The VP Debate
My bottom line: Palin did not do any further damage to herself. Biden helped his ticket. To use an analogy, Palin showed she can play Single A Ball. Biden looked like he deserves to be in The Show. A few other notes:
Can the American people feel comfortable with a candidate who gives a "shout out" during a national debate, winks, and whose English is so laden with folksy tidbits, dropped g's and extra articles? Call me an elitist, but I think even Joe Sixpack appreciates a little sophistication. (Note to Palin -- act like you've been there before.) She was more like a mascot than candidate.
I have been down a few Main Streets in my life. I am not sure everyone is as inarticulate as Palin. She almost comes off as a caricature of small town life and not the real thing. I would not be surprised if Palin's style is wearing a little thin in small town America. Living in a small town does not mean you cannot speak English.
I am a little tired about all this talk about "preconditions" to talks with foreign leaders. John McCain says not demanding preconditions "legitimizes" our enemies. I don't buy it. Our enemies -- Imadinnerjacket, Chavez, etc -- already have legitimacy in their sphere of influence. They do not need us to provide it, and not getting our blessing is almost the better play for them politically. Gone are the days where we can demand that a foreign government jump through hoops just to have a meeting with us. We are just not the center of the universe and pretending that we can make anybody kiss the ring prior to a meeting only furthers or international isolation.
I would have liked to see Biden mention the fact that "Stand on Your Own Two Feet Sarah" is one of the largest beneficiaries of federal outlays in the US. Her state is on the federal dole and a major beneficiary of the big government that she likes to rail against. Governor Palin, given the way you feel, can we have all our money back?
So Governor Palin agrees with V.P. Cheney's expansive view of the Vice Presidency. I don't think Americans were all that comfortable with the fact that all the real decisions were being made by the No. 2 guy. This may come back to bite her.
Biden's dental work is impressive. He may want a partial refund on the eye lift.
As always, it was strange to hear Republicans going after big business. This was the party whose ascendency was built on a business friendly ideology. Had the same words come from a Democrat, the GOP would have said they were inciting "Class warfare" or that they were "anti growth job killers."
It was sad to see Biden read from the AIPAC bible on Isreal. Is this pandering, or has he drank the Kool Aid?
I noticed Sarah Palin used a few Reaganisms. The first was "There you go again." The second was her unattributed use of his line about telling our grandchildren about "a day when men were free." That is a direct Reagan quote. He used it while he was campaigning against ... Medicare. (But the woman knows where her base lies. Republicans cannot get enough of Reagan. The fact that he oppossed many rights we now view as fundamental -- such as fair housing -- means little to them.)
Her third Reaganism really wasn't a Reaganism, but a Winthropism:
That is John Winthrop speaking at the founding of the Massachusetts Bay colony. If you bother to read the rest of the speech, about bearing each others burdens, caring for each others basic needs by giving up any personal surplus, you will see the irony in Winthrop being quoted by a supply side/deregulator/tax cutter. Moreover, I think it is a little scary when any world leader thinks their country represents "the perfect ideal," and they we have earned some right to be "unapologetic." Little lacking in the humility there doncha think Sarah?
Can the American people feel comfortable with a candidate who gives a "shout out" during a national debate, winks, and whose English is so laden with folksy tidbits, dropped g's and extra articles? Call me an elitist, but I think even Joe Sixpack appreciates a little sophistication. (Note to Palin -- act like you've been there before.) She was more like a mascot than candidate.
I have been down a few Main Streets in my life. I am not sure everyone is as inarticulate as Palin. She almost comes off as a caricature of small town life and not the real thing. I would not be surprised if Palin's style is wearing a little thin in small town America. Living in a small town does not mean you cannot speak English.
I am a little tired about all this talk about "preconditions" to talks with foreign leaders. John McCain says not demanding preconditions "legitimizes" our enemies. I don't buy it. Our enemies -- Imadinnerjacket, Chavez, etc -- already have legitimacy in their sphere of influence. They do not need us to provide it, and not getting our blessing is almost the better play for them politically. Gone are the days where we can demand that a foreign government jump through hoops just to have a meeting with us. We are just not the center of the universe and pretending that we can make anybody kiss the ring prior to a meeting only furthers or international isolation.
I would have liked to see Biden mention the fact that "Stand on Your Own Two Feet Sarah" is one of the largest beneficiaries of federal outlays in the US. Her state is on the federal dole and a major beneficiary of the big government that she likes to rail against. Governor Palin, given the way you feel, can we have all our money back?
So Governor Palin agrees with V.P. Cheney's expansive view of the Vice Presidency. I don't think Americans were all that comfortable with the fact that all the real decisions were being made by the No. 2 guy. This may come back to bite her.
Biden's dental work is impressive. He may want a partial refund on the eye lift.
As always, it was strange to hear Republicans going after big business. This was the party whose ascendency was built on a business friendly ideology. Had the same words come from a Democrat, the GOP would have said they were inciting "Class warfare" or that they were "anti growth job killers."
It was sad to see Biden read from the AIPAC bible on Isreal. Is this pandering, or has he drank the Kool Aid?
I noticed Sarah Palin used a few Reaganisms. The first was "There you go again." The second was her unattributed use of his line about telling our grandchildren about "a day when men were free." That is a direct Reagan quote. He used it while he was campaigning against ... Medicare. (But the woman knows where her base lies. Republicans cannot get enough of Reagan. The fact that he oppossed many rights we now view as fundamental -- such as fair housing -- means little to them.)
Her third Reaganism really wasn't a Reaganism, but a Winthropism:
But even more important is that world view that I share with John McCain. That world view that says that America is a nation of exceptionalism [sic]. And we are to be that shining city on a hill, as President Reagan so beautifully said, that we are a beacon of hope and that we are unapologetic here. We are not perfect as a nation. But together, we represent a perfect ideal. And that is democracy and tolerance and freedom and equal rights.
That is John Winthrop speaking at the founding of the Massachusetts Bay colony. If you bother to read the rest of the speech, about bearing each others burdens, caring for each others basic needs by giving up any personal surplus, you will see the irony in Winthrop being quoted by a supply side/deregulator/tax cutter. Moreover, I think it is a little scary when any world leader thinks their country represents "the perfect ideal," and they we have earned some right to be "unapologetic." Little lacking in the humility there doncha think Sarah?
posted by Jack Reed at 9:50 AM
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