More arguments and less testosterone: the vice-presidential debate

After the hyper-macho testosterone-charged presidential debate last week, the debate between the vice-presidential candidates, Vice President Mike Pence and Senator Kamala Harris, was expected to be more like a traditional, more policy-centered candidate debate. It delivered. In fact, it was borderline boring to the point that a fly that spent about two minutes on Pence’s forehead caused a Twitter uproar.

The issue that permeates and conditions absolutely everything in our governments and our lives right now, the coronavirus, took center stage. That, along with Trump and to a lesser extent, the economy and Biden received the most attention. This wasn’t surprising given Trump’s recent hospitalization but refusal to get a much-needed stimulus bill passed. The virus was the topic of the day-before spat over debate logistics: both campaigns had agreed to a protective plexiglass screen between the candidates then suddenly team Trump wasn’t having it.

Since Trump-world’s stance is that the coronavirus is nothing, despite the fact that some 23 people in his orbit have become infected, they continue to flout science and assert that masks aren’t necessary. They finally did agree to the plexiglass, but this just further set up Pence to have to go in a defend this sort of behavior. It doesn’t help that he’s led the…