Top McCain Aides: 'Palin Simply Knew Nothing About National And International Issues'

The McCain campaign continues to snipe at each other over the handling, and subsequent effect, of Sarah Palin on the campaign trail. According Nicole Wallace, a senior McCain aide who is one of Palin's handlers and helped to orchestrate her initial rollout, there is an 'organized campaign to lay blame' for things at her feet. Robert Draper, however, offers a defense of Wallace, saying she's kept quiet about things that a couple of McCain higher-ups have leaked to him, and that Wallace was in a very unenviable position:

I'm sympathetic to Eskew and Wallace, and not just because they're decent people. They've held their tongue from leaking what a couple of McCain higher-ups have told me--namely, that Palin simply knew nothing about national and international issues. Which meant, as one such adviser said to me: "Letting Sarah be Sarah may not be such a good thing." It's a grim binary choice, but apparently it came down to whether to make Palin look like a scripted robot or an unscripted ignoramus. I was told that Palin chafed at being defined by her discomfiting performances in the Couric, Charlie Gibson, and Sean Hannity interviews. She wanted to get back out there and do more. Well, if you're Eskew and Wallace, what do you say to that? Your responsibility isn't the care and feeding of Sarah Palin's ego; it's the furtherance of John McCain's quest for the presidency.

Draper also reports that McCain snubbed Palin during a long ride on the Straight Talk Express.

Comments

[DirkdenHartogForObama]

Simpleminded, Plastic, ignorant, gullible and naive.....­..........­......thes­e are terms attributed to ''some' Americans by us around the world.

The trolls here perfectly exemplify those things.

[Theholyspook]

Living in Japan I hear lots of things about Americans.­. the ones you just listed never come up,, Let's hope that Obama gets in and can change things once again. 8 years of B ush has been enough for the rest of us.. We still believe that the REAL America will show up once again..

[brandon102]

If they don't want any more Sarah Palins, the GOP has to jettison their "base." Having to please a large and very vocal group of ignorant savages, namely Evangelical Christians and their "with us or danmed to hell" attitudes re: abortion, creationism, scientific research, alternate sexualities, limiting women's reproductive choices to none, and suspicion of intelligence in general, has cost the Republicans dearly and elevates things like Sarah Palin (who brings with her the bonus of whitchcraft!) , whereas much better choices, like Mitt Romney or even Joe Lieberman, were not even possible.

[DevRock]

If they did that, I'd even vote Republican occasionally. Hell, I voted for Jodi Rell last time around. But here in CT, we have more "normal" Republicans, not those Evangelical nutjobs like in the south and mid-west.

[balrog221]

Agree but, Joe the Liberman and Mitt are zealots as well. We needed pragmatists like Powell and Lugar. I thought Mc Cain was one, but the Maverick was roped and tied to the koolaid trough. Evangelicals have a one issue campaign going... pick up those Supreme Court seats at any cost. Country First is laughable.

[suzonne]

Why do so many refer to Palin as the next leader of the GOP party? Are they all ignoramouses?

[smark]

Yup, yup. Sadly so.

[LHoney]

sad for whom? I'm delighted!!!!

[greeniefromOH]

Someone referred to her as "the new Ronald Reagan". WTF?

She's no Ronald Reagan.

[wltdnfaded]

Yes.

[Blue in NH]

did you mean ignoramice??

[balrog221]

Not all of us are voting for her... some of us can see what is before our very eyes without consulting FOX or the scriptures. Powell, Weld, and many others are appalled as am I.

[loril]

The selection of Palin makes me think that the GOP really wants to throw this election. How could they conduct such a clueless campaign? Methinks the mess BushCo made is so overwhelming that the GOP insiders/kingmakers don't want one of their boys to be the one to clean it all up (and make some very unpopular decisions along the way.) We've seen Republican destruction before in our historic cycles. They are out of office for many years while the country pulls itself back together. Then, when everything starts looking sunny again and "Joe the Plumber" starts getting the sense that he "can make it big"...the GOP rolls into town and tells the average Joe how big guvmint is holding him back from vast riches. Joe Public generally buys into the narrative and then we get another Republican Era.

I am supporting Obama and certainly hope he wins. I supported Kerry and Gore before him. However, I honestly think that, this time, the Repubs are trying to lose it.

[balrog221]

um, I appreciate your cynicism, but I dont agree. They will try and are trying everything to win. The Supreme Court appointments are what the "real americans want more than anything. Next President may appoint 2,

[hortonhearsawho]

when does she speak this morning, we need new material..­.and she delivers.

[djsue]

Palin started lobbying for herself when several GOP V.I.Ps went to Alaska in January 2008. That is how they found out about her.

So, that means that she had 7 months to study and learn all that she could about national and international issues, just in case she got the nod. They call that being prepared. She did nothing. This is what she would have to be if she were the vice president. I don't know what is worse, not being prepared or lying about being prepared.

Every time she opens her mouth and acts likes she knows what is going on, I cringe and shake my head because so many of her followers want the Republicans to stay in power so bad, that they have convinced themselves that she is fit.

It is willingness to believe anything and everything that got us into the situation that our country is in now.

[LisaLisa1234]

I can understand why she didn't take the time to learn--she had a newborn. After my 3rd child was born, I was practically useless for awhile. The first two are one thing...af­ter 2 it's a whole new ball game.

What I can't believe is that given that situation, she "didn't blink" and thought she had to jump at this chance now, as if she wouldn't have another down the line.

Ambition can surely blind.

[Audioman]

Why the Republicans are in such a hurry to hand over the post-election mantle to this empty suit lame brain is beyond me. As they remake their party after getting their electoral clocks cleaned, I can't believe that they will seriously cast their lot with her.

If they do, they are beyond clueless.

[Princeton]

Palin is only good for getting the ignorant vote.

[timberdoodle]

Judging from comments and Republican rally crowds your ignorant comment seems to apply to most of these participants.

[Blue in NH]

The ignorant vote IS the Republican base. They are people who vote against their own economic self interest in the name of religion. That's why McCain chose her.

[vegancheesenut]

I think you are spot on........­.but I will call them the "uninformed"

[LesserFool2]

If her role was to inspire the base, she didn't have to be too smart. Which is why she has succeeded so well in that role.

If her role was to attract independents (esp. women), she had to have some depth and breadth of knowledge. In that role, she failed miserably. She not only does not know very much. She's incapable of thinking on her feet.

The only thing Ms. Palin seems to do well is spew out divisive rhetoric and energize the inner demons in people.

McCain wanted to have his cake and eat it too -- a V.P. to inspire the base and attract independents.

With Sarah Palin, he only got half; and it wasn't the better half.

Where was the base to go? Obama?

There was far more opportunity to inspire independents to go with McCain, especially given his prior appeal to independents.

But instead, he scared them away with a V.P. pick that caused them to run away from a candidate who made such a poor choice.

The Maverick abondoned his instincts when he decided to pander to the "agents of intolerance" within the GOP.

The awful legacy of McCain may be to inspire a new generation of the GOP dominated by the "agents of intolerance" that he railed against in 2000. McCain should have trusted his gutt and the wisdom of Barry Goldwater to rid the GOP of its dependence on anti-intellectuals and religious intolerants.

[lybabash]

Well said.

[gi]

the THRUTH will set YOU FREE!

[LisaLisa1234]

So true. For me, as an independent, those seeds of doubt were sown when I saw the Republican National Convention. After seeing an unbelievably inspiring & uplifing Democratic Convention, I had to keep the bile down watching the RNC...and then, I thought, here comes Sarah.

At first, I thought, "Wow". Then, she became snide, sarcastic, and deceitful. It turned my stomach, and it turned me off McCain. Right then & there.

His campaign has only put the final nails in the coffin for me.

[gi]

Well said but don't blame Sarah Palin blame McCain.

[Wiserone]

If the GOP wants to survive as a viable party it has to reconstitute itself around moderates. The first order of business after the election is to cut off Palin like the malignant cancer she is. Bigotry, provincialism, and ignorance will not serve the GOP well in the coming decade, as the US electorate gets more and more moderate and centrist every election cycle. The control of the party by far-right social conservatives needs to be broken and it starts with LIMPbaugh and Hannity mouthpieces.

[hlk46]

What's sad is that McCain used to be thought of as one of those moderates. There was even some talk of Kerry choosing him as a running mate in 04. Now look at him. Until the puppeteers of the Republican party give up their dream of a new third reich, they will not be able to rebuild their party into something that is good for America.

[balrog221]

he lost me immediatel­y... and I voted for W, twice

[Shake-A-Spear]

.Anyone would have a problem trying to make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
Sarah Palin is McCain's Pygmalion who's now morphed into a female Frankenstein monster..
He opened Pandora's Box and now he can't coax Sarah Pandora back into it.
He's reaped the whirlwind he sowed -- hoist by his own Palin petard.

[gappedtoothgodwarrior]

I think you mean Palin is either McCain's Galatea or Eliza Doolitle, Pygmalion is the man. ;)

[Shake-A-Spear]

Right you are! Make it Palin is McCain's Eliza Doolittle. (He said, "I think she's got it!" too soon.)

[JungleRoses]

Duh! Maybe McCain was only dreaming of nailing Palin and he forgot about the election?

[Pupadup4oBama]

The way he was playing with his ring finger - you are probably right!

[Pat-GA]

It does appear to be uniquely American to not want leaders who are intelligent, can grasp issues readily, and have a strong basic understanding of not only American history, but history all over the world.

The desire to elect people that 'you can have a beer with' or who speak 'like the common man' is something other countries don't appear to want in their leaders. Other countries seem to want leaders who are exceptional, per se.

Pat-GA

[Ritmo67]

I think this trait is uniquely Republican. Why? Because their base apparently is motivated by this approach - a celebration of ignorance; stupidity even. Not for the life of me can I understand this.

[VSamuels]

Nonsense.

Most of America's business community---which is uniquely American----hire based on intelligence and performance, although 'who you know is also present' one's merits still are a very important factor in getting and staying ahead. I believe the idea that some people choose to elect the person one can have a beer with, is a manufactured 'notion' pushed by the cultural right, who in selling their poisonous 'cultural wars' found some synergy with using the model of the everyday 'Joe' or 'Jane' to hammer their point clear. Palin is merely then, a medium in which they can push the white blue collar worker towards ignoring their economic interests and voting for matters in which in most cases, they do not have the requisite votes to change public policy. Last election, at least 14% of blacks voted for Bush based on the issue of homosexuality, yet after 8 years we have seen more of a push towards the inclusion of gay marriages, rather than a Bush lead plan to eliminate them.

The republicans have gimmicized the campaign model to fit how they push issues; and it has worked by in large, but in no way does it reflect the millions of folks who still believe that our highest elected office holder should be smarter than the general public. Some people were fooled, but thankfully many of them have now opened their eyes to the reality of the gamesmanship.

[Wilbur]

They didn't have to add the words "...about national and international issues." They would've been completely accurate with the statement if they'd stopped after the word "nothing."

Wilbur

[OpinionsRMine]

We already knew she didn't know anything about national or internation issues...w­hy didn't any of them stop this madness before it started??

[Wiserone]

Because the GOP thinks voters are bascially stupid and they ran the same type of campaign that GW Bush did i.e. Rovian and not having a clue HOW the political landscape has changed.

[betweenextremes]

As much as I am underwhelmed by Sarah Palin, lets not forget who made the flawed decision and put her on the national stage in the first place: John McCain. If that's a preview of "the change that's coming" (Palin's words), he is not fit to be President.

[Jesster]

I blame both of them: McCain for making this reckless and irresponsible choice and Palin for not only accepting the offer, but according to numerous sources, she actively pursued the VP slot.

To my mind, this proves that neither one of them "puts country first."

[Sailing6Seas]

I blame McCain more than I blame Palin. Palin doesn't know how much she doesn't know, so she had no frame of reference to realize that it was irresponsible to accept the offer.