Like him or loathe him, choosing apprentices appears to be one thing Donald Trump definitely excels at. Numerous pundits are calling Trump running mate Mike Pence the winner of Tuesday night's vice presidential debate, thanks in part to his calm demeanor in response to an aggressive, interrupting Tim Kaine, though Pence failed to land any knockout blows on his rival. According to a CNN poll, 48% of debate watchers consider Pence the winner, compared to 42% for the Democrat. A round-up of opinions:
- Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post declares the "cool, calm, collected" Pence the winner over Kaine, who was "trying to load so many Trump attacks into every answer that it made it virtually impossible to grasp any one attack." But Pence probably made a better case for Pence 2020 than he did for Trump 2016, Cillizza writes—and overall, the debate was like "watching two kids throw mashed potatoes at each other," only less entertaining.