Joe Biden to the rescue?

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Joe Biden to the rescue?

Pressure on vice president after Obama's lackluster debate performance

This is a rush transcript from "The Five," October 9, 2012. This copy may not be in its final form and may be updated.

ANDREA TANTAROS, CO-HOST: Well, in about 48 hours, Paul Ryan and Vice President Joe Biden will square off for the one and only vice presidential debate at Center College in Danville, Kentucky.

Democrats are hoping and praying that Joe Biden will help turn things around for the Obama campaign. But can they count on Joe's track record?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIPS)

JOSEPH BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Stand up, Chuck.

Let them see you. God love you. What am I talking about? I tell you what? You make everybody else stand up, pal.

This is a big (EXPLETIVE DELETED) deal.

Thank you, Dr. Pepper, and thank you chancellor -- or Dr. Paper.

Unchain Wall Street.

(BOOS)

They're going to put y'all back in chains.

How they can justify raising taxes on the middle class that has been buried for the last four years? How in the Lord's name can they justify?

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

TANTAROS: Whose campaign was he working for there? I got to tell you, if I had a keg party, Eric, Joe Biden is the one person I would look to, to help me save it if it were going down and no one was going to attend. But I don't know about rescuing the Democratic Party with a debate.

ERIC BOLLING, CO-HOST: Not -- I'm not sure it's going to change things a lot. But I will tell you, give him credit -- give Joe Biden credit. He's been studying. He spent the last few days, I guess six days, he's going to hole up somewhere in an undisclosed bunker somewhere.

But he'll be prepared. He'll know the numbers.

But here's the difference, though -- Paul Ryan understands numbers. Joe Biden will know the numbers. Paul Ryan understands them.

There's no comparison when you put two people together that know a topic. And one knows it and one understands it. Ryan will teach him a lot of things about the budget and the about the economy come Thursday night.

TANTAROS: Well, Dana, he should know the numbers, because he's been in office I think longer than maybe you and I have actually been alive.

But I do think that he has an advantage because as Eric points out, he knows the numbers and he was forced to defend his plans to his own party.

So, just like Romney, he gets out there without the filter of the media and he can explain them to seniors and --

DANA PERINO, CO-HOST: And he did very well in debate in the Democratic primary in 2008. He's a very -- he's a skilled politician, rarely held accountable for anything he says, which I can't explain.

But think about Ryan for a second. This guy won re-election seven times in a very moderate district in Wisconsin. He is a good retail politician. He's actually been very good out on the stump. Doesn't get a lot of coverage.

But Thursday night, I thin, when I get my milk duds and my popcorn ready, it will be a great night. It will fun no matter what.

TANTAROS: So, do you think, Brian, the bar is higher or lower, though? Because people go, oh, crazy Uncle Joe. But then at the same time, the pressure is on because Obama failed the other night so they are looking to Joe.

So, is it a high bar or a low bar?

BRIAN KILMEADE, GUEST CO-HOST: Really high. It's up to Joe Biden to stop the bleeding. And there is tremendous bleeding. And even after the jobs number which were positive for president, they are counting on Joe Biden not only to answer Paul Ryan's questions, but the ones that President Obama did not answer last week.

And that's the preparation that's taking six days. I am not sure he is up to it. On foreign policy, he's got the experience. Paul Ryan has got to step up, not to out-foreign policy him, but to show he is competent for Joe Biden to get inside the numbers, that Paul Ryan has been living with for 12, 15 years, that made him chairman as young guy jumping over the Republicans. That's going to too much to get out of by studying.

(CROSSTALK)

TANTAROS: Oh you're alive. I was going to call EMS unit for your vital signs.

BOB BECKEL, CO-HOST: No, no. First of all, it was the bleeding that got to me. I thought about that, which you said is terrible hemorrhage.

But, yes, Ryan has been delivering numbers on the wrong side. He is still a right winger and may get elected in moderate district.

I think Joe Biden -- you know, Joe Biden has been in politics for 35 years. You take one minute of the goof here and make it funny and say funny Joe. He is one of the skilled politicians in America. He's going to take this guy to the woodshed and I think he's going to expose these guys for what they are, which is a bunch of proposals that are shams.

BOLLING: Let me get something else too. I mean, the Obama campaign right now is in desperation mode. They're in panic mode right now. They saw a five-point lead turn in to three or four-point deficit. They need him to step up and do something to as Brian pointed, stop the bleeding.

TANTAROS: They also --

BOLLING: Stop the slide, at least.

TANTAROS: -- might be relying on the media now to jump up to and help them do their dirty work.

Take a listen, they're getting a little bit hostile in an interview that Paul Ryan had with one reporter, shows the media's fury.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: This country has gun problem.

REP. PAUL RYAN, VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This country has a crime problem.

REPORTER: Not a gun problem?

RYAN: No, I mean, if you take a look at the gun laws we have. I don't think President Obama is proposing more gun laws. We have good, strong gun laws.

(CROSSTALK)

RYAN: We have to make sure to enforce the laws. We have a lot of laws that aren't properly enforced. We need to make sure we enforce these laws. But the best thing to prevent the violent crime in inner cities is bring opportunity in the inner city.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TANTAROS: OK. So we cut that, but it goes on where the reporter gets more and more hostile. Eventually the press secretary pulls it.

So, are we going to see the media step few the Obama campaign is flailing even more?

PERINO: Oftentimes we'll get good interview out of local media. But if they think they're going to win a Pulitzer Prize out of that, they're in trouble.

And in addition to that, here's the problem that Paul Ryan has. He's smarter than everybody else in the room. If it comes across as if he knows he's smarter than everybody else in the room, it can look smug or arrogant.

There is somebody else in politics with that problem.

So, I think --

TANTAROS: Does his rhyme with Morack Morama?

(LAUGHTER)

PERINO: But the thing -- I think that Ryan will -- he'll have a little bit of self-deprecating humor. He'll be a little bit differential to senior statesman Biden and he will kill him on substance.

BECKEL: I can't let you get away with saying this in panic mode. The bleeding is over. It's settled down now.

BOLLING: Really?

BECKEL: Yes. It has settled down.

TANTAROS: Settle down.

BECKEL: You think that somehow this thing is going to continue on and people are making up their mind.

BOLLING: Every day when you look at the poll.

PERINO: They're the ones who did the Big Bird ad.

(CROSSTALK)

KILMEADE: Let me just quote the great philosopher Seth Meyers. He said, "Is there anything more exciting than Joe Biden thinking it's up to him get the lead back? It's Tebow time."

BECKEL: It's not going to matter. That's the base. It's not going to matter one bit.

TANTAROS: By the way, if we can roll the tape from last week, our Bob Beckel said that last week's debate wouldn't matter at all either. We can take it with triple helping of salt.

And be sure to watch this Thursday. Our Kimberly will be covering the V.P. debate live from Kentucky.

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