Opinion: Vance exceeds expectations in VP debate while Walz struggles

Former President Donald Trump wasted his debate last month with Vice President Kamala Harris. 
That was Trump’s opportunity to call out her numerous (and significant) flip-flops in front of a national audience – and more important to tie Harris to the failed economic and immigration policies of the current administration. 
The only scheduled vice presidential debate Tuesday between GOP Ohio Sen. JD Vance and Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was likely the last chance the two sides will have before the Nov. 5 election to make their case on this type of widely viewed platform, because Trump has said that he won’t meet Harris for another debate. 
Vance stepped in to make up for what Trump didn’t do. He kept the heat on Harris and the fact that she’s an integral part of the Biden-Harris administration.
Vance also surpassed my expectations. He came across as confident, relatable and well-versed on the issues, while Walz often appeared nervous and unsure of himself. 
Who won the debate?Vote in our Opinion poll.
For months, voters have said that high prices and spiking illegal immigration are their top concerns. 
And many Americans blame President Joe Biden and Harris as the occupants of the White House the past four years. Border encounters surged during the Biden-Harris administration, and Harris’ appointment as border czar early in her tenure as vice president proved an epic failure. 
Thankfully, Walz and Vance kept the discussion on immigration away from the “eating pets” nonsense that Trump brought up at last month’s debate −and which Vance has propagated on the campaign trail. 
On the economy, Walz tried to defend Harris’ big-government plans for housing, child care and other spending priorities that would add billions to the deficit – and do nothing to combat high costs.
Vance smartly brought the conversation back to how Harris has been in the White House and has failed to address inflation, and he reminded people about how, until the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy was strong under Trump. 
Opinion:Kamala Harris seems ‘unburdened’ by her lackluster past. She can thank the media for that.
Harris has tried mightily to distance herself from the inconvenient aspects of the Biden-Harris record, but it’s hard when Biden says things like he did last week on “The View”:
“As vice president, there wasn’t a single thing that I did that she couldn’t do, and so I was able to delegate her responsibility on everything from foreign policy to domestic policy.”
Vance kept reminding voters about that, too.
Regardless of who you may think won Tuesday, does it actually matter?
I have my doubts. 
The presidential race remains extremely close, and most voters have made up their minds at this point. Early voting has already started in several states. 
Opinion:Republicans for Kamala Harris? A true conservative couldn’t vote for her.
In Michigan, considered one of the states that could decide the election, a recent USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll found Harris has a small lead (48% to 45%) over Trump, within the margin of error. 
The survey also found that most people – 93% – have firmly made up their minds about who will get their vote. Only 5% said it’s possible they could change their mind. 
“I don’t believe there are any genuinely undecided voters at this point,” Republican strategist Dennis Lennox told me ahead of the debate. “If you haven’t made your mind up by now you won’t be persuaded and won’t show up to vote. This is a turnout election.”
David Dulio, distinguished professor of political science at Michigan’s Oakland University, also doesn’t think the VP debate will make much of a difference. He said that since Harris got in the race, the polling has been “incredibly stable,” including after Trump’s lackluster performance in his debate with her.
That doesn’t mean Tuesday’s debate was meaningless, though.
It’s the job of the running mates to make voters feel more comfortable voting for the candidate at the top, Dulio told me. 
“Think of it as reinforcing a choice rather than tilting a choice,” he said. 
Under that standard, Vance succeeded in giving more of a boost to Trump than Walz did for Harris. 
Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at [email protected] or on X, formerly Twitter: @Ingrid_Jacques