Laura Bush: Palin Lacks Foreign Policy Experience

WASHINGTON — First lady Laura Bush said Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin lacks sufficient foreign policy experience but is a very quick study.

In an interview Wednesday with CNN, the first lady remarked that it's fortunate that Republican presidential nominee John McCain has foreign policy experience himself.

Still, Mrs. Bush said she has a lot of confidence in Palin. She said the Alaska governor has a lot of good common sense, and the first lady added that she is thrilled to have a chance to vote for Palin on the GOP ticket.

Mrs. Bush also said she thinks Palin is being treated unfairly because she is a woman. That, the first lady said, is to be expected.

Comments

[mnkors]

Mrs. Bush was happy to rename a maternity ward in Afghanistan after her own name: The Laura Bush Maternity Ward. But when no money had been allocated, the puny $250.000 - for almost a year! - and the women were dying by a dozen every month because of the lack in of medical supply, no running water and such, Mrs. Bush preferred not to care about the ward.

She stood with her husband while he was implementing the most horrendous actions

[CalifroniaMark]

I for one am sooooooooo fed up with the "Palin being treated unfairly because She is a Woman B.S" If it were a Man as ignorant and unqualified as Palin it would be okay to say so?

If Palin wants to stomp with the big dogs then she is going to have to pull her own like a Man would have to do in the same postition. No one is going to lower the bar so She can jump over it simply because She is wearing a skirt.

[bamboozled]

Dead on. As much as I may not agree with Condi Rice, she's never had a parade of crybabies following her around whining, "Give her a break. She's just a woman."

Frankly, it's offensive to women. If she truly is qualified, let her answer her own questions.

People have been slamming Obama for not being qualified, yet there he is, day-in and day-out, responding to tough questions, countering everything he's ever said on record, and everything he's ever voted for, plus all the rumors and lies that are being thrown at him. He's never shied away or started whining because he's black and people are being too hard on him.

Do we need another 8 years of a President and Vice President who will only ever speak to the press when they're guaranteed to get a softball thrown by Sean Hannity?

[Bitsko]

Gov. Palin certainly is a very quick study. You've never seen anyone take to flying a Pterodactyl so quickly.

[doug108]

Still, Mrs. Bush says she has a lot of confidence in Palin. She says the Alaska governor has a lot of good common sense, and she smells nice, too.

[70sFez]

And her hair is real purdy.

[outsider64]

This is Carly Fiorina offense. Laura is out of McCain campaign as of now.

[BannedInBoston]

M-e-e-e-e-OW!

[Deputy Dawg]

She looked like she was made out of porcelain. Why do First Ladies age so badly?

[BannedInBoston]

Heavy sedation

[jsomerville5]

I think she looks very good. It's her husband who has aged badly,not Laura.

[calijon]

if u were married to the most hated president in history what would u look like.

:)

[tregibbs]

I wrote this before and I'll write it again - despite her politics, I actually "like" Laura Bush. Don't ask me why, but I do.

Obama 08 !!

[newunderground]

She put herself through college selling weed, maybe that's why.

[calijon]

i liked her before, i love her now

[Bitsko]

I feel about Laura Bush the same way I felt about Pat Nixon: I pity the both of them.

[jupitor]

I reallly like laura Bush/but she's wrong on this! Shame on her, she knows better!

[doug108]

All the Republicans know better; They just don't care. It's not about good governance. They just want the power. Besides, you don't have to be good at foreign policy when your approach to foreign affairs consists solely of pointing a gun at people and making demands.

[Roschelle]

Katie Couric/Sarah Palin interview.­.....she's sooooo ill-equipped!

http://roschellenelson.blogspot.com/2008/09/sarah-palin-katie-couric-interview.html

[doug108]

Which one?

[seachild]

i just watched that...!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!

will pass this on ALL AROUND...

unbelievab­le...'i'll get back to ya'

[keepacoolhead]

Any comments what would happen if Palin was the Democratic nominee... .

And Laura, why are they trying to postpone the VP debates too, so Sarah has more time to cram what she doesn't know?

This all smells awfully fishy to the American People. Trying to fool us again, huh?

[pavroviandog]

300 million people and we couldn't find ONE who didn't have to take a crash course in foreign policy????
America, what have they done to you!

[Rashnak]

As I recall Bill Clinton had zero foreign policy experience. But you would not remember that, would you?

[peterperfect]

but at least bill had a reel educachion, he woz a rose scollar

[spartanspirit]

"First lady Laura Bush speaks at The White House symposium on Advancing Global Literacy"

Think "W" was trying to copy Sarah's notes.

[doug108]

Good Lord. If she really cared about that, she wouldn't be, and have married, a Republican.

[zoetrope]

A very charitable quote from our First Lady.
The fact is that She has more Foreign Policy experience than this "chick" from Alaska who posses a most recent passport.
SHAME!

[eMJayy]

Isn't it funny?

On the one hand they complain that Obama doesn't have ENOUGH experience to handle the country, even though he has more than enough KNOWLEDGE and education to do the job, and that he's going to be surrounded by experienced and knowledgeable advisers, as ALL presidents have been.

On the other hand we have Palin, who has 20 months of executive experience running a very small state which is really an atypical state when compared to the 'lower 49'. She isn't able to demonstrate any real knowledge of domestic or international issues and doesn't have the educational background that will allow her to expand her knowledge to the level that Obama or Biden currently have. She doesn't have enough knowledge to hold her own in a real interview. She can work a script but so can Hollywood. So why would anyone thinking logically assume that she will have enough knowledge to manage the VP office, which will be far more demanding a routine interview with the press?

My point - if you don't have the requisite knowledge, your experiences are less valuable because you'll forever be playing catch-up and hide-and-seek when things get tough....we've had 8 years of games already. It's time to get serious because times are getting serious.

[whitegoldwielder]

"On the other hand we have Palin, who has 20 months of executive experience running a very small state which is really an atypical state when compared to the 'lower 49'."

A couple of points:

1. She is running a state. Obama has run a campaign and that's about it.

2. He is running for the top spot with nothing but a smile. Talk about games. You guys tapped a zero with a good rap.

[eMJayy]

So, running a state and then a country with an brain devoid of any formal knowledge of what she's actually doing is supposed to be better than running a country using university-level training in foreign policy, law, the constitution and government, coupled with experience in the legislature? That's the kind of thinking is what i would expect from a third-world country, not here. And people wonder why we don't get better results from our leaders! When you keep picking low quality, you reap low quality.

[markus19]

1. Bush ran a state for 6 years and he has the lowest approval rating in history. Fallacious argument.

2. Ridiculous simplification. That "zero" has more of the country behind him than McCain precisely because he has what McCain lacks - judgment.

[dcree77]

Your answers are about as shallow as Palin's. She is "running" a state where the government ment pays every individual over $2,000 to live there. He big accomplishment? Pay them an additional $1,200 more. She does not have to weigh the competing needs of the population and allocate scare resources. She just has to raise taxes on the oil companies. She bravely used the line item veto to attempt to cut spending only to have those cuts restored by the legislature.

You spouting off republican talking points does not demonstrate your intellect, it only makes you a parrot.

[NewtonSylmar]

To your first point, that "state" is Alaska. Given the option, I'd sooner repeal the 12th Amendment and give Arnold a shot. At least his state is the largest by population.

To your second point, Dubya ran for the top spot with nothing but the desire of the voting majority to dine with him at a barbeque. I don't know about you, but I want the person who leads me to be smarter than me. If I can whip your tail in Scrabble, you don't get my vote.

[LeaderofMen]

LOL! That, from a person who knows nothing about the Obama campaign or his history.

1. There are more people in the district Obama represented while in the IL senate than are in the entire state of AK.
2. Obama's campaign staff is in the thousands. He runs a multi-million dollar operation. Palin's staff is in the dozens and is NOT in the multi-millions.
3. Palin's state PAYS people to live there. That's called WELFARE. Obama has taken thousands of people OFF welfare in IL.
4. Obama is a Harvard grad. Read: intelligent. He plans for the future. Your future. My future. Our future. Palin went to 5 schools in 6 years and believes the End Times are a' comin' in her lifetime. She plans to be out of here shortly. So, she doesn't care whether you or I live or die.

Uh, what were you saying?