Comments on: On Taking Bets On How Long Palin Will Last On GOP Ticket As McCain Vice President Pick

By: reanna

reanna — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 20:58:57 +0000

Palin:
She has next to no experience in government. When ask about national security back ground or knowledge regarding foreign affairs the best Ms. McCain could come up with was “she lives right by Russia.” She has only traveled outside the country twice in her life. She belonged (as did her husband “Mr. first Dude”) to a 3rd party which among other things supports allowing Alaska to secede from the United States and feels the only thing wrong with the John Birch Society was it was to liberal! She tried to have a local Librarian fired for not banning books. Used her political office to try to have fired and smear a state trooper who is in a custody battle with her sister. Is being investigated for this and is worried enough about the outcome to have recently “lawyered up.” Currently has pretty messy family issues, recently gave birth to a son with Downs Syndrome and has a 17 year old daughter who is pregnant. Ironically she has fought sex education in the schools and availability of contraception for minors. Believes that for 9 months a woman has no right to control what is happening to her own body and is basically nothing more than a baby container. She does not believe in a women’s right to choose to end a pregnancy, even if she has been raped. Does not believe human pollution has anything to do with global warming (even Bush has had to back down on this one). Is so in bed with big oil she is willing to watch as the polar bear and beluga whales become extinct, rather than slow the possibility of drilling. She would open up one of the last great wilderness on earth to exploitation by oil interests. Laughs when hearing a fellow Republican woman being called a bitch in public (she and the woman had disagreed on several issues) I guess this does make her on par with McCain who thinks it is alright to call your wife a cunt in public. Has an undergraduate degree in Journalism for a small obscure university. She has been repeatedly described as stubborn with a vicious streak – even by family and friends. (nick name Sarah Barracuda) Did fund raising and accepted money from the same sources as Sen. Ted Stevens. Pushed for the “bridge to no where – the flipped when convenient to do so. She has been named Sen. John McCain’s VP selection for the Republican ticket. Sen. McCain is 72 years old and has reoccurring cancer as part of his health history. One can not help but question Mr. McCain’s judgment regarding her selection.

By: robmgil

robmgil — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 12:25:46 +0000

Are you saying, Manchester, that one speech from Hokey Mom will make us forget about her ZERO foreign policy experience? You must have been on McCain's vetting committee. Naivete is bliss!

By: Manchester2

Manchester2 — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 04:30:35 +0000

These comments about Gov. Palin are premature. Let's see how she does in her Wednesday night speech at the Republican Convention. I suspect many on this board will change their tune.

By: robmgil

robmgil — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 02:03:31 +0000

I think it is incredibly condescending to think that women will vote for hokey (not hockey) Mom just because she is a woman. I would be insulted by McCain's assumption that female supporters of Hillary would suddenly abandon their progressive views to simply advance feminism in such a comparatively minuscule way.

By: DLS

DLS — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 01:07:53 +0000

I've not been spinning anything, obviously.

Comparing the experience of Palin vs. Obama is purposeful insofar as it exposes the nature of those making the charges of inexperience against Palin as well as the nature of the charges themselves as they apply to all the candidates.

By: AustinRoth

AustinRoth — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 00:54:45 +0000

Palin vs Obama as to who has more experience seems reminiscent of the tales of Papal Conclaves to determine how many Angels could dance on the head of a pin.

By: Leonidas

Leonidas — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 23:56:16 +0000

Palin at the number 2 spot for the GOP has more experience than Obama at the #1 spot on the demoicratric ticket, who needs to spin anything given that fact.

By: ChrisWWW

ChrisWWW — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:40:42 +0000

DLS,
You sound irritable. Take a break. I know it's hard work spinning for Gov. Palin.

By: DLS

DLS — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:40:34 +0000

Libs and Dems — so far, the GOP convention has become palpably livelier, as have McCain's prospects. Please practice moderation (pun intended on this site) on the viciousness, and in the case of betting on “another Miers,” don't count your vultures before they've hatched, taken flight, and then actually descended.

By: DLS

DLS — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:39:04 +0000

“Only rich white guys are GOP material. If the Dems could only convince the bitter,small town, hung up on religion voters than the world will be perfect again.”

They need to stop hating these voters and buy their votes with entitlements, too.

By: DLS

DLS — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:37:38 +0000

“It’s outrage.”

The Left expects to own blacks and women. No deviation from the PC-Dem gospel allowed!

Plus this year it's not only the Clinton voters, but the Obama voters now more than ever, who believe the White House is expected to be given to them, that they have it as their entitlement or “right” (or “holy right” if they wish to quote their Palestinian right-of-return brethren).

By: GreenDreams

GreenDreams — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 22:15:07 +0000

Chris. That's priceless. Heartbeat away from the presidency. Oh my. “God's will has to be done in getting that pipeline built.” Pretty presumptuous stuff. She does have a cute giggle though.

By: ChrisWWW

ChrisWWW — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:45:53 +0000

What is really funny is watching so-called “liberal moderates” bend over in contortions trying to defend ad hominem attacks on any woman who dares to run for office who isn’t a democrat.

jwest, I sympathize. All of this personal stuff feels a little dirty. It'd be nice to critique Palin's vision for American domestic and foreign policy.

Too bad she has none.

__________
Edit: I just found her Iraq policy on Huffington Post...
"Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God. That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

Hmmm...

By: BBQ

BBQ — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:41:41 +0000

Didn't anyone tell you jwest? Only rich white guys are GOP material. If the Dems could only convince the bitter,small town, hung up on religion voters than the world will be perfect again. Infact I imagine Obama will be giving everyone ponies once he is in office.

By: jwest

jwest — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:39:30 +0000

What is really funny is watching so-called “liberal moderates” bend over in contortions trying to defend ad hominem attacks on any woman who dares to run for office who isn’t a democrat.

Which is basically the same type of attacks made against blacks who run as republicans.

By: Rambie

Rambie — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:30:50 +0000

Of course the partisans would defend the pick no matter who it was. What is really funny is to watch the so-called “conservative moderates” twist themselves into a logical pretzel trying to defend Palin using -as a defense- the same things they attacked Obama with.

By: jwest

jwest — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:25:03 +0000

Where’s your evidence that Palin has done any of the things your side is accusing her of?

Hey, if you want to play the game, let’s do it.

By: kritt11

kritt11 — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:21:41 +0000

Where is your evidence that he's best friends with a terrorist?

By: jwest

jwest — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:20:11 +0000

Elrod,

Do you really believe that those easily explained items in her past will impact the voters more than a candidate who:

• Is best friends with an unrepentant terrorist?
• Bought his house with the help of a convicted felon?
• Worshiped at the knee (for 20 years) of a blackcentric racist who hates America?
• Let’s his brother live in squalor on $1 a month?

Once the truth gets out about Obama, I don’t think anyone will feel uneasy about Palin.

(Plus, we have videotape of our favorite spirtual leader. You got some of that?)

By: elrod

elrod — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 21:00:06 +0000

The defenses of Palin are laughable. This selection completely undercuts McCain's whole message up to this point. If you accept that BOTH Obama and Palin are inexperienced, then the issue is a wash. McCain needs a new issue at that point. And it looks like he IS getting rid of the experience argument in favor of some "reformer" line.

The problem there, however, is that Palin is not much of a reformer at all. Most of her reform credentials are the acts of Alaska' Democrats (Ethan Berkowitz, a Democrat, wrote the ethics bill). Palin begged for earmarks and lied about it. She supported the Bridge to Nowhere before she opposed it. And she's under investigation for abusing state power to enact a vendetta against her ex-brother-in-law (a pattern of behavior that she exhibited as Mayor when she fired all the city officials for "disloyalty.")

Experience off the table.
Reform cred in shambles.
That leaves: right wing ideological extremism . She is a darling of the far right - both the libertarian nuts and the Christianists.

I don't see McCain winning on that. Not in 2008.