NBC’s Welker Discusses Vance Performance After Debate

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Well, it looks like Democrats are hitting the panic button after Tuesday night’s vice presidential debate, and who can blame them? Sen. JD Vance didn’t just hold his own against Minnesota Governor Tim Walz—he came out looking likable and, dare I say, presidential. This is particularly amusing given that the left has spent months trying to paint Vance as some “weird” existential threat to democracy. Turns out that strategy might need some reworking.

According to NBC’s Meet The Press moderator Kristen Welker, Democrats were apparently blowing up her phone in full freak-out mode as Vance took command of the stage. “Wow, he’s really moderating himself on a lot of these issues. He’s the most likable he’s ever been,” is what some of these so-called Democratic insiders were texting her. Panic indeed. After all, when you’ve invested so much time into painting a guy as the villain, it’s a bit of a buzzkill when he comes off as…well, human.

Vance, knowing full well the left’s playbook, handled it like a pro. Rather than going off the rails or losing his cool, he was calm, collected, and absolutely skewered Walz on the issues. It’s no wonder early polls show Vance edging out his Democratic counterpart. Now, of course, the Democrats are scrambling to spin this into something positive for their side. They’re hoping to turn one of Vance’s comments about focusing on the future instead of relitigating the 2020 election into a new “flashpoint” for their campaign ads. Good luck with that. Trying to convince moderate, independent suburban voters that Vance is a threat when he’s doing his best impression of Mr. Likable is going to be an uphill battle.

Meanwhile, over at NBC, even Savannah Guthrie had to admit that Walz’s performance “wasn’t a disaster,” which is about the kindest thing you can say when your candidate didn’t exactly light the stage on fire. She wasn’t wrong, though—Walz didn’t crash and burn, but he certainly didn’t shine. And when you’re trying to build momentum heading into the final stretch of a close race, “not a disaster” doesn’t quite cut it.

NBC’s Hallie Jackson also chimed in, noting that Democrats were frustrated that Walz didn’t deliver the performance they’d been banking on. They wanted more of that “TV-friendly” Tim Walz they supposedly picked for the VP slot, but instead, they got a nervous, stammering candidate who occasionally managed a half-decent retort, particularly over January 6. Yeah, that’ll surely sway the voters who are more worried about skyrocketing prices and a faltering economy.

The bottom line? Vance came out looking presidential, and the Democrats are scrambling to figure out how to spin it. For a debate that was supposed to be a home run for Walz, it sent his party into full-on panic mode. Buckle up, folks—it’s going to be a bumpy ride to November.