Both Republicans and Democrats hoped for a game-changing night at Washington University.

For the most part, things were very cordial. At the beginning when Palin met Biden, they shook hands and Palin said, "Nice to meet you, can I call you Joe?" That was how the evening started. It was very cordial except for a couple of snips back and forth throughout the debate.

Thursday evening was spent buttering up and explaining each respective presidential candidate.

One hot topic in these tough economic times is each party's tax plan.

"[John McCain] is proposing a $5000 tax credit for families so that they can get out there and they can purchase their own health care coverage, and that's a smart thing to do," said Gov. Sarah Palin. "That's budget-neutral. That doesn't cost the government anything as opposed to Barack Obama's plan to mandate health care coverage and have this universal government-run program."

"You're going to have to replace a $12,000 plan because 20 million of you are going to be dropped," said Senator Joe Biden. "So you're going to have to replace a $12,000 plan with a $5000 check you're just giving the insurance company. I call that the ultimate bridge to nowhere."

Later in the debate, the issue turned to the war in Iraq. Again, both candidates had clear differences on their partys' plans.

"John McCain, this is a fundamental difference between us, we will end this war," said Biden. "For John McCain, there is no end in sight to end this war. Fundamental difference. We need to end this war."

"Your plan is a white flag of surrender in Iraq, and that is not what our troops need to hear today, that's for sure, and it's not what our nation needs to be able to count on," said Palin. "We'll know when we're finished in Iraq when the Iraqi government can govern its people and when the Iraqi security forces can secure its people."

Now both vice presidential candidates did talk about their own experience towards the end of the debate. Palin cited being a business owner and being the governor of Alaska. She also said she was connected to the heartland. Biden responded saying he had 30 years in the public office and he also commented on being a single parent and knowing what that is like.

Overall, it was good for both parties as this is the only vice presidential debate.

The attendee reaction was that they noticed Biden and Palin were very civil towards one another and also seemed fairly calm. They did occasionally debate with one another, but, atendees say overall both candidate's characters were well-represented.

Although Palin was under some speculation about whether or not she would perform well, attendees say it was obvious she was mentally prepared for the debate. They said she understood the issues that were on the table and that she performed well, overall.

The only complaint heard Thursday night was that the candidates spent too much time dancing around the issues. They commented that there weren't enough hard facts presented and that candidates just battled back and forth without presenting enough for the public to make opinions on how to vote in this upcoming November election.

But, in agreement from all the attendees KOMU-8 interviewed, they say, regardless of the winner, this year's election itself is extremely important. Either we will have the first female vice president or the first African-American president, and attendees say either way, that is monumental.