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McCain cites need for experience, picks first-term governor as veep
Egad! It's all over my friends page already. Sarah Palin! McCain picks Alaska governor to be his running mate!
Opinions are all over the map. Myself, I think it was a very clever choice from a demographic point of view, and frankly a lot bolder than I would have expected from his campaign. Apart from the simple fact that she's a woman, she's pro-life and has one child with Down syndrome; she's an evangelical, but not a Southern evangelical; she has Alaska credibility and supports drilling in ANWR. She's almost tailor-made to draw back the moderate conservatives who have become disillusioned with the Republican Party in the last eight years. Very shrewd indeed.
But my gut reaction says that it's a fatal mistake for McCain, who has been running almost exclusively on an "experience" platform for the last several months. Choosing Palin pretty much annihilates that argument. It seems to say that McCain no longer believes he can win experience, and is looking for a reverse wedge that he thinks will give him an advantage.
If that's the case, I think Obama and Biden have a clear path to victory. They need to focus diligently but relentlessly on policy issues. McCain and Palin are going to have an uphill battle persuading the public that they are a team prepared to lead the country, and that Palin will be ready to take over the top job if McCain keels over. Unless Palin turns out to be a ringer on the debate box, I expect Biden to be able to eat her for dinner.
The game isn't over, not by a long shot --- but the McCain campaign just took a big fumble.
Opinions are all over the map. Myself, I think it was a very clever choice from a demographic point of view, and frankly a lot bolder than I would have expected from his campaign. Apart from the simple fact that she's a woman, she's pro-life and has one child with Down syndrome; she's an evangelical, but not a Southern evangelical; she has Alaska credibility and supports drilling in ANWR. She's almost tailor-made to draw back the moderate conservatives who have become disillusioned with the Republican Party in the last eight years. Very shrewd indeed.
But my gut reaction says that it's a fatal mistake for McCain, who has been running almost exclusively on an "experience" platform for the last several months. Choosing Palin pretty much annihilates that argument. It seems to say that McCain no longer believes he can win experience, and is looking for a reverse wedge that he thinks will give him an advantage.
If that's the case, I think Obama and Biden have a clear path to victory. They need to focus diligently but relentlessly on policy issues. McCain and Palin are going to have an uphill battle persuading the public that they are a team prepared to lead the country, and that Palin will be ready to take over the top job if McCain keels over. Unless Palin turns out to be a ringer on the debate box, I expect Biden to be able to eat her for dinner.
The game isn't over, not by a long shot --- but the McCain campaign just took a big fumble.
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Dems can't kick Palin for lack of experience. Reps will say "We may lack experience at VP but you lack experience at Prez. Plus, our 'inexperienced' candidate has actual executive experience; what does yours have?"
It was obvious to me that McCain would pick someone who had the pros/cons of his cons/pros. I would have guessed a white man by default, but young or maverick-ish was all but a given. In fact, I was thinking the most about Lieberman, and what the reaction would be if he were the pick.
In the end it won't matter. It's McCain v Obama, the rest is irrelevant.
PS - probably the best outcome for Palin is to lose. As VP she'd be very much second fiddle (which Biden won't be), as a former candidate she'd be very high profile.
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