Click the title to this post to find out.
The term "wack job" came from McCain campaign officials, and the article details an out of control candidate spending 150K on clothes when she was given a budget of 20-25 thousand. McCain campaign officials were frustrated that Palin "did not have the bandwidth" to digest foreign policy briefings in advance of her disasterous interview with Katie Couric of CBS.
The frustration of McCain's staff came to a head in the final days when Palin's staff scheduled and then took a phone from a person the Palin staff believed was the President of France, but was in fact a pair of well known Canadian comedians, one of whom impersonated the President of France. Palin continued talking with the person even though he began to make more and more personal and inappropriate comments. The phone call ended with Palin agreeing she could be president "Maybe in eight years".
This Fox News Report on Youtube asserts that during a briefing Palin "did not understand that Africa" was a continent and got into an argument with the briefers during which Palin continually asserted Africa was a country.
Palin has fought back, giving an interview in Alaska stating "those guys...are jerks" referring to the unnamed sources in the McCain campaign who were criticising her.
Palin is and always will be the poster child for the Republican party's religious right. She embraces the idea that having a mediocre intellect and no experience is just what America needs in its leaders. Karl Rove knew that a significant portion of the electorate, perhaps 20 percent, felt comforted in a candidate that seems to be, to put it bluntly, just as stupid as they are. Rove dumbed down politics and now it is up to Obama and his team to show that being smart, experienced and prepared does not mean being rude and condescending.
We once applauded a president who quoted poetry. (Kennedy.) We used to elect Presidents who were Presidents of Colleges (Woodrow Wilson-Princeton University) or were nuclear engineers (Carter).
Then Rove tapped into an undercurrent in American society that was working class poor and un-educated. Rove knew they would rather vote for a tough talking Texan who made split decisions based on his "feelins" rather than an experienced and educated policy wonk (Gore). The fact that Gore went on to win a Nobel Prize while Bush leaves office with the country in tatters and with a historically low 25% approval rating only goes to show that people get what they vote for.
Obama represents a repudiation of the dumbing down of America. Here is Nicholas Krtistof's Op Ed Piece on Obama and the war on brains.
Kristof wrote:
Maybe, just maybe, the result will be a step away from the anti-intellectualism that has long been a strain in American life. Smart and educated leadership is no panacea, but we’ve seen recently that the converse — a White House that scorns expertise and shrugs at nuance — doesn’t get very far either...
As for President Bush, he adopted anti-intellectualism as administration policy, repeatedly rejecting expertise (from Middle East experts, climate scientists and reproductive health specialists). Mr. Bush is smart in the sense of remembering facts and faces, yet I can’t think of anybody I’ve ever interviewed who appeared so uninterested in ideas.
Rumpole says, it may not be "morning in America again, but at least class is in session."
Won our three main picks yesterday for +400 but lost 55 on our Dolphins pick, which was just for fun because we were at the game. Total for the week +345/total for the year +944.
Weird week with court's closed Tuesday. See you in court talking about those Fins with a winning record.
20 comments:
ah, but the problem is that McCain's campaign manager denied all this, so you're wrong again, as usual
WORD OF THE DAY:
FULGENT- from the Kristof article where he describes Bill Clinton's intellect as "fulgent"-
Meaning: Blazing bright, shining intensely, " a fulgent sunlight.:
Use: Kevin Emas wrote a fulgent defense of Judicial retreats, lobster salads and all.
Sarah Palin was a disaster. Hot, but a disaster. The best line I heard about her is that "most conservative republicans are repressed people, thats why when they see someone like her who shares their beliefs, they get excited."
She will never be president.
And Nixon's press secretary denied bombing Cambodia, and Clinton "did not have sexual relations with that Woman." and most Importantly, Palin responded to the attacks.
Gee, a person's aide in politics leaks something and then the official issues a formal denial because he has "deniability". Welcome to politics 101. You really need some lessons in how this works. But just keep thinking all was rosy with Palin and the Republicans and please for the good of the nation...please please please nominate Palin to run in 2012. Really, the country needs her to run again.
Bang zoom. Rumpole is on his game today. Rumpole 1. Republicans 0.
Maybe I was wrong?
I had three concerns about Obama.
1. Reverand Wright. Wright clearly is anti-semitic. Say what you want, but I have little doubt Obama knew what his "spiritual mentor" was saying. And, I didn't buy his in-campaign repudiation of him. Regardless, Obama's appointment of Emmanuel to such a significant position demonstrated his true feelings and eliminated this concern.
2. Obama's lack of experience. Obama is addressing this concern by surrounding himself with extremely experienced and bright people (many of you correctly predicted this).
3. Obama's election gives the Dems the ability to do pretty much whatever they want. This remains a concern. Frankly, I don't like either party have the unfettered power to implement an extreme agenda. Will the Dems compromise and adopt a moderate agenda as most of us hope? Or will they do what the Republicans did and cater to the fringe elements in their party? Only time will tell. I hope that they do a better job of running this country than the Republicans have over the last few years because there will be little check on their power.
As you can tell, I'm a moderate Reagan Republican and already concerned about the government's largess, partisanship and overreaching (ie. arguably illegal and certainly questionable wiretaps, hiring of underqualified but ideologically acceptable staffers [and prosecutors.........Damn that pisses me off!], etc.
I am optimistic that Obama will continue on the path he's started and fulfill his campaign promises. If he does, we all win.
REGARDLESS, he now is our President. It's time for the partisan bickering to end. I hope the Republican party stops thinking 2012 and starts thinking here and now. I hope the Dems resist the impulse to punish the Republicans for the last eight years. We can't reach our potential unless everyone (gasp!) starts working together.
And, Obama deserves the chance to succeed.
BTDT
Sara Palin is big sexy time
Palin has already been quoted as saying 2012.
whats up with the "wheel" is there pending litigation? is it ever coming back? im goin broke. help us rick
12:42, if you want more court appointed cases, go work at the PD's office
Rump, why no take from you on the PD litigation. This is a national story, the office down here is at the forefront of it, and we can't get anything but a link to the NYTimes from you. Come on, what's your opinion, you must have one.
12:42 Raises an interesting point. What’s up with the wheel? I have not gotten a wheel case in months. Conflict cases need to go somewhere.
2:00 pm- I posted the link to the NY Times story on the PD issue Sunday.
I covered the order when Blake issued it.
I have written extensively on the "you get what you pay for" problem with criminal appointments.
Outside of flying to Tallahassee and clonking Governor Crist's head with the Republican leader of the Senate, what more can I do?
Sarah Palin is emblematic of what the Republican party has become--a bastion of very socially conservative voters who are out of touch with the American mainstream. The American mainstream is definitely conservative WHEN COMPARED TO CANADA AND EUROPE. Then again, Barack Obama would be one of the more conservative members of the Canadian Liberal Party, the British Labour Party of the various European liberal parties. If he was Canadian or British, Joe Lieberman (who is actually moderate except for his support of Iraq) would be a Tory.
But right now Americans have rejected what the GOP has become, and the mainstream is pretty much in the center with a slight but noticable tilt to the left. The GOP can move the American mainstream back to center right, but only with the right leader(s), rhetoric and platform. Someone like Chuck Hagel--conservative yet pragmatist and realist--would probably fit the bill nicely. Sarah Palin does not fall into this category.
Assuming Obama does a decent job as Prez, if Palin is the 2012 GOP nominee, I see an Obama landslide on the order of LBJ 1964/Nixon 1972/Reagan 1980 and 1984.
I miss Fake Blecher (not real fake blecher) and Fake Tom Risivy. Have they gotten other gigs on other blogs?
6:32: Of course his campaign is going to deny it. Who, in their right mind, would corroborate such allegations ... That would be like admitting that McCain made a huge mistake (which he did and it cost him the presidency). Ultimately, those allegations are out there for a reason and they usually turn out to be TRUE.
Frankly, if the GOP is going to depend on Palin in 2012 - it certainly looks good for us Dems.
larry flynt has already put out a porn called "whose nailin palin"and the porn star playing her is much hotter than the real palin and probably doesnt share her disgusting views
I love Canadians!
At least the one who shares my bed every night.
The Princess is Canadian? I thought she was Colombian?
2:12, Her parents are both Colombian, that makes her background/heritage Colombian. She was raised in Canada and is a Canadian citizen, therefore a Canadian.
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