The Vice Presidential debate Thursday night was the first and only time the Joe Biden and Paul Ryan squared off. Political Science professors say the debate is important, because people need to know where a Vice Presidential candidate stands on a variety of issues. So, we decided to ask if you would be watching the debating.
"I will."
"Yes, I will."
"Definitely."
Most of the people we spoke to say they tuned in to see where Paul Ryan and Joe Biden stand on the issues.
"It would be interesting to see the difference between the 2."
"We definitely need to know what direction the country is going to go."
"He's got to be able to give the president input and be a backup."
The Vice President is well known for having 2 important jobs.
"Constitutionally Vice Presidents only roles are to stay alive to be the replacement for the President and to break ties in the Senate," says Dr. Christopher Whitt, Assistant Political Science at Augustana College.
The Vice President's role in the administration is determined by the President.
"Each President has decisions to make as to how they're going to use their Vice President with-in government or with dealing with the public," adds Dr. Whitt.
Watching the debate and paying attention to what the candidates saying during campaign stops is crucial, because it reflects what a presidency will look like.
"A lot of time when we think of Presidential elections we think of one person getting one job, but we forget that there's an entire institution of a presidency including the vice president, other parts of the cabinet and the White House staff," says Dr. Whitt, "They all work together to run the government."
