsen
Joe Biden was able to get a word in edgewise in his second and final debate against President Trump. But even with the help of changed debate rules that muted each candidate's microphone during the debate, the former vice president often found himself on defense.
Thursday's debate had far fewer interruptions from Trump — a dynamic that dominated the first debate. And in what was an apparent attempt to get ahead of expected attacks from Trump on the topic of emails found on the laptop purportedly belonging to his son Hunter Biden and given to media outlets by Trump's personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Joe Biden raised the topic himself.
"His buddy, Rudy Giuliani, he's being used as a Russian pawn. He's being fed information that is Russian, that is not true," Joe Biden said. (One of the people on some of the emails, Tony Bobulinski, has confirmed the authenticity of some of the communications and provided additional communications about Hunter Biden's business dealings.)
Trump hit back with his own jabs on the topic of Hunter Biden, but the exchange may not have been enough to move any voter opinions.
"From my perspective, a lot of that was a back-and-forth about both of them being corrupt," John Koch, director of debate at Vanderbilt University, told the Washington Examiner. "To me that kind of played out as a wash."
Pointed questions from debate moderator Kristen Welker of NBC also kept Joe Biden on his toes. She noted that deportations surged under Obama. "So why should voters trust you with an immigration overhaul?" she asked.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/in-more-civil-debate-biden-still-on-defense