Zeev's Turnips Talk Politics (ZTTP)

[ieddyi]

Check out this video:

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=836304396&play=1

She's very bright and articulate- thus giving her a big edge over Biden

She's taken on the repuib establishment in Alaska

She's gonna be the star of this election cycle

Also:

Petard, 1 each. Hoist when ready
Posted by: McQ

How soon we forget. Bill Clinton a few nights ago:

He recalled that 16 years ago "Republicans said I was too young and too inexperienced to be commander in chief. Sound familiar? It didn't work in 1992 and it will not work in 2008."

Really? Well it doesn't mean that Democrats won't try:

Rep. Diana DeGette, today:

"The selection of Governor Palin is an insult to women. She has obviously been chosen to appeal to female voters, but she lacks both the experience and policy positions to serve as Vice-President of the United States."

"The announcement of Governor Palin's selection on John McCain's 72nd Birthday highlights the fact t hat the Vice-President must be qualified to step into the Presidency from Day One. Sarah Palin is a 2-year governor with zero foreign policy experience whose former position was mayor of a town of 9,000."

Rahm Emanuel:

"After trying to make experience the issue of this campaign, John McCain celebrated his 72nd birthday by appointing a former small town mayor and brand new Governor as his Vice Presidential nominee. Is this really who the Republican Party wants to be one heartbeat away from the Presidency? Given Sarah Palin's lack of experience on every front and on nearly every issue, this Vice Presidential pick doesn't show judgement: it shows political panic."

The Obama Campaign:

"Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency. Governor 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," said Bill Burton, Obama campaign spokesman.

So, which is it? Experience is important? Or it isn't important? Apparently the Democrats now think it is. If so, Gov. Palin has more experience at the bottom of the Republican ticket than Barack Obama has at the top of the Democrat ticket.

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QandO

Look at them, trying to put out the fire.
Posted by: Bryan Pick

It's hard not to notice the contrasts. Even before Obama picked Biden, Republicans were begging Obama to choose him. When Biden was selected, there were already several parallel narratives showing that he was, among other things, more exercised about a McCain candidacy than an Obama candidacy. And it was plain as day that his comparatively long experience in the Senate - extremely long, actually - would be unflattering beside Obama's. Biden has eight times as much experience as the man at the top of his ticket. Woof. And so Republicans simply derided the choice, chattered a bit about what it means about Obama - all conspicuously at odds with his carefully-built narrative - and moved on.

Then, on the day after Obama's self-consciously historic acceptance speech, John McCain announced that he had selected Sarah Palin to be his running mate.

Whoosh. The air went right out of the Democrats' lungs. When it started to come back, in little gasps, it was full of concern. They spent the rest of the day trying to wave their hands at what is readily apparent:

She's a woman. You know, on the ticket.
So? So? Women won't vote for her! Ignore all the women who are saying otherwise. Give them a little credit: they think like we do. This is just a crass attempt at playing identity politics.
Democrats wouldn't know anything about that, would they?

She's been a far more able agent of change in the last few years in Alaska than Obama has been from the United States Senate. It would be fair to say she's kicked some ass.
She's untested on the national level! Very little experience, you see.

She has more executive experience than the entire Democratic ticket combined. Which isn't that hard, admittedly...
But that's in Alaska!
Yes, Alaska, between Canada and Russia. Alaska, a third the size of the continental United States, lots of fossil fuels, tough guys on fishing boats. The state Obama's been spending money in, hoping for an upset. That Alaska.

You still don't understand. Somebody with that little experience, only a heartbeat away from the presidency?
Oh come on. (Hat tip to Xrlq:) "We can't have a woefully underqualified person one heartbeat away from the Presidency! We need a woefully underqualified person to be President right away!!"

Don't you see, she's more of the same from the Republicans!
You've been saying that repeatedly. But she sure tore into a lot of Republicans in her own state, and when they went down for corruption, the rank-and-file GOP sure were glad to have their maverick.
She's in cahoots with Big Oil!
You could have fooled them.

She's under investigation!
So she is. Just wait 'til you see the guy on the other side of that investigation. (Hat tip to commenter tom scott)

With her background and bearing, she combines the best of the South, the Mountain West and the Midwest. She'll secure the segments of the base that have been wary of McCain and still appeal to moderates in the crucial Rust Belt battleground. In a season in which conservatives have been openly talking about voting against Obama (and maybe not even doing that much) rather than for McCain, she's a breath of fresh air.

And this is an absolutely key point: when Biden was picked, millions of Democrats were either thinking or openly talking about who they would have rather had as the VP nominee. Today, you're seeing none of that from Republicans. With the kind of audacity McCain displayed, conservatives all over are applauding the fact that he neither went with the "safe picks" (like Pawlenty or Romney) nor gave away the farm with the Lieberman Option. She seems, in immediate retrospect, like an obvious choice, and that's reflecting very well on McCain himself. People on both sides of the partisan divide are seeing him in a new light: to opponents as perhaps more dangerous than they had expected, and to allies as a candidate to get energized about. He finally exists in the media independently of his opponent, which translates into initiative.

The McCain campaign just stole a lot of wind from Obama's sails, at a time when Obama's looking for a bump to crow about. Jon pointed out at The Next Right that the news cycle has been entirely captured by McCain-Palin. Purely anecdotally, I'm seeing a lot of increased interest in his campaign in itself, rather than only as it relates to Obama's, and yes, a lot of that is coming from women. This is a game-changer, and don't let anyone (never mind the transparently panicked Democrats) tell you otherwise.

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QandO

Flailing around
Posted by: McQ

Oliver Willis asks on Twitter:

"How many qualified and tested Republican women did McCain pass over for Sarah Palin? "

About as many as the Democrats passed over to pick Barack Obama, Oliver. Why?

That, btw, is the new line of attack by the Dems. Barbara Boxers says:

The Vice President is a heartbeat away from becoming President, so to choose someone with not one hour's worth of experience on national issues is a dangerous choice.

If John McCain thought that choosing Sarah Palin would attract Hillary Clinton voters, he is badly mistaken. The only similarity between her and Hillary Clinton is that they are both women. On the issues, they could not be further apart.

Senator McCain had so many other options if he wanted to put a women on his ticket, such as Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison or Senator Olympia Snowe - they would have been an appropriate choice compared to this dangerous choice. In addition, Sarah Palin is under investigation by the Alaska state legislature which makes this more incomprehensible.

Shucks Ms. Boxer, have Hutchinson or Snowe ever governed a state?

Yeah, I didn't think so.

And about the Hillary voters? Check this out.

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QandO

Funny stuff
Posted by: McQ

I mentioned how irony-impaired the Obama campaign seems to be earlier. Here's official proof:

"Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency. Governor 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," said Bill Burton, Obama campaign spokesman.

So if the Obama campaign chooses to show disrepect to Gov. Palin, is it fair to call Obama "the former state senator"?

And this caused me to chuckle:

Ms. Palin came as a surprise not only to many Republicans and journalists, but also to the Obama team. The campaign has been busily preparing TV commercials to run against Mitt Romney - with aides gleefully watching hours of footage of Romney-McCain exchanges from the primary - but far little opposition research had been prepared about the Alaska governor. And aides said no commercials were ready to be immediately released, which the McCain campaign did when Mr. Biden was chosen.

The takeoff of the Democratic campaign plane was delayed for about 30 minutes, so aides were busily trying to learn all they could about the Palin pick.

The secrecy surrounding the pick was pretty complete.

By the way, didn't Obama give a speech last night?

How can you tell the Dems are panicked? - Rahm Emanuel's statement tells it all:

"After trying to make experience the issue of this campaign, John McCain celebrated his 72nd birthday by appointing a former small town mayor and brand new Governor as his Vice Presidential nominee. Is this really who the Republican Party wants to be one heartbeat away from the Presidency? Given Sarah Palin's lack of experience on every front and on nearly every issue, this Vice Presidential pick doesn't show judgement: it shows political panic."

Speaking of judgement, Bryan mentioned in a comment earlier:

[A]nd the Democrats stuffed a young heartbeat directly between experience and the presidency.

Funny stuff.

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QandO

Palin: If she can stand the heat, she could be fun
Posted by: McQ

Let's see how this breaks out.

Foreign policy and national security are the forte of the executive. The Democrats have nominated a presidential candidate with no experience in either area. The Republicans have nominated a vice presidential candidate with no experience in either area.

Which makes more sense to you?

Under the topic of change, the Democrats nominate two US male Senators, one who is the consummate Washington insider and claim to be outsiders who are going to change Washington. The Republicans nominate a Senator with the reputation of a maverick and the Governor of Alaska with a similar rep who, btw, is female, to take on Washington.

Which sounds more like change to you?

On the subject of experience, the Democrats nominate a man who has been a community organizer, State Senator and, for 147 days, a US Senator to be President. The Republicans nominate as VP a woman who has run a town and run a state for a lot longer than Obama has been in the Senate.

In terms of "what have you done and what have you run" who has the edge?

If Palin can handle being thrust into the limelight as suddenly has she has, given her speech today, she is going to be fun and, I think, she could very well re-energize the right at a very critical time in the election cycle.

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