| WIKI | FAQ | Tech FAQ | |
 http://csua.com/feed/ | |
| ||||||
| 11/22 |
| 2008/8/29-9/3 [Politics/Domestic/Election] UID:51005 Activity:nil 70%like:51039 |
8/29 McCain only met with Palin once.
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/08/the_daily_bricabrac_sarah.php#more
The facts on Palin are going to be gold for the Dems:
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0808/12987.html
\_ "Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9000 with
zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the
presidency," (Obama) I'm not sure what to make of experience
criticism from Obama. He has about the same amount of experience,
and he wants to BE the president.
\_ Hmmm, which other major candidate has been making the
'experience' argument?
\_ It's not that it isn't a valid criticism in general, just
that it's more dangerous to Obama than Palin. Those in glass
houses and all that.
\_ The above quote was from an Obama campaign spokesman,
and their second statement was much milder. I suspect
they'll just ignore her and continue to go after
McCain. Meanwhile, this neutralizes McCain's one
solid attack, which was the experience argument.
Basically this was a really dumb, cynical move
to try to suck up Hillary voters and I'm surprised
conservatives think it was a good pick. Though
I guess "conservative" basically means "Republican
hack" now for the most part.
\_ Oh, I must have misread the attribution. My bad.
Anyway, I'm not really sure it neutralizes the
experience argument, since Palin isn't running for prez,
although it may sort of strengthen the "Mcain is old"
argument. She's not who I would have picked, and I hate
picking a woman just to have a woman type thinking. I
would hope no one actually votes that way, but it's
pretty obvious many people do. It does bloster his
ticket with the Bible belt the way say, Romney, would
not have. I really hope this means Mcain can quit
trying to pretend to be a far righty.
\_ Palin is a trivial figure, and someone comparing her
to Obama says far more about themselves than they do
about Obama.
\_ I guess you'll have to explain what you mean, because
I don't get it. What makes an Alaskan Gov. more
trivial than an Illinois senator?
\_ She seems to be a lightweight and Obama is not. How
many books has she written? She was Miss Congeniality
for God's sake and went to the University of Idaho.
We will know more after her debates with Biden. If
she does well in them, my opinion of her will go up.
\_ And Arnold Schwarzenegger is governor of the most
populous state in the union. People don't care
about book-writing academics. Why don't we have
presidents who have Ph.Ds in political science and
economics?
\_ so what does it say?
\_ http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/08/29/an-astonishingly-arrogant-v-p-selection.aspx
\_ Comments are pretty good.
\_ But Palin is 3,990,722 times hotter than Biden. We live in an era
of TV fluff politics. Palin is a great choice. Who else should he
have picked? One of the standard geezers wouldn't be interesting at
all. More than anything the VP is a figurehead role. And Palin
checks the conservative boxes.
\_ It's really amusing how the GOP has become the affirmative
action party.
\- Consider also how the VP hopefulls feel to be snubbed for
McCain's Folly, the Alaskan Cipher. Either it's obnoxious and
insulting, or McCain couldnt stand anybody, or nobody wanted to
go down with the S.S. McCain. |
| 11/22 |
|
| marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/08/the_daily_bricabrac_sarah.php#more bigger cultural phenomenon than American Idol, the Beijing Olympics, and the Oscars. McCain first met Palin in February of 2008, according to an official tick-tock e-mailed to reporters. New York Daily News: "In picking an unknown, untested, half-a-term woman governor from Alaska to be his running mate, John McCain is following in a long line of reckless men who have rolled the dice for a beauty queen. Except in this case, McCain is taking one of the biggest, boldest gambles in modern American political history." From the McCain campaign John McCain first met Governor Sarah Palin at the National Governors Association meeting in Washington in February of 2008 and came away extraordinarily impressed. John McCain followed her career and admired her tenacity and her many accomplishments. She was scheduled for a high profile speaking role at our convention and included in the VP selection process because of his admiration for her strong reform credentials. Last Sunday, Governor Palin and John McCain had a conversation over the phone. Governor Palin was at the Alaska State Fair, and John McCain was at his home at Phoenix. Previously, Rick Davis, John McCain's campaign manager, had also been in regular contact with the Governor as part of the on-going selection process. This past week, Governor Palin arrived with Kris Perry in Flagstaff, Arizona, on Wednesday evening. Upon arrival, Governor Palin and her longtime aide Kris Perry met with Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter of the McCain campaign at Mr Bob Delgado's home in Flagstaff. Mr Delgado is the CEO of the Hensley corporation, which is Mrs Cindy McCain's family business. On Thursday morning, Governor Palin and staff were joined by Mrs Cindy McCain and later joined by John McCain at the McCain family home in Sedona, Arizona. At approximately 11:00 am Thursday August 28, 2008, John McCain formally invited Governor Sarah Palin to join the Republican ticket as the vice presidential nominee on the deck of the McCain family home. Later that morning, John McCain departed for Phoenix and Governor Palin departed with staff to Flagstaff, Arizona. Governor Palin, Kris Perry, Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter proceeded to the Manchester Inn and Conference Center in Middleton, Ohio. While there, Governor Palin's children, who had been told they were going to Ohio to celebrate their parents' wedding anniversary, were told for the first time that their mother would be a nominee for Vice President of the United States of America. August 30, 2008 2:20 AM Search Go-click to start search Advertisement Marc Ambinder, an Atlantic associate editor, is blogging the 2008 presidential election from the roadshows. He might also write the occasional post about aviation, national security, and cognitive neuroscience. |
| www.politico.com/news/stories/0808/12987.html Sarah Palin Democrats are zeroing in on an ongoing probe into Palins role in the firing of the states public safety director, who had reportedly refused to sack Palins estranged former brother-in-law. John McCain's surprise vice presidential pick: Democratic opposition researchers. While the central line of attack looks to be her inexperience -- and, by extension, her running mate's age, there are other hits to come. Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, which he has continued to oppose. But most of all, Democrats are zeroing in on an ongoing probe into Palin's role in the firing of the state's public safety director, who had reportedly refused to sack Palin's estranged former brother-in-law. Audiotapes released last month reveal that aides to the 44-year-old governor pressured Safety Director Walter Monegan to dismiss Trooper Mike Wooten, after Wooten allegedly threatened Palin's father during a messy child custody fight with the governor's sister Molly. Monegan refused to do so and was fired on July 11 and replaced by an official who had previously been suspended for sexual harassment. Palin said Monegan was let go for failing to fill trooper vacancies and invited a close examination of her role in the matter. Alaska state legislature obliged, allocating $100,000 to investigate. But Troopergate II isn't the only issue Democrats are pushing. They are going straight after Palin's perceived strengths: ethics and good government. Frank Murkowski's state-owned jet and canceled Stevens' much-maligned "bridge to nowhere," was also a vocal critic of oil field services giant Veco, a major player in Alaska politics that's now accused of improper relationships with Stevens and Young. According to an Anchorage Daily News clip e-mailed to reporters, Palin accepted $5,000 in contributions from company executives and their wives during her failed 2002 lieutenant governor's bid -- which represented about 10 percent of her minuscule war chest that year. Obama masters his moment "Now we can talk about Ted Stevens and Don Young and Republican corruption every day," said a delighted Democratic strategist. they are having a meltdown," said Miller, who was planning to skip the GOP convention next week before Palin was announced. "They'd better do their opposition research as fast as they can, because they only have a couple of days to find something on her before she takes over that convention." Other nuggets Democrats hope reporters will mine over the next two months: -- Palin didn't back McCain in the primary. She stayed neutral in Alaska's January primary -- perhaps on account of McCain's opposition to drilling in ANWR. "A lot of us are sitting back and waiting to see if there will be new players in there," she said in 2007. "That's probably why that box that says none of the above' is so popular right now." Palin, who portrays herself as a fiscal conservative, racked up nearly $20 million in long-term debt as mayor of the tiny town of Wasilla -- that amounts to $3,000 per resident. She argues that the debt was needed to fund improvements. Palin has distanced herself from the state's two most popular politicians, but both appeared at Palin fundraisers during her 2006 gubernatorial bid. As governor, Palin vetoed wind power and clean coal projects, including a 50-megawatt wind farm on Fire Island and a clean coal facility in Healy that had been mired in a dispute between local and state governments. According to the Frontiersman newspaper, Wasilla's library director, Mary Ellen Emmons, said that Palin asked her outright if she "could live with censorship of library books." Palin later dismissed the conversation as a "rhetorical" exercise. I don't think this is going to be a winning propaganda theme for the Democrats. Plus Sarah has Executive experience which is exactly the Branch of government that she will be a part of. HispanicoAmericanoIndependento Party: Independent Reply #3 Date: Aug. Her very public divorce (her choice to make it public) with Jack Ryan (Illinois Senator) resulted in Obama winning that seat (after Ryan resigned). What is most interesting about today's criticism of Sarah Palin is that she (as the #2 of the Republican ticket) is being said to have a little less (but not substantially less) experience than the #1 of the Democratic ticket. She's only a brand new Governor who likes to abuse her power and has absolutely zero national or international experience. It'll be really fun to watch her debate Joe Biden on foreign policy. Not to mention of course that her addition to the ticket is a total insult to the intelligence of women everywhere. I wonder if John McCain wants to pay her less as VP than a male would recieve? According to the Frontiersman newspaper, Wasillas library director Mary Ellen Emmons said Palin asked her outright if she could live with censorship of library books. Palin later dismissed the conversation as a rhetorical exercise. For that matter, Ted Stevens and Don Young have probably received a very needed boost to their recently flailing reelection hopes. Palin is wildly popular in Alaska and will probably ensure at least record turnout for Republicans in the state who otherwise would probably not abandon Stevens and Young, but not show up to vote on election day. She is far and away a better political choice than Obama and/or Biden. There is plenty of information on Biden that shows he is not what Dems like to think he is; emerging information on Obama and his Chicago friends, Ayers, Wright, etc, shows what a Chicago hack he is, nothing out of the mold, really. The fact is, being a Senator means you spend 50% of your time campaigning, 25% with your family and another 25% showing up to vote the party line 90% of the time. t even read the laws they are voting on anymore as Michael Moore proved. Governor Palin leads a state that is equal to many countries in size and oil production. She governs a state that borders two foreign countries, Russia and Canada. So what experience does Obama, McCain or Biden really offer in regard to governing? Governor Palin has worked a real job, ran her own company, been a real mom, a real mayor and a real Governor. On the other hand, McCain does not know how to use a computer yet we are considering him for President? Obama has not run a budget for anything and worst of all he is a lawyer, what does he really know about leading? Biden is a 35 year veteran of the US Senate democratic party machinery and he represents no change. If you want change, Governor Palin sounds more like change then the rest of the fools on both tickets. All of these Senators have voted what they were told to vote on by their respective party over 90% of the time. Not one of those Senators has real leadership experience. In regards to scandal surround her firing someone for not firing her ex-brother in-law. Her brother-in-law was suspended as a State Trooper because he used his taser on Governor Palins nephew and is now in a custody battle with the sister. livelongandprosper Party: Conservative Reply #10 Date: Aug. The state trooper thing is no bigger than Clinton firing the White House travel staff. Who better to know what is good for Alaska and drilling than the Governor. She has taken on big oil and cancelled frivolous projects. Palin is more qualified to be president than Obama the community organizer! not God bless America, GD America, that's my mentor said Obama. I would rather be Governed by the first 2000 names in the telephone book. This will be shown with Palin on the side with her political history. jamielswa Wisdom does not come with age, but with understanding, judgement, and the ability to know fact from opinion. VP Mooseburger Beauty Queen Rightwing Christian Zealot strong arms home town librarian to censor books. Now for the international resume - her state borders two countries. Palin, who portrays herself as a fiscal conservative, racked up nearly $20 million in long-term debt as mayor of the tiny town of Wasilla that amounts to $3,000 per resident. She argues that the debt was needed to fund improvements. She has distanced herself from the states two most popular politicians, but both appeared at Pa... |
| blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/08/29/an-astonishingly-arrogant-v-p-selection.aspx The selection of Palin doesn't simply, as others have pointed out, undermine the notion that Obama is too inexperienced to be president; it gives Obama the chance to actually take the edge on national security while making John McCain's age a central issue of the campaign. Whatever the political calculations involved in picking a veep, the most important qualification for the vice presidency is the ability to assume the presidency in a crisis. Given that of the last 12 presidents, three have either died or resigned, this is hardly a hypothetical consideration--in fact, given that McCain is 72, it is a very real consideration. Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, and Gerald Ford all faced multiple foreign policy crises immediately upon assuming office, whether it was the onset of the Cold War, the North's invasion of South Korea, the Vietnam War, or the withering of dtente and the resulting increase in nuclear tension with the Soviet Union. The next president will have to finish the denuclearization of North Korea; organize a departure from Iraq that maintains some level of stability; establish, nurture, and make the most of a relationship with Pakistan's new leaders; and confront a revanchist Russia while preserving and enhancing its cooperation on nonproliferation and climate change--to say nothing of working with India, China, or our allies. Her tenure as a small-town mayor and Alaska governor has given her no foreign policy experience whatsoever. True, Obama has little foreign policy experience either, as McCain and others have pointed out again and again. But during his time in national office he has demonstrated a clear commitment to the most pressing issues in American foreign policy. Early in his tenure on the Foreign Relations Committee, Obama joined Richard Lugar's efforts to secure weapons of mass destruction in the former Soviet Union. Obama's first trip abroad as senator was to Russia and Ukraine to learn more about those efforts firsthand. In 2007, he cosponsored legislation with Senator Chuck Hagel calling for ratification of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and negotiation of a fissile material cut-off treaty. And he was the first major presidential candidate to embrace the steps laid out in 2007 by Sam Nunn, Bill Perry, George Shultz, and Henry Kissinger through which the United States would fight nuclear terrorism, reinvigorate the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, and ultimately eliminate nuclear weapons. Perhaps more important than the experience they embodied, these efforts demonstrate that Obama has a worldview. He has laid out that worldview in myriad speeches and articles, and he has surrounded himself with pragmatists who have a record of translating that understanding of America's role into concrete gains for our national security. By contrast, there is no indication that Palin has even shades of a foreign policy worldview; a Nexis search doesn't turn up a single article that she has written on international affairs. McCain undoubtedly thinks he has his national security bases covered; picking Palin shows that, unlike Obama, he doesn't need an eminence grise like Biden to add heft to his ticket. But surely McCain recognizes that Palin may have to fill his shoes someday. By choosing her anyway, he has demonstrated hubris well beyond anything Obama has displayed on his most arrogant day: a belief that he can master unforeseen circumstances, physical and otherwise, that are well beyond his control. This is insulting and dangerous and suggests that McCain may want to think twice before accusing Obama of putting his personal ambition ahead of the national interest. Michelle is right that the Obama-Biden team will have to be careful attacking Palin's frighteningly thin resume and tenuous grasp of foreign policy. But surely a campaign that has been charged with being too nave to manage rogue state dictators can have a bit of fun with the idea that a one-time Miss Congeniality could effectively face down Vladimir Putin, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, or Kim Jong Il. Surely, Obama's "eight is enough" quip ought to apply not only to President Bush's economic and foreign policy travesties, but to the elevation of mediocrity that has characterized his appointment of Michael Brown to FEMA and his nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court. And surely we can agree that if the McCain campaign was desperate to transparently court voters put off by Hillary Clinton's loss, there is no dearth of women with far greater intellectual, executive, and political abilities--abilities that would allow them to assume the presidency in a heartbeat. jacksondyer said: "An Astonishingly Arrogant VP Selection" Yea, and so was selecting Danforth Quayle (however you spell that potato head's name) yet Bush Sr. Still, some women will vote for her because it will advance their cause. dsmth said: It's as though McCain has conceded the race and is just making a maverick gesture to the fundamentalist base. Don't know whether this qualifies as going out with a bang or going out with a whimper. mcgumbleton said: This is an excellent post which in fact is a perfect frame for pointing out John McCain's recklessness. In his first executive decision John McCain made a reckless choice. brownjr_97 said: "By contrast, there is no indication that Palin has even shades of a foreign policy worldview; a Nexis search doesn't turn up a single article that she has written on international affairs." And of course one can only demonstrate a worldview by being published on international affairs? This demonstrates the sort of intellectual elitism that has downed Democrats in presidential elections. Kerry and Gore didn't get anywhere by being the smartest guy in the room and Clinton won with a downhome-folksy-ism not by touting his Rhodes Scholar credentials. Palin may or may not have the qualifications to be president in the case of the demise of John McCain, but the electorate will NOT hold it against her that she's not published. They will vote for or against her based on her ability to connect with them and convince them that she will manage crisis in a manner with which they can understand and respect. Very few people votes against a ticket because the VP is unqualified (among people who would have voted for it otherwise). The way that it could hurt is that it seriously undermines the McCain camp's constant refrain that Obama "isn't ready" to be President. Conservatives have been touting the fact that, well, she's got *executive* experience. But this rings hollow given that McCain has no executive experience either. It's pretty hard to come up with a metric whereby Palin and McCain are qualified but Obama is not. Crock1701 said: And Jackson, we can thank god that George HW Bush survived four years. Beyond being an arrogant political choice, it actually threatens the country. If someone were to assassinate the next President, I would feel much safer with Biden stepping in than a governor who wasn't even governor when this Presidential campaign began. Everyone should--that's not to say that they will--as themselves, 'If President John McCain falls off the podium on inauguration day, is Sarah Palin ready to assume the presidency?" But the fact that there is no more evidence as to her readiness for the CiC role than there is for thousands of other public officials and business executives is certainly of concern. And it is blindingly obvious that McCain himself gave ZERO consideration to his own mortality in making this pick. Has there ever been a more blatantly instrumental choice of running mate? lonestarpedro said: Quayle had way more foreign policy experience than Palin does. He was in Congress and the Senate for 12 years before he became VP. She's so much less qualified, in the context of 2008, for the White House. Doesn't the lack of some - any - a little bit at least - foreign policy experience for the VP candidate during a time like this essentially DISQUALIFY the ticket from consideration by serious and responsible voters? seanwright said: I was reading about her in National Journal. I don't think you have to go to elite schools and have advanced degrees to excell in poli... |