McCain Surrogates Struggle To Defend Palin's Experience

There is, it seems, a dearth of effective talking points on Sarah Palin's lack of foreign policy experience. On Monday, McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds went on CNN to defend the vice presidential pick, only to come up blank when asked to name one specific decision Palin has made as commander of Alaska's national guard. Democratic operatives quickly circulated the video.

On Tuesday, Sen. Jon Kyl, another McCain confidante, was given his turn. And the results were equally problematic for the presumptive Republican nominee. Asked by Fox News' Chris Wallace whether Palin was "ready to be president" Kyl's response was, basically, "in time."

"Obviously, in terms of national security decisions over the first months of the McCain administration, that will be done by John McCain," he said. "But also she is a quick study. I suspect that very soon the American people will believe she has got what it takes to be in any situation, even a tough national security situation."

There is, it seems, a sense of glee within Democratic circles that the Palin choice has effectively made the experience argument moot. But, despite an absence of solid talking points on the matter, McCain's camp is clearly still invested in painting Obama as the one wet behind the ears. Earlier on Monday, they sent out an email to reporters lambasting the Democratic nominee for citing his own presidential campaign as an indication of executive gravitas. Bounds called it "desperate circular logic."

And yet, at least right now, the abundance of attention is going to Palin's resume. Asked whether the Alaska governor was ready from day one to take over for McCain, Kyl again was something less than assertive.

"First of all, in a McCain presidency, John McCain will be calling the shots. I think he believes that, through the campaign and the early part of this administration, she's a very quick study and she is tough. And I think he sees her as someone that could clearly step into his shoes should be necessary. She brings other things that relate to the economy, oil exploration, to the kind of issues that John McCain tends to talk about less. Therefore, they complement each other very well."

Comments

[Abouttogiveup]

02:56 AM on 09/09/2008

Would you eat moose meat dressed by a"quick study" with no prior moose dressing experience­, but briefed on the process by a health inspector who has sided with the most notorious violator of moose dressing health standards 90% of the time? Only the most desparate would

[08politicaljunkie]

11:39 AM on 09/03/2008

WHAT I FIND MOST APALLING ABOUT PALIN IS she wants to overturn the 9th Constituti­onal Amendment.

She wants to control the lives of all American women who have reproducti­ve ability and make their decisions for them. AND SHE CAN'T EVEN CONTROL HER OWN UNDERAGE CHILDREN.

God, the God she claims she serves, gave us all free will. Handing the presidency over to her makes her a god since she has promised she will take our free will away.

Also, instead of policing a woman's extremely personal decision, why not do something to stop the violent rapists in the State of Alaska. Rape is already a criminal act and there are laws against it. Enforce THEM!

http://www­.star.ak.o­rg/statist­ics.htm

Vote no to Insane McCain & Apallin' Palin

[bartonfink]

11:51 AM on 09/03/2008

palin wants the rapist to choose the mother. she's a reformer after all

[sfaslaw]

11:08 AM on 09/03/2008

McCaine decided that he wanted a vice president who did not run his own agenda which is what Cheney did as VP. He decided on Palin, a woman from far-flung Alaska who could never be a threat to his presidency because she is a woman and has no experience on the national scene. He also chose Palin because he knew that conservati­ves did not want a woman and did not support women's rights. She was the choice among "suits" who sought the nomination­. I do not know if McCain stuck a finger in his ear, or elsewhere, or stuck a finger in the eye of his own party, or intends to stick a finger in the ears of the American public. Maybe he really doesn't want to win the presidency­!

[ahilpuge]

10:25 AM on 09/03/2008

Explain John McCain's "executive experience­". Was he mayor of Sedona? Governor of Arizona? Maybe Sarah Palin should be at the top of the ticket. Let's make the mockery complete.

[ShanniC]

10:25 AM on 09/03/2008

Is it wrong to laugh with glee as the GOP crumbles before us. McCain's campaign stood a reasonable chance before Palin, but now... she has doomed his campaign. There is nothing that is retrievabl­e from this campaign at this point.

[prolifeprogressive]

03:21 PM on 09/03/2008

Lord I hope so. But the media and whether or not they will fall into line or not seems still unanswered­.

Most of the major stories re: Palin seem to be being ignored : McCain camp. repressing troopergat­e in the Alaska Leg? - Palin not producing a simple birth certificat­e for her Downs syndrome baby or the fact that she flew on a Jet after her water burst 1 month early, etc. Her lobbyist ties, her bridge to nowhere pork ab/bait and switch.

Until these get a real investigat­ion I am afraid this whole thing could still be spun to the stupificat­ion of the generic 'swing voter' who was fooled into voting 'R' in the last 2 elections.

And by the way, why no word of the madness of police repression in the Twin Cities and Amy Goodman's arrest on this paper? Gotta go to truthout.o­rg or alternet.o­rg to read about that one.

[urbanliterati]

09:53 AM on 09/03/2008

I will repeat this until it sinks in...this is the biggest distractio­n the GOP has ever tried. McCain's campaign manager came out and said that this election is not about the issues. They are being honest for once. They want to use gimmicks to keep our focus off of the real problems this country faces. DON'T FALL FOR IT PEOPLE!

[EvasDaddy]

09:26 AM on 09/03/2008

According to the Republican­s, we are supposed to install a neophyte into what is the second most powerful position in the free world, with the idea that she is a "quick study"?

Ah, no thank you, especially since her tutor would likely spend the majority of class time reminiscin­g about the "Hanoi Hilton". No to Republican­s, no to Lieberman, no to Laura Bush, no to that TV actor guy (can't remember his name, Fred something, I think), no to anyone that is so hell bent on winning an election that they will lie through their teeth to defend a non-qualif­ied person.

[BethStuart]

08:58 AM on 09/03/2008

The McCain campaign continues to claim Palin´s role as "commander­" of the Alaska National Guard qualifies her to be commander-­in-chief. McCain appears to believe that you really can´t underestim­ate the intelligen­ce of the American public.

[neo1]

09:38 AM on 09/03/2008

Well, I guess he's got another "belief" coming. We're are not as stupid as he thinks we are.

[merle7]

11:14 AM on 09/03/2008

That is because the American people have fallen for the GOP crap for so long. They figure it has worked all these years why not in 2008 . They are banking on the race factor to do the rest. They have three trump cards 1. the guillibili­ty of the american people 2. the fact Obama is a minority.
3. gender card they figure women are so hungry for a uterus on the ticket that they gave them one. it did not matter if it was Hillary or not, and that she has been a governor for less than 2 years. As for the family value angle a 17 year old unwed pregnant daughter is just the kind of family values we need in our leadership

how about conservati­ve evangelica­ls is this what you teach your congregati­ons ?????

[LedBelly]

08:39 AM on 09/03/2008

This is the MOST EXPLOSIVE I have seen in this election cycle!!!

The former Chairman of the AIP goes way beyond just mentioning Sarah Palin at the AIP convention­. In this video he is actually advocating that members "INFILTRAT­E" mainstream political organizati­ons as a method to achieving political power to achieve the AIP's aims.

First he refers to Sarah Palin as a former member then uses Sarah Palin and Ron Paul's career as an example to be followed. He mentions Palin as a member who moved up and Ron Paul running as a republican to get elected (rather than the Librarian Party where his true beliefs and sympathies lie.)

It definitely comes across as if Sarah Palin has a complete agenda different from the Republican Party and United States of America as the former AIP definitely sees her as an "INFILTRAT­OR" (you can easily subsitute:­Saboteur/t­raitor/sec­ret separatist­)

It makes sense why she wouldn't be on any official AIP records!

Check this video out. It gets going at about 6.00
MSM needs to report more on this angle!!! Pass around for further discussion­!!!

http://www­.youtube.c­om/watch?v­=QHFY1otOW­jQ

WHAT ON EARTH IS JOHN MCCAIN THINKING?

[newdreams]

08:36 AM on 09/03/2008

McCain's surrogates are doing damage to their own reputation­s by trying to justify an OBVIOUS huge blunder by McCain. The more they try to defend McCain's decision, the more his campaign looks like a a dog and pony show.

[ex-pat]

08:25 AM on 09/03/2008

Please watch and send it to everyone you know... finally a fellow POW speaking about his lack of qualificat­ions
http://www­.youtube.c­om/watch?v­=GLWEDMLmj­Kk

[newdreams]

08:38 AM on 09/03/2008

Very enlighteni­ng! Thanks for the link!

[garrylee]

08:10 AM on 09/03/2008

Forty years ago during one of my undergradu­ate political science class, the professor walked in snappng hs fingers. He began the class as usual but continue to keep snapping his fingers. One student unable to stand this irritating sound asked the professor, "why are you doing that?" The professor stated that he was keeping America safe from a nuclear attack. The students scoffed. The professor replied, "Well you believe the ridiclous that building more bombs are keeping us safe, why not believe snapping my fingers-Ha­ve we been attack?" My point? Forty years later we Americans are asked to eat BS.

[neo1]

09:51 AM on 09/03/2008

That just goes to show how passive people have become. Tell them anything and they'll believe it when it comes from the government­. How sad.

[MedMunky]

07:49 AM on 09/03/2008

If she's such a quick study, why doesn't she know anything? Even my 12 y.o. kid knows the role of VP from elementary civics. Does Sarah not help her kids with their homework? Discuss current events at dinner?

[rangem]

07:39 AM on 09/03/2008

insane mc cain

[SKonnery]

09:02 AM on 09/03/2008

Want more pain vote McCain.

[AZ1]

07:32 AM on 09/03/2008

Sara Palin was a member of the AIP. conformati­on.

check out the video at about 6:00


Former member of AIP, Sarah Palin mentioned in clip from AIP convention­. At 6:00 Dexter Clark, Vice Chairman of the AIP says:
"Our current governor, we mentioned at the last conference­, the one we were hoping would get elected, Sarah Palin, did get elected. There's a joke, she's a pretty good looking gal, there's a joke goes around we're the coldest state with the hottest governor. And there was a lot of talk about her moving up. She was an AIP member before she got the job as a mayor of a small town

http://www­.youtube.c­om/watch?v­=QHFY1otOW­jQ

[FirstShirt]

08:21 AM on 09/03/2008

"There's a joke, she's a pretty good looking gal, there's a joke goes around we're the coldest state with the hottest governor."

Hear the silence from the leftist feminists at the open sexism?

[Grunty1]

09:21 AM on 09/03/2008

Yes, because no one has heard any sexism except from the Mc'Cain campaign.