In the only vice presidential debate ahead of the Nov 4 election, Mr Biden accused Republican presidential contender John McCain of being 'out of touch' on the economic crisis and said he was 'no maverick' on crucial issues facing Americans.

Mrs Palin said Democratic White House candidate Barack Obama was too partisan to work across party lines to accomplish hange and was waving a 'white flag of surrender' in Iraq.

With all eyes on Mrs Palin in her national debut in an unscripted format, the Alaska governor turned in a steady and aggressive performance that featured repeated attacks on Mr Obama and pledges she and Mr McCain would work for the middle-class.

She frequently displayed the folksy style that has become a favourite target of late-night comics. 'Aw, say it ain't so, Joe,' she told Mr Biden at one point, adding a 'doggone it' for good measure.

Mr Biden also had an emotional moment, choking up when recalling having to raise his two young sons alone after their mother died in a car crash.

As the two strode on the stage, Mrs Palin greeted Mr Biden, saying: 'Nice to meet you. Can I call you Joe?'

Mr Biden pledged he and Mr Obama would end the war. Mr Obama is an early critic of the Iraq war who has called for a 16-month timeline to withdraw US troops. 'Your plan is a white flag of surrender,' Mrs Palin told Mr Biden.

Both candidates said they would work to change current US economic policy to make it more friendly to middle-class workers, but Mr Biden noted Mr McCain had called the fundamentals of the economy strong as the Wall Street crisis broke out.

'That doesn't make John McCain a bad guy, but it does point out he's out of touch,' Mr Biden, a Delaware senator, said on the campus of Washington University in St Louis, Missouri.

Mrs Palin said Mr McCain was talking about the American workforce and said Mr Obama would raise taxes on American workers and small business owners.

Mr Obama has called for a middle-class tax cut and would raise taxes only on those making more than US$250,000 (S$362,280).

'Something new'
'I do respect your years in the US Senate, but I think Americans are craving something new and different,' Mrs Palin told Mr Biden.

The highly anticipated match-up promised more than the usual drama because of curiosity about Mrs Palin, a relative unknown who was thrust into instant celebrity when she was selected as Mr McCain's No. 2 in August.

The encounter may have drawn a larger television audience than the 52 million who watched last week's first debate between the presidential candidates.

Mrs Palin hoped a solid performance could help slow Mr Obama's momentum, which has seen the Illinois senator solidify his lead in national opinion polls and grab an advantage in crucial state battlegrounds like Florida and Ohio.

Less foreign aid?
Mr Biden said the US$700 billion bailout of Wall Street he voted for, along with Mr Obama and Mr McCain, might force the Democrats to reconsider their promise to double foreign aid.

'The one thing we might have to slow down is a commitment we made to double foreign assistance,' he said when asked what programmes might have to be jettisoned because of the financial crisis.

Mrs Palin said there was nothing she and Mr McCain would have to forego. 'There hasn't been a whole lot that I've promised, except to do what is right for the American people,' she said.

I don't believe that John McCain has made any promise that he would not be able to keep, either.'

Mrs Palin's lack of national experience and her hesitant performance in rare media interviews had raised doubts about her readiness and prompted criticism even from some prominent conservatives.

But she said her experience as a governor and as a mayor of tiny Wasilla, Alaska, was her strength as a candidate for vice president.

She frequently said she and Mr McCain were a team of mavericks who could change Washington.

"John McCain has been the consummate maverick', she said.

'Barack Obama, of course, he's pretty much only voted along his party lines.'

Mr Biden said Mr McCain had not been a maverick on the vital issues facing the United States from health care to Iraq. 'He's not been a maverick on virtually anything that people talk about around the kitchen table,' he said. -- REUTERS