Palin

mpbrockman · Post by **mpbrockman** » August 29th, 2008, 4:34 pm

Yikes. Think of the energy the McCain campaign is going to have to spend justifying this choice to all the voters whose reaction was "Uh, who?!".

I suspect Biden is licking his chops at the prospect of a veep debate.

No, that was a not a MILF joke.

Seriously, there's got to be some substance to this woman. I don't think he would have picked her solely because she's a woman, young, and a relative unknown they can tout as an "outsider"... would he?

Obama and McCain are tied in a lot of polls right now. Why is McCain throwing what looks like a Hail Mary?

Hmmm... I will look into the Mirror of Galadriel.

arthursimone · Post by **arthursimone** » August 29th, 2008, 4:47 pm

Palin unseated the incumbent GOP governor and beat a former Dem governor in 2006, which was not a kind year to be a Republican. She's got to have some degree of political acumen.

She can also rally the conservative base, which is something mccain hasn't been able to do yet. red meat.

And, as much as Biden will destroy her in the debate, let us not forget that the winner of debates does not necessarily win the popular/media narrative. If he were to be too aggressive, you could very well see the sympathy factor kick in. It often does.

arthursimone · Post by **arthursimone** » August 29th, 2008, 4:51 pm

oh yeah, what do you call Palin supporters?

Palin-drones

mpbrockman · Post by **mpbrockman** » August 29th, 2008, 5:03 pm

Galadriel's Mirror showed me Dan Quayle in drag on the shores of Himling. What could this mean?!

More research to be done.

Miggy · Post by **Miggy** » August 29th, 2008, 5:19 pm

arthursimone wrote:And, as much as Biden will destroy her in the debate, let us not forget that the winner of debates does not necessarily win the popular/media narrative. If he were to be too aggressive, you could very well see the sympathy factor kick in. It often does.

Not so sure. On substance - sure, for the right audience. On Foreign Policy - definitely. On swing voters - debatable. Remember how hyped up the Kerry/Bush debates were? A man who's practically defined by his malapropisms facing off against the captain of the Yale debate society or whatever. It was considered a slam dunk and expectantions were lowered so far that if Bush just managed to not completely bomb, his supporters claimed victory. And while they found it a convenient jab at Obama for the last few months, foreign policy experience isn't really something that rallies the Republican base so don't expect points won there to outweigh other issues.

I should also throw the 'ol double standard out there. Lose to a girl and you lose. Beat a girl and you still lose. While significant attention was paid to this issue during the primaries, I think Obama managed this extremely well. Biden's style is not as disciplined or even-tempered as Obama's to say the least. It may come off badly.

In general - I need to read up on her more and see her in action at the same time that I'm already tired of the gimmicks and the pettiness and focus on non-issues when we have such huge ones that we face as a country. I'm completely worn out on politics - local and national - but seem hard-wired to care anyway.

As a last note: I, for one, would be really interested to hear what the fine women of the AIC have to say about this topic. So far it's only been men who have commented on this thread.

Brian Boyko · Post by **Brian Boyko** » August 29th, 2008, 5:19 pm

Now, I'm not going to say much.

But you all know me, who I am, and what I've done in my spare time.

I never thought I'd ever say this.

But even I have more foreign policy experience than the Republican nominee for Vice President.

Just wrap your head around that for a moment.

Boyko is more qualified to be the Vice President than the Republican nominee.

Mr. Asleep On The Couch At Parties is more qualified to be the Vice President than the Republican Nomine.

Mr. Hit On Every Gal In Improv And Some Of The Guys is more qualified to be Vice President than the Republican Nominee.

I don't know about you, but that has me very, very frightened.

mpbrockman · Post by **mpbrockman** » August 29th, 2008, 5:36 pm

Miggy wrote:As a last note: I, for one, would be really interested to hear what the fine women of the AIC have to say about this topic.

Make that two. Especially if you were a Hilary supporter now on the fence (do we have any of those?). Palin - helping or hurting?

kbadr · Post by **kbadr** » August 29th, 2008, 5:47 pm

My immediate reaction, and this is probably an indication of politics today or my view of politics today, when I heard he chose a woman I'd never heard of before as a running-mate was that he's just playing her gender to get the disgruntled Hillary supporters. Whether it's true or not, it's sad that it's not completely out of the realm of possibility that he'd play the gender card.

Jules · Post by **Jules** » August 29th, 2008, 6:16 pm

vine311 wrote:
bilbo wrote:damn, have you seen her? milf city.
Word

Huh. Is she supposed to appeal to the milfs or the menz? I'd not vote for her.

I think they chose her part because she has had 5 kids one of whom has Downs (but was not aborted - big old anti choice business going on there) and she is "young" so there's that, and yeah she's good looking especially in comparison to him. And she's got a "servant's heart" which is code for will be a good girl.

I wish Michelle Obama could be VP. Heh.

Marc Majcher · Post by **Marc Majcher** » August 29th, 2008, 6:22 pm

Tigh/Roslin 2008!

Wesley · Post by **Wesley** » August 29th, 2008, 6:23 pm

There's no probably about it. That's EXACTLY what he did. No deep conspiracy there. And Obama chose Biden for his New England popularity and insider experience. They always aim to balance the ticket somehow (geography, demographic, experience, etc). This time, they added the extra filter of wanting an anti-McCain who was also a woman so as to steal more than the 11% of Hillary voters who claim they're already voting R this Nov.

The odd thing is rather that he chose her over the more recognizable Kay Bailey or Condi Rice. She completely negates his ability to also play the "lack of experience" card. But I also think her unknownness plays in his favor and further defines him to swing voters as a maverick who doesn't toe the party line while simultaneously winning over the party by picking someone who does.

And I don't think Biden is chomping at the bit for a debate. As Arthur said, she beat out two compotent opponents and an incumbent, to boot, to win the governorship. She's pretty popular (approval rating in the state above 90% by one poll), has made some crucial statements and decisions in two short years, and is already totally electrifying the Republican base in just a few hours that McCain's had trouble reaching for months. She brings EXACTLY what Republicans wanted and she's apparently pretty good in defending the positions. And we've already seen that being perceived to be "attacking" a woman in debates doesn't play well in the public mind. Biden will have to attack carefully and that weakens why he was picked, which was partially to be the attack dog so Obama could claim the relative high road.

Here's the truth of it...this election is a sham. It's demographic voting.
Screw policies, screw capabilities, screw the ACTUAL affect these people will have on your lives for years and decades to come. It makes people "feel good" to vote black or vote woman or vote whatever. This election WILL be decided by people who voted based on the fact they'd always wanted to see "an x person" in the White House. That's all there is to it.

NoahV · Post by **NoahV** » August 29th, 2008, 6:53 pm

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/ ... 942/578766

"She Just Is Not Ready to Be Commander-in-Chief" [said] Pat Buchanan on MSNBC just now, about Sarah Palin. I'm liable to agree.

News is firming up now that McCain basically never met with Palin. They spent a few minutes together in March and then he never continued the vetting process until McCain called her again four days ago when they spoke for five minutes.

Four days ago - so basically this was 100% a reactionary pick to Obama taking Biden instead of Clinton.

Frank · Post by **Frank** » August 29th, 2008, 7:46 pm

More people live in Austin than Alaska. It's a little like picking Will Wynn as a running mate. Giuliani? Sure, why not. But queen of Alaska?

That said, I can see it as a good strategic move, a long shot in what appears to be a campaign without an otherwise strong chance of succeeding.

Didn't the VP spot used to go to the runner-up in the presidential contest? I could see an Obama-McCain team working out pretty well, not because they agree so much, but because it would mean some serious cooperation and opportunities to take care of real business.

KathyRose · Post by **KathyRose** » August 30th, 2008, 2:35 am

Palin's selection = a disgustingly cheap trick.
(Interpret that phrase however you wish.)

acrouch · Post by **acrouch** » August 30th, 2008, 5:35 am

Frank wrote:Didn't the VP spot used to go to the runner-up in the presidential contest?

Not since like 1820 or somewhere thereabouts.