- ‹ previous
- 1980 of 2041
- next ›
McCain's Angle
McCAIN'S ANGLE....I should add, in case it wasn't clear from my previous posts, that I certainly understand the political calculation behind John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate. Their thinking is that she's a hard-right conservative who appeals to the base (David Brody was just on CNN telling us that Christian conservative leaders were high-fiving each other over the Palin pick), but not a famous hard-right conservative who's going to scare off independents. Soccer moms will like her. She's inexperienced, but no one can hold that against her this year — and anyway, her lack of a track record also means she doesn't bring a lot of baggage to the campaign. She's got great anti-corruption cred. She's young and vibrant and has an attractive family. Joe Biden will have a hard time going on the attack against a woman. She's unknown, but frankly, to most low-information voters (i.e., to most voters), all VP picks are unknown.
So sure, I get it. And who knows? Politically speaking, it could turn out to be an inspired choice. Frankly, I doubt it, and I suspect her weaknesses will become clearer as everyone gets over their initial shock and starts thinking this through a little harder. But you never know.
As for mooseburgers, I'll bet I'd like 'em too if I ever got a chance to try one. Anyone know where I can score one in Southern California?
Digg
Reddit
Twitter
Facebook
Buzz Up!
StumbleUpon
MySpace
LinkedIn
Delicious
Furl
Google
Yahoo
Kill a moose, field dress it, then take it to a butcher known for processing wild game. Have the appropriate cuts made into ground moose. Cook as you would a hamburger, being careful to achieve a temperature sufficient for killing any pathogens, bacteria or other hazardous contaminants. Serve on a kaiser roll with spicy something or other.
I've had moose pot roast. Was unimpressed. At least I was in Alaska at the time.
What is this crap about Biden not being able to take it to a woman? This particular woman has absolute-zero foreign policy experience, and next to no domestic policy experience. She runs the quasi fascist socialist republic they run up their in AK with their oil money? Are we that deeply unserious as a nation that Joe Biden bringing this up means he's beating up on a pretty lady?
Oh. Right.
She's got great anti-corruption cred.
I guess that's why she's under an ethics investigation launched by her own party. Also, that must be why Ted Stevens endorsed her. And why she refused to call for Stevens' resignation.
You must be kidding if you think no one can hold her inexperience against her this year. Obama is miles of ahead of her in experience both inside and outside of govt. He may be relatively inexperienced...compared to the usual suspects that run for president....but he still miles and miles and miles ahead of her. Shit...look what he has done the past 18 months alone.
Yeah, where does this anti-corruption cred come from? The fact that she popped out of nowhere to beat Murkowski when he was drowning in the Veco scandal? Just because she's less corrupt (and more right-wing-psycho) than Murkowski, doesn't mean she can claim anti-corruption cred.
I've had moose pot roast. Was unimpressed.
I imagine more pot might have made the moose taste better. It used to work for McDonalds' burgers, so it will work for anything.
Joe Biden will have a hard time going on the attack against a woman.
She's ultimately irrelevant. He'll just ignore her and attack McCain.
You know, maybe we Democrats should stop being surprised when the Republicans do things that make it clear that they actually want to win the election.
A mooseburger probably tastes a lot like a hamburger.
I don't know about the soccer-mom angle. I'm a raving lefty soccer mom myself, so it's hard for me to judge, but I don't know that suburban soccer moms/independents in general are going to vote for someone based on whether they'd like to have coffee with her.
Also, she's a creationist. So is Bush, as far as I can tell, and no one seems to care, but if you're getting nervous about all the high-tech jobs going overseas and how your kids will fare you might not be keen on someone who wants a crackpot "theory" taught alongside actual science.
Regarding being a governor of a small state, you do realize that the population of Delaware is only 200,000 more than the state of Alaska.
Over at the Corner, Jay Nordlinger is having a very hard time convincing himself that she is a good pick for the job. He has twelve numbered "pointlets" on her candidacy. By my count, ten are negative and two (the first and last) are positive. And those two (she is "charming, refreshing, and bright" and "she looks... vice-presidential") come under the category of damning with faint praise.
"This is a dangerous, dangerous world, and only the Republicans can keep you safe."
That's the entirely of the R message. How does Palin not undermine that completely?
Moose is too lean, too gammy and swampy tasting to make a good burger. At least out in MT you have to cook that hell out if to avoid the danger of Chronic wasting disease. Most "mooseburgers" are mixed with lots of beef fat to balance out the taste. There might be a political metaphor there somewhere.
Do's & Dont's:
DO: Be wary of the following meme, Joe Biden: "The bar is so low for this unknown Alaska Governor, that all she has to do is..."
DON'T: Be scared to hammer her.
DO: Point out that McCain's "experience" blather has been just that.
DON'T: Just point out her inexperience.
DO: Point out that - given how old he is having someone who recently wondered "just what it is the VP does all day" a heartbeat away from the Presidency is...curious.
DO: Turn the inevitable debate on drilling the ANWR into a "Future vs. Past" argument.
DON'T: Pretend you know the minds of Alaskans.
DO: Keep the investigation she's currently under in the news 24/7, and tie her to Ted Stevens whenever possible.
DO: Go to Wallyworld for a Marty Mooseburger. It's a quest for fun.
There probably is a little more to her than can be sumed up in a few pithy and snyde remarks.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarah_Palin
Hillary must be the one to do the smackdown on Palin. Then Biden can use the same arguments with relative immunity to charges of misogyny.
BobS: Biden's chief qualification for office has very little to do specifically with Delaware, he's the Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee and past Chair of the Judiciary Committee, both are essentially national positions.
And regarding inexperience, there is a world of difference between Obama's experience and that of being a Governor for 19 months of a state with essentially unlimited revenue to work with, and whose legislature meets for 90 days a year. And in addition, let's say McCain has a heart attack or something like that, could you honestly see Sarah Palin as President?
I love how in many of the news stories about her today, they talk about her compelling life story, and then about how she is a former State basketball star and Miss Congeniality in the Miss Alaska pageant. Are we being serious here? I mean, really, I feel like we've left the planet with some of the conversation on this pick.
I suspect the Obama campaign will be gracious and congratulatory toward Palin at first and then just ignore her.
What a travesty, though. Wow.
The Case for Sarah Palin and the End of the Imperial Presidency
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/8/29/143856/886?new=true
With the selection of Palin as VP, it seems to me that the Republicans are just giving away the cities, not just the big cities but cities. Alaska has a smaller total population than almost any metropolitan area (even Delaware has Wilmington and Philly close by). She has no grasp of problems facing urban, suburban and exurban citizens. That being said, Dems will have to be careful insofar as she will speak the language of the western states Dems have been making substantive inroads into. Get Brian Schweitzer to play things up against her.
*
My HTML and Wikipedia skills suck, so can anyone else check the Wikipedia edit history on Sarah Palin?
It seems unusually long and complimentary for such an unknown politician. At least when I read it this morning, before she was the official GOPVEEP pick.
I'd lay two to one someone in the McCain campaign cleaned it and added some stuffing in the last week.
Over at BBC news is a video of McCain and Mrs. Palin. The play button shows McCain trying sneak a peek as Palin speaks. THAT'S why he wanted a female running mate.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7588435.stm
McCain's age and physical health history put him, if not in God's Waiting Room, then just outside the door. With him, there is really a good reason to think that, if elected, he would pass away in office. That job ages people like nothing else we have seen short of disease. It would be prudent to take this into real consideration.
Putting a right-wing Xian whacko a heartbeat away from the presidency, who has no Foreign Policy chops at all, shows incredibly bad judgment. Putin and Al-queda would have her -- and us -- for breakfast.
Bottom line: Country first, my ass.
Sarah Palin is a bought-and-paid-for tool of the oil industry. Just like Dick Cheney. Just like George W. Bush. Just like John McCain.
She denies that the burning of fossil fuels even "contributes" to global warming. She disparages and discourages investment in clean renewable energy. She advocates drilling for more oil, both offshore and in ANWR.
Government of, by and for ExxonMobil is not the change we need. It's more of the same.
Kevin, this isn't just cynical or desperate or a gimmick as it's been characterized here and elsewhere -- it's actually IRRESPONSIBLE. McCain cares more about LOOKING like a maverick than actually being an effective leader.
I don't know about mooseburgers, but moose was the best steak I ever had, with an amazing arugula-like flavor profile.
"she looks... vice-presidential")
Everyone knows that historically, VPs have looked like beauty queens.
"This is a dangerous, dangerous world, and only the Republicans can keep you safe."
That's the entirely of the R message. How does Palin not undermine that completely?
Posted by: gussie on 08/29/08 at 2:27 PM
Maybe because she will show that she has bigger "balls" to protect the country than the One and Biden. lol
Oh, and those you thinking that Biden is going to wipe the floor with Palin in the VP debate, I say "Bring it on!!" Palin will expose Biden as the pompous blowhard we all know him to be who's been wrong on every major foreign policy issue for the last 30 years.
Boy did I have one helluva acid flashback today! I actually hallucinated that John McCain picked some chock from a small town in Alaska as his VP pick!
I know, I know, its obviously ridiculous but during the flashback it seemed so real!
LOL, Lindsay Graham just defended Palin's lack of experience in foreign affairs and not having met any leaders. He did it by saying Bush met Putin...and then kind of trailed off and said it doesn't matter if you have met leaders.
LOL. Actually its a good argument but I think Lindsay only realized half way through that he was about to diss his hero George Bush.
"She's inexperienced, but no one can hold that against her this year"
My brother's one reservation to voting for Obama was his inexperience. I can just about guarantee you that this pick will push him over to Obama. In Wisconsim.
Mooseburger - There's a drive-in burger place in Torrance called "Y-Not Burger" that has ostrich, and buffalo. I don't know for certain that they have moose, but there's a pretty good chance.
"Bottom line: In order for Palin's "inexperience" to come into play, McCain will have to die in office while Obama's "inexperience" would come into play on day one of his Presidency."
I'm NOT an actuarial; these are just some numbers pulled off the web, but...
1) The five year mortality of someone with only a type I (least bad) melanoma is about 10%. McCain has had multiple melanoma removed.
2) The annual mortaility rate for a healthy 72 year old male is about 3 to 4%. So over four years, you might expect a mortality rate of at least 10%.
3) Assuming some overlap between the two, a reasonable guess might be that there's a 15% chance McCain doesn't survive the four year term.
What is the angry white underemployed southern male base that blames all its problems on blacks and women going to think of the barrage of ads about how Palin got her POLICEMAN brother in law fired because of a divorce dispute with her sister? Talk about feminazis. The cognitive dissonance here blows the mind. I don't think being a cute soccer Mom is going to get her past that particular transgression with the base, if the ads are effectively done...
Slanted Tom @ 2:51pm -- I went back to look at her press conference to count how many times McCain was checking her out (looking at her backside, then nervously looking away.)
I lost count in less than 3 minutes.
One could argue he was looking at her speech on the lectern, but with McPhilanderer's record I seriously doubt that.
That 3AM call is Cindy?