Experts said tonight's vice presidential debate may only have a slight effect on who wins the election but agree that it should at least be fun to watch.
In one corner is Dick Cheney, the calm and calculating veep with deep policy knowledge and over 30 years of government experience.
In the other is John Edwards, a quick-witted and all-smiles trial lawyer at the end of his first term in the U.S. Senate.
\A lot of people are looking forward to the debate just because of the contrasting nature of the people and their contrasting rhetorical styles,"" said Stephen Lucas, UW-Madison communication arts professor and expert in political oratory.
""I kind of characterize the debate as Darth Vader versus Dennis the Menace,"" he said.
G. Donald Ferree Jr., associate director for public opinion research at the UW Survey Center and expert in American campaigns, expects Cheney to stress his experience while Edwards presents himself as a fresh alternative with youthful energy.
""I expect that we'll have Edwards depicting himself as a champion of the little guy whereas, in his view, Cheney is champion of the big guy and the well-to-do,"" Ferree said. ""Cheney, of course, will undoubtedly counter that by talking about Edwards being an ideological left-winger and will probably also attack Edwards for being a trial lawyer-not a very popular group themselves.""
Ferree said the pattern of mudslinging has precedent in recent elections where presidential candidates aim to take the high road and delegate attack-dog duties to their running mates.
Charles Franklin, UW-Madison political science professor, said the results of Thursday's presidential debate may force the mild-mannered running mates to adopt a bombastic approach or ""go for the jugular."" He said that John Kerry is enjoying the momentum from his performance Thursday, and Cheney faces pressure to right the Republican ship.
""Before the presidential debate I would have predicted that they would have presented policy issues but I wouldn't have expected voices to be raised. Now, with such heightened stakes for this debate, I wouldn't be surprised if we see a little more heat than I would have expected before,"" he said.
The vice presidential debate begins at 8 p.m. at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.
Lucas expects that tonight's debate will have only a marginal effect in determining who sits in the White House next spring. He also expects the vice presidential candidates to repeatedly draw attention back to their running mates.
