I, like Dr. Taylor, have avoided commenting on the Palin/Turkey slaughtering video…largely because I’d rather ignore Palin entirely, but I agree with his assessment 100%: PoliBlog (TM): A Rough Draft of my Thoughts » Look, it’s Just Plain Weird.
The Hill’s Blog Briefing Room » Stevens: I Remain a Candidate for the U.S. Senate
Thank goodness we aren’t judging our candidates on who they associate with, Stevens being a convicted felon and all.
And the report finally drops…at almost 9pm EST on a Friday night…
From the AP:
Sarah Palin unlawfully abused her power as governor by trying to have her former brother-in-law fired as a state trooper, the chief investigator of an Alaska legislative panel concluded Friday. The politically charged inquiry imperiled her reputation as a reformer on John McCain’s Republican ticket.
Investigator Stephen Branchflower, in a report by a bipartisan panel that investigated the matter, found Palin in violation of a state ethics law that prohibits public officials from using their office for personal gain.
Where does McCain go from here? The reformer, the maverick, apparently abused her power…
…and that somehow means he’s “palling around with terrorists”.
The McCain-Palin campaign just went off the reservation. William Ayers may have participated in illegal activities in the ’60’s, but so may a lot of McCain’s supporters. Oh wait, MCCAIN participated in illegal activities (Keating Five anyone?).
The fact that they have now brought this underground bogus accusation out into the light of day is despicable. It’s despicable and as CNN Fact Check, says outright FALSE.
Fact Check: Is Obama “palling around with terrorists”?
Verdict: False. There is no indication that Ayers and Obama are now “palling around,” or that they have had an ongoing relationship in the past three years. Also, there is nothing to suggest that Ayers is now involved in terrorist activity or that other Obama associates are.
Watching NBC…
**Brian Williams calls it “easily, the most anticipated” vice presidential debate
**Chuck Todd says “neither one lived up to their negative stereotypes”, “she was a better surrogate for her top of the ticket than his”.
**Biden and Palin are having a nice chat post-debate…
**Tom Brokaw says “coldest state, hottest governor”…hilarious…
**Brian Williams interviews Geraldine Ferraro…she says she “did a good job”, and thought Joe Biden effectively communicated Democratic policies
**Peggy Noonan says Palin “killed”…Biden and Ifill “weren’t even there” to Palin
My reaction…Palin came in with an agenda and stuck to it. A friend of mine sent a message that said, “I feel like I’m watching Palin play debate bingo…ooo, ooo, I get to use that one…check!”. And that is what it felt like…but she played it well. I don’t think most McCain supporters will care that she didn’t answer the questions. We will see the pendulum of polling swing a little back to McCain as his support balloons again.
The next presidential debate is next week. The town hall will be interesting…we keep marching toward election day.
7:30pm CST - 30 minutes to showtime…
8:02pm CST - The bailout bill…Biden gives a sound, intelligent answer. And Sarah gives us a similar answer…trying to run away from the Bush record so fast…and gets in a jab at Biden (”his colleagues didn’t listen”).
8:05pm CST - Palin is hitting her points…and Gwen points out that neither candidate answered the question.
8:07pm CST - Palin, “The American people need to band together.” “We need to not live outside our means…personal responsibility.”
8:09pm CST - Palin, “The government is going to have to learn to live with less…if that’s what it takes.” Biden tries to respond to the charges of Obama raising taxes…not sure it was effective.
8:12pm CST - She hasn’t created the moment yet…but this Phil Singer comment seems pretty prescient on her goal coming into tonight.
8:11pm CST - Palin acknowledges she’s not going to answer the moderator’s questions…probably a good move.
8:14pm CST - Sarah is definitely on the attack and Joe is struggling to respond.
8:15pm CST - “The Feds”? Does she realize she wants to be the Vice President of “the feds”?
8:17pm CST - Joe seems to be struggling more than Sarah, and is very much on the defensive.
8:18pm CST - Joe gets in his laugh line…”the ultimate bridge to nowhere”…and he had specifics on what they wouldn’t be able to do because of the economic crisis, but offered little.
8:21pm CST - Gwen confirms that Sarah didn’t offer anything they would have to do differently because of the economic crisis…does that sound a lot like Bush/Cheney to anyone else?
8:23pm CST - A third of the way in and it’s clear that Sarah Palin came in with an agenda that had nothing to do with the questions she was going to be asked and she’s just marching through it.
8:25pm CST - And the ultimate pivot…back to energy…when the question and the discussion between Gwen and Joe had nothing to do with energy! I can see the SNL skit now…Tina Fey saying over and over again, “but let’s talk about energy”.
8:27pm CST - And now Gwen is going to hand her energy questions when that’s all she’s talked about all night? Give me a break…
8:32pm CST - Odd pivot on the moderator’s part from energy to same-sex marriage…being “straight-up”…
8:36pm CST - Now to the Iraq War…Joe seems to be much more in his comfort zone…John McCain has “been dead wrong” and Barack Obama “has been right, those are the facts”
8:43pm CST - Palin was able to say the name of the president of Iran…unlike McCain…let’s tweak the SNL skit to include that…
8:54pm CST - Both candidates got in their strongest hits…Palin says “there have been huge blunders”…Biden says “I haven’t heard how John McCain’s policy is different from George Bush’s.”
8:57pm CST - Palin sticks with her point that the counter-insurgency strategy can work in Afghanistan…Biden lets it go.
8:59pm CST - Biden makes a strong case on Darfur.
9:01pm CST - “The capacity to do anything about it?”…not sure Joe can let that stand without further explanation.
9:03pm CST - 30 minutes to go and Palin seems like she’s running out of gas, while Biden gets more comfortable.
9:05pm CST - Best question so far from Gwen Ifil…not sure Palin will have an answer…You’re a heartbeat away, how would your administration be different from the candidate you are running with?
9:08pm CST - “There you go Joe”…been saving that one…if there’s still a third grader watching this debate, I say god bless that child…”more attention” on education, but no more money
9:13pm CST - Supporting Cheney’s position on the vice presidency not being part of the executive branch?
9:15pm CST - What’s your deficit? And Palin talks about her strengths…theme of the night, she didn’t answer the questions, will it matter?
9:19pm CST - YES! Finally something we can all agree on Sarah…”He is the man who needs to leave“…yes he is.
9:25pm CST - Apparently Sarah’s going to be making appointments as Vice President…
9:28pm CST - “I really enjoying answering the tough questions”…THERE’S the kicker…she spends the whole debate not answering a signle question and then states that she enjoys answering questions.
9:30pm CST - Good closing Joe…not sure what else there is to say.
Wow…she’s like the worst of Reagan and the worst of Bush…in a skirt. Her ignorance is DANGEROUS…and it seems like America is recognizing that.
Marc Ambinder (October 01, 2008) - Palin And The Right To Privacy.
Anyone who believes Brett Blackledge was some kind of right wing partisan when he was giving Alabamians the real story on two-year colleges and the corruption of state Democrats should check out his piece from yesterday for the AP about Sarah “the Lipsticked Robot” Palin.
That year, records show, she tried to help a neighbor and political contributor fighting City Hall over his small lakeside development. Palin wanted the city to refund some of the man’s fees, but the city attorney told the mayor she didn’t have the authority.
Palin claims she has more executive experience than her opponent and the two presidential candidates, but most of those years were spent running a city with a population of less than 7,000.
Some of her first actions after being elected mayor in 1996 raised possible ethical red flags: She cast the tie-breaking vote to propose a tax exemption on aircraft when her father-in-law owned one, and backed the city’s repeal of all taxes a year later on planes, snow machines and other personal property. She also asked the council to consider looser rules for snow machine races. Palin and her husband, Todd, a champion racer, co-owned a snow machine store at the time.
Palin often told the City Council of her personal involvement in such issues, but that didn’t stop her from pressing them, according to minutes of council meetings.
She sometimes followed a cautious path in the face of real or potential conflicts - for example, stepping away from the table in 1997 when the council considered a grant for the Iron Dog snow machine race in which her husband competes.
But mostly, like other Wasilla elected officials at the time, she took an active role on issues that directly affected and sometimes benefited her. Her efforts to clear the way for the $327,000 sale of the Palin family home on Lake Wasilla is an example.
Good stuff, Brett.
AP News | The Union.com - California-Nevada County-Grass Valley | News | The Union.com.
h/t: Del at Birmingham Blues
This theory is looking more and more plausible by the minute,
They taped the CBS interview [between Couric and Palin] in the morning. They got the readout from the staffer about how terrible it was (that poor, poor person). They had the poll numbers and the Rick Davis story: *Bingo*, let’s postpone the Friday debate and do it the day of the VP debate. And let’s have the VP debate… the day after never?
As a special bonus, he mucked up a package that appeared to have been hashed out earlier in the day. Now, I am the first to admit that I don’t know what the right answer is in this crisis, but let me also say McCain has even less of a clue than I do. His steps have been purely political…calculated to mute the media coverage of Palin’s interview with Katie Couric and perhaps knock the VP debate off the table in the process.
Any who doubt the theory need only watch clips from the interview…she can’t respond to any question without resorting to one of the rote answers she was given.
McCain’s team must think we’re all idiots…
McCain supporter Sen. Lindsey Graham tells CNN the McCain campaign is proposing to the Presidential Debate Commission and the Obama camp that if there’s no bailout deal by Friday, the first presidential debate should take the place of the VP debate, currently scheduled for next Thursday, October 2 in St. Louis.
In this scenario, the vice presidential debate between Joe Biden and Sarah Palin would be rescheduled for a date yet to be determined, and take place in Oxford, Mississippi, currently slated to be the site of the first presidential faceoff this Friday.
I have a BETTER idea Mr. McCain, how about attending the debates as you agreed to?
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