Friday, August 29, 2008

Hey, ladies, look over here


John McCain has chosen little-known Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, and while I'm sure there were many factors in his decision, it seems clear that a major reason for the pick is an attempt to grab disaffected Hillary Clinton supporters. Of course, Palin's politics - she's anti-abortion, for one thing - are decidedly different than Clinton's, but for some of Hillary's radical feminist dead-enders who operate under the delusion that Clinton lost because of sexism, that won't matter. Palin has the right set of "plumbing," as far as they're concerned. A few quick facts about Palin. She's an outdoorswoman, is known as a reformer, admits using marijuana years ago but says she didn't like it and is married to an Eskimo. No, really, she is. I, like most of the rest of the country, know very little about Palin, but her choice as running mate would seem to undercut McCain's argument that Barack Obama doesn't have the experience to be president. I suppose there are more delicate ways to put this, but McCain is an old man. He would be the oldest man elected president, and at his age, he could keel over at any moment or start answering the door when the phone rings. So, does Palin have the experience to be president? She's been governor of Alaska for only a year and a half, and before that was a small-town mayor. The McCain supporters will say she has that all-important "management experience." But what, then, does that say about McCain? He has never managed anything. He went directly from the military into politics and has been a legislator for all of his public life. Around and around in circles we go. Should be an interesting two-month push to Election Day.

20 Comments:

Blogger Greg said...

The GOP just shot themselves in the foot. They now have to throw the whole "Obama is not ready to lead" argument out the window.

You're right Brant, John McCain is old, and altough at the present moment he seems to be in very good health that could change quickly. He's battled cancer in the recent past. Would, 44-year-old, two year Governer of Alaska, Sarah Palin be ready to lead the nation?

It seems to me that McCain made his pick solely in an attempt to gain those hard core Hillary fans. Only time will tell if his strategy worked.

August 29, 2008 at 11:59 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm also not convinced there are that many Hillary dead-enders out there. I suspect they're a media creation, to some extent. I also think a Republican woman along the lines of Christine Todd Whitman (who's pro-choice, which was probably a disqualifier) or Condoleeza Rice (also pro-choice and no picture-perfect family to show off) would have been a better way to get the any disgruntled Hillary people onboard.

We also can't discount the effect Obama's acceptance speech might have had on some of the Hillary hold-outs. Most of the reviews so far have ranged from "spectacular" to "transcendent."

There's a real chance the Sarah Palin pick could backfire. She's the subject of an ethics investigation in Alaska right now, and there's great gaffe potential here -- two years ago, she was the mayor of a Canonsburg-size town, and now she'll be subject to 24/7 scrutiny.

--Brad Hundt

August 29, 2008 at 3:51 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yep -- mayor of a town of 9,000. Wonder if she knows Gomer, Andy, Floyd, Barney and Goober. Here's betting she thinks the Red Phone in the Oval office has a crank on the side. Of all the blatant playing to the crowd that's done in politics, this pick sets a new high. McCain and his moll. Why didn't he just ask Hlllary?

August 29, 2008 at 6:01 PM  
Blogger Ellipses said...

Since Brad brought it up...

What did you guys think of Obama's speech?

I thought he started off a bit shaky... I was watching the first 5 or 10 minutes and asking myself "This counts for spectacular oration these days?"

I hadn't seen his DNC speech from 04 or his "race" speech from Philadelphia...

However, he caught his stride at about 10 minutes in. He managed to address, in a very effective fashion, just about every criticism leveled at him during this campaign.

He reminds me of a naturally gifted athlete in the way he speaks. You can see the lack of refinement in his technique, but he still dominates... What I mean by lack of refinement... last night, he nearly got tied up with words. You could see his lips purse to create a "b" or "p" sound... but the b or p word was 2 words ahead of either a conjunction or some other word between what he had just said and what he would be saying. He caught himself and it wouldn't even be apparent if you were just listening and not watching him. But WOW... when he got on a roll and that meter and tone just rose and rose... it was musical.

It was probably politically beneficial to him to position himself against George Bush the few times that he did... but he was careful not to make it a campaign against Bush.

I was really captivated by his ability to nail point after point of contention against him. I think he locked in the election, but he really set the bar high for reelection in 2012... On some points (taxes)... he was refreshingly direct and specific... but do you think he will actually be able to cut taxes for 95% (!) of us? If not, I fear that the GOP will need only to run one ad in 2012... "Let me make this clear, I will cut... CUT taxes for 95% of American families."

That's the ad... all of it :-)

adieu.

-ellipses

August 29, 2008 at 6:44 PM  
Blogger Roger said...

With the selection of Palin, McCain will bring to the campaign the message of fixing broken politics of Washington. She has not been part of the DC mix of characters, and will bring a fresh perspective to fix the broken politics.

Also, she will bring a hope for change that is missing. Being an outsider, she is better qualified to bring change than any insider that has been part of the machine for a long time. Change is what people have been wanting, and she has a fresh face to the scene to implement change.

Perhaps she also brings a hope for a new future. The long-term folks in DC only see a new future based upon keeping their places status quo. She has no seat to hold down, and can help pave the path for a new future in American leadership.

Fixing broken politics, bringing a change to DC, and providing a hope for a new future. Did McCain make a good choice for these elements of a new administration?

August 29, 2008 at 8:26 PM  
Blogger Roger said...

I liked the speech, and most of the other ones through the four days. They followed the winning strategy of John Kerry -- beat up on the present administration, not bothering to provide new answers to old problems. It worked for John Kerry, why won't it work for Sen Obama? Will the DNC keep with this strategy since it worked for them before? Or, will they take another path as the campaign progresses?

August 29, 2008 at 8:29 PM  
Blogger Ellipses said...

Roger...

I thought it was a bit of a departure from Kerry's campaign... I cringed a bit when Obama mentioned Bush (I haven't watched any other speeches)... He isn't running against Bush. This is a trap the dems cannot fall into. However, like a pebble across a pond, Obama did not stay on Bush long enough for it to cloud the rest of the speech.

As far as answers to old problems... I didn't hear any radically new ways of approaching issues... but then again, I don't hear of anything radically new from McCain either. I think a lot of people EXPECT McCain to be the same old same old... and HOPE that Obama will be different. If that's the case, do you put the gun against your foot and pull the trigger or do you hold it at your hip, close your eyes and pull the trigger?

Granted, I don't expect that the day after the election I will be flying around on a magic carpet singing a "A whole new world"... but with obama there is a chance.

I can't wait to see McCain's speech, though...

-ellipses... is ready to bring up the tax cut for 95% of the population in 2012 if Obama wins...

August 29, 2008 at 9:04 PM  
Blogger Ellipses said...

Tell me if this is an appropriate comparison...

Picking Sarah Palin is akin to GW nominating Harriett Miers to the supreme court...

Do you think McCain has time for a do-over?

-ellipses

August 29, 2008 at 10:48 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Republican women were thrilled today as were almost any Republican activist. These people were luke warm on McCain and are now overjoyed.
Secondly, Palin is running for VP, not President. Yes, McCain is old, but we have never had a President die from old age.
The ethics issues are overblown. If she is an ethical problem, then Obama with the Rezco matter and his ties to the Chicago political machinery is in big trouble (or McCain and his past problems). She is the governor of a small state (something that if I remember a certain Mr. Clinton was also). It is time for the glass ceiling to end.

August 30, 2008 at 2:04 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

In 1992 many uniformed people were saying Clinton Who? The little known Governor of Arkansas, he was.
What is also interesting is that there seems to be no press coverage that actually interviews someone that knew who she was. I for one did and my friends were all aware. One of the reasons I was aware was simple, there are not many Republican politicians that can pose in Vogue. Yes, I am a red blooded American male.
Another factor no one is talking about is that an attractive female candidate will bring in MALE voters also. Don't believe me, just look at the effect Diana Irey has had for years on some male voters. Her internal polling has always been off the chart with men, not women.

August 30, 2008 at 9:50 AM  
Blogger Greg said...

Hey, I realize that you want to continue spending $10 billion a month in Iraq and that you want to take a woman's right to chose away from her, but you're just so darn pretty I can't help myself. You get my vote!

If some dude has that thought go through his head there are two things that he should be stripped of. One that I can mention is his right to vote.

August 30, 2008 at 12:22 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

MILF? Mom I'd like to forget. I don't find her attractive in the least. In fact, I found the 44-year-old Hillary Clinton quite attractive.

And I don't buy this crap about voting for or against someone just because of their race or gender. Palin is no Clinton. And what kind of mother decides to have a Down Syndrome child, then highball it into politics feet first when the child is four months old? Does that show common sense and family values?

I discount the experience angle for both Obama and Palin. Like it or not, no one is prepared to take on the role of president of the US at first. But I don't discount the gender problem. Does anyone really think that a woman Prez or Veep has any real chance of getting things done unless she has a few Polaroids of the DC power brokers at her disposal? Should Obama win, he'll have a hard enough time getting things done, being black, despite his being male.

The whole change thing is so much confetti. People scream change, but the system is not set up to accommodate change. Too many in power have too much to lose by allowing the system to change. And the president can't change things alone.

People say they want solutions but are unwilling to sacrifice, as the generation faced with the Depression and WWII had to do. Too many of us are scared, fat, lazy and complacent, and the people who need and desire change most have no political clout. It's going to take a major disaster to awaken us, and I'm not talking about airplanes being flown into a few buildings or a hurricane drowning a city. Until the rich are made to hurt, very little is going to change. The question is, how do you hurt the rich when money allows them to survive almost anything?

August 30, 2008 at 2:22 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

We've never had a president die of old age?! Better dig into your history books, anonymous -- Franklin Roosevelt was suffering from several age-related maladies when he died of a stroke, including congestive heart failure.

And does being president somehow preclude someone from dying of diseases that can afflict the 70-and-beyond demographic? By that logic, I'm gonna start planning my White House bid for 2044, when I turn 78. That'll guarantee 8 more years here on terra firma.

--Brad Hundt

August 30, 2008 at 3:33 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Actually, incase you all forgot......Bill Clinton was just a plain ole govenor from Arkansas and he became a well-loved president. Therefore, I don't THINK there should be any questions of...."Is she ready to lead the nation?"

August 30, 2008 at 8:52 PM  
Blogger PRIguy said...

Brant,

I called the ACLU and told them that you referred to Palin's husband as an Eskimo. I believe the term is Inuit, you callous insensitive boob.

Love ya!
Ray

August 31, 2008 at 7:03 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nice to see all the Libs coming out to play here.
Any coincidence many of the posters are O-R employees?
Palin has more governing experience than Obama, but she's not running against Obama, McCain is.
And if you want to talk about the VPs, how is a VP candidate who has polled less than 2 percent both times he's run for president now ready to be president if something were to happen to the head man?
The people have already overwhelmingly not chosen Joe "Big Mouth" Biden twice.

August 31, 2008 at 2:33 PM  
Blogger Ellipses said...

I can't shake the feeling that the McCain/Palin ticket has the experience issue backwards... With Obama/Biden... you have the charismatic, young, big thinker at the top of the ticket. The great orator who will address the nation... and the long time politico as his chief advisor. If something were to happen to Obama, you have an experienced statesmen to step in when the country would, undoubtedly, be reeling from the death of a president. Realistically, his job for the remainder of the term would be to not let things fall apart.

On the McCain/Palin side... You have the statesmen with all the experience in the world out front. His speaking and motivational prowess will be seen this week... but if McCain died, the person in the position to "hold it together" is a person woefully ill-equipped to do so. What is the procedure for the VP picking his/her VP in the event of the president dying? Do they get to pick whomever they want? That would be a good opportunity to bring on Lieberman.

I am still not getting this "experience" thing... Wouldn't Gore have been more experienced than Bush? Why didn't we hear the argument then? If the argument is true, it should be universal... Did Rush come out and say clinton was more experienced than Dole? Of course, Bush 1 would have been more experienced than Clinton... Carter would have had more experience than Regan... Experience doesn't mean dick. Like I have said before... you have have all the experience in the world and within a week, you will get a report on your desk that makes you say "holy shitballs."

Sadly, the president's main job is to make a good speech and inspire people to do stuff they wouldn't ordinarily have done if not for the good speech... You think we would have went to the moon had Kennedy just released a note to the press that said "Let's go to the moon."?

You think we would have invaded iraq if Bush made his argument through Scott McClelland? (is that the right press secretary for the time period?)

Oh well... it was just a matter of time before the election came down to the same tired issues... guns and abortions. Don't worry folks, nobody will take away either one of them.

-ellipses

September 1, 2008 at 7:55 AM  
Blogger Ellipses said...

Oh, and who is an OR employee besides Brad and Brant? Is Greg?

-e

September 1, 2008 at 7:59 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

What I find funny about these comments is that some believe Palin was picked to sway women voters who supported Hillary Clinton. In fact, Clinton did lousy with middle aged women in the primary race. She was strong with only the over-55 female crowd.

The other fact most people don't realize is that you CAN blame Clinton's loss on sexism. Women just didn't care to vote for her, possibly because she was a woman.

I don't see how Palin helps that situation.

September 1, 2008 at 11:32 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

If you don't believe McCain picked Palin to snag Hillaryites, you probably voted for Bush twice.

September 1, 2008 at 4:05 PM  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home