Assessing the VP debate—and presenting the latest Fortune Most Powerful Women list
Good morning.
JD Vance is a better debater than Tim Walz. When the vice-presidential candidates squared off in their first and only debate last night, Vance was masterful at dodging tough questions, reframing inconvenient truths, and presenting himself as a reasonable middle-of-the-road thinker committed to substantive and nuanced discussion. Walz conveyed his key points but didn’t challenge the new narrative or persona put forth by his opponent.
I avoid taking a political stance in this column: We all vote according to our values and priorities. On taxes, abortion, climate action, immigration, healthcare, and other key issues, people can parse where each party stands. It’s easy to fact-check what was said. Less obvious is the disconnect between the Vance we saw last night and the Vance who’s been stoking fear with tales of pet-eating immigrants and problematic elections on the campaign trail. The college debater in me marveled that Walz didn’t really point out that disconnect or drill down on the issue that matters most.
For me, there was one question that should have kicked off the debate: Does Vance believe the results of the 2020 election were valid? He did not answer because he can’t. Despite every governor and every court stating clearly that democracy prevailed in the last election, this is a man who will not do what his predecessor Mike Pence did when confronted with a president who wants to stage a coup: say no. Having lived in countries ruled by dictators, where corruption and cruelty often go unchecked, that’s the question that haunts me.
True power is earned. The Fortune Most Powerful Women (MPW) list, now in its 27th year, is out this morning. We profiled the 100 most powerful women from across the planet in a ranking that features 26 newcomers and a new No. 1: GM CEO Mary Barra. She says: “The best time to solve a problem is the minute you know you have one because problems don’t usually get smaller." Read more about the 2024 list here.
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Diane Brady
diane.brady@fortune.com
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This story was originally featured on Fortune.com