Biden’s boost

>> the reactions from both sides. cheering vice president biden , the happy warrior after his aggressive performance one that republicans are describing as condescending and disrespectful. look how the new york post put it. the contrast wasn't just between biden and ryan but between biden and president obama . the cover, vote for joe, vp shows obama how to debate. inside, smirky biden upstages his boss. with me, former ohio governor and former democratic ted strickland . did he show up the boss?

>> no, but he showed up paul ryan and that's what i think is was important. he showed a lot of heart. joe biden in my judgment is not only a good public servant and good political leader but he's a good human being . he cares deeply about this country and the people who have been left behind, the struggling middle class . that came across last night.

>> i had a democratic say to me if you want the passion, you're going to get stuff that you don't like. it was some of the smirks and sort of overly gregarious emotion. are you in that camp?

>> chuck, some of the same people criticizing the vice president for interrupting and smiling or they say smirking last night were the same people who were applauding mitt romney for being strong and for interrupting about a week ago. they can't have it both ways. i felt like the vice president was really strong. i felt like he was respectful to paul ryan . but he didn't let paul ryan get by with saying things that were absolutely inaccurate or even, in some cases, terribly untrue. and that was important.

>> do you think paul ryan showed up as fit for the job as a fair opponent?

>> i think the vice president showed that he is ready to become president. i think there were some questions about paul ryan last night. he seemed to lack substance and he was unwilling or unable to be specific, even about his own plans. you know, in the past he said, i can't explain, you know, our budget and the tax issue because i don't have time. he had time last night and he still couldn't do it, todd.

>> let me ask you this. one of the weaker moments for the vice president was his explanation on libya. do you feel like you've got -- as an american citizen , that you know that your government gave you the full story right away?

>> no, chuck. but i believe my government is doing everything it can to uncover the truth through a thoughtful investigation. and when i think of libya, the first thing that comes to my mind is the fact that when our people were under attack, the attack was ongoing. governor romney stood in front of the cameras and basically accused the president of sympathizing with the attackers.

>> you're confident no politics played a role in the initial explanation?

>> i see no political benefit from saying that there were politics involved. what could they have hoped to have accomplished by coming out with an he cexplanation that they felt was an explanation at the time. i see no political agenda . what's the reason for doing that?

>> two polls in ohio , we had one at 6, one at 4, they are all showing the same thing. a narrowing gap. do you feel that on the ground?

>> no. i feel great enthusiasm. let me he witell you, the president, the vice president was not going to win ohio by eight points. it's going to be a very close election .

>> and you think it's going to be close in ohio ?

>> i think it's going to be close but we're going to win. four years ago ohio voted 51 to 47, something like that. i'll take that this time. the fact is, the people of ohio know the president saved the american auto industry and all of the jobs, hundreds and thousands of jobs related to that industry and they are giving him credit for that and he deserves credit for it because mitt romney would have let the auto industry go down the tubes.

>> well, i think they have a different -- i think they have a different way that they view of how they did that. ted strickland , i will leave it there. on behalf of the obama/ biden