Reaction to Palin
One thing that the announcement of Sarah Palin as McCain’s running mate didn’t lack was overall chatter about the selection - from all sides.
The Obama campaign initially came out with a harsh jab at McCain’s decision that focused on Palin’s extreme lack of experience and the old “heartbeat away” line.
Bill Burton said the following immediately after the pick was made.
“Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency. Gov. Palin shares John McCain’s commitment to overturning Roe v. Wade, the agenda of Big Oil and continuing George Bush’s failed economic policies — that’s not the change we need, it’s just more of the same.”
This small statement condenses what the Obama team will be going after on Palin and McCain’s judgment. They have the ammo to rebut the claim that she’s a “maverick” like McCain. Her limited governmental record will be touted as dangerous to be the country’s number two leader. And the overriding mission in all of this is to tag McCain as old and exercising that poor judgment in selecting such an inexperienced politician to be a “heartbeat away” from the presidency.
In what is probably a wise move, Obama himself actually scolded Burton for this blistering official statement and expressed disappointment in the “hair-trigger” response from his own staff.
“I think that, uh, you know, campaigns start getting these, uh, hair triggers and, uh, the statement that Joe and I put out reflects our sentiments,” he said, according to the pool report, apparently criticizing his staff for going overboard, as he did occasionally in the primary.
He was referring to a more gracious statement of congratulations he issued later with Biden, which he then reiterated.
“I haven’t met her before. She seems like a compelling person … with a terrific personal story. “I’m sure that she will help make the case for Republicans, unfortunately the case is more of the same, and so ultimately John McCain is at the top of the ticket.”
This is nothing more than a calculated move to splash cold water on the McCain campaign’s plans to play up Burton’s initial response while continuing the image of Obama as a post-partisan nice guy who acts as if he merely disagrees with the Republicans - he doesn’t hate them. Some points, some points…
PB talked to McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds this afternoon about the Palin selection, and he wasn’t about to cut Obama any slack.
Bounds gave the standard defense of Palin and said that she did have experience (”city council…head of an oil and gas company”) that made her able to lead and be a strong VP. Bounds indicated that Palin possesses the “right kind of experience” that made her McCain’s perfect running mate.
Bounds also ripped into Obama. He noted that Palin’s limited experience is still above and beyond Obama’s terms in the Illinois and U.S. Senate: “She (Palin) has run something more than her mouth” - an obvious reference to Obama’s rhetorical, er, skills. And Bounds said the McCain campaign thinks it “audacious” for their Obama counterparts to criticize Palin on her record.
As for how voters will receive the new running mate, Bounds thinks that, with her strong background and grounded lifestyle, “Americans will come to respect her.”
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Wow - this is such a blatant insult to women that only someone from McCain’s generation (or a misogynist) could think of this as an equal replacement for an intelligent running mate.
Not only does is Palin just another BIG OIL crony in a party plagued by such accusations, but she hasn’t even displayed the same level of intellectualism or drive that we expect from men. She’s not pushed herself to achieve so that she could go to the best schools. She could have at least earned the grades to go to a Harvard, Yale, or Columbia even if she declined later on.
And her exposure to the world is limited to a town of 9,000 people, and a state with one of the lowest population levels in the country?!? If this were a male candidate would he stand a chance of becoming President? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!! And Huckabee’s loss during this Presidential season helped prove that.
Worse yet, apparently, her supporters expect that Biden will have a difficult time debating her because he may be overly forceful with her. LOL!!! There’s a very realistic chance that she may become President and she will have to deal with world leaders who will most certainly treat her roughly. If she wants to play the weakling woman then she has NO PLACE in politics and certainly no PLACE IN WORLD politics.
What a pathetic choice!!!
Her only real drive has been to have 5 kids and to tell other people what they can and cannot do with their bodies even though this is a democracy.
Welcome to the Republican version of the Nazi Female leader Gertrud Scholtz-Klink. Another ‘cute’ woman who happened to be a good speaker and the epitome of backwards thinking for both women and democracy.
“As for how voters will receive the new running mate, Bounds thinks that, with her strong background and grounded lifestyle, “Americans will come to respect her.”
Please…
The only ones impressed are the Press. A group that continues to trumpet this woman as if she’s the 2nd coming of Christ.
Oh…wait that’s right most of the television commentators focusing on this woman ad nauseum are in that top 5% of income earners that would be affected by having to pay the same percentage in taxes that the 95% below them do.
No conflict of interest there
JUST SAY NOBAMA !!!
Oh stop whining Democrats … for the past year, you’ve been trying every trick in the book to shove an inexperienced, empty suit, Barack Hussein Obama, down the throats of Americans. Sure, maybe you sweetened the bad taste by adding pretty speeches, big swooning crowds, and fireworks … but, you still tried to shove him down our throats, at every opportunity. Democrats, it was a lot easier to highjack the primary election than it’s going to be with the general election. Looks like America is going to elect McCain/Palin for President and V.P.. And, that means: No Wright, no Farrakahn, no Ayers, no Rezko, no mean Michelle, and, NOBAMA !!!