More from the trainwreck that was the Katie Couric interview:
COURIC: And when it comes to establishing your world view, I was curious, what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this — to stay informed and to understand the world?
PALIN: I’ve read most of them again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media —
COURIC: But what ones specifically? I’m curious.
PALIN: Um, all of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years.
COURIC: Can you name any of them?
PALIN: I have a vast variety of sources where we get our news.
You can watch it here. Fingernails on a chalkboard.
cleek
in other words: she reads whatever was left in the bathroom.
Napoleon
Tomorrow night is going to be epic.
Lie baby, lie!
I can read too! That makes me an expert.
NickM
I am familiar with all newspaper traditions.
cleek
my prediction: Biden will crush her on substance. but he’ll make some fundamental gaffe or overstatement and coverage of that will overwhelm everything else.
Neal
Holy shit. Wow.
Tomorrow is going to be wonderful. I’m taking a vacation day…we’re going to game 1 of the ALDS during the afternoon and then get to come home and watch Joe and Sarah go at it.
I just can’t believe this woman. I’m awestruck.
DrDave
Sarah Palin is like the clap: The gift that keeps on giving.
Good post on Troopergate here. It seems that someone who works at the company that is contracted to administer Alaska’s workman’s comp program has come forward to confirm that the Palin’s put pressure on the firm to deny ex-brother-in-law Mike Wooten’s workman’s comp claim. Oops.
dewberry
No, I think this is all Palin, all the time. That’s all anyone (esp. the chatterers) is going to be interested in. It’s entirely possible that she may be able to memorize some short answers. Just look for the same repetitive answers to be repeated more than a baker’s dozen times. No matter what the question is, she’ll repeat one of five programmed answers whether it fits or not. They’d rather have her do that than freelance her answers.
Dennis - SGMM
Palin Appears on Hugh Hewitt Radio Show
Hewitt was thoughtful enough to provide a transcript at his Townhall blog, linked above.
An excerpt:
In the interview, Palin comes off way less stupid than she did with Couric. That can be attributed to the more than friendly Hewitt throwing her Nerfballs. She also seems to have settled on the theme that she’s representing average Americans. Hewitt helps her pound this home with nearly every question.
It will be interesting to see if the “Joe six-pack American” strategy works out. At this point the idea of having an average American next in line to the president makes me shudder but, we’re talking about the same system that gave us G.W. Bush.
Dennis - SGMM
Curse you, weird blockquotes!
Stimpy
I heard her response differently than most commentators on this quote. What I hear her say was:
Also, everyone seems to think that Palin is going to tank tomorrow. I think just the opposite I would be surprised if she doesn’t pull a George Bush and get all folksy and look appealing and charming (assuming you can be charmed by self-righteousness)
The narrative on Friday will be “Wow. Palin really knocked it out of the park.”. Just watch.
joe from Lowell
She’s like a character on the “Celebrity Jeopardy” sketch on Saturday Night Live.
“I’ll take Anal Bum Cover for a thousand, Alexsh.”
“That’s An Album Cover.”
jon
She has a great appreciation for the press and the media? I think that’s the part to focus upon, since it will play oh-so well in the caves in Wingnuttistan.
TheFountainHead
I agree 100% with Stimpy @ 10. The answer wasn’t, “I can’t think of a single newspaper or magazine.” The answer was, “You’re going to make me look like a jackass no matter what media names I throw out there, so fuck you.” She’ll be just fine in the debate, you watch.
Charity
I agree, sadly, with this comment.
Come ooooooon, JOE.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m afraid of. Unless Ifill asks some totally unexpected questions, she’s going to pound her little soundbites into place each time, not matter how ill-fitting they are, and she’ll seem confident enough to impress some. Of course, any unexpected questions would immediately be labelled as gotcha questions by her handlers and cheerleaders. Is it too much to ask that Ifill beat them over the head with her ankle cast?
Comrade Jake
Cole, you have to post the video. It’s easily ten times worse. You can see the look of concern on Palin’s face immediately after Couric poses the question.
Couric seems determined to see just how simple a question can nonetheless stump Palin. Good for her.
But c’mon, nobody’s this stupid. If we’re being charitable, it seems to me that Palin at first didn’t even recognize the question as harmless. She viewed it as another “gotcha”, where giving a specific answer might represent a gaffe. In other words, in a best-case scenario, she’s seriously second-guessing herself. That can’t be a good state of mind heading into the debate.
Punchy
She was too timid to admit she reads BJ as well. You could almost see the words “skull fuck a kitten” form on her lips during that interview. I believe she’s got a crush on Zifnab.
jrg
The fact that Palin cannot name a single fucking newspaper is a clear indication of liburl media bias.
gbear
I’m finding that I can’t watch her. I’ve got a really bad habit of being an embarassment sponge. I can’t watch someone make a fool of themselves without wanting to just die for them. Watching Palin (and McCain) is far too stressful.
Sorry to say I agree with cleek. If Biden says anything remotely Biden-like, he’ll get hammered for it in the spinroom. If Palin can remember what day it is, she’ll get a pass.
…which is a shame because I really like Biden’s Biden-like statements, and Palin really needs to be shamed off the stage.
Napoleon
Sometimes I think that is what is going to happen, but everytime she opens her mouth she proves herself to be dumb as a box of rocks.
linda
i’m surprised no one’s focused on the dynamics of a black female moderator in tomorrow’s showdown. how deferential will ifill have to be not to appear uppity…
TheFountainHead
Apparently, pretty goddamn deferential.
Napoleon
I think the female part is the important one here. She does not need to worry about being to aggressive.
Comrade Jake
I’m pretty much of the mindset that tomorrow’s debate, in a best-case scenario for McCain/Palin, is a non-event. I think that’s a reasonable likelihood. I think she’ll do well enough to muddle through, but I seriously doubt that will change the minds of people who currently believe she’s an idiot. They’ll just assume she was well-coached or well-rehearsed. And the thing is, there isn’t another debate for her to solidify a good performance.
If she does fine of course her cheerleaders will be delighted. But her cheerleaders aren’t the folks who matter at the moment. The folks who matter are the independents, people on the fence, and to a degree some remaining Democrats. I have a hard time believing those people are going to be swayed by folksy answers and Alaskan charm.
The problem for McCain/Palin is, they need a game-changer. That doesn’t seem likely, and moreover, there seems to be a decent chance there’ll be a couple of train-wreck moments. McCain’s team is going into this hoping to simply breathe a sigh of relief.
Kamishna ya Watu Xenos
Considering Palin had an open issue of the John Birch Society newsletter on her desk for an official photo, I bet she was avoiding a follow up question asking about it.
She needs to be relentlessly ridiculed for not submitting to open questioning from the press. McCain, too. If the press does not make them a laughingstock for this, the press is making themselves irrelevant.
dewberry
I think the more interesting characteristic is that Ifill is female. Palin had a way with Charlie Gibson (Charlie, Charlie, Charlie) that was quite flirty and cute-girl. She couldn’t do that with Couric, and I really believe that was one of the reasons her performance was worse. Ifill won’t be in the “aw-she’s-cute” brigade. Her questions will be honest and fair. I just wish there was to be more follow-up. Palin really falls short in the follow-up. She can spit one answer out there but as soon as you point out any inconsistency she falls apart a bit in trying to defend what she’s just said.
Dork
Yep, yep, and hell yep.
Just in time for all the weekend shows to gush over just how awesome she is, dontcha know.
Rick Taylor
Reading newspapers and magazines is elitist.
Comrade Face
McCain couldn’t read newspapers for 5 years, so FU, you insensitive bastards.
pattonbt
I’m with Stimpy on this one. There is almost no way Biden can come out on top in this. Palin will just go the ‘Jesus’ route and give simple folksy talking points and spout ‘average Joe’ platitudes whether they match the question asked or not. Biden can’t attack, Biden can’t denigrate, Biden can’t dismiss. This will simply add weight to and support the ‘poor Sarah Palin’ meme. Yes, it’s sad that we have such low expectations of someone who is literally potentially a heart beat away from the presidency, but people shun rationality when ‘their’ team is concerned.
All that said, it doesnt really matter, VP debates don’t do anything. The best debate sound bite of my lifetime was Bentson to Quayle about Kennedy, and we see where Dukakis and Bentson ended up. Palin may save (or earn) some shred of respectability, albeit undeserved in my book, Thursday, but Biden won’t get killed or vilified either.
yam
I’m glad that everyone here today was able to see a fine modern example of this.
Dan
I don’t know how Palin will do in the debate, but this:
should be put over the “Blogs Read” on the right side of BJ.
gbear
McCain acts like a dick in a Q&A session with the Des Moines Register. Lots of videos.
Neal
I swear, Palin talking is worse than Vogon poetry.
Scrutinizer
I loved it on Morning Joe today when they played the clip, then cut to Mika and Joe, and stunned silence for about a minute.
dmsilev
If the questions that Palin gets are the expected ones, she should do fine. The format was adjusted, at the McCain camp’s insistence, to emphasize short answers rather than the freer back-and-forth we saw last week. She’ll be briefed with talking points and prepackaged one-liners, and she’ll be able to fill the time without much trouble.
The problems will come when some off the wall question is asked, one that isn’t covered by the debate prep. Then, her lack of experience on the national stage will be crippling, since she doesn’t have much beyond the talking points to fall back on. When that happens, expect her to pick whichever talking point seems to be relevant, which could lead to the sorts of hilarity we saw in her interviews with Couric.
-dms
Pamela
To me her response epitomized what is one of the candidate’s glaring weaknesses – she turns simple questions into personal attacks and shifts into a weird defensive mode (to me which is very odd and unattractive) that takes her off course.
It’s similar to when a friendly audience member at a recent townhall asked her about her foreign policy experience and she ended up saying somthing like – well if you want to play stump the candidate – in a very snotty tone; or when she got on young people that backpacked Europe. It’s just an ugly trait. Couric asked an easy question and Palin made it about an attack on the people of Alaska. This style makes me cringe.
Napoleon
I forget where I read this, but it was a suggestion to Biden that on one of his questions he should keep his answer short and at the end say something to the effect of “I am interested in what Govenor Palin may think of this, Govenor Palin you may have my remaining time” and see if you can totally throw her off.
Comrade Jake
CBS transcript from this morning’s show:
Hmmm. I seem to have heard this “more of the same” turn of phrase before. Where have I heard that before? It’s on the tip of my tongue…
TheFountainHead
I’m sorry. I’ve heard a lot of crazy this week. Hell, I’ve heard a lot of crazy this morning. But can someone please explain to me how an Obama administration might be painted as “more of the same”?
Dennis - SGMM
Palin is being spun as “Joe six-pack American”. If she does badly in the debate, interviews, etc., it will be because she was another victim of silver-tongued elites. She will have scored a victory for average Americans, yah.
Comrade Jake
I have to believe that The Daily Show has been absolutely ruthless these days. Unfortunately, I’m sans cable.
Napoleon
Its been great! They have it all online to watch.
PC
She’s perfected Republican victimhood.
jibeaux
What she has going for her are incredibly low expectations, and of course Biden’s foot in mouth disease. But coaching Biden has got to be a much greater return on investment. I have to believe that he can be trained to take it down a notch for a night and mostly succeed. As for the first part, I think there’s every reason to believe she’ll exceed expectations, expectations being that she cannot form a single coherent thought in the course of an hour and a half. But I don’t think she’s going to do well by any objective measure — the signs right now are really pointing to “just not smart enough”.
Dennis - SGMM
Dominionist and Creationist ideas aren’t exactly new. Washington has been exerting energy to turn public offices into personal fiefdoms for years. You’re Elmer Gantry in a dress, Sarah.
nicethugbert
BWAHAHAHAHAHHAHA…. Palin’s a riot! I think she’s angling for a sitcom or cable show. The Palin Report!
greynoldsct00
Didn’t this country learn from the beer analogy the first time around? Look what it got us. Is ANYONE paying attention?
I’m with Cleek, I think Biden’s going to get whacked no matter how he handles it. I just hope Alaska Barbie’s endless parroting of the same points over and over again gets at least SOME notice.
Josh
She reads all newspapers, eh? I bet she is also aware of all internet traditions.
Jeff
Stewart was pissed off at both sides last night, I mean he was absolutely enraged at Congress and the President.
Scrutinizer
EVERYBODY has a debate coach. What the—?
As I said earlier, somewhere, I’m tired of the expectations game. As Toobin said yesterday, the expectation she should meet is that she’s qualiefied to be President if the creepy old guy kicks it. That’s the only expectation that counts, and the media should (but won’t) insist on it.
What’s going on in the world today is just too important for us to be playing games.
Scrutinizer
And I need to be qualiefied to spell qualified. Sheesh.
commrade vishnu schizt
Well that would imply that she actually had rational thought behind her answer, considered the consequences of naming something and hedged. In my opinion? She hasn’t read a fucking newspaper or magazine in years. She hasn’t read anything that someone hasn’t stuck in front of her. She said as much here:
She couldn’t name a newspaper or magazine because, SHE DOESN’T READ THEM! She went to FIVE colleges before getting a degree in Journalism and she can’t name one fucking common source of printed news or opinion! Jesus Christ she could have said National Review or something, but I’m sure you if you asked her to name one writer for NR she would stare at you blankly. She could have said the Anchorage Daily News for hell sakes!
I know people like this, they don’t read, they watch TV and by TV I mean soap operas, The View, the Today Show. Nothing wrong with that, just don’t say yes when asked to be the VP candidate.
Sarah Palin is so far out of her league it’s stunning, beyond stunning a total farce, and in reality a tragedy, Sarah Palin reminds me of a high school principal giving a pep rally before the big football game every time time she speaks.
The Republican Party: Idiots voting for idiots.
As someone said earlier, Idiocracy is not a movie it is a documentary.
Brian
I suppose compared to your typical economic-elite repub she is an “average joe,” after all, she
and her husband only make 250k a year. And they only have a one airplane…
I would love to see what Biden’s prep work looked like. Did they stick him on stage with a 12 year-old girl and tell him to debate the poor girl as nicely as possible?
ksmiami
You know, on Palin I don’t care if she shows up and answers her best little homespun platitudes. She is proud of her ignorance and she is a book banner and frankly, I really don’t consider her a serious VP pick in esp in these times. I am sure many Americans will think with their heads this time. The difference between now and when Georgie Porgie came on the scene is that Now we need leadership and intelligence and the government is broken. In 2000, government was working well and people were too fat and happy.
kirkaracha
Charlie Rose Green Room with Sarah Palin: favorite authors?
Why do I think “anything from C.S. Lewis” is more from the The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe end of the bookshelf and less from the Mere Christianity end? I’m particularly interested in her thoughts on what C.S. Lewis called “The Great Sin”:
Also, why do I get the feeling “encapsulate” was on her Word-of-the-Day calendar?
The Grand Panjandrum
If Governor Palin is an average American then this country is in worse shape than I thought. Her lack of intellectual curiosity about issues other than whats in front of her face is very troubling. Its no big deal when you are indeed Joe Six Pack or Soccer Mom and stay out of national public office. It is an entirely different matter when you wish to be VP of this country. Suderman at Culture 11 (IIRC) has an interesting post about Palin’s cramming for her debate final. The basic argument is that while Obama may not have the experience some might want in a Chief Executive he certainly has a firm grasp of the issues. Palin? Not so much. Lest we forget Governor Palin is a Young Earth Christian: she believes that humans walked with dinosaurs and the Earth was created 1000 years AFTER the Sumerians invented ink.
If Johnny Drama is elected I will spend the next four years working everyday to have Palin impeached and soon thereafter McCain. These two make the Former Cheerleader and his Gang of War Criminals look like pikers when it comes to the truth and reality. How is it possible that after eight years of Bush the Lesser the Republicans could offer up a ticket that has a high probability of being WORSE than Bush? That is some deep guano they’ve gotten themselves into.
Darkness
Well, the notion that Palin is like an extreme characterization of Sean Connery woke me up better than my double-strength coffee. I’m imagining Palin saying, “That’s not what your mother said last night, Trebek!” Put Palin in spike heeled black boots and something just a little tight around the bodice and that skit might work.
comrade chopper
i am aware of all media periodicals.
J.D. Rhoades
To quote George Will (speaking about Dan Quayle) she’ll “exceed expectations if she doesn’t drool.”
Not My Fault
Please sir, could we have a new thread?
I woke up this morning and evidently the senate democrats are trying to be stupider than Palin. (see I kept it on topic)
Seems to merit its own thread.
Darkness
Hey, open your mind. Imagine the Sumerian priests, working alone in the pre-cosmic darkness, writing with intense care upon a great parchment until, behold, they did writeth the very earth and sun into existence.
Or maybe those were just the diagrams that got shipped off to the mice…
Scrutinizer
Elitist.
EL
Posts of the day! (And beat me to it by getting online earlier.)
The hilarious thing is that the wingnuts are spinning this as “gotcha” journalism, when it is a standard softball for many celebrities. Most politicians aren’t asked this because is it assumed that they read important publications of the day. The scary thing is that any of us on this board start with a better grounding in the issues important to this country. John, Tim, or Michael for VP!!! (Or DougJ…)
w vincentz
She’ll have everyone’s hopes up when she asks to buy a vowel.
If she solves the puzzle…it’s a WIN!
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
Aw, shit.
<object width=”425″ height=”344″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/UYaJkWUBP3s&rel=0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1″></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/UYaJkWUBP3s&rel=0&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”425″ height=”344″></embed></object>
However, she looks to be speaking on state issues that she’s very comfortable with. The much wider array of topics for this debate may make it harder for her. She’ll have her one size fits all talking points, but the breadth of issues and unexpected questions may still trip her up.
gbear
How can anyone still be undecided at this point anyway? The only value of this debate should be it’s entertainment value (in the sense of going to an auto race to see someone lose it against the wall). The mind boggles that someone would have to watch this debate to make a voting decision.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
McCain gets pissy when asked about Palin’s experience in Des Moines. He actually trots out “She’s been in the PTA.”
<object classid=’clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000′ codebase=’http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,0,0′ width=’320′ height=’305′ id=’embeddedplayer’><param name=’movie’ value=’http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-desmoines-150-pub01-live/current/immersiveplayer/immersive/client/embedded/embedded.swf’/><param name=’allowFullScreen’ value=’true’/><param name=’allowScriptAccess’ value=’always’/><param name=’scale’ value=’noscale’/><param name=’salign’ value=’LT’/><param name=’bgcolor’ value=’#000000’/><param name=’wmode’ value=’window’/><param name=’FlashVars’ value=’playerId=immersiveplayer&referralObject=873519974&referralPlaylistId=b959b1ca832e44b7543c0c1d3b9b6ef23903c7fc&adServerBasePath=http://gcirm.gannettvideo.gcion.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_sx.ads&adPositionId=Video_prestream&adSiteId=gci-ia-desmoines.com&gpaperCode=gpaper122,gntbcstglobal&marketName=DesMoinesRegister.com&division=newspaper&pageContentCategory=videonetwork&pageContentSubcategory=videonetwork’/><embed type=’application/x-shockwave-flash’ src=’http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-desmoines-150-pub01-live/current/immersiveplayer/immersive/client/embedded/embedded.swf’ id=’embeddedplayer’ pluginspage=’http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer’ menu=’false’ quality=’high’ play=’false’ name=’immersiveplayer’ height=’305′ width=’320′ allowFullScreen=’true’ allowScriptAccess=’always’ scale=’noscale’ salign=’LT’ bgcolor=’#000000′ wmode=’window’ flashvars=’playerId=immersiveplayer&referralObject=873519974&referralPlaylistId=b959b1ca832e44b7543c0c1d3b9b6ef23903c7fc&adServerBasePath=http://gcirm.gannettvideo.gcion.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_sx.ads&adPositionId=Video_prestream&adSiteId=gci-ia-desmoines.com&gpaperCode=gpaper122,gntbcstglobal&marketName=DesMoinesRegister.com&division=newspaper&pageContentCategory=videonetwork&pageContentSubcategory=videonetwork” /></object>
Lots more here.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
McCain gets pissy when Palin’s qualifications are questioned.
<object classid=’clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000′ codebase=’http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,0,0′ width=’320′ height=’305′ id=’embeddedplayer’><param name=’movie’ value=’http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-desmoines-150-pub01-live/current/immersiveplayer/immersive/client/embedded/embedded.swf’/><param name=’allowFullScreen’ value=’true’/><param name=’allowScriptAccess’ value=’always’/><param name=’scale’ value=’noscale’/><param name=’salign’ value=’LT’/><param name=’bgcolor’ value=’#000000’/><param name=’wmode’ value=’window’/><param name=’FlashVars’ value=’playerId=immersiveplayer&referralObject=873519974&referralPlaylistId=b959b1ca832e44b7543c0c1d3b9b6ef23903c7fc&adServerBasePath=http://gcirm.gannettvideo.gcion.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_sx.ads&adPositionId=Video_prestream&adSiteId=gci-ia-desmoines.com&gpaperCode=gpaper122,gntbcstglobal&marketName=DesMoinesRegister.com&division=newspaper&pageContentCategory=videonetwork&pageContentSubcategory=videonetwork’/><embed type=’application/x-shockwave-flash’ src=’http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-desmoines-150-pub01-live/current/immersiveplayer/immersive/client/embedded/embedded.swf’ id=’embeddedplayer’ pluginspage=’http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer’ menu=’false’ quality=’high’ play=’false’ name=’immersiveplayer’ height=’305′ width=’320′ allowFullScreen=’true’ allowScriptAccess=’always’ scale=’noscale’ salign=’LT’ bgcolor=’#000000′ wmode=’window’ flashvars=’playerId=immersiveplayer&referralObject=873519974&referralPlaylistId=b959b1ca832e44b7543c0c1d3b9b6ef23903c7fc&adServerBasePath=http://gcirm.gannettvideo.gcion.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_sx.ads&adPositionId=Video_prestream&adSiteId=gci-ia-desmoines.com&gpaperCode=gpaper122,gntbcstglobal&marketName=DesMoinesRegister.com&division=newspaper&pageContentCategory=videonetwork&pageContentSubcategory=videonetwork” /></object>
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
(Video above, from the Des Moines Register, starts with an advert. More here.)
gbear
Well we all know that pride comes before the fall, and Sarah Palin has made it past the equinox just fine, thank you, so everything is okie-dokie. Clear sailing.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
One more time: that video was from the Des Moines register. More videos are here. And WP doesn’t like me posting the link, so I’m trying TinyURL this time.
TheFountainHead
It keeps me up at night. Thoughts of undecided, low-information voters absolutely terrify me.
Scrutinizer
You mean like “Let it crash!”?
bago
In the beginning there was the word. Someone called the Darkness should know that. Being upstaged by that bastard light and light being “good”. Pfft.
Dennis - SGMM
Because McCain/Palin represent the Republican’s last chance to avoid admitting that there’s anything wrong with them. If McCain is elected then it means that it was all Bush’s fault, no need for introspection, no need to question their beliefs, methods, motives or tactics.
TheFountainHead
Actually, that scares me less. The people who say, “Let it crash!” are the ones who know how corrupt the system is and are aware of the fact that nothing will change without massive regulation changes. They may be suicidal, but at least they aren’t fucking stupid.
grandpajohn
Hmm, wonder if she is reading this in her papers this moring.
Random Asshole
I am aware of all internet newspapers.
ThymeZone
She’s not dumb, it’s worse than that.
While these little dialogues are amazing and amusing, I think they point to the most serious concern about Palin that gets overlooked in the raucous laughter: She’s a pathological liar. She cannot tell the truth about even the smallest thing.
Just what we need in government. Eight years of brutal honesty are enough.
TheFountainHead
@ 78. grandpajohn
Don’t get too excited yet. Quinnipac’s numbers have been soft as all hell since the word go. Which is to say that they’re following the trend lines very well, but they tend to overproject them. It’s good news, but it’s more an indication that FL and OH are still winnable, than that we’ve won them.
ThymeZone
You guys are talking about spinners and pundits.
For ordinary voters, every minute that Palin spends talking is another minute that we gain in the polls. It’s that simple. The people don’t need talking heads, or blogs, or spin rooms to tell them what they are supposed to think in a situation like this. The voters will largely see a blithering idiot and a liar and be turned off.
It doesn’t matter much what Biden does, as long as he just answers the questions. This is the Palin show. People will be watching to find out if what they are hearing about her is true.
It is, and ….. she will do further damage to her ticket.
J.D. Rhoades
Which makes my wife as qualified as Palin.
grandpajohn
??? Damn people why don’t you worry about something that actually matters, Do any of you here really think that the VP debate is going to make any difference, for those of you in a state of
near panic, I suggest you take the time to browse the polls that have been released this morning starting with the ones I posted above and then the daily tracking polls .
Comrade Kolkhoznik Jon H
Or it means that her handlers have seen blogs talking about the photo of her with a John Birch Society newsletter on her desk, and they told her to expect a question about it. When Couric asked about what she reads, she may have paniced and thought it was leading in to a question about the Birchers.
dslak
I think you’re largely right here, TZ. You can spin people on complex issues and in “he said, she said” situations, but people still recognize an idiot when they see one, even if they’re no brighter than said idiot themselves.
We’re all stars now, in “The Palin Show.”
Juan del Llano
All the whining and sniveling about how awesome a debater Palin is seems ridiculous. She can only speak to McCain’s 40 percent, and she certainly isn’t going to change any minds.
And BTW, yes, let it crash. The “amended” Senate version of the bill sucks doggie dicks. I want every bailout bill to fail until they get it RIGHT, whatever the hell that is. Anything that doesn’t make me feel dirty and used, I suppose…
Sebastian Dangerfield
Those who are predicting that Palin will do well be repeating well-rehearsed potted answers to expected questions do not seem to have caught on to the fact that her torrents fo gibberish in the Couric interview came in response to entirely predictable questions. For instance, the question about foregin policy cred built on the proximity of Alaska to an uninhabited portion of Siberia’s sprawl was entirely predictable, as was the question about the bailout. Her answer to the latter question (“the bailout helps those who are concerned about the healthcare reform … it’s got to be about job creation … and trade … shouldn’t be seen as something scary …”) was articularly revealing. It demonstrated that she is not absorbing talking points and/or has a complete inability to match the right talking points to the right question. She just cycled through a bunch of unrelated talking points on various economic issues, and she obviously mangled them as well, perhaps hoping that one would land somewhere near the mark. (And I swear she was looking down at index cards; somebody needs to ask the network whether the ground rules allowed her to have cheat sheets.)
Unless someone has performed a miracle with her, I would expect more of the same.
jibeaux
A facebook group for “I am aware of all newspapers” would probably be just a bit too obscure, no?
dslak
And for those of us who always feel that way?
Comrade Darkness
The last eight years did have a brutal honesty to them. The truth they speak says that democracy, if not handled with extreme, tender care, can destroy a country as effectively as any other form of government, and certainly better than any sworn enemy could hope.
Or restated: if the majority votes for the candidate that is dumber than they are because that makes them feel good about themselves, you’re screwed.
SGEW
I’m less concerned about her impact on the polls (the damage appears to have been done already) and more concerned that she won’t be entertaining enough.
I have a whole party planned around the debate, and I’d hate to disappoint my guests.
SGEW
Bwa ha ha ha! Kathleen Parker, of the National Review, complains about the right wing hate mail she’s received since she criticized Palin’s competence!! In the Washington Post!!
Oh! The just deserts.
NonyNony
Yeah, well, I don’t think anyone is going to watch this debate to make a “voting decision”.
10% of the country is watching to see the lovely Sarah Palin stand up and be the wingnut standard bearer that they know she is in their heart of hearts.
10% of the country is watching to see what she says next – and praying to God above that she makes it out of this without tanking the whole McCain ticket.
20% of the country is watching to see what she says next. And to see if they can discern whether she’s just ignorant and out of her depth, or just rock stupid. And possibly to see if they she’ll finally say something so stupid that they can take it to their Republican parents and say “Please for the luvva God don’t vote for this woman!”
10-20% will be genuinely interested in what the two of them say, because this politics stuff confuses them and they just want to know which one of them looks like “good people”. They want to know “is he an asshole?”, or “is she a bitch?”, or “do either of them seem like someone I could identify with”. These people are the dangerous ones – moreso in some ways than the 20% who think Palin is the bee’s knees because at least those folks are obviously nuts (and stuck in the 50s if they use a phrase like “bee’s knees”).
And that last 30% or so will be pissed off that the the networks are pre-empting new episodes of Grey’s Anatomy or CSI to show a couple of politicians babbling at each other. Who are these people again? Why am I supposed to care? Is there anything good on Bravo? Hey – E!’s showing a rerun of the Lindsay Lohan story – awesome! These people won’t even be showing up to vote.
(Percetages based on voter participation from the 2004 election, where a whopping 60% of the population eligible to vote bothered to show up. And I’m being generous in thinking they’ll squeeze another 10% out this time around…)
jibeaux
SGEW, do you have a drinking game planned? Since I have to go to work on Fri., I was thinking a drink for every coherent thought or even syntactically logical sentence, but it’s not exactly…fun…
dslak
I am shocked, SHOCKED, to discover that wingnuts would try to threaten and intimidate someone who did not follow the script on GOP talking points, and I’m certain that Kathleen is, too.
Annette
I’m quite sure that Palin reads any number of things. The backs of cereal boxes comes to mind.
Otto: “Apes don’t read philosophy.”
Wanda: “Yes, they do, Otto, they just don’t understand it.”
The real problem to me is just that she seems so very disinterested and intellectually incurious about just about everything. The way she manages to go through life without seeming to be bothered by any of the greater dynamics in the world is astonishing. Even the dumbest people I know generally can tell me what they’ve read last, even if it wasn’t something they read recently, and every one of them at least scans the headlines on some news site on the web.
The satisfaction of low expectations may make her GOP handlers breathe a sigh of relief after the debates if she doesn’t totally hork it, but the Joe Six-packs that I know only have one expectation: that she should show herself to be capable of assuming the highest office if something were to happen to McCain. I’m living in the country now, but even out here (and minus the misogynists who won’t vote for a woman for the highest office and the racists who won’t vote for a black man), those more conservative neighbors of mine are not seeing that expectation met by Palin. I don’t think that will change. But the debate should be great fun.
SGEW
Highlights from Kathleen Parker’s op-ed:
“To see what is in front of one’s nose needs a constant struggle.” -George Orwell (h/t Sully, natch)
TheFountainHead
The gf and I are arguing this very minute as to whether I go to her apartment to watch the debate with her Obama luvin’ roommates, or if she should come watch it in my apartment with my McCain donatin’ roomies.
dslak
Okay, I read the Kathleen Parker piece, and it ends with some moaning about “partisanship.” Unless you confuse consensus government with consensus in the public square, what’s the damned problem?
Of course, we also know what people like Parker really mean when they talk about “bipartisanship,” don’t we?
Georgette Orwell
I fear that cleek and Charity are right, and we ought not think this is going to be an automatic win, a cakewalk, or anything easy. So much depends on the questions, and if the McC campaign was able to set the format, chances are they set the level of discourse as well. I simply hope with all my heart that the smart, controlled Joe shows up. If there are any gotcha, sharp questions that could cause a fumble, it’s he to whom they’ll be addressed.
My fingers are crossed so tightly that they hurt.
SGEW
Hells no. I have to work on Friday, and last Friday’s debate drinking game got way, way out of hand (the “mention ‘wall street’ in the same sentence as ‘main street'” one just slayed us . . . slayed us).
Instead, it’s more of a get buzzed first, and then laugh and laugh at Gov. Palin, while rootin’ on Joe sort of affair. We might try the Palin Bingo game too.
Too much booze will just sink us into despair.
Comrade Mary, Would-Be Minion Of Bad Horse
Planned Parenthood has an ad up slamming both Palin and McCain about charging for rape kits. According to TPM, it’s running in Missouri, Wisconsin, and the Northern Virginia media market.
<object width=”425″ height=”344″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/Uq6Y-wgivIE&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1″></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/Uq6Y-wgivIE&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&fs=1″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”425″ height=”344″></embed></object>
If you can’t play video at work, here’s a partial transcript:
Comrade The Moar You Know
Boy, if the last eight years haven’t cured anyone of this fallacy, nothing will.
SGEW
Wow. Really? McCain donating roommates? That must be . . . stressful at times.
Should be a fun time on Nov. 5th, tho’, when Obama wins. Just walk around the apartment whistling quietly, and listen to them grinding their teeth.
jibeaux
SGEW
jibeaux:
Nice. Very nice.
Ash Can
I’m sure she’s telling the truth here. She doesn’t have A coach, she’s got a whole army of handlers and trainers and spinmeisters trying to pound something, ANYTHING into her head.
For once, I absolutely, completely agree with her. Although it’s probably not what she means.
So this means that if she crashes and burns tomorrow night it’ll be because she’s destroyed way too many of her brain cells, right?
And BTW, I won’t be watching tomorrow night’s debate, but I have an excuse note. It has the words “National League Division Series” and “Wrigley Field” printed on it.
TheFountainHead
Well, it hasn’t been yet. I just moved in with them, and have been playing the Independent card. One of them works for AIG, and I think he might come around. The other one clearly has a wingnut father and there’s no saving him.
Svensker
Not to worry. Gwen Ifill is “in the tank for Obama”, so Palin’s won the debate already! And Gwen Ifill is a democrat stooge, plus being mean AND uppity. Boo, hiss. We don’t even have to see the debate to know all this! Repubs rool!
Scrutinizer
TFH @ 78
Well, if you consider suicide a rational choice. Personally, I think you put a tourniquet on a gushing artery and then fix the cure.
A rational regulatory plan isn’t going to be put into place without a lot of wrangling, and we have a better chance of it after the election. The credit markets aren’t going to wait until January. They’re not going to wait another week, it money stays as tight as it is now. People who are upset about thet new Senate bill don’t get it: each iteration is going to be worse and worse for us as these bills fail, and better and better for the Thugs.
Changing topics, I agree with whoever it was that said that tomorrow’s debate is going to be about entertainment. And about how hard Ifill is going to get skewered for being mean to Palin by asking whether she can name all the other 49 states.
Napoleon
Can anyone explain why the buy would be running in those markets? Northern Virginia I would guess is so people in washington see it. Missouri I assume because the debate is being held there. But Wisconsin? Is Ifill from there or something? Why Wisc?
TheFountainHead
And in case you missed it from a previous thread, if Sarah Palin gets dumbfound, cries, and runs off the stage in shame, then I’m taking my clothes off, grabbing my half-empty bottle of liquor, and going dancing in the street to Norman Greenbaum’s Spirit in the Sky. So there’s a lot of potential for tomorrow to be an interesting evening.
Tsulagi
Yeah, it’s worked so well in the presidency. One problem is he’s about five bottles short of a six-pack. Of Coors Light.
Yep, let’s have the same in a VP who’s waiting for the sound of a heartbeat stopping. Like newspapers, she’s aware of all president traditions.
Scrutinizer
“fix the cure”. Jesus. Cure the problem. Too many flashy lights in the lab today.
ThymeZone
Boy, if the last month and the polling trends haven’t proved my point ….
Ah never mind, it’s you.
But anyway, somebody mentioned Stalin upthread.
Stalin …. Palin. Stalin …. Palin.
Is she Russian?
Can we afford to have a Russian just a bad mole away from the Oval Office?
Comrade The Moar You Know
That crazy Ms. Parker:
She is so close to seeing the truth about her party and yet she never will.
Do Dems enforce party purity like the Republicans do? Most Republicans would say yes. All I can say in reply is that Joe Lieberman is not only still one of us, he still has his committee chairmanship.
Scrutinizer
THF @ 114
Now I don’t know what to hope for.
Kamishna ya Watu Xenos
Wisc has a critical Chris Matthews/Timmeh demographic (Authentic Heroic Middle-Class American Catholic), which needs an excuse to vote for the right-to-choose candidate. The rape kit story reframes the issue nicely, even though it may be an urban myth.
ThymeZone
But ….. you do this every night. Your neighbors don’t even bother to call the police any more.
jk of course. Some straight lines are just too good to pass up.
TheFountainHead
That’s kinda what my girlfriend told me when I mentioned my “Palin Break-down” my plan.
Scrutinizer
Well, strictly speaking, The First Dude is a Palin. But that means she’s sleeping with the Russkies. Just think, giving up her virtue so that she can keep track of the evil machinations of our enemies, keeping America safe from Putin’s head.
SGEW
Oh jebus. I know that I shouldn’t read Hugh Hewitt (warning; link leads to teh mega-stupid), but I can’t help myself. It’s like picking at a scab . . . there’s something compelling about it.
Yes. Open freeper threads reflect true public sentiment. Yowza.
Ben
Does anyone else get the same creepy feeling, listing to Palin, that she is starring in the sequel to Fargo? That kind of fake accent used in the movie… Minnesooooooooooooooooota.
gbear
Hey TZ, this one’s for you.
<img src=”http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/duty_calls.png”>
Scrutinizer
SGEW @ 124
Speaking of FreeRepublic, how is it that the ‘Thugs lost the battle of the Intertron?
TheFountainHead
John really should just license the image from xkcd and put it right next to the hot-air logo. It’s kind of an anthem around here.
ThymeZone
Hey, this one’s for you: Go fuck yourself.
Back to you!
ThymeZone
Which reminds me: I am not one who thinks that the ability to post pix is a good thing here.
Just my opinion. It clutters up the blog. In most cases, a link to the graphic works fine and craps up the blog a lot less.
TheFountainHead
Fixed.
Tsulagi
I was thinking the accent sounded Canadian. Maybe due to all the foreign relations she’s had with Canadians on her border.
SGEW
It’s an anthem in all of teh internets.
Remember this old joke?
Having an argument on the internet is like being in the Special Olympics: Even if you win, you’re still “re***ded”
[Language cleaned up]
Comrade Face
But they’ll still vote for McCain, cuz, ya know, no Darkies in the Whitey House.
Let’s be honest — McCAin could have nominated the Kentucky Derby winner as his running mate, and he’s still getting 46% of the vote in Nov.
TheFountainHead
She had an affair with a Canadian too??
Tom Hilton
I can’t believe it took 50 comments before someone made this joke.
ThymeZone
Arguments are not held here. Nor discussions. No discourse either. It’s just Hot Air.
That’s exactly why this place is our favorite spot.
If I want an argument, I can go talk to my boss. I come here to get away from that stuff!
SGEW
Man #1: I came here for an argument!
Man #2: No you didn’t. You came here for an argument.
dslak
ATTENTION! WINGNUT NARRATIVE IN TROUBLE!
Annette
Some will, but many are just staying home. They can’t vote for McCain and they won’t vote for Obama. Somre have already said they’ll cross the picket line and vote Obama. They’ll have to turn in their super secret Republican decoder rings afterwards, of course, and the locals will have to change their secret handshake to keep the heathens at bay, but that’s just part of the overall fun in my book.
mellowjohn
just in case n one else has said it, let’s keep in mind that bible spice majored in TV journalism. that means she doesn’t have to read anything other than a teleprompter.
SGEW
Aha! That explains everything! A secret ring that decodes all plain-text into the words: “It’s the Democrat’s fault!”
It is all clear now.
libarbarian
PALIN IS AWARE OF ALL PRINT-MEDIA TRADITIONS!!!
Brachiator
I’m sorry. Are we discussing Sarah Palin or George W. Bush?
The new meme is that Palin is vastly superior to Obama because she has tons — tons, I say — of real world experience, while Obama just has that over-rated book learning. Hell, Palin is the veritable resurrection of Ronald Reagan. All she needs is a few bedrock principles and the love of the baby Jesus and she can go toe to toe with any world leader. And still have time to dress a moose.
She is the epitome of the “real” American, whose mantra is “I know what I know. I don’t need to think or to study.”
In the eyes of conservative true believers, Palin has pre-won the VP debate, wiping the floor with Joe Biden by countering his verbose Beltway insider experience with her clear and pure outsider Alaskan common sense.
bago
So if she gets murdered in the debates, can we have a new member of Marilyn Manson? I vote for Sarah (palin) (kyle) Huff. Would be rather eponymous given the Inuit Gasoline Huffing problem in Alaska.
Annette
Sarah is the “fresh new face” with “new ideas”, dontcha know. It has to be about her, because Bush is just soooo 2007. I fully expect one of the congresscritters to say “Bush who?” at some point, denying his very existence in the same way they repeat lies over and over to make them true.
I can name that tune in three words: “fancy book learnin'”
Wait! One word: “elitist”
Ah, I feel better now.
w vincentz
Is all this six-pack talk really about an attempt to boost sales for the Hemsley beer distributorship?
Cindy must be behind this.
gbear
..or my girlfriend, or the jerk next door, or my waitress, or my sisters, or my co-workers, or this guy over here, or the snooty bartender, or the television, or the dog, or the idiot driver that just got in my way, or my city councilman, or….
Soylent Green
Sarah Palin is not stupid. Not a blithering idiot, not dumber than a bag of hammers. She is shrewd enough to have gone from humble origins to a state governorship. She knows her state and can discuss its affairs with enough knowledge (or ability to fake it) to sway its voters, same as any good politician. She has a firm grasp of the right kinds of things to say to Alaskans about oil and gas and fishing and hunting and logging and mining and Native issues and tourism and bringing in lots of federal dollars, all the stuff they care about. She appeals well to their frontier sense of individualism, independence, and anti-intellectualism, and their very real separation from the other states and the rest of the world.
But Palin has been airdropped into enemy territory, where Alaskan is not the native language. She has been trying to cram years worth of information about this new territory into a few weeks’ time, with predictable results. She hasn’t had time to organize it, rehearse it, wrap the right soundbites around it, do what good politicians do with knowledge — fake an understanding of it. Suppose you were an expert in art history. If you had a month to master quantum mechanics, how well would you do?
Palin is deluded about many things, but delusion is not the same as lack of intelligence. She believes that God gave her this opportunity and expects her to see it through. Without this belief, she might have grasped how unqualified she was to become VP and declined the invitation.
It’s fun to pile on her every mangled answer to questions. But we are smearing her and turning her into a caricature no less than the wingnuts paint Obama as a posturing phony, empty suit, radical lefty, corrupt Chicago pol. It’s fun to call her stupid but it plays right into the hands of the other side. The Repugs are onto something lately with Let Sarah Be Sarah, to let her charm the masses with the same “one of us” schtick that she uses on Alaskans. If it works tomorrow she can “win” the debate, or at least stem the tide against her. The low-information voters won’t be impressed by command of information. They know they don’t know much of anything about the issues but don’t want to be feel ashamed for it, and it’s folksy, real, common-woman Palin who can help them feel good about themselves.
Let’s hope the debate questions and format don’t let her get away with it.
Kevin
like this?
Kevin
Supid embedding didn’t work.
Like this?
Hector
If she’s reading what’s in front of her, I guess that’s Pravda and Isvestia, or their successors, since she’s facing Russia all the time to keep Putin from looming. Or something. Whatever, the stupid, it hurts.
SGEW
Mr. Ken Clean Air System FTW!
SGEW
Obligatory PunditKitchen link.
ThymeZone
Sorry, you will have to handle her yourself. I don’t do interventions.
tavella
hollow laughter
Haven’t been around for the last eight years, have you?
tBone
I heartily concur. BJ used to be a soothing, spartan haven from the gaudier Intertubes at large. Now we’ve got inline images and video. What’s next? Avatars? Huge blinky signature images? Do. Not. Want.
You kids, GET THE HELL OFF MY LAWN WITH YOUR FANCY HTML TRICKS!
SGEW
Yeah! You’re clogging up the tubes with your big old images and videos!
comrade chopper
…in a state where the winner of the governor’s race is determined by a shot drinking contest.
seriously, she may be shrewd but she’s still a moron.
CIRCVS MAXIMVS MMVIII
Oh oh!
ARGH!
Brachiator
Agreed. Palin is ignorant, not stupid. She knows practically nothing about pressing domestic and foreign policy issues. But it was the Republicans who chose to market her as more experienced than Obama, and have tried to rescue her from her own lack of intellectual curiosity with talking point cram sessions.
Whether she has even been an effective politician is up for debate, but of course we will never know for sure given the evidence-suppression mode of the GOP Smear machine. The available info is that she is as venal and small-minded as any stereotypical Louisiana pol, with a rancid trail from “librarian-gate” to “Trooper-gate.”
Ignorance and a tendency toward petty tyranny in a small-town mayor is no big deal. In a governor it is worrisome. In a potential VP candidate, it is inexcusable.
Paul in KY
Enjoyed posts. Really got some good laughs (and a couple new lines to use).
Agree with poster who said that Sen. Biden should keep his answers brief & too point & say he is interested in what she has to say on subject & then just sit back.
Soylent Green
I wonder if it has dawned on the Governor that Alaskans are likely to turn her out of office for making them look so silly in the national spotlight.
Polish the Guillotines
I getting a little fed up with all these insults hurled at rocks. Any geologist worth his salt knows a careful study of rocks can provide valuable information.
A careful study of Sarah Palin will actually vaporize tens of thousands of neurons.
DougJ
Bill Murray in Stripes
bootlegger
jibeaux, which state do you live in? I know a guy in Alabama that goes by that name, a nickname he picked up in Niger.
And was it just me or did Ms. Palin lose her “aw shucks” folksy accent in those gubernatorial debates?
Chris Johnson
Oh fuck me, please tell me this is the Onion or something.
If Hillary Clinton can’t win from doing shots with the guys when she’s actually a fucking deadly competent, ambitious, ruthless politician who knows her stuff, then the Joe Sixpack tactic is DEAD.
And so it should be, because it’s a completely retarded job qualification and if people still liked it they would still like BUSH. Which they do not.
Tie this Joe Sixpack nonsense to Bush and drown it with a side order of Honey, I Shrunk The Economy.
I also really like the drinking game where you take a shot every time Palin expresses a coherent thought, but then I’m clean and sober for some years now :) those of you who WANT to drink had better pick some other rules, quick.
Chris Johnson
…since it’s worked so well in the position of PRESIDENCY…
nicethugbert
My dog reads all newspapers. He even highlights his favorite parts in yellow.
Delia
There are now too many long threads on BJ.
Now this may not be huge, but I just found out, via Sully, that Sarah Palin has never seen Russia from Alaska! I am so disillusioned. How will she ever know about foreign policy now?
Delia
Oh yeah, and I wanted to say one more thing. Katie Couric is a mean, hardnosed, gotcha-type, investigative reporter. How they could put a fragile flower like Sarah up against someone known for her hardball, unfair questions I will never know.
Polish the Guillotines
Bill makes a nice argument for why the VP choice is important. (And I appear to screw up the embed.)
Polish the Guillotines
Ugh. Linked instead.
Zuzu Hussein's Petals
And now we know that her special brand of nastiness is not necessarily scripted for her:
Zuzu Hussein's Petals
Whoops on the blockquote thing:
This thing is tricky.
Zuzu Hussein's Petals
Okay, that’s twice I entered the blockquotes tag at the beginning and end of the quote, it showed up correct on the preview, and then only blockquoted the first paragraph when posted.
Is anyone else having that problem?
Blue Raven
It’s my understanding that the Mat-Su Valley was heavily settled by people from the upper Midwestern US. Throw in how her parents are from Idaho, and you get that flattened Fargo accent right there. Yooper-Yukonian, in other words.
MikeL
Reminds me of that Simpsons episode where some Germans buy the plant:
New German Boss: So, Homer, what new safety programs have you spearheaded?
Homer (uncertain): All of them?
Tiparillo
She is also aware of all Internet traditions
tarrah begone
I just got one thing to say. This woman’s major through her 6 colleges was journalism. Journalism. You read that right. Journalism. And she couldn’t think of one paper or mag off the top off her head.