DANVILLE, Kentucky (WKOW) -- Vice President Joe Biden and Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan face-off Thursday night for their first and only debate before next month's election.
Ryan's debate preparations have involved a core team of aides, practice sessions on his plane and mock debates in hotels all around the country.
Vice President Biden has been preparing by studying up on Congressman Ryan's position on the major issues. He's expected to attack Ryan on issues like Medicaid, Social Security and foreign policy.
Analysts say strengths for Ryan are his ability to speak in detail about policy issues. Experts say strengths for Vice President Biden are talking about how national policies affect ordinary people.
The stage will be the biggest of Congressman Ryan's career so far.
"You have 90 minutes to cut through the fog of all the 30 second ads and really get into the policy, because that's what people deserve, that's what people want," said Brendan Buck, Ryan's VP Campaign Press Secretary. "People want to talk about the big issues. And like we always say, you can't change Paul Ryan, you have to let Paul Ryan be who he is and that's what we expect him to do."
But, Buck isn't predicting a win, choosing instead to keep expectations low.
"People think of Joe Biden as a gaffe machine, but when you go back and look at some of his debates, particularly the fourteen that he did in 2008, he didn't make any gaffes, he was a very focused debater and we expect him to be very focused, especially after the President's performance in Denver last week," said Buck.
While the Ryan campaign expects Biden to come out swinging, the Vice President says he's more concerned with content than tone.
Polls released in the last two days show the Obama/Biden campaign has lost its lead in three key swing states, leaving Ohio, Virginia and Florida as dead heats.
27 News has you covered for Thursday's debate. You can watch the debate on WKOW and www.wkow.com/live at 8:00 p.m. We'll have a full report on 27 News at 10.
