Struggling to break out of the pack, Senators Joe Biden and Chris Dodd and Governor Bill Richardson, jammed together on the left side of the stage, tried their best to be noticed. In a race in which the difference between candidates on major issues is miniscule, the three worked to distinguish themselves on anything they could. At one point, all three clamored over each other to support a national law to ban smoking in public places.
Biden seemed best able to break out, as he continued to cast himself as the straight-shooting candidate. Asked if he would acknowledge that raising the cap on Social Security taxes, he was blunt: “The answer is yes. No one up here is going to say it.” Earlier, when trying to clarify his amendment to create three semi-autonomous states in Iraq, Russert tried to cut him off: “It’s okay,” he said. Biden, clearly frustrated, fired back. “No, it’s not okay.”
and this -
Candidates for the first time trained some fire on Republicans not named George W. Bush. “Rudy Giuliani doesn’t know what the heck he’s talking about,” Biden said, referring to Giuliani’s immigration stance. “He’s the most uninformed person on foreign policy running for President.”
http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2007/09/in_dem_debate_new_sense_of_urg.html