FAILIN' PALIN' STRIKES AGAIN: THIS TIME SHE BOTCHES THE FIRST AMENDMENT

This gets better everyday. It reminds me of a line of dialogue rapper and actor Ludacris said in the film, "Crash," to another character: "You could fill the Staples Center with stuff you don't know." Same thing applies to Hockey Mom. Check it out through this link at salon.com:
salon.com

WHY THEIR STRATEGY WON'T WORK

Kudos to Seattle Post-Intelligencer political cartoonist David Horsey for this excellent and poignant cartoon.

POLLS: WHACK JOB DIVA HELPING MCCAIN TO TITANIC CRASH

How qucikly is whatever is left of Sarah Palin's stock falling? Consider this: a new poll shows that the percentage of Americans who don't believe she is qualified to be vice-president has jumped from 50 to 59 percent -- SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS MONTH!
At this rate, it'll jump at least another point by election day -- and that can only help our cause. Read more in this New York Times story.

newyorktimes.com

HUSH THAT FUSS: ON 'STRAIGHT TALK EXPRESS,' MCAIN MOVED RUNNING MATE TO THE BACK OF THE BUS

MSNBC's Rachel Maddow had it exactly right when she reported earlier tonight on her TV show that the following incident -- first reported by Robert Draper in the following GQ magazine blog entry -- is like "some petty 8th grade drama." Read Draper's blog entry here...

Palin, Alone Aboard the Bus

Almost from the very beginning, the Palin pick created tension.

An armada of handlers descended on McCain’s running mate like the flying monkeys in The Wizard Of Oz. The day after the ticket made its debut, it was August 30 and the campaign staged a rally outside of Pittsburgh, on the field of a minor league baseball team called the Washington Wild Things. I remember seeing Tucker Eskew—an old Bush hand out of South Carolina who had never spent a day in McCain World until Nicolle Wallace recruited him to be Palin’s counselor—wandering around the premises, looking somewhat lost. He and Wallace took charge of schooling the Alaska governor on message discipline. Two days later at the GOP convention, an adviser watched them coach Palin on how to answer routine press questions and warned Steve Schmidt that she was being overly managed. Three weeks later, Wallace arranged for the interview with her former CBS colleague Katie Couric, which proved to be a disaster. Meanwhile, Palin’s debate prep was going miserably, to the point where Schmidt had to peel off from McCain (who was having his own challenges responding to the financial crisis) and join Nicolle’s husband Mark Wallace in simplifying Palin’s prep so as to avert catastrophe. The latter efforts resulted in what one senior adviser would describe to me with palpable relief as “a campaign-saving performance.”

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.

On the other hand, it had to be hard for Sarah Palin—who has achieved all she’s achieved with a highly personal touch—to take all this ridicule under an enforced gag order. After being introduced to the world as one of the “Team of Mavericks,” she’s admonished not to be one. She’s being called out by some McCainites for not cleaving to all of the senator’s positions. The Republicans who fawned over her superstar looks are now shocked—shocked!—to learn that her much-admired wardrobe has been purchased with RNC funds. I’ve heard from one well-placed source that McCain has snubbed her on one long bus ride aboard the Straight Talk Express, to the embarrassment of those sitting nearby. It has surely been implied to the governor that she should be eternally grateful to have been plucked from obscurity. And yet the high water mark of John McCain’s campaign for the presidency unquestionably began on September 3, when Palin gave her nomination speech—and ended precisely twelve days later, when McCain went off-script—I have that on the authority of the person who participated in the writing of said script—and told an audience that he still believed the fundamentals of the economy were strong.

TOP MCCAIN ADVISER'S LATEST DIS: 'SARAH PALIN IS A WHACK JOB'

It's getting to the point where we have to say this stuff is too good for us to be making it up. With every passing day, new insults are being foisted upon Sarah Palin -- by John McCain's own staffers. Yesterday, she was a diva. Today, according to news reports, she's a "whack job." Check out this piece in the Times, a UK newspaper. Better yet, after you read this, do a search on Google for "palin whack job" and you'll find more than 100,000 searches have been done.

timesonline.co.uk

THE GOVERNOR'S NEW CLOTHES: PALIN AND MCCAIN CAMPS TRADE BLAME OVER FASHION FIASCO

Ha, ha, ha! Keep up it up, GOP. Have a free for all. Keep going at it! Fight to the political death for all we care and let the world know that clothing bills are what you're really focused on. You guys are true to your word: Talk about the economy and you'll lose. That's a winning strategy for Barack and Joe.
Here's more on the infighting, from politico.com.
politico.com

NO LOVE FROM HOME: ALASKA'S BIGGEST DAILY PAPER REJECTS PALIN, BACKS OBAMA

"...few who have worked closely with the governor would argue she is truly ready to assume command of the most important, powerful nation on earth. To step in and juggle the demands of an economic meltdown, two deadly wars and a deteriorating climate crisis would stretch the governor beyond her range." --Anchorage Daily News, Sun. Oct. 26, 2008, "Obama for President."

Sweet. Just nine more days left in the national relevancy of the half-baked Alaskan. Start the countdown until the Palins' fairytale snowmobile turns back into a pumpkin and the governor's $150,000 GOP-financed designer gear reverts to rags.
Here's the editorial in today's Anchorage Daily News...
anchoragedailynews.com

PALIN THE 'PIT BULL' IS JERKING THE GOP LEASH -- CAMPAIGN STAFFER SAYS VEEP CANDIDATE IS 'GOING ROGUE'

"'(Palin) is a diva. She takes no advice from anyone...she does not have any relationships of trust with any of us, her family or anyone else. Also she is playing for her own future and sees herself as the next leader of the party. Remember: divas trust only unto themselves as they see themselves as the beginning and end of all wisdom.'" --anonymous John McCain adviser, to CNN.

Sarah Palin showing she has a mind of her own? A dangerous concept. But both CNN and the National Journal are reporting that this may indeed be happening as Palin the self-proclaimed "pit bull" at times jerks on the leash her GOP handlers have held on her and is at times breaking free, often to bad results as she desperately tries to boost her free-falling poll numbers that may drag presidential nominee John McCain down with him. The links to the stories can be found here:

cnn.com
politico.com

PALIN'S DISMISSAL OF FRUIT FLY RESEARCH IN NATIONAL POLICY SPEECH DEBUT IS VP CANDIDATE'S LATEST GAFFE

This is getting to be unbelievable. This candidate is making gaffes faster than we can keep up with and post. Today she tries to play scientist and falls on her face. We should ask her to slow down. On second thought: Naaaaah! It's too darn entertaining! You bet'cha! Check out the latest, fromthinkprogress.org, in text and video.

thinkprogress.org

HOW THEIR MESS WAS MADE: NY TIMES, NEW YORKER DETAIL HOW MCCAIN'S IMPULSIVE, UNINFORMED CHOICE MAY COST HIM AN ELECTION

"...after McCain’s speech brought the convention to a close, one of the campaign’s senior advisers stayed up late at the Hilton bar savoring the triumphant narrative arc. I asked him a rather basic question: 'Leaving aside her actual experience, do you know how informed Governor Palin is about the issues of the day?' The senior adviser thought for a moment. Then he looked up from his beer. 'No,' he said quietly. 'I don’t know.'”
--Robert Draper, the New York Times Magazine, "The Making (and Remaking) of John McCain," Sun. Oct. 26, 2008

It's only 11 days until John McCain may retire to his suite in the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix and rue the day he gambled by picking a running mate so risky it cost him an election victory.
Here are two detailed, fascinating accounts of how the selectiuon unfolded, first in the New Yorker and then in this Sunday's New York Times Magazine. The Times Magazine piece begins its coverage about the Palin pick on Page 5.

newyorker.com
nytimes.com

WHO'S THE BIGGEST MONEY-MAKER THIS MONTH IN MCCAIN CAMPAIGN? SARAH PALIN'S MAKEUP ARTIST

Another one from the "you've got to be kidding" file. Turns out not only is Sarah Palin a liability and a drag on John McCain's presidential candidacy, but she's also a financial albatross. First the RNC spends $150,000 on her wardrobe for the Republican National Convention, then the GOP has to back up the Brink's truck to pay a stylist more than anyone else this month to doll up Caribou Barbie. The New York Times has the stylist story, while the Associated Press has Palin saying she's actual a frugal shopper -- unless, of course, she's campaigning.
nytimes.com
yahoo.com

ROSEANN CASH: I'D BE A BETTER VP THAN PALIN

Hard to argue the singer's points. Then again, my cat is better qualified than Sarah Palin. But my cat can't write and Cash can. Here's Cash's piece, that recently ran in The Nation.
the nation.com

RED SHOE DIARIES: GOP GETTING DRESSED DOWN BY CAMPAIGN DONORS FOR PALIN WARDROBE DYSFUNCTION

"Palin's fashion budget for several weeks was more than four times the median salary of an American plumber ($37,514). To put it another way: Palin received more valuable clothes in one month than the average American household spends on clothes in 80 years. A Democrat put it in even blunter terms: her clothes were the cost of health care for 15 or so people." --Sam Stein, the Huffington Post.

It was almost too good to be true when it became news last night: The Republican Party shelling out crazy loot to play dress-up with their vice presidential candidate. But the controversy is just getting started, as Republicans everywhere are outraged. Us? We're laughing all the way to the checkout counter. Check out this Sam Stein column in the Huffington Post.

huffingtonpost.com

Next, a piece on ABC News, in which Florida's Republican Gov. Charlie Crist expresses surprise over Palin's clothing allowance.

abcnews.com

Here's the GOP outrage, which you can read below:

politico.com

MSNBC'S OLBERMANN BLASTS PALIN'S LATEST GAFFE IN 'SPECIAL COMMENT'

Folks, if you want to hear one of the funniest and cunning riffs on Sarah Palin's latest episode of ineptitude, the following clip, which you can click below to see, check out this Keith Olbermann riff on his "Countdown" show from Tuesday, Oct. It's as on point as it is hilarious.
msnbc.com

WHAT A DRAG: POLLS SAY PALIN HELPING SINK PRESIDENTIAL TICKET

Can anyone here say "nosedive"?
The science bears it out. From her gaffes and galling ignorance on the job description of an American vice president to her raising the roof on "SNL" and her Republican Party-funded shopping sprees, John McCain's pick of Sarah Palin as his running mate is plunging the GOP ticket to doom. And we couldn't be happier for it! Keep it up, Caribou Barbie! Victory is ours!
politico.com

DOLLING UP CARIBOU BARBIE: GOP SPENDS $150K ON MAKING VEEP CANDIDATE PALIN A FASHIONISTA

Let's see. The economy is in the tank. Wall Street is in shambles. AIG execs spend part of their corporate welfare bailout money on spa treatments. Unemployment is up. Folks are being laid off across the board. And what does the Republican Party do? Shell out mad loot to dress up their vice presidential doll, Sarah Palin to the six-figure tune of $150,000. Wonder what Joe the Unlicensed Plumber would think of that. Wonder what "real" small town America would think about her getting clothes from these fancy, haigh-falutin' stores. Seems like these days, Palin's stock couldn't sink faster if she were pushed out of an airplane with a boulder tied around her waist. Check out the story on politico.com.

politico.com

JUST PALIN IDIOTIC: GOV. FLUNKS TV INTERVIEW ON WHAT ROLE OF VICE PRESIDENT IS

What in the name of Alexander Haig is Sarah Palin talking about? Haig, you may remember back in 1981 pronounced himself as being "in charge" of the country, after then-President Ronald Reagan was rendered incapacitated by a gunshot wound. Uh, one problem. Haig was Secretary of State and somehow forgot that the line of sucession, as mandated by the U.S. Constitution would first go to then-Vice President George H.W. Bush. Gov. Sarah Palin may now want to brush up on the words of America's most scared document which states that the vice president is "president of the senate," and would cast a vote to break a tie, not, as she said "in charge of the senate" as if she would be managing it, if elected to the vice presidency. She also said she could "work with those senators and make policies." Uh, no you can't, governor. That job belongs to Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader. See the video of this unbelievable gaffe from an interview Palin did with a Colorado TV station, explaining what she thinks her role would be, to a question submitted by a second grader. Mark Green of Air America Radio called Palin's comment "constitutionally ignorant." We call it just plain idiotic. And we wonder if somewhere a second grader might be better qualified to be vice president than Caribou Barbie would be.

youtube.com

ASSOCITED PRESS: PALIN BILLED ALASKA TAXPAYERS FOR HER CHILDREN'S NON-BUSINESS EXPENSES

Don't look now, but could there be a scandal brewing in Alaska under Gov. Sarah Palin? A new investigative report by the Associated Press points toward some alleged wrongdoing concerning billing for supposed business expenses. Read on...

yahoo.com

NOT THE WAY TO STOP HER: PROTESTERS' ATTEMPTED BLOCKING OF PALIN'S MOTORCADE IS REPREHENSIBLE

Yes, this blog is devoted to the opposition of the John McCain/Sarah Palin campaign -- especially the prevention of Sarah Palin reaching the vice presidency, a position we believe she is completely unqualified for. And while we support peaceful public protest of her candidacy, we strongly condemn the intimidating, violent actions taken yesterday by protesters who attempted to block her motorcade in Grand Junction, Colorado. We have often cited people in Palin's rallies who shout racist bile about Barack Obama and get into phsyical and verbal altercations with Obama supporters. The physical intimidation that happened against Palin yesterday is just as bad. We can't complain about the opposition's behavior, then engage in it ourselves. Keep the protests peaceful -- physically and verbally. Here's the link to the disturbing incident. And props to the local police who didn't respond with brutality.

cnn.com

TRIBAL WARFARE: NATIVE ALASKANS SAY PALIN NEGLECTED THEM AND THEIR COMMUNITIES FROM DAY ONE OF HER GUBERNATORIAL TERM

"She's just sort of absent on issues. It's like an indifference," said Al Kookesh, the co-chairman of the Alaska Federation of Natives, which has its annual convention in Anchorage this week. He said Palin's much-touted ties to Native culture through her husband's family have resulted in "no measurable impact on the Native community."

It's no wonder Barack Obama's camapaign is now making a big play for Native Alaskans, based on what people in that community are saying about Sarah Palin's reign -- she doesn't get it. And she certainly wouldn't get complex issues in a vice-presidential role. Read on, in today's Anchorage Daily News.
anchoragedailynews.com

FAILIN' PALIN: WALL STREET JOURNAL COLUMNIST SAYS VP CANDIDATE DOOMS MCCAIN'S CHANCES

"In the end the Palin candidacy is a symptom and expression of a new vulgarization in American politics. It's no good, not for conservatism and not for the country. And yes, it is a mark against John McCain, against his judgment and idealism." --Peggy Noonan, Wall Street Journal.

These and other damning words are written by none other than Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan, a former speechwriter for Republican president, the late Ronald Reagan. Read the entire column by clicking the link below.
wallstretjournal.com

TIME: MCCAIN'S PALIN PICK ONE OF HIS FOUR BIGGEST MISTAKES

While she goes around continuing to fruitlessly assert that the Democrats aren't patriotic and getting booked on "Saturday Night Live," Sarah Palin actually was lauded today by Time magazine, which placed her in a Top 4 category--her selection, the magazine says, is one of the four worst mistakes of John McCain's campaign. Here's the story:

McCain's Struggles: Four Ways He Went Wrong
By Michael Scherer / WASHINGTON Friday, Oct. 17, 2008

Sarah Palin Needed a Crash Course She Never Got. The selection of Palin as McCain's running mate was initially a coup. It shocked the nation, rocketed McCain in the polls, especially among white women, and solidified support among the GOP base. McCain rallies suddenly rivaled Obama's rallies in enthusiasm and size. But while media scrutiny of Palin's record started to damage her maverick credibility (can you say Bridge to Nowhere?), her bubble truly got deflated by Katie Couric. Palin's two weeks of interview broadcasts on CBS Evening News coincided with a collapse in her approval ratings and a loss of McCain's gains among white women. In the interviews, Palin showed a lack of understanding of a number of key federal issues, including the debate over the constitutional right to privacy that forms the basis of Roe v. Wade, McCain's policy on Pakistan and the record of Vice President Dick Cheney. After Couric was done, Saturday Night Live took over. One can only imagine how much better it might have been if the McCain campaign had given Palin some extra time to prepare for the questions she would surely face. But that would probably have required that she not be a last-minute choice, which she apparently was.

CNN'S MARTIN: PALIN TALKS TOUGH, BUT WON'T ANSWER TOUGH QUESTIONS

Roland Martin, the nationally syndicated radio host and CNN commentator breaks it down perfectly, about Sarah Palin's weak ground game -- all trash talk and no answers to tough questions. Here's his take.
cnn.com

BEYOND THE PALIN: NEW YORKER MAGAZINE DRILLS ALASKA GOVERNOR IN ORCHESTRATING CAMPAIGN OF VICIOUSNESS

Forgive us for allowing another "elite media" organization (we think that's how Sarah Palin would refer to the New Yorker) to weigh in on the mean-spirited and even hateful campaign the Alaska governor has run, but this is a very worthwhile read, published in the latest issue of the magazine, with an in-depth look at a campaign of vitriol, courtesy of msnbc.com.
msnbc.com
And for more on how John McCain's pick of Sarah Palin is now a liability, read this Roger Simon column in today's politico.com.
politico.com

TROOPERGATE EFFECTS FAR FROM OVER: ALASKA JUDGE ORDERS PALIN TO KEEP EMAILS FROM PRIVATE ACCOUNT USED TO CONDUCT STATE BIZ

If she wasn't smart enough not to keep her official and personal emails separate, no telling what this little investigation's going to turn up. Ahhh, Sarah, if only you'd have been born with more brains...

washingtonpost.com

PRINCE ALARMING: BRISTOL PALIN'S BABY DADDY (AKA '#@#$%$' REDNECK'), GOES PUBLIC AND COMES OFF AS QUITE THE CATCH--NOT!

Is it just me, or does this guy, Levi Johnston, not look like he's 17? Looks about what, 27? And he says his friends made up the myspace page, where he's described as a "*&^%$%' redneck"? Yeah, right. Oh, don't forget the animal carcasses he says are littering his front yard. Anyone out there remember the old Chris Elliot sitcom "Get a Life"? Seems like this guy's totally headed in that direction. Good luck, cowboy. We'll look out for your guide to fatherhood coming soon to bookstores near us. Oh -- and thanks once again for ignoring the advice of the McCain campaign, which told you not to do any media interviews. You don't even realize how much more foolish you appear.

cnn.com

SHE WAS WARNED: ALASKA'S TOP COPS TOLD PALINS PRESSURING TROOPER WOULD BLOW UP IN THEIR FACES

And were those cops right. Get this: Mike Wooten, the trooper the Palins were so hot to fire had ALREADY been disciplined by Alaska State Police for the misconduct they wanted him fired for. Anyone out there know how to say "personal vendetta"?

Here's the story...

cnn.com

SOME MAVERICK: PALIN 'STOOD UP' TO BIG OIL ONLY WITH DEMOCRATS HELP AND POPULAR SENTIMENT

Turns out, all that rhetoric you heard about the current Alaska governor "standing up" to big oil companies was really a bunch of hot air. At least that's what one McClatchy Newspapers writer is writing, after examining Palin's record and interviewing sources. Check this out...

anchoragedailynews.com

PHILLY PALIN PROTESTERS: A DRINK AT THE IRISH PUB IS NOT FOREIGN POLICY EXPERIENCE

Philadelphians are known for the passion. Check out this You Tube video of people showing their feelings about sarah Palin's candidacy. Note the absence of any hateful speech such as "terrorist," "off with her head" and "kill her," which has come to define McCain-Palin campaign rallies.

youtube.com

'AMERICA'S NO. 1 HOCKEY MOM' LUSTILY BOOED AT FLYERS' HOME ICE OPENER IN PHILADELPHIA

Last night the National Hockey League Fans have voted -- at least in Philly -- with their voices and the hockey mom got no love. In fact, in the city where a man in a Santa Claus outfit got booed 30 years ago, Philadelphians -- some, as you see in the righthand corner of the accompanying photo hoisted "Obama/Biden" signs, rained the boos down on her from the rafters. Here's a CNN account of the story.

From CNN Political Producer Peter Hamby

PHILADELPHIA (CNN) – Although many Philadelphia Flyers fans cheered and clapped as Sarah Palin took to the ice at the Wachovia Center on Saturday night to drop the ceremonial puck kicking off this town's NHL season, their warm reception was no match for the 90 seconds of sustained booing that rumbled through the arena, drowning out most of the cheers in support of the Republican vice presidential nominee.

As Palin stepped onto the ice before a capacity crowd to drop the puck, joined by her daughters Willow and Piper, the arena's jumbotron flashed a futile message to the thousands of notoriously harsh Philadelphia sports fans in attendance.

"Flyers fans, show Philadelphia's class and welcome America's #1 hockey mom, Sarah Palin," the massive electronic message board pleaded, to little effect. Booing quickly erupted when the smiling candidate emerged from a tunnel leading onto the ice, muffling the applause of any Palin supporters in the crowd.

Some in the audience simply gave her a thumbs down gesture. Others called her names.

Palin spent about a minute and a half on center ice, posing for pictures with Flyers captain Mike Richards and New York Rangers assistant captain Scotty Gomez, an Alaska native. The crowd commotion was sustained for her entire time in the rink.

Palin's showing did not appear to help the Flyers, who looked hapless in the first period, giving up four goals to their rivals from New York. The governor stayed to watch the first two periods with family and staff in the box of Flyers owner Ed Snider, and by the time she departed the Wachovia Center for her hotel, the Flyers had narrowed the lead to 4-2.

From the Philadelphia Inquirer

philly.com

Last note, though: Boos to the anti-Palin protester who yelled, "let's stone her old school" and to those anti-Palin protesters who flasahed a middle finger responding to a resterateur who flashed the group a peace sign. Keep the protests peaceful!

BI-PARTISAN PANEL VERDICT: PALIN ABUSED POWER, ETHICS, BUT NOT LAW

Alaska lawmakers yesterday ruled that Governor Sarah Palin abused her power -- and ethics -- in pressuring subordinates to get State Trooper Mike Wooten fired, but was within her rights and didn't break the law in firing Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan. And the McCain campaign, for some reason, is rejoicing and blaming Barack Obama. Huh? Neither Obama nor his campaign had anything to do with a bipartisan group that saw fit to investigate Palin and her out-of-control "First Dude" who obsessed about getting his former brother-in-law fired after claiming he threatened his family. So now McCain is proud of a running mate who's found to have acted unethically, but not criminally? Someone who on a supposed "Country First" campaign displayed an obvious "Me First" agenda. And Palin wasn't exactly Miss Forthcoming about her actions, was she?
Read the coverage for yourselves...

anchoragedailynews.com
cnn.com
nytimes.com

"(Palin) knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda”--Troopergate Report

PALIN FLUBS ANSWER TO ENERGY QUESTION ON CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Sure says an awful lot when energy is supposedly your area of expertise and you spend much of a debate talking about it, then can't correctly answer a question on a campaign stop when it's posed to you by a questioner. And it wasn't even a member of the "gotcha" journalist mob Palin has been blaming for her demise. It was a private citizen. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner didn't miss it...and here's the Associated Press story that appeared in it.

newsminer.com

NOW IT CAN BE TOLD: WITNESSES IN ABUSE OF POWER CASE SAY PALINS WERE 'OBSESSIVE' IN FAMILY FEUD TO GET TROOPER CANNED

Would you say that making dozens of phone calls over a short period of time, all to demand the same thing is just a little...obsessive? And when one person was fired -- allegedly for not firing a state trooper -- and his potential replacement was allegedly asked to fire the trooper, might you say that someone was hell-bent of getting the trooper fired? The New York Times has the breaking story.

nytimes.com

WHAT DO THE FOLKS OVERSEAS THINK OF SARAH PALIN? NOT MUCH, ACCORDING TO BBC COLUMNIST

Sure, she may have won over the new president of Pakistan who fawned over her in New York like a junior high school dweeb, but she gets no love from the BBC and its columnist, Justin Webb.

bbc.com

WHO IS SHE TO TALK ABOUT PEOPLE'S SPIRITUAL LEADERS? PALIN STILL DOGS OBAMA ON JEREMIAH WRIGHT, WHEN SHE GOES IN FOR WITCH DOCTOR HEALINGS

As Time magazine writes, a big reason why Sarah Palin's running mate, John McCain -- you know, THAT one -- has yanked hard on her leash and curbed her when she's recently tried to go after Barack Obama for his connection to Rev. Jeremiah Wright is Palin's own spiritual leanings, which some consider at best unorthodox and at worst, completely at odds with mainstream faith. Take a read and check out the accompanying video of Palin's exorcism experience...

time.com

ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION COLUMNIST RIPS PALIN PICK AS EVIDENCE OF GOP'S 'LACK OF INTEREST' IN GOVERNING

It's not just the New York Times and Washington Post. It's newspapers across the country and commentators ripping Sarah Palin's ineptitude and inability. Here's what Atlanta Journal and Constitution columnist Jay Bookman has to say.

ajc.com

LYNCH MOB MENTALITY RULES AT PALIN'S FLORIDA APPEARANCES

Someone in the audience yelled out the words, "kill him!" after the main speaker criticized the opposition party's presidential nominee. Many others harassed members of TV crews and print journalists, showering them with insults. Still another member of the audience yelled a racial epithet at an African American sound man before sneering, "Sit down, boy!" Was this a Ku Klux Klan cross-burning? No, just one of the latest Sarah Palin rallies. Read on for this Washington Post account of the boorish behavior, bordering on a hatefest.

washingtonpost.com

But the behavior didn't stop there. Even the McCain campaign dressed down a uniformed Florida county sherriff for whipping a Ft. Myers crowd into a frenzy by invoking Obama's middle name, Hussein, which some believe is a coded racial epithet. The FBI is now investigating the sherriff of Lee County for participating in a political rally while in uniform. Here's that story, in the News-Press of Ft. Myers, Fla.

news-press.com

Finally, the New York Times condemns the McCain-Palin attack tactics on the campaign trail, the ugly behavior and rhetoric that has come to characterize their events and most importantly, for trying to change the conversation on the issue that matters most, the economy.

nytimes.com

DID PALINS UNDERPAY THEIR TAXES? TAX PROFS SAY YES

Hmmm...Let's see. The woman who once went to a witch doctor for an exorcism claims that Barack Obama's spiritual leader is an extremist. She says Obama pals around with terrorists (charges by the way, were dropped), yet she's married to an admitted secessionist. And she says Barack Obama votes to raise taxes, yet it appears now that he and her husband underpays them. Read on...

taxprof.com

CONSERVATIVE COLUMNIST SAYS PALIN'S FAUX-POPULISM IS POISON

Seems even these days conservatives are having a tough time stomaching Sarah Palin's Joe Six-Pack act. Add Peggy Noonan to that growing chorus of sensible voices. Here are her remarks made today on NBC's "Meet the Press," courtesy of Huffington Post.

huffingtonpost.com

"Would Lincoln say 'I represent the backwoods type?' Would FDR say, 'the New York aristocracy deserves another moment in the sun, vote for me?' There's something weird about it." --Peggy Noonan on Sarah Palin's "populism."

TIME: 'FLUFFY BUNNY' STRIKES RACIST CHORD IN SAYING OBAMA 'PALS AROUND WITH TERRORIST'

Hmmm. Now Sarah Palin says Barack Obama doesn't see America like the lemmings packed in to a GOP gathering in Pueblo, Colorado. Thanks goodness. At least he can actually see America. You know, the one whose economy is circling the drain, where people are struggling to make a living and pay bills, the one most people believe a regime change is necessary to improve the country we love?

Here's the latest about the latest GOP act of desperation, in Time.

time.com

NEWSWEEK WEIGHS IN ON PALIN'S 'MINDLESS POPULISM'

They said it, not us. But it is what it is. Sarah Palin's bad channeling of Frances McDormand's lovable "Marge" character from the Coen Brothers film, "Fargo," just ain't gettin' it done. Oops. Sorry. Guess the language of the last part of the last sentence drifted into the silly folkism of Larry the Cable Guy. Just trying to connect with everyday Americans. Is that a sign of desperation? I say, with a wink, you bet'cha.

newsweek.com

FACT: DESPERATE PALIN LYING ABOUT OBAMA 'PALLING AROUND WITH TERRORISTS'

It's the latest act of a desperate candidate. You bet'cha. Wonder if she winked as she told the falsehood about Barack Obama being a close friend of William Ayers, a 1960s radical-turned-college-professor who, with a group he organized, Weather Underground plotted to bomb federal buildings (the charges were later dropped, by the way) in protest of the Vietnam War. Well, give Palin, the former beauty pageant runner up credit for something: she (or more likely one of her GOP handmaidens) actually read a story in the New York Times to get information about Obama and Ayers. Too bad they didn't read it carefully. And even worse that any lemmings at her appearances in Colorado and California may have believed her. Here are the acts, in this CNN link.

cnn.com

LOOK WHO'S TALKING: PALIN HUBBY CAN'T ESCAPE MEETING WITH TROOPERGATE INVESTIGATOR

Sorry, Todd Palin. Your game of dodgeball is up. We told you a few weeks ago you couldn't outrun the judicial system. Your governor wife may have abused her power as governor of Alaska -- and you're gonna have to talk about it.

msnbc.com

NY TIMES COLUMNIST: PALIN SHOWS EVIDENCE OF LIVING IN 'OTHER UNIVERSE' IN HER DEBATE ANSWERS

Anyone else still baffled by Sarah Palin's non-answers to debate questions? How about where she quoted Ronald Reagan -- except, as New York Times columnist Bob Herbert points out, Reagan wasn't talking about a foreign invasion in that quote. He was talking about Medicare. Read on.

nytimes.com

NATIONAL MEDIA: DESPITE PASSABLE PERFORMANCE, PALIN STILL NOT QUALIFIED

Wow. While we admit she actually showed the ability to put sentences together for the first time in several weeks, it certainly says something for a candidate when he or she can declare a personal victory by not screwing up in a major way. When the expectations are low, there's nowhere to go but up. Sarah Palin continued her mastery of the non-answer, never quite responding directly to what possible achilles heel she may have, offering nothing about the state of the economy when asked or what programs her potential president might cut and she even got the last name wrong of the American general in command of U.S. forces in Afghanistan. What's more, though, are polls showing her opponent Joe Biden handily beat her and only a tiny gain of people who believe she's qualified to be our country's next vice president.

Read these op-ed pieces and news stories and you'll see that despite her "performance," many American voters and viewers recognize that you just can't polish a piece of balsa wood and make it sparkle like a diamond.

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cnn.com

ONLY 12 HOURS UNTIL THE VP CANDIDATES DEBATE

...And that's when Joe Biden will wipe the floor with Sarah Palin and drive another stake into her rapidly crumbling campaign...

SUPREME DOLT: IN LATEST COURIC INTERVIEW INSTALLMENT, PALIN CAN'T NAME ONE SUPREME COURT DECISION SHE DISAGREED WITH BESIDES ROE V. WADE

Like the peeling of an onion, the more layers revealed in Sarah Palin's TV interview with Katie Couric, the greater an imbecile she's showing herself to be. This time, in this Washinton Post story and accompanying YouTube video, Palin draws a blank on judicial matters, not showing any interest or knowledge in the country's most important legal matters, giving a stultifyingly stupid answer to one of Couric's questions that would leave the Aflac duck shocked and speechless. Folks, as train wrecks go, her selection as a vice-presidential nominee may prove to be history's most fatal.

washingtonpost.com

ONE-TRACK MIND: NY TIMES REPORT SHOWS ALASKA'S 'OIL & GAS' GUV SHOWS LITTLE AWARENESS, INTEREST IN ANY OTHER ISSUES AFFECTING CONSTITUENTS' LIVES

Neglecting the populace is kinda not the thing a governor should be famous for. She and her running mate can spin this story as "got'cha journalism" or an evil plot by the left-wing, liberal media if they so choose, but it's hard to argue with the record that this piece shows.

nytimes.com

PITY PARTY FOR PEOPLE PICKING ON POOR SARAH PALIN? OH HELL NO, WRITES SALON.COM COLUMNIST

Boo-friggity-hoo, as John McCain—oops! I mean, Dr. Evil—used to say in the "Austin Powers" films. Poor Sarah's being picked on. Rebecca Traister of salon.com isn't exatly crying a river about Palin's treatment in the media—and neither should any of us. Leave that to Justin Timberlake. Here's her column...

salon.com

DUH! IN LATEST COURIC INSTALLMENT, PALIN CAN'T EVEN NAME ONE PUBLICATION SHE READS TO HELP KEEP HER INFORMED ON DOMESTIC, WORLD AFFAIRS

When pressed -- twice -- by Katie Couric after getting a non-answer to the question of what newspapers and magazines she reads, Sarah Palin answered, "all of them." Huh?
The real answer is that Palin is perhaps the least well-read of anyone who has EVER run for office. Where has she gotten her worldview or philosophical ideas from? The back of a Cracker Jack box? And what's worse is CNN contributor Bay Buchanan, a Republican strategist, having the nerve to defend Palin's non-answer as an example of "populism" and "relating to everyday Americans." Does that mean that everyday Americans are illiterate simpletons with no desire to expand their own horizons? Maybe Mike Judge's satirical sci-fi film, "Idiocracy" is coming true sooner than we think.

Check it out for yourself...

cnn.com