Republican reactions to Palin

Saturday was the day that newspaper editorial boards across the country had a chance to make their first assessment of Republican Presidential nominee John McCain’s choice of vice presidential running mate, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin.

Besides being stunned at the announcement, many express serious concerns about her qualifications — and that includes many newspapers that are staunchly conservative. The two largest papers in Alaska, who know Palin that most of us (including John McCain, reportedly) the Anchorage Daily News and Fairbanks News-Miner, are in this group.

She has never publicly demonstrated the kind of interest, much less expertise, in federal issues and foreign affairs that should mark a candidate for the second-highest office in the land. Republicans rightfully have criticized the Democratic nominee, Sen. Barack Obama, for his lack of experience, but Palin is a neophyte in comparison; how will Republicans reconcile the criticism of Obama with the obligatory cheering for Palin?…Most people would acknowledge that, regardless of her charm and good intentions, Palin is not ready for the top job. McCain seems to have put his political interests ahead of the nation’s when he created the possibility that she might fill it. It’s clear that McCain picked Palin for reasons of image, not substance. – Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

And it’s stunning that someone with so little national and international experience might be heartbeat away from the presidency. – Anchorage Daily News

But of course, here in Oklahoma, we have a paper run by that other kind of conservative Republican: so hardcore partisan, they can’t tell reality from spin. And, most important, not the least bit interested in actual governance. So their editorial, while actually hedging their reaction a bit (you just know they had columns already written with full-throated praise for McCain for selecting Romney or Pawlenty), was just another opportunity to slam the Democrats with thoughtless abandon and childish wit — their specialty.

Surprise!
McCain throws a curve with Palin

THE wisdom of Sen. John McCain’s selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as running mate — dousing the afterglow of Democratic nominee Barack Obama’s blockbuster speech in Denver — certainly has short-term benefits. The long-term verdict is still out.

No question, the McCain campaign played a tactical ace in presenting Palin to America so soon after Democrats broke camp at their convention. As expected, Obama gave a great speech, but Palin’s debut quickly dominated news coverage.

Her resume is thin, just two years into her first term. But Obama is hardly the one to criticize someone else’s experience. Palin is the only member of either ticket to be in charge of actually running something.

Palin’s value is in potential ties to so many critical constituencies, starting with women. She signals McCain believes women of middle-class, bluecollar and suburban households, many of whom voted for Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primaries, might be attracted by someone so much like them.

Palin is the mother of five and started in politics at the local PTA. Her husband is a member of the steelworkers’ union. It’s easy to see Republicans sending the hockey mom anywhere hockey is played but especially Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, all key to the election.

The risk in Palin basically is one evening this fall, when she meets Sen. Joe Biden in the lone vice presidential debate. If Biden makes her look small, her value to McCain will be small as well.
With high risk comes high reward — clearly the calculus McCain used in choosing his running mate.

The claim that “Palin is the only member of either ticket to be in charge of actually running something[,]” is laughable, seeing as how Obama has organized a historic campaign and movement that toppled the Democratic Party’s presumed candidate, who was supported by almost all the Party operatives and apparatus. If that doesn’t show executive skill, I don’t know what does.

But I think we could learn a lot about the rabid Right’s thought process (if you want to call it that) by seeing the Oklahoman editorial board’s pre-written and now unpublishable sceeds about the McCain-Romney and McCain-Romney tickets and all the wonders they would do for America. Ah, what might have been…

[apparently the link to the editorial at NewsOk.com is not available as of this writing. I guess the webmaster has Saturday off -- although every other major daily paper in the nation seems to have managed to get their text online. ]

Who the heck is Sarah Palin? Updated

Update below.

Well just about the whole world started asking that question this morning (followed swiftly by “What the heck was he thinking???”). And, thanks to the netroots, we didn’t have long to wait for the answer.

As is often the case, Down With Tyranny! was on the ball with the nuts and bolts.

At least he’ll win Alaska (unless they give reindeer the vote).

Palin will be a more difficult target. It’s funny that for all McCain’s carping about Obama’s supposed lack of experience, Palin really has none whatsoever. I mean, talk about a “readiness gap!” Of course, she had more judgment than McCain himself– having praised Obama’s energy plan. (She has now tried to scrub her praise for Obama’s energy plan from her website, very 1984 creepy.) CNBC, which had been all gung ho on Willard was in shock. “This is utter madness, absolutely insane,” said political analyst Greg Valliere, who then ran down McCain’s age and all of his health problems. “This woman makes Dan Quayle look reasonable.” When asked about Valliere’s assessment, John Harwood responded, “[it's] basically a nightmare scenario for the Republican ticket.” On the other hand, this will sure up McCain’s recent slide in Alaska.

Palin, proud daughter of Alaska’s pork machine:

Although the McCain campaign is busily re-writing history to make Palin sound like she opposed the corrupt earmarks that have landed Ted Stevens and Don Young in hot water– particularly their “Bridge to Nowhere” that McCain is always railing against– Palin was always a big supporter of the Bridges to Nowhere and all the criminal pork Young and Stevens were bringing back to Alaska. In 2006, when she was trying to make the leap from runner up in the Miss Alaska beauty pageant and mayor of Wasilla (population 8,471) to gubernatorial contender, she was asked how she felt about the Bridges to Nowhere. According to the October 5th, 2006 Anchorage Daily News she replied. “I do support the infrastructure projects that are on tap here in the state of Alaska that our congressional delegations worked hard for.” In fact, she then started complaining that the federal money for the two horrible projects weren’t coming in fast enough!

In fact, Palin has always been a pork-crazed maniac, the kind of straw man McCain loves to bash on the stump. This year Alaska received nearly $100 million more In pork than any other state ($379,669,715). According to the Senate Lobbying Disclosure Database, Palin employs the lobbying firm Wexler & Walker Public Policy Associates to seek earmarks for the state of Alaska. You think the vetters missed that when they were looking into her past? If so they also missed this: According to that same Senate Lobbying Disclosure Database, Palin paid the lobbying firm of Hoffman Silver Gilman & Blasco to lobby on behalf of the City of Wasilla while she was mayor and according to Citizens Against Government Waste, in 2000 the City of Wasilla received a $1 million transportation earmark for the Wasilla Intermodal Facility for bus and bus related facilities while Wasilla’s Life Quest Community Mental Health Center gobbled up a $500,000 earmark, same amount as the town’s emergency shelter, although less than the $600,000 earmark for the Wasilla city bus facility. Meanwhile Wasilla received a $1 million earmark for the Wasilla Regional Dispatch Center, a $1.5 million earmark for water and sewer improvements, and a $2.6 million transportation earmark for an alternative route project. And back then only 5,000 people lived there. Now that’s pork. So, as inexperienced as she is about everything else, she sure knows how to rook the federal government out of boucoup taxpayer dollars. I wonder if McCain will still be screamin’ and hollerin’ about earmarks and Bridges to Nowhere now that she’s on his ticket.

Update: An Alaskan blogger provides quit the primer on Sarah Palin’s political “experience” as a “reformer.”

Wasilla has a population of about 5500 people, and 1979 occupied housing units.  This is where your potential Vice President was two short years ago.  Can you imagine her negotiating a nuclear non-proliferation treaty?  Discussing foreign policy?  Understanding non-Alaskan issues?  Frankly, I don’t even know if she’s ever been out of the country.  She may ‘get’ Alaska, but there are only a half a million people here.  Don’t get me wrong….I love Alaska with all my heart.  I’m just saying.

This blogger also a provides a digest version of “Troopergate,” the pending ethics investigation of Sarah Palin for abuse of office.

So, if McCain had made his selection six months ago, the squeaky-clean governor meme would have made a little more sense.  But, Sarah Palin is currently under an ethics investigation by the Alaska state legislature.  The details of this investigation read like a trashy novel, and I suspect that the players will soon have newfound celebrity on the national stage.  I’ll try to explain for all you non-Alaskans who suddenly have good reason to want to know more about Sarah Palin.

The American Promise

Barack Obama’s acceptance speech, “America’s Promise,” given on the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

Full text follows.

So much for “country first”

With his frivolous and pandering choice of Sarah Palin for his VP, John McCain’s supposed love of country can be seriously challenged — and should be.

Jim Inhofe eats crow for McCain

Our own ultra-conservative stalwart is one of the few GOP members in high office willing to show their face at RNC, though doing so means swallowing his pride .

Sen. Jim Inhofe says he has made peace with John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, whom Inhofe has sparred with in the past over global warming and other issues.

Inhofe, R-Okla., once predicted that McCain could not win the GOP nomination, reasoning that his background on some issues would not sit well with activist conservatives.

And here’s a fine example of delusional thinking:

“And later on, I ran into John in the cloak room and he said: ‘Look, Jimmy, we’ve had our differences of opinion…but I’m going to be president and you’re going to be chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee and we’re going to need each other.”

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Dream on, you old fogies!

Tammy Duckworth speaks for veterans

Tammy Duckworth’s speech to the DNC was awesome. I so wish every American could hear her indictment of the Bush Admin. on what “supporting the troops” really means. As a disabled vet, her voice is so powerful and authentic. I’m against war and the mission of the military (solving conflict with violence) on principle, but our treatment of veterans is unforgivable; if we send our young people out to fight, the least we can do is take care of them when they return, as we promise them to get them to go in the first place.

And now, John McCain wants to ration care. Under his plan, the VA will serve combat injuries, but everyone else gets an insurance card. Barack Obama and the Democrats have a different idea. Barack Obama will live up to their tradition of honor and sacrifice. Barack Obama will use war not as a first choice, but a last resort. Barack Obama understands that for a commander-in-chief to support the military, he needs more than a
“Mission Accomplished” banner, more than wearing a borrowed flight suit, and
definitely more than four more years of the same failed foreign policy. President Obama will restore the might of the military, invest in our troops and only send our sons and daughters to war if they have a clearly defined mission and the tools they need to succeed.

And now, John McCain wants to ration care. Under his plan, the VA will serve combat injuries, but everyone else gets an insurance card. Barack Obama and the Democrats have a different idea. Barack Obama will live up to their tradition of honor and sacrifice. Barack Obama will use war not as a first choice, but a last resort. Barack Obama understands that for a commander-in-chief to support the military, he needs more than a
“Mission Accomplished” banner, more than wearing a borrowed flight suit, and
definitely more than four more years of the same failed foreign policy. President Obama will restore the might of the military, invest in our troops and only send our sons and daughters to war if they have a clearly defined mission and the tools they need to succeed.

Transcript here.

Oklahoma Vets call Inhofe out on not supporting the troops

This is running on TV in Oklahoma, has been for about a month. I’m not sure of how heavy the rotation is, since I watch mostly just C-Span, MSNBC and Bravo for specific programs. But I see it frequently when I do watch. The production values are not the best, but the content is great because it’s simple and plain, and the speakers are unpolished. But Andrew Rice is rapidly gaining on Jim Inhofe, and I’m thinking this ad is playing a role.

You can help keep the ad running (and maybe produce some more like it) at Progressive Kick.

T. Boone Pickens flees from Q&A at Dem. Conv. about his “energy plan”

Plutonium Page has posted to Daily Kos a diary which helps to expose some important background information about T. Boone Pickens and his “plan” that supposedly will liberate us from foreign oil.

T. Boone Pickens’ Fancy Sales Pitch

Devilstower and I just went to a talk here at the DNC featuring T. Boone Pickens. Everyone was under the impression that the event would involve an actual discussion (as in, a Q & A session, like nearly all of the other Big Tent special topic sessions). We had a really energetic live blog thread going, where all of you were submitting questions.

Sorry, guys. Apparently, the whole thing was just a sales pitch. T. Boone hightailed it out of there before anyone could even raise their hand.

I’ll post some excerpts below, but really, go to the original, where you can also read the comments, which are just as illuminating.

Maybe he was afraid we’d ask questions like:

In 2004, you helped pay for the Swift Boat ads, along with fellow billionaire Harold Simmons, who’s funding the Ayres attack ads this cycle. If you’re willing to tolerate, and even encourage, that level of dishonesty in political discourse, why should we trust you on any subject?

(From Devilstower)

I wanted to ask him:

Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma is well known for saying that global warming is the “greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people,” and is one of the most outspoken climate change science deniers around, as well as being joined at the hip with the oil companies.

In your presentation today, you specifically said that you “believe global warming is real”.

However, you have heavily funded James Inhofe’s campaign. How do you reconcile your support for Inhofe with your promotion of renewable energy programs?

From an energy expert acquaintance via email:

Can you please explain why people should take your plan seriously when, for example, you do not include any energy efficiency measures within it?

For a real and honest debate on the topic of energy policy, see the liveblogging thread.

On which Devilstower summed up the Pickens Plan with this update:

Update [2008-8-27 15:7:47 by Devilstower]: And T. Boone heads for the door without taking a single question. Which makes the whole presentation worth about as much as day old spit.

Progressives to the rescue

How come we always have to clean up the messes conservatives leave behind?

Now I know what everyone’s raving about

This should have been the keynote speech.