Student Who Quizzed Palin On Pakistan: Her Handlers Are "Tyrannical"

Surprised (and upset) we missed this one. On Monday, Michael Smerconish, the never under-stated radio talk show host, had on his program the Temple Grad student who got Sarah Palin to say that she supported cross border raids into Pakistan even without that country's consent.

Palin's statement drew a lot of buzz, not simply because it mirrored the position of Barack Obama, but because it flew in the face of the alleged caution that John McCain preaches when it comes to talking about Pakistan. As such, the McCain campaign was quick to denounce the whole episode as "gotcha journalism."

Asked about it all, the student, Michael Rovito, was nearly apoplectic at the notion that questions for a vice presidential candidate were somehow inherently unfair.

"My dad and my uncle are kind of mocking me," he recalled. "My dad is saying 'Shut up, shut up.' I was like, 'No, I'm not going to shut up. If she is the vice presidential candidate I'm going to be paying her salary with my taxes. She needs to answer this question... It wasn't until she pulled away that I was like 'God, she just said what Obama says.'"

At this point, Smerconish jumped in, airing his own displeasure with how the McCain campaign has handled Palin's roll out, vis a vis the media: "This idea that she shouldn't be out there answering questions is insane... they are putting her in such short pants, they are not doing her any favor, meaning the advisers."

"It is tyrannical," replied Rovito. "It is bordering on tyranny, where we can't have these presidential and vice presidential ... candidates now, they aren't accountable, they aren't answering any questions. I think it is tyrannical ... they can't be shielding her, shifting her off to Arizona and some desert just to coach her on what to say on Thursday."

Tyranny may be a bit of an overstatement. In fact, in the end, McCain's sheltering could help Palin during the debate. As Smerconish noted, "The perception is only enhanced that she can't handle it... the expectations will be so low that if she simply hangs in there, people will say: 'Hey not as bad as I thought.'"

Listen to the interview here.

COMPLETE VP DEBATE COVERAGE: BIDEN PALIN VIDEO, HIGHLIGHTS

Comments

[ElectricSlim]

She will be wired. If her hair is over her ears consider her cheating.

[SunshineDaydream]

ita. if her hair is down, something is up.

[neocon666]

At first I thought a wireless be to Palin's advantage, but believe me, it can only help Biden. She'd only end up getting confused and debating herself on stage.

[OurKoan]

Hack the freq. and jam it. Or replace it with some nonsense. What fun!!!

[JodyMcg]

I agree. Isn't there any way to check her for wires? Will the American public ever really know or will it always be speculation? Can it ever really be proven??? Can't someone cause feedback..­. come on people!!! I wan't her to say during the debate... that's too loud in my ear! Isn't that cheating? The RNC always plays dirtly. I bet Rove is feeding her answers. ... I bet she delays each answer till she hears it.

[PioneerKing]

“It's a sad truth that right now, the McCain campaign is less real than a reality show.”
“If politicians heard straight talk from the Project Runway reality show judges, here is what Sarah might hear from Heidi Klum:”
"We asked you to define the Bush Doctrine and you couldn't. We asked you to talk about the bailout plan and you couldn't. We asked you to name a newspaper you read, and you couldn't. We asked you to name a Supreme Court case and you couldn't. We asked for answers and you give us nonsense. We asked for new ideas but you and McCain give us the same old ideas of George Bush. Without a script, you have no idea what you're taking about. The rest of the time you give us lies. You claim you said "no thanks" to that Bridge to Nowhere? We say, "no thanks" to you."

"Sarah -- you're out. Auf Wiedersehe­n."
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/darryle-pollack/why-heidi-klum-should-mod_b_131101.html

[eden4barack08]

" We asked you about Hamas, and you don't even know who they are!"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5Y1oYThKts

[kc1963]

no she didn't, she said she liked it spread on a triscuit

[lthuedk 1]

Sarah seeks authority. She finds it in the Neo Conservative ideologues and Bush-McCain enablers.
Does Sarah really not know how extreme McCain's comrades are? And if she does know?

Again, we the people get an alleged clean slate, just like Bush. That's not change but continuing totalitarianism.

http://www.light-to-dark.com/palin_speaks_to_god.html

[Aylah95]

My opinion is perhaps naive but I think enough attention has been cast lately on her inability to answer a question (through denseness and/or or deceptiveness) that unless she delivers real answers people are going to see her as nothing more than a living breathing SNL persona. I think she is about to fall through the thin ice she has been skating on. And dare I say, Katie Couric played a part in the solidification of this woman as a farce. Never saw that coming. (My apologies Mrs. Couric)

[obamagal]

I'm crossing my fingers you are right. I've thought of it from that angle as well.

I think many of us are nervous because of what happened during the last two elections. Hopefully what will happen in 2008 will be a repeat of 2006 - Americans proved Rove was wrong, and did not have the pulse of the country.

I'm also hopeful enough people have seen snippets of the Couric interviews, saw Charlie Gibson's and SNL skits to realize Palin is completely unsuitable­... that there will be enough of us to have the common sense to know someone can't learn and grasp all there is to know after a few days of marathon cramming. If so, they, like most of us here, will be listening carefully for the non-answers she will be giving, and disregard her gimmicks. We know that's her angle and forewarned is forearmed, as they say.

Lastly, it is my hope that at the end of the 90 minutes the insta-polls will indicate the candidate with the actual knowledge and credentials won, just like last Friday, whether or not the punditry, once again, gets it wrong.

[prscnt1]

I bet they will have bone buzzre between her boobs!

[Jules1]

In answer to Gladys46, McCain and palin belong together, they treat people the same,
Read and weep for the people, pass it around.

http://www.cain2008.org


http://blackmesais.org/McCain_bill0805.htm

[ominous]

How dare you ask questions of the golden one!

[philosopherkingtomas]

ask polar bear hater the following:

how old is planet earth?
what is the Wasilla state song?
how about the seperation of Alaska from USA?
looking forward to the end of the world?
briefs or boxers?

[gevan]

As for the separation of Alaska from the United States, it's Canada's fault. . . and President Polk for not fighting for fifty-four forty.

[Skyeblue]

SHE says the press is censoring her? Does she think that the McCain campaign "handlers" are the press??

[obamagal]

I caught that right away too.... amazing.

[bail me out]

I said it before and I say it again:

McCain has nothing to lose. He knows the elections is lost, so he has nothing to lose. So he is betting on Palin. He is basically a suicide bomber!

[gladys46]

Exactly ... and we're all forced to play Sarah's game .. "Stump The Candidate" tonite !!

[JeremyO]

The Komikaze type or a Bin Laden boy? They both end badly.

[roshni]

Thank you Michael - you are our unspoken hero and have helped reveal Sarah's ignorance. I hope on election day you are rewarded for your service to our country as people laugh her off the ballot.

[luckyoldson]

I predict she crashes and burns...wh­y?

Because, unlike scripted speeches and talking point, a moderator is going to ask a follow up to a response..­.and that's where she's going to get in trouble.

Explaining what she said or meant to say.

[eden4barack08]

She'll just pivot and repeat herself.

[obamagal]

Let's hope. Ifill, from all accounts, is a very thorough and impartial journalist. No doubt McCain's camp knows this and are afraid she will do as Katie Couric did, namely ask for an explanation, ask for specifics. That fits in very will with them stating they hope Ifill doesn't ask her too many foreign affairs questions, and the right blogosphere trying to paint Ifill as biased towards Obama.

I was waiting for it; I figured they'd insinuate race into the equation. At least I wasn't disappointed.

[gladys46]

Palin is as bad as I think ... seeing the filming of Alaskan aboriginals (those people reportedly she calls "artic arabs") existing in shanties without running water or sewage systems while she & others live as kings & queens of Alaska was enough for me to place her in my criminal columns! Couple that with the miseducation of high school students ... all children of Alaska it seems and her rediculous stance on rape/incest resultant pregnancies puts the lid on her nonsense!!! I find nothing beautiful or even cute about Palin.

IMO, if Biden just stands there ... I will be satisfied that this one debate is over !!! On to an Obama/Biden election in Nov.

[jcrush]

I'm setting the bar as high as hell for Palin. She has PROVEN hand over fist that she is unprepared and vastly underqualified. That is a reinforced fact. She has got some incredible work to do. The bar I'm setting is so high that she's gonna need to take Joe's bar and pole vault over it. No joke.

[ObamanextPresident]

I think the majority of Americans agree with you. I sure do! It is only the corp media in the tank for Mc Pain that set it low.

[MMJones]

'No, I'm not going to shut up. If she is the vice presidential candidate I'm going to be paying her salary with my taxes."

Exactly!!! The kids have it in this election!!!

Would that our media all across the board would get busy with the hard questions and quit being so mealymouthed!!!

[gladys46]

Thankfully MSM has finally reported that Palin has lost the support of women ... many were totally against her early on:

http://womenagainstsarahpalin.blogspot.com/