SARAH PALIN MUST BE STOPPED

R.I.P. SARAH PALIN'S VICE-PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDACY, AUG. 29, 2008-NOV. 4, 2008

2008-11-05T05:57:00.001-08:00

Need we say more?

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

2008-10-31T15:10:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-30T18:01:00.001-07:00

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

POLLS: WHACK JOB DIVA HELPING MCCAIN TO TITANIC CRASH

2008-10-30T17:27:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-28T18:41:00.000-07:00

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'

2008-10-28T17:20:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-27T18:48:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-26T15:35:00.000-07:00

"...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'

2008-10-25T12:43:00.000-07:00

"'(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

2008-10-24T17:16:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-24T15:12:00.000-07:00

"...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

2008-10-24T14:39:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-22T16:28:00.000-07:00

"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'

2008-10-22T16:13:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-22T16:02:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-21T17:32:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-21T16:13:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-21T15:01:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-21T05:51:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-19T08:54:00.000-07:00

"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

2008-10-19T08:43:00.000-07:00

"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

2008-10-17T15:17:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-15T17:03:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-14T15:49:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-13T17:55:00.000-07:00

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!

2008-10-13T17:28:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-13T17:22:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-12T08:33:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-12T07:59:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-12T07:40:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-10T22:23:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-09T20:43:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-09T20:33:00.001-07:00

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

2008-10-09T19:51:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-09T19:43:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-08T19:23:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-08T19:04:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-06T20:40:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-05T17:13:00.000-07:00

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'

2008-10-05T16:49:00.000-07:00

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'

2008-10-05T16:39:00.000-07:00

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'

2008-10-05T07:34:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-05T07:12:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-04T09:00:00.001-07:00

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

2008-10-03T05:48:00.001-07:00

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.

nytimes.com
msnbc.com
yahoo.com
anchoragedailynews.com
cnn.com
time.com
yahoo.com
cnn.com

ONLY 12 HOURS UNTIL THE VP CANDIDATES DEBATE

2008-10-02T05:43:00.001-07:00

...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

2008-10-01T18:30:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-01T17:56:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-01T07:51:00.000-07:00

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

2008-10-01T05:19:00.000-07:00

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

PALIENATION: ALASKA GOVERNOR TURNING OFF HOME RESIDENTS; EMBRACES 'MEDIA ELITES' IN NEW YORK SHE CLAIMS TO DISDAIN

2008-09-30T18:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a strongly worded column written by Micahel Carey, former editorial page editor of the Anchorage Daily News, who asserts that Sarah Palin's only chance to avoid facing the Alaskans she's rubbed the wrong way is to win the vice presidency. Sorry for ya, Sarah, 'cause that victory isn't happening.

anchoragedailynews.com

THEY EXPECT THE PUBLIC TO BUY THIS? PALIN WON'T PASS DEBATE EXAM FOR WHICH SHE MUST CRAM

2008-09-30T11:22:00.000-07:00

I'm sure most of us have been there. Pulling a semi or full all-nighter trying in vain to cram for a test we know we won't pass. We should've paid more attention in class, gone more to the class, done the reading, or something else. Sarah Palin is attempting no less of a stunt in advance of Thursday night's debate with Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden. If this contest represents a college exam, not only did she not go to class, she couldn't even be admitted to this school, whose prerequisites include knowledge of the economy, foreign policy, history, diplomacy and world affairs. We know, without a TelePrompTer's help, she has no shot. The question isn't whether she'll lose to Joe Biden or by how much, it's to what degree of foolishness she'll appear to sink to, how incoherent she'll be and how much further she'll swing the election in Barack Obama's favor. Biden, even with his history of gaffes, could win this one even after downing a couple of bottles of Jack Daniel's.
Now comes this Agence France Presse report which further details how the Republican party has practically kidnapped Palin and sequestered her under armed guards while pumping talking points and factoids into her head the way torturers might inject sodium pentathol into a prisoner's veins to extract vital information.
The absurd and insulting thing is that the GOP is selling this to its supporters and the American public, thinking we're all gullible or soft-headed enough to believe this
will make her shine for an hour Thursday night or that it's perfectly OK to prop up a candidate who never deserved the position she's running for.
Come Thursday night, John McCain won't magically appear out of nowhere as he did in one question-and-answer session to intercept Katie Couric's perfectly reasonable questions about what the U.S. should do if its troops have the opportunity to enter Pakistan to take down suspected al-Qaeda operatives. McCain won't be able to decry reasonable impromptu questions from someone as "got'cha" journalism.
She's toast and he and everyone else in the GOP knows it.
Here's the story...

yahoo.com

NY TIMES COLUMNIST: PALIN'S CANDIDACY 'RAISES RED FLAGS'

2008-09-30T05:36:00.000-07:00

Oh, come on Bob Herbert! Of course Palin's words and actions you write about in your latest column are raising red flags -- those are the Canadian ones next door to the state she governs. No? Well, then you probably mean the old Soviet ones she can see from her house. No? Oh. You mean the ones that are clearly signaling that Palin's candidacy is circling the drain? We can only hope...

nytimes.com

POLITICAL ANALYST: 'PAINFUL TO WATCH' PALIN BECOMING A LIABILITY

2008-09-30T05:28:00.000-07:00

Becoming? How about, "was from the get-go"? That's fine with us. Keep on being a liability through Nov. 4, Sarah, so it'll help Barack Obama and Joe Biden win the election. Please keep it up! Now, here's commentator Gloria Borger breaking it down...

cnn.com

COLUMNIST ELAYNE CLIFT ADDS TO GROWING CHORUS OF ANTI-PALINITES WITH OPEN LETTER

2008-09-29T19:29:00.000-07:00

Hear that sound?
It's like buckets of rain falling on your roof during a storm. It's the deluge (oops! There's another big word Sarah Plain probably doesn't know the meaning of and would acuse me of being a snob for using) of criticism flooding down upon the GOP vice presidential nominee.

Here's what noted columnist Elayne Clift says...

AN OPEN LETTER TO SARAH PALIN

Okay, you did it. You hoodwinked your party and a lot of other Americans too, I suspect, with your cheerleader’s charm and your finger-waving fervor. You got yourself called “Hottest VP.” Some say you “knocked it out of the park.” Well, I think you should be knocked out of the park, Sarah, and here’s why.
First, your hypocrisy is astounding. How can you possibly say that something like an unplanned pregnancy is a personal matter deserving of privacy? Doesn’t every woman who grapples with a painful abortion decision deserve the same privacy? What rock have you been living under that enables you to advocate for abstinence-only sex education when you can’t even teach that dubious value to your own daughter? Why do you speak of love and support for children (including the unborn) when your party refuses to legislate policies that would offer them decent healthcare and early childhood education and provide their mothers with a modicum of support, including paid maternity leave?
You are a selfish woman, Sarah, with dubious priorities. “J’accuse”, as writer Emile Zola wrote -- but you must pardon me for exposing my elitist education -- because as a mother myself, I cannot fathom how you would subject a teenage daughter in trouble to the kind of public scrutiny she now must endure in the interest of your own ambitions. At the risk of sounding like a failed feminist, I must also say that being the mother of a special needs child too, I just don’t get how you can abdicate the desperately important advocacy and monitoring that will be required in these first years of your son’s life. (I know your husband is deeply involved and responsible, but believe me, Sarah, no one does it like a mom.) As you said yourself, “Children with special needs inspire special love.” Where is your special love, Sarah? Family values, I might remind you, are not just a set of lofty ideals wrapped in grandiose rhetoric; they involve making hard choices in the best interest of everyone in the family.
By now many people are finding you either mean-spirited or remarkably ignorant. I think you are both. Nothing revealed these characteristics so much or so shockingly as your attack (and Rudy Guliani’s) on community organizing. “I guess a small town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer’ except that you have actual responsibilities,” you said. Don’t you get it, Sarah? Community organizing is what your beloved faith-based charities do! Community organizing by women all around this country is what happened in the 1970s and 80s to enable you to be taken seriously as a candidate for vice president, and to stand, God forbid, a heartbeat away from being the CEO of the most powerful country on earth. Community organizing is what got us the Americans with Disabilities Act which will serve your son well as he matures. I will never, ever, forgive you, Sarah, for your snide, sarcastic, demeaning, despicable disrespect for one of America’s finer traditions – or for your surly attacks on the media, America’s Fourth Estate and a pillar of any democracy.
Your much anticipated coming out party was billed as a way for all of us to get to know who you are. Well, Sarah, I know who you are. You are the bully in the sandbox, the teenager who thinks she can get her way by being flirtatious, the adult who thinks she can get by without doing the hard work and get ahead without paying much dues, the politician who believes that lies are more expedient than facts. I know who you are, Sarah, and I don’t like or trust you. I find you duplicitous, shallow, insulting and frighteningly retro – all qualities I am terrified to contemplate in a V.P. or a president.
For the record, by the way, here are just a few reasons, reported by the Associated Press, that I find you duplicitous and dishonest:

• You said you had protected taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending but the truth is that as mayor of Wasilla you hired a lobbyist and went to Washington every year to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. Since you’ve been governor Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal funding, the largest per capital request in the country. And that Bridge to Nowhere? You only dropped the idea after it was ridiculed nationally.
• You accused Barack Obama of never having authored a major law or reform, “not even in the state senate.” The fact is that as a new senator Mr. Obama worked in a bipartisan way to pass federal legislation, now law, that helped intercept illegal shipments of WMDs and made it harder to stockpile conventional weapons. He also co-sponsored major ethics reform legislation.
• You falsely accuse Mr. Obama of planning to raise all kinds of taxes without fully sharing his complete and complex tax plan. In reality, just for starters, the McCain-Palin plan would raise taxes for middle income taxpayers by 3% while the Obama-Biden plan would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly.
• You and Mr. McCain continue to inflate your experience and role as governor in a state that ranks 47th in terms of population. For example, you may be in charge of your state’s national guard, but your authority does not include calling those guards into actual military service. (Alaska has one of the smallest state guards in the country, by the way.) Contrary to what John McCain has claimed, you do not have national security as one of your primary responsibilities.

Sarah, Sarah, Sarah. Even your own political pundits, Peggy Noonan and Mike Murphy, were caught by a live mike calling your speech “political [expletive]” and bemoaning the fact that “It’s over.” Honey, I’m afraid that as the truth keeps surfacing and folks get beyond your being a “hotty,” and when you must finally respond to the press on the Sunday morning talk shows or at press conferences, and when the spotlight shines down upon you as you debate your formidable, experienced opponent you will no longer be the toast of your party. You will simply be toast. And that’s something I wouldn’t find hard to swallow at all.

Elayne Clift writes about women, politics and social issues from Saxtons River, Vermont.

WASHINGTON POST'S ZAKARIA CALLS FOR PALIN TO 'BE PUT OUT OF HER AGONY' IN PRINT, ON TV

2008-09-29T18:08:00.001-07:00

Actually, though she's an agonizing presence, I hope Sarah Palin causes just enough agony to deny John McCain a victory in November...

Here are Fareed Zakaria's takes...

newsweek.com

yahoo.com

NATIVE UPRISING: INDIGENOUS ALASKANS SAY PALIN HAS HISTORICALLY SLIGHTED THEM, USES HER HUSBAND'S ETHNICITY AS FALSE CLAIM OF EMBRACING DIVERSITY

2008-09-29T07:26:00.000-07:00

Tick-tock and ya don't stop. Time is running out for Sarah Palin. The clock is running on her impending implosion and political self-destruction. This Associated Press piece shows Palin's not as down with the brown as she once said, in alluding to her husband's Native Alaskan ancestry. Check out what original Alaskans have to say about the state's governor.

yahoo.com

ASSOCIATED PRESS INVESTIGATION REVEALS PALIN CROSSED ETHICAL LINES DURING MAYORAL TERM

2008-09-29T05:27:00.000-07:00

Well knock me over with a feather.
What a surprise it is to learn that while she was mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, Sarah Palin -- presumably while she was making sexual assault survivors buy their own rape kits and pay for their own forensic exams because it cost taxpayers too much money -- was busy violating zoning laws and pocketing special favors. Yeah, she's some reformer, huh? She's a real watchdog, stopping government ethics violators in their tracks.
Now, here's that Associated Press story that reveals her corruption as mayor.

yahoo.com

SPEAK PALINESE? DIDN'T THINK SO. VP CANDIDATE'S INCOMPREHENSIBLE BABBLE ON COURIC INTERVIEW STILL BAFFLES NATIVE ENGLISH SPEAKERS

2008-09-28T09:39:00.000-07:00

Here's a now legendary exchange in the Katie Couric-Sarah Palin interview that many people, including columnist Andrew Sullivan, are still mystified by, for its utter stupidity.

Take a read...

Couric: Why isn't it better, Governor Palin, to spend $700 billion helping middle-class families who are struggling with health care, housing, gas and groceries? Allow them to spend more, and put more money into the economy, instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this mess?

Palin: That's why I say I, like every American I'm speaking with, we're ill about this position that we have been put in. Where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out. But ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy. Um, helping, oh, it's got to be about job creation, too. Shoring up our economy, and putting it back on the right track. So health care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions, and tax relief for Americans, and trade -- we have got to see trade as opportunity, not as, uh, competitive, um, scary thing, but one in five jobs created in the trade sector today. We've got to look at that as more opportunity. All of those things under the umbrella of job creation.

"At face value, this is incomprehensible. More than that, it suggests a person whose previous two decades of adult life have not equipped her to absorb the briefings she is no doubt receiving about the big, obvious issues in the campaign: the market crash, health care proposals, tax plans." --Andrew Sullivan

CONSERVATIVE NATIONAL REVIEW COLUMNIST CALLS FOR PALIN TO STEP DOWN

2008-09-27T08:08:00.000-07:00

How sweet is this? Talk about vindication. Now, even a leading conservative powerhouse acknowledges how grossly unfit, unprepapred and unqualified Sarah Palin is for the vice presidency. It's a miracle. Does this mean other conservatives may somehow finally see the light and vote Obama-Biden in November? Probably not. But at least they may be shamed into staying home and away from the polls that day, helping guarantee a deserved Obama victory.

nationalreview.com

"...it is increasingly clear that Palin is a problem. Quick study or not, she doesn’t know enough about economics and foreign policy to make Americans comfortable with a President Palin should conditions warrant her promotion."--Kathleen Parker

LATEST POLL: PALIN 'HONEYMOON' IS OVER

2008-09-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

Hear that ticking sound?
It's the seconds counting down to her 15 minutes of fame expiring.
The vice presidential debate next Friday can't come soon enough. That's when, at the end of the deabte against Joe Biden we'll hear a new sound -- the popping of a toaster, signaling that Palin is toast. Here's the poll story, in the Boston Globe.

boston.com

MUST-SEE TV: PALIN'S FOREIGN POLICY EXPERIENCE CLAIM TO KATIE COURIC

2008-09-26T08:10:00.001-07:00

Here's a clip you must see to believe—Sarah Palin rationalizing that being able to see Russia from Alaska actually counts as having foreign policy experience. By her logic, if we all start watching "CSI" then any of us can qualify for detective shields.

youtube.com

"I’m not looking at poll numbers. What I think Americans at the end of the day are going to be able to go back and look at track records and see who’s more apt to be talking about solutions and wishing for and hoping for solutions for some opportunity to change, and who’s actually done it?”--Sarah Palin, responding to a question posed by Katie Couric.

I defy anyone to successfully translate the above remark into English.

DEFEDNING THE INDEFENSIBLE: PALIN JUSTIFIES HER 'I CAN SEE RUSSIA FROM ALASKA' COMMENT AS EVIDENCE OF HER INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE

2008-09-25T15:40:00.000-07:00

So...according to her logic, if I live in suburban New Jersey and can see New York City from my window, that means I have experience in dealing with New Yorkers? Maybe it means I could be qualified to run for New York City mayor one day.

Here now is a look at her flawed logic, in this Associated Press story on Yahoo!

yahoo.com

PALIN FLUNKS KATIE COURIC TV INTERVIEW

2008-09-25T07:54:00.000-07:00

Folks, if you can understand Sarah Palin's skecthy non-answer to CBS-TV's Katie Couric in tis interview about when asked about whether John McCain campaign manager Rick Davis has a conflict of interest in accepting money from Fannie Mae, then please explain it to all of us.

This is the latest example of what happens when Palin is interviewed without the aid of a TelePrompTer or one of her minions from the McCain-Palin campaign shielding her from interviewers. Check out the interview in its entirety, courtesy of YouTube.

youtube.com

ALASKAN BLACKS SAY PALIN TOLD THEM SHE DIDN'T INTEND TO HIRE ANY IN HER ADMINISTRATION

2008-09-25T06:49:00.000-07:00

This news had been reported once before, by an Alaskan African-American group. That may have seemed speculative. But when the story is now being investigated and written by author political activist, Dr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson, it attaches serious credibility.
While we know Sarah Palin would have a hard time understanding the concept of diversity, let alone spelling it, please read this important piece that examines her actions, character and from the way it's told in this Alternet story, her racism.

alternet.com

NEWSWEEK POLL: RESPONDENTS WAKING UP, MAKING IT CLEAR—PALIN'S NOT QUALIFIED

2008-09-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

Thankfully, very thankfully, America is starting to wake up and come back to its senses. Read the results of a new poll conducted by Newsweek as to whether the public believes Sarah Palin is qualified to be vice president...

newsweek.com

NEWSWEEK COLUMNIST: LOVE FOR PALIN IS LOVE FOR MEDIOCRITY

2008-09-24T12:55:00.000-07:00

How crazy is this?
It seemed like yesterday I was having a conversation with someone about Sarah Palin's candidacy and I told this person that what most irritates me is that the candidate is the epitome of mediocrity. She has the intellectual capacity and curiosity of a fruit fly, but the TelePrompTer reading skills of a pro. She could see Russia from her window, but she can't see clearly enough to formulate intelligent views on the economy, foreign policy, the environment or most any important issue.
It's especially troubling in a country which supposedly values education, but -- as evidenced by the voting trends the last two presidential elections -- devalues intellectualism.
Thankfully, a Newsweek columnist takes a swipe at Palinmania and confirms what all of us who take pride in our intellectual prowess already know: Intelligence does not equal snobbery and being well-read does not make us out of touch. Check it out:

newsweek.com

HOOKY MOM: MANY ALASKA POLITICIANS WONDER ABOUT WHY PALIN AVOIDED STATE CAPITAL AND SKIPPED OFFICIAL MEETINGS

2008-09-23T12:19:00.001-07:00

Truancy is not a qualification for the vice presidency, but Sarah Palin seems to have mastered that art as Alaska's governor. Just ask many Alaska lawmakers, who comment in this story in Politico.

politico.com

PALIN'S COP-OUT SOLUTION TO GLOBAL WARMING PROBLEM: ADAPT

2008-09-23T08:32:00.000-07:00

She doesn't believe humans are at fault for ruining the environment, even though temperatures in her own state have risen by four degrees in the last 50 years. In fact, as the Washington Post reports, her environmental policies are even more to the right than the inept George W. Bush administration's. Even John McCain, her running mate, disagrees with her take on global warming. But then what would you expect from a governor who wants to turn her own state into Swiss cheeses with all the holes she wants drilled in its ecosystem?
So adaptation is her answer? Great, Sarah.
By that logic, guess we should also stop researching possible cures for cancer and HIV/AIDS, allow North Korea to restart its nuclear program and let the genocide continue in Darfur.
Adapt?
Yeah, it's the ultimate cop-out.

Here's the Wasington Post piece:

washingtonpost.com

THE ORIGINAL WOMEN AGAINST SARAH PALIN E-MAIL

2008-09-23T08:13:00.000-07:00

It's not just you, sister.
Here's an email that said and started it all about women's opposition to Sarah Palin. Please read it and comment. And while you're at it, visit and show your support for another blog, http://womenagainstsarahpalin.blogspot.com and another website, www.womenagainstsarahpalin.org.

Here's the letter:

Friends and compatriots,

We are writing to you because of the fury and dread we have felt since the announcement of Sarah Palin as the Vice-Presidential candidate for the Republican Party. We believe that this terrible decision has surpassed mere partisanship, and that it is a dangerous farce—on the part of a pandering and rudderless Presidential candidate—that has a real possibility of becoming fact.

Perhaps like us, as American women, you share the fear of what Ms. Palin and her professed beliefs and proven record could lead to for ourselves and for our present and future daughters. To date, she is against a woman's right to choose, environmental protection, alternative energy development, freedom of speech (as mayor she repeatedly brought up the question of banning books), gun control, the separation of church and state, and polar bears.

We want to clarify that we are not against Sarah Palin as a woman, a mother, or, for that matter, a parent of a pregnant teenager, but solely as a rash, incompetent, and all together devastating choice for Vice President. Ms. Palin's political views are in every way a slap in the face to the accomplishments that our mothers and grandmothers so fiercely fought for, and that we've so demonstrably benefited from.

First and foremost, Ms. Palin does not represent us. She does not demonstrate or uphold our interests as American women. It is presumed that the inclusion of a woman on the Republican ticket could win over women voters. We want to disagree, publicly.

Therefore, we invite you to submit with a short, succinct message about why you, as a woman living in this country, do not support this candidate as second-in-command for our nation:

http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5558/t/3691/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=466

We will post your responses on a blog called "Women Against Sarah Palin," which we intend to publicize as widely as possible. Please send us your reply at your earliest convenience-the greater the volume of responses we receive, the stronger our message will be.

Thank you for your time and action.

VIVA!

Sincerely,

Quinn L. and Lyra K.
New York, NY
womensaynopalin@gmail.com

**PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY! If you send this to 20 women in the next hour, you could be blessed with a country that takes your concerns seriously. Stranger things have happened.

FROM ACTIVE SECESSIONIST TO SUDDEN COUNTRY-FIRST DUDE, TODD PALIN ACTS AS THE LAME BRAINS BEHIND WIFE'S POLITICAL BRAWN IN ALASKA

2008-09-22T07:53:00.000-07:00

Dude, get a grip. Aren't you supposed to be at home raising your kids — and avoiding state-mandated subpoenas to talk at hearings about your wife's alleged abuse of power — instead of helping her govern a state? We all know she needs help—lots of it—but seriously...Speed Racer also set world records, but was he qualified to help run a state? The Washington Post says hell no!

nytimes.com

NY TIMES: MCCAIN AND PALIN'S MARRIAGE MADE IN HELL

2008-09-22T03:41:00.000-07:00

It's not just you who questions both the legitimacy and wisdom of John McCain's choice of an unqualified running mate after he met her in person once and had a 15-minute phone conversation with her. A 15-minute call may be all it takes to pick a certain insurance company? But a running mate?

Here's the story:

nytimes.com

SEATTLE POST INTELLIGENCER: PALIN A 'JUNK FOOD' POLITICIAN IN REPUBLICAN MCPOLITICS

2008-09-20T09:37:00.000-07:00

From coast to coast, more reputable columnists, such as Steven L. Katz (far left), are providing articulate analysis as to why it's a sad state of affairs in our country when a politician like Sarah Palin can be nominated to be second in line for the presidency. Her pick speaks to a complete dumbing down of our country. We are choosing a president, a vice president and an entire administration in November -- not the next "American Idol." Read on...

seattlepostintelligencer.com

NO HIDING IT: ALASKA STATE SENATOR TO HOLD NO-SHOW PALIN IN CONTEMPT; WILL RELEASE 'TROOPERGATE' REPORT NEXT MONTH

2008-09-20T08:03:00.000-07:00

Todd? Oh, T-o-o-o-o-o-o-d? Come out, come out wherever you are! You can't hide forever. And while you may be a world-record setting snowmobile racer, you can't outrun the truth. And that truth will find you -- with or without your showing up to that little hearing you got a subpoena to go to. "Troopergate" ain't going away.

Just read the latest in today's Anchorage Daily News.

anchoragedailynews.com

FORMER MISS ALASKA: EVEN IN PAGEANT, PALIN WAS CONNIVING AND CALCULATING

2008-09-19T09:07:00.004-07:00

Granted, this item hardly tells us anything new about why Sarah Palin is not qualified to be our country's next vice president. But in a really funny way, it clues us in as to where she learned how to campaign for office and how she gained her broad political acumen and savvy—in a beauty pageant.

And apparently, from the way a former Miss Alaska tells it, Palin was equally smug, manipulative and conniving back in the day. In a way it's unfortunate that Palin didn't win the Miss Alaska title, as her state and the country would've been a lot better off if that was the highest statewide office she held.

And alas, this November, she'll once again be what she was at that pageant—the runner-up. Thanks to People magazine for this piece.

people.com

ALASKA POLS SAY AS GOV, PALIN DIDN'T SWEAT DETAILS OF JOB

2008-09-19T09:07:00.003-07:00

Hmmm...things sure do get interesting when reporters do their jobs and investigate, rather than back off people in the news, doesn't it?

So what does this new in-depth look in the Washington Post story tell us about Palin's leadership? How 'bout her fellow Alaskan lawmakers saying "she was preoccupied with her BlackBerry" in a meeting to ostensibly go into details about her plans for an oil pipeline. Instead, they said, she let her aides do the talking. How 'bout the allegations that she misused state records? How' bout the fact that she "sued the Bush administration over listing polar bears as a threatened species because the listing could stop oil drilling?

Let's not spoil the rest of the story. Read it for yourself...

washingtonpost.com

NATIVE ALASKAN BLOGGER QUESTIONS LEGITIMACY OF TODD PALIN'S INDIGENOUS HERITAGE CLAIMS

2008-09-19T09:07:00.002-07:00

A very good question, indeed. One that it'd be fun seeing Alaska's"First Dude" try to answer, but right now, Todd Palin's too busy ignoring a subpoena to talk to investigators about his governor wife's possible abuse of power. How DO the Palins get to duck talking to anyone they deem unpleasant or annoying, whether it be the media, state investigators, state politicians they don't like, or generally anyone who stands in opposition to their way of life?

Here's the latest, from the Anchorage Daily News.

adn.com

ABOVE THE LAW: PALIN'S HUSBAND REFUSES TO TESTIFY IN 'TROOPERGATE' PROBE

2008-09-19T09:07:00.000-07:00

Apparently, it's not just actor Steven Seagal who's thinking he's "Above the Law." Todd Palin, who Alaska state officials want to question in an investigation into whether his wife, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin abused her power while in office, isn't cooperating with a probe.

That begs an important question: What's he hiding?

Here's the story:

nytimes.com

YOU GO, GIRLS! 1,400 ALASKAN WOMEN STAND UP TO PALIN AND FOR OBAMA AT ANCHORAGE 'REJECT PALIN' PROTEST

2008-09-18T18:44:00.000-07:00

It's a little old news, as it happened last weekend, but, as the group of Alaskan women wrote, in declaring their opposition to her, "there is hope." Check out the story and photos.

[The]Alaska Wome n Reject Palin rally was to be held outside on the lawn in front of the Loussac Library in midtown Anchorage. Home made signs were encouraged, and the idea was to make a statement that Sarah Palin does not speak for all Alaska women, or men. I had no idea what to expect.
The rally was organized by a small group of women, talking over coffee. It made me wonder what other things have started with small groups of women talking over coffee. It's probably an impressive list. These women hatched the plan, printed up flyers, posted them around town, and sent notices to local media out lets. One of those media outlets was KBYR radio, home of Eddie Burke, a long-time uber-conservative Anchorage talk show host. Turns out that Eddie Burke not only announced the rally, but called the people who planned to attend the rally 'a bunch of socialist baby-killing maggots,' and read the home phone numbers of the organizers aloud over the air, urging listeners to call and tell t hem what they thought. The women, of course, received some nasty, harassing and threatening messages.
I felt a bit apprehensive. I'd been disappointed before by the turnout at other rallies. Basically,in Anchorage, if you can get 25 people to show up at an event, it's a success. So, I thought to myself, if we can actually get 100 people there that aren't sent by Eddie Burke, we'll be doing good. A real statement will have been made. I confess, I still had a mental image of 15 demonstrators surrounded by hundreds of menacing 'socialist baby-killing maggot' haters.
It's a good thing I wasn't tailgating when I saw the crowd in front of the library or I would have ended up in somebody's trunk. When I got there, about 20 minutes early, the line of sign wavers stretched the full length of the library grounds, along the edge of the road , 6 or 7 people deep! I could hardly find a place to park. I nabbed one of the last spots in the library lot, and as I got out of the car and started walking, people seemed to join in from every direction, carrying signs.
Never, have I seen anything like it in my 17 and a half years living in Anchorage. The organizers had someone walk the rally with a counter, and they clicked off well over 1400 people (not including the 90 counter-demonstrators). This was the biggest political rally ever, in the history of the state. I was absolutely stunned. The second most amazing thing is how many people honked and gave the thumbs up as they drove by. And even those that didn't honk looked wide-eyed and awe-struck at the huge crowd that was growing by the minute.This just doesn't happen here.
Then, the infamous Eddie Burke showed up. He tried to talk to the media, and was instantly surrounded by a group of 20 people who started shouting O-BA-MA so loud he couldn't be heard.Then passing cars started honking in a rhythmic pattern of 3, like the Obama chant, while the crowd cheered, hoot ed and waved their signs high.
So, if you've been doing the math Yes. The Alaska Women Reject Palin rally was significantly bigger than Palin's rally that got all the national media coverage! So take heart, sit back, and enjoy the photo gallery. Feel free to spread the pictures around to anyone who needs to know that Sarah Palin most definitely does not speak for all Alaskans nor the women. The citizens of Alaska, who know her best, have things to say.

HATE-MONGERING ANCHORAGE RADIO PERSONALITY SUSPENDED AFTER GIVING OUT ANTI-PALIN PROTESTERS' HOME PHONE NUMBERS ON THE AIR

2008-09-18T07:40:00.004-07:00

Just give conservative extremists — supposedly the staunchest defenders of American freedom — time and they'll find away to intimidate anyone who dares question their agenda or challenge their views with public demonstrations. That's the worst kind of censorship and now, a Neanderthal of a radio host, Eddie Burke (above, bullying protesters at a women's rally against Palin) has found a way to make the private lives of a group of women who oppose Sarah Palin, miserable. He might as well have sent a lynch mob to these ladies' homes.

After you read this story in the Anchorage Daily News, you'll wonder how in the world Burke not only got away with the despicable act, but got only a week suspension without pay for it. I hope these ladies have hired legal representation and prosecute Burke for harassment.

adn.com

UPRISING! IOWA PROTESTERS RATTLE PALIN AT RALLY

2008-09-18T07:40:00.003-07:00

More mounting evidence that our citizens are now wise to Sarah Palin and can see right through her facade (dare I use yet another word Palin probably doesn't know the meaning of?).

Here are some very amusing details in the story:

1. That in response to the anti-Iraq War protesters' shouts, the McCain-Palin supporters shot back with chants of "USA!" What a surprise. Confront Republican groupies with any challenges to their policies and in one way or another they question your patriotism. So just as they did at the GOP convention, they chanted the country's initials they way trained seals bark for fish.

2. Palin, who admits she's not a master of geography, confused Cedar Rapids, Iowa (where she was appearing) with Grand Rapids Michigan (where she was the night before), after being introduced on stage. I'm sure the townsfolk just loved that.

3. It's also reported that the protesters' shouts were so loud, they rendered Palin's speech unintelligible. What? Sarah Palin's words unintelligible? All that has to happen for her words to be rendered as such is for her to start talking.

Note: The picture here is of protesters against Palin in another city. The ones on the web, taken in Cedar Rapids have somehow disappeared from the Internet...

cnn.com

GOP SENATOR: 'IT'S A STRETCH' TO SAY PALIN IS QUALIFIED FOR VP

2008-09-18T07:40:00.002-07:00

As if you haven't heard enough from political commentators, CEOs and the opposition about her shortcomings as a vice presidential candidate, today even a prominent Republican senator, Chuck Hagel, of Nebraska says what we all know:
SARAH PALIN IS NOT QUALIFIED TO BE VICE PRESIDENT OF OUR COUNTRY.

Check out his remarks in this Omaha World-Herald piece:

Here's the link below:

omaha.com

Oh! And seems now, according to a new CNN poll, Palin's faux (hey! Another word palin probably doesn't know the meaning of!) honeymoon has just about run its course with the American people. Thankfully, our fellow citizens are starting to see the light—and that we're now 14 minutes and 59 seconds into Palin's 15 minutes of fame.

cnn.com

SUPREME INJUSTICE: PALIN'S MISHANDLING OF ALASKA STATE SUPREME COURT DETAILED IN NEWSWEEK COLUMN

2008-09-18T07:40:00.001-07:00

Ah, there's nothing like good, satirical writing—so don't be fooled by the title of the column below, written by Dahlia Lithwick. She's not advocating for Palin to be a Supreme Court justice. In fact, she says the Supreme Court would be better for her than she would be for it. Why just examine the Alaska governor's fine work with the Supreme Court in her own state...Follow the link on the lower left hand corner of the page you'll see...

newsweek.com

SHE'S ON THE ROAD TO NOWHERE...

2008-09-18T07:40:00.000-07:00

Like the seminal (I wonder if Sarah Palin even knows what that word means) 1980s Talking Heads song, "Road to Nowehere," Newsweek reveals that the Alaska governor, famous for decrying earmarks, actually embraces them. And, as Newsweek reveals, she's also a big fan of expensive construction projects that would cost taxpayers extraordinary amounts of money—doesn't she say out on the campaign trail that she's opposed to that, too?

Here's the link below:

newsweek.com

SHE MUST BE STOPPED, BUT ILLEGAL HACKING IS NOT THE WAY

2008-09-17T17:37:00.000-07:00

There are few things I'd like to see more than Sarah Palin be denied in her bid for the vice presidency.
But it MUST be legally done.
So, even as one of Sarah Palin's biggest detractors, I strongly condemn the actions by hackers who illegally accessed her private email accounts. She is everything I don't want in a politician, but she's an American citizen and has the right to privacy -- and I defend her right to have that.
And these hackers aren't too bright. Don't they know the last thing we need is anything that will foster sympathy for her and her candidacy?
Let's keep the pressure on -- but keep it truthful and legal.

AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF ALASKA PREZ SAYS PALIN DISSED STATE'S JUNETEENTH CELEBRATIONS, BUT WAS HOT TO GET ON 'OPRAH'

2008-09-16T22:16:00.000-07:00

I guess when you have a future shotgun wedding son-in-law who proudly says on his myspace page he's a "&^%$#$' redneck," you're not exactly up for an NAACP Image Award.
But when you can't even show enough civility toward a group of people to even acknowledge their presence--yet desperately try to use a person from that group to help air your message, you've got truly sad situation.
The president of the African-American Historical Society of Alaska weighs in on Gov. Sarah Palin

electronicvillage.com

SF CHRONICLE: PALIN BILLED VICTIMS OF SEXUAL ASSAULTS FOR COSTS OF RAPE KITS WHILE MAYOR OF WASILLA, AK

2008-09-16T20:39:00.000-07:00

How's this for exemplifying the expression "adding insult to injury"?
According to this San Francisco Chronicle story, current Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin actually billed victims of sexual assaults and their isnurance companies for the cost of rape kits while she was mayor of Wasilla, AK, on the advice of that town's police chief, saying it would be a burden on taxpayers. Read on...

NOW PAC: Palin May Be a Woman but Isn't Strong on Women's Issues, Endorses Obama

The National Organization for Women Political Action Committee endorsed the Obama-Biden ticket today. Not a huge surprise -- Obama and Biden usually get high marks from NOW for their Senate votes.

But it was a blow to the McCainiacs, who are counting on their Veep-nominee, Gov. Sarah Palin, to attract female voters. Trouble is, a lot of organizations don't compile ratings for governors. And when Palin was asked to supply answers to the nonpartisan Project Vote Smart's "National Political Courage Test" -- basically her positions on the issues, she refused -- she didn't. Or, as Project VoteSmart says on its website (with their capitals):

"Governor Sarah Heath Palin REPEATEDLY REFUSED TO PROVIDE ANY RESPONSES TO CITIZENS ON ISSUES THROUGH THE 2006 NATIONAL POLITICAL AWARENESS TEST WHEN ASKED TO DO SO BY key national leaders of both major parties including:

John McCain, Republican Senator

Geraldine Ferraro, Former Democratic Congresswoman

Michael Dukakis, Former Democratic Governor

Bill Frenzel, Former Republican Congressman

Richard Kimball, Project Vote Smart President"

Not that Palin would score well with women who are pro-abortion rights (she opposes abortion even in cases of rape and incest.) Plus, she supports McCain's opposition to legislation requiring equal pay for women.

Yes, she has huge fans among anti-abortion rights advocates but while she was mayor of tiny Wasilla, AK, the city billed victims of sexual assaults (and their insurance companies) for the cost of rape kits and forensice examinations. Wasilla's police chief said the kits, which cost between $300 and $1,200, would be a burden to taxpayers.

TOP MCCAIN ECONOMIC ADVISER: PALIN NOT QUALIFIED

2008-09-16T19:53:00.000-07:00

From her fellow conservatives to even people within her own campaign, the growing consensus is that Sarah Palin is not qualified to be VP.

Here's what Carly Fiorina, former Hewlett-Packard CEO, has to say...

nytimes.com

EVEN CONSERVATIVE COLUMNIST RIPS PALIN

2008-09-16T16:04:00.000-07:00

Think all conservatives are on board with Sarah Palin?

Not David Brooks.

Check out his column in the New York Times.

nytimes.com

WE CAN'T LET IT HAPPEN HERE

2008-09-16T15:28:00.000-07:00

Greetings from a non-partisan voter and concerned citizen with blue views and values living in a red state. Ever since I laid eyes and ears on her, read her history, examined her record and family background, I am utterly shocked that a presidential candidate would put someone of Sarah Palin's minuscule intellect, limited worldview, non-existent international experience, arcane personal beliefs and hypocritical views so dangerously close to the presidency.

I am outraged that so many in the American public clearly lack the intelligence to distinguish between style and substance and pack her outdoor rallies and like brainless sheep, hold "homemade" signs that Republican officials hand to them and loudly shout her name and wildly applaud her as she belts out empty, scripted slogans.

She doesn't believe women should have reproductive rights.

She claims to have visited Iraq, yet, as a Boston Globe story correctly points out, she never made it past the checkpoint into the country.

usnews.com

She claims to have said "thanks, but no thanks" to the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere," a $600 million pet project to link Ketchikan, town of about 9,000 to its airport on Gravina, an island where a whopping 50 people live, but in fact, she was a longtime supporter of it.

She doesn't believe dinosaurs ever existed.

She believes in a doctrine of sexual abstinence from birth until marriage, but that lesson didn't even sink in, in her own home, as her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant.

The Republican party has managed to shield her from most every media request for interviews and has painted reporters as villains for daring to subject her and her record to the same scrutiny as every other candidate in the presidential race.

Worst of all, the Republicans have the audacity and arrogance to sue the state of Alaska to prevent her from having to speak with an independent investigator looking into allegations that she abused her power as governor when she fired a state official for not firing her ex-brother in law, a state trooper.

Friends, we can't sit by and allow her to ride a wave of superficial, misguided adoration, vacuous rhetoric and a mystique factor into the Old Executive Office Building.

This blog is dedicated to informing all who care to read it, about why voting Sarah Palin into office would be an unmitigated disaster for our country and why American voters MUST make the smart choice and on November 4 cast their votes for Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Your comments and ideas are most welcome.

Thank you.