Chuck Todd: A 'happy warrior' VP debate leaves questions unanswered for the top of the tickets

Given America’s polarization and the everyday tone and tenor of this presidential election, people would be forgiven for thinking they had accidentally stumbled upon a rerun from another era in American politics instead of the 2024 vice presidential debate.

In some ways, this debate felt like a throwback to the VP debates America got used to in the pre-Trump era — essentially one-week intermissions between the first and second presidential debates. The flashback vibe I was getting the most was similar to the Dick Cheney debates of 2000 and 2004 (versus Joe Lieberman and John Edwards) or the Joe Biden debates of 2008 and 2012 (versus Sarah Palin and Paul Ryan).

The back-and-forths Tuesday night were regularly very respectful. JD Vance and Tim Walz each seemed to go out of his way to shield his direct foe from the specific harsh criticisms he was making against the top of the ticket. If you are super online and super partisan, you probably came away shocked at how civil and respectful this debate turned out to be. (And some of you may have been disappointed that it didn’t turn into a food fight.)