Tonight’s debate between Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Joe Biden looked like Miss Congeniality v. Mr. Policy. If you saw the debate you would have seen one vice presidential candidate try to charm the audience with a variety of folksy platitudes while the other talked policy.
I don’t generally talk politics here unless it relates to what I do. But in this case I make the exception because I think it does relate to being a trial lawyer.
If I ever tried to win a case by charming a jury, foregoing substance, the jury would dump me in a New York second. Maybe that charm stuff works elsewhere, but such superficial conduct would be viewed with extraordinary disdain if tried in a courtroom.
But that’s New York. Your mileage where you live may vary.