Gibson on Palin: Too Bad Russert Isn't Around

ABC's Palin-Gibson interview was everything people hoped for - no matter which side you're on.

For the we're moving-to-Canada-if-she-wins crowd, the fears that Uncle Charlie would play softball with the new political celeb were unfounded. The man stepped up to the plate. He dealt with all the current front-burner issues. He was tenacious, sometimes asking the same question three times. And when he told her he was "lost in a blizzard of words," you could hear the cheers from Obamanians across the land.

And if you hoped Mrs. Palin's "American Idol" status would be shaken, you got it. The Bush Doctrine - what's that? Invade Russia - possibly? Many of her answers sounded rote and spin-based. At times, the annoyingly confident candidate looked nervous, unsure and not ready for prime-time. YES!

However, for the 'Palin-as-Super-Hero' crowd, her first national news interview was a re-affirmation of McCain's prescient casting of his presidential understudy, ready to go on if the old warrior can't show up. She confidently answered the questions she knew were coming and evaded the nasty ones, effectively pivoting back to her talking points. The lady's got spunk. If there's any criticism, it should be directed at the pompous, impatient professor Gibson, looking condescendingly over his glasses like the 'girl' was failing this important exam. But what do you expect from the eastern media elites who are trying to tear her down?

See, everybody walks away from this media event well satisfied. Except, perhaps, for those much sought-after independants who would prefer tenacious questioning minus any haughty overlay that tends to color and skew the outcome. Oh, Tim Russert, you are missed now, more than ever.