I’ve thought alot about a potential Palin pick; now that it’s finally here, I want to hit upon what strike me as the best talking points for the McCain campaign.

1. Palin has 8 years of executive experience. The Vice Presidency is an executive position. This almost inherently makes her more qualified then a someone with a similar level of legislative experience (Obama anyone?).

2. Charlie Crist and Tim Kaine were floated as potential running mates, and almost no one asked “are they qualified”, despite the fact that neither has completed as Governor. Double standard anyone?

3. Alaska borders two countries including Russia; Alaskan Governors are among the only Governors who have continual foreign interactions.  Most presidents are Governors.

4. Governing a state is as much about geographic size as population size. The complexities of Governing a state as large as Alaska are not insignificant.

5. Palin is running for Vice President, not President. Obama, with a comparable level of experience, on the other hand, is running for President. You folks think that’s just hunky-dory. Double standard anyone?

6. By attacking Palin on inexperience, Democrats are really attacking the heartland; they’re saying Alaska just isn’t important enough to produce a Vice President. It’s not a glitzy industrial state; it’s not on either coast where all the cultural elites reside (this tactic worked to great effect for Clinton in 92′).

7. Use all of the above points to reinforce the “Obama is an arrogant elitist disdainful of the folks in Middle America” meme.

Get on the ball folks. Palin’s an excellent pick if the GOP is attentive, and provided she can avoid any major blunders. But, if they’re grasping, and don’t find a consistent message, she could easily be pigeonholed.

John McCain’s selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate was an inspired choice that may turn out to be the deciding factor in this election. Instead of picking a running mate who would have pleased the right while offending the center, or one who would have moved the party leftward and alienated the right, McCain took the party not right or left but forward with the Alaska governor who represents the best of the next generation of conservatives and Republicans. I’ll weigh in with more thoughts on this monumental choice over the holiday weekend. Until then, let me leave you with this anecdote. I work in a large office with dozens of coworkers. A fair number of them are middle aged suburban women. Today, more than a few who had previously been prepared to vote for Obama had moved into the undecided column after hearing about McCain’s choice. If this same dynamic is currently at work throughout the country, we’re looking at a major bounce for McCain that could put him into the lead. I will not mince words: millions of women may change their vote because of Sarah Palin. And that means that John McCain may defy the odds and become the nation’s 44th president.

McCain/Palin ’08. Now more than ever.

Everyone that lives 35 years has 35 years of experience. The U.S. Constitution requires same for anyone that would serve as President of the United States Therefore; we always choose among adults with at least that much life experience.

I have never used experience as an argument for or against a Democrat and Republican. What matters most is what they believe, i.e. their world view and what policies they advocate. I would choose a so-called inexperienced conservative that is right on the issues over an “experienced” liberal any day.

And what passes for “experience” anyway? Serving on a committee in Washington? Please don’t insult my intelligence.

In fact, that Joe Biden remains a liberal after 30+ years on Washington committees and requisite reality muggings, speaks very poorly for him. Liberal policies on all fronts are proven failures, whether it be peace in our time appeasement; blaming society for crime; and not recognizing that “the rich” are the ones that create jobs and don’t have to invest in same if taxes are raised and regulations enhanced.

John F. Kennedy and Sarah Palin came to the right conclusions on these basics at earlier ages than most.

We elect Presidents to make the right decisions, not spout inanities on Meet the Press that passes for good diplomatic lies. Reagan was ridiculed for calling the USSR an “evil empire.” Lack of experience was cited for the presumed faux pas. After being freed from tyranny, Poland’s Lech Walesa and many Soviet dissidents along with many Soviet leaders admitted that Reagan stripped the USSR bare, undermining them for the world to see and giving hope to the enslaved.

Oftentimes this good and evil matter is best seen from outside the beltway. Lincoln and Reagan saw it from outside the beltway. Knowing how wealth is created is also best seen from there.

Palin has stared across the Bering Strait at evil her whole life; participated in local government like a Jeffersonian; quit a government job over principle; partnered with a husband that creates wealth; and brought life into this world and nurtured it. She has run a state government.

She has actual accomplishments that others can testify to.

Attorney Obama has never tried, much less won, a case. No organized members of communities spoke on his behalf this week. It seems that all of his witnesses to past hope/change accomplishments must be hidden in Church basements; locked away in university foundation safes or protected by court order; or locked up as felons.

McCain doesn’t own the experience issue because of age. He owns it because of what he learned from it.

But the dirty little secret is that “experience” divorced from substance means nothing. For many, it is a deceit of elitists inside the beltway.

For me? Are you 35? Ok, we can talk.

And when We the People talk to these post 34ers, we don’t choose leftists.

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Mike DeVine’s Charlotte Observer columns Legal Editor for The Minority and HinzSight Reports “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.” – The Chief Justice Race 4 2008 “One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

Now that we’ve all had a few hours to cheer Gov. Sarah Palin’s selection as John McCain’s vice-presidential nominee, it’s time to sit down and weigh the actual costs and benefits. Suffce it to say, she is hardly the slam-dunk choice that some have been proclaiming her to be: the way some people are talking about it — paging Kavon and Michael, both of whom are “on cloud nine”, as they said — it’s like it was obvious all along that Palin was the perfect choice.

She’s not. She’s a Hail Mary choice that we didn’t, by any measure, need. She’s been in elected office for a shorter period of time than Barack Obama, and although she’s actually accomplished something in her short time in office, it sort of undercuts the argument that Obama isn’t ready to lead, doesn’t it? A 44-year-old, two-year governor without a scrap of foreign policy experience to her name is to be a heartbeat away from the presidency? Haven’t we just conceded that Obama’s experience, in fact, does make him ready to lead? There goes the ad campaign.

And can she really pull in Hillary women? Not only did Mrs. Clinton make a fairly convincing cry for unity at the convention, but it seems that her supporters have mostly fallen in line. Palin’s extremist stance on abortion won’t be much help, either, although she’ll probably moderate it.

Expect to see mostly positive ads from here on out. The ticket is now officially a reform-minded one, the Good Government ticket that could potentially spark a landslide. Palin’s short time in office has already given her a fantastic story: she doesn’t just talk about rooting out corruption — she’s done it. She’s taken on the establishment and has shown that she’s beholden to no one. If America’s looking for fresh new leadership, it should look no further.

Better yet, she’s fantastic bait. Is the Obama campaign really going to try to make this campaign about experience? The first statement by an Obama aide this morning was an attack on Palin for her lack of foreign policy experience — oops! This is the potential brilliance of a Palin nomination. They can’t attack Palin for her singular weakness without drawing attention to Obama’s as well! Nothing is left for them to attack her on. She quite possibly could be electoral gold.

To sum, then: what we have here is a double-edged sword. McCain has now partially conceded that Obama does indeed have the experience to lead, but he’s drawing him into attacking his own credentials. An utterly fascinating strategy.

So rejoice, but be cautious. Obama’s shortcomings have allowed us to get away with Palin. We’ll see where this goes.

Just ran into the Beltway Boys — Fred Barnes and Mort Kondracke — in front of the Xcel.

Thanks for indulging me.

By Mike DeVine, Legal Editor for The Minority Report and The HinzSight Report

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Fellow baseball lover, George Will made a great point about the real proof that white racism had ceased to be a major factor in American life. It was not so much when Frank Robinson was hired as the first African-American manager in Major League Baseball. Rather, it was when he was fired on the same terms as white managers were fired all the time.

The same test obtains with respect to Barack Obama.

I have known for at least eight years and probably much longer that white racism no longer held back blacks from achieving the American Dream, and I would admit that Obama’s nomination is further proof of same. However, Larry Elder and Dave Hinz point out quite well much earlier proofs.

Forty-five years after the Rev Martin Luther King, Jr made that speech, that promissory note of which he spoke has come due. The little children of his time now attend Harvard Law School. The little children of his time have risen to become Cabinet Level Secretaries.The child of his time is running for the highest office in this land.

Paid In Full!

The US Constitution, and that wonderful speech of 45 years ago, did not demand equality of outcome — merely equality of opportunity. The opportunity is now — the opportunity is equal. The time is now, to move beyond the dream, and to focus, on substance.

Sen. Barack Obama has been given a great gift. Doors have been opened to him that were not available a few short decades ago. It is not necessary that he be elected President of the United States, in order for America to pass beyond this veil of latent racism that the Obama campaign and the Democratic Party demands we accept.

MLK’s dream did not require that a Black man be elected President for it to be fulfilled. One day a Black man will be elected President, but it won’t be this year. Why? Because Obama is going to lose for the same reason most Democrats lose in Presidential elections. They are leftists unfavorably judged by the lack of content of character.

Judged by the content of his character, I see a dangerous leftist, and have since February 2007. And like all such previous known leftists, I see a Presidential election loser. Eighteen months ago I said:

Barack Obama is an Out of the Mainstream Liberal McGoverniteBarack Obama is racing to beat Hillary for the McGovern mantle on the war. His voting record is as far left as any Democrat in the Congress. Yet, Biden calls him mainstream. In fact Biden calls him the first mainstream Black to seek the Presidency. Yet, one would be hard pressed to find any policy differences between him, Jesse Jackson, and Al Sharpton. In fact, one would be hard pressed to find any Democrats beyond one standard deviation of Ted Kennedy.

Based on voting records and policy statements, (which are what matters), there are ZERO elected Democrats in DC save maybe Nelson in Nebraska and Lieberman on the war. Yet, the MSM is hard at work trying to make the lie that Obama is “mainstream” a Known Fact, due to his “tone.” Tone and a quarter will get you the same failed liberal policies that un-tone will. Tone, good looks and soothing rhetoric count for nothing unless they are employed for the right policies.

Obama didn’t stand a chance being elected in February of 2007, February of 2008 and especially not since we heard the din of the 20-year pew-parked butt in a hate whitey America Church who has to hide all the pals that could vouch for him in Church basements, university archives behind lock and key and/or federal prisons.

The American people vote on substance. His substance is far left, way outside the mainstream of American values.

I wrote months ago that the pathologies of the left, especially including those that look the other way and make Black kooks mainstream would not survive given that this thin reed wants the nukes. The pathologies of Southern whites had to be culled after King’s speech as well.

That is why he will lose, and in that process fulfill King’s dream rather than the leftist politically correct white guilt identity politics dream of the left.

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Mike DeVine’s Charlotte Observer columns Legal Editor for The Minority and HinzSight Reports “The way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.” – The Chief Justice Race 4 2008 “One man with courage makes a majority.” – Andrew Jackson

I just want to say how happy I am with Sen. McCain’s new choice for running mate. Truly a great choice, and really gills a lot of the needs of the campaign at this point. I think during the primaries I can claim the fact that Palin was my top choice for Romney, should he have won, and I am glad to see her on the ticket.

McCain, in my mind, has proved him self to being a shrewd politician. In the primaries my opinion was that he was a bit sophomoric, but as the generals have worn on, I am very impressed by many of the things McCain has done and said.

Today’s Palin speech was no exception, Palin herself was very smart in congratulating Ferraro who has been very tepid to Obama on talk shows, and even more strategic in claiming ownership to the “18,000,000 cracks.” Palin’s story is a great story: PTA mom to VP. A mother of five and husband who is a member of the steelworkers union. That’s a tough one to beat. And she exudes (from what I can tell) an aura of humility as a woman who cares deeply for her causes.

Palin is not with out her obstacles. No candidate is. What will be interesting is how the campaign handles the following:

1. Feminist groups who will undoubtedly work overtime to keep from having their carpet pulled from under them.

2. A perceived lack of experience. The Obama campaign gaffed on this with their attack of her being a mayor of a town of 9,000 seemingly ignoring her tenure as governor- leaving themselves unprotected from attacks from McCain over Obama despising small town America. None the less, the possibility exists, and I am sure the campaign already is spinning it’s wheels.

3. I would not be surprised if she is attacked for leaving a newborn baby to go campaign.

4. We really have no idea how she will survive in National Politics.

All these being said, I think Palin is the lady of the day, and frankly gives this campaign the shot in the arm it needs to inoculate themselves from the Dem Convention bounce and the old-rich-white-guy image the Obama campaign was sure to hold against them.

…someone called for this path months ago.

So what’s a winning strategy? Well, it’s not to beef up the ticket with the Most Beloved By the Base superlative winners…What John McCain needs is a message of reform and competence, tied to issues of energy, national security, health care, and the economy, bolstered by a co-headliner with a record that shows that the team is serious about changing its path, in order to attract…Hillary supporters…Count me on the list of those that would be more than satisfied with a Palin vice-presidential nomination…

This is high-risk, high-reward, yes. But this is the path that he needs to take: advocating reform, not just change. The possible brilliance of this pick, too, is that the Obama camp may be baited into attacking her for her inexperience. Think about that: The Obama camp? Attacking Palin for inexperience? Hah! Clever as hell, if you ask me.

Also, the response to Palin so far has been positive — plus (yes, this is anecdotal evidence, but bear with me), the Hillary supporters I know are all tempted to vote for McCain-Palin. We’ll see…

Gallup Daily General Election Tracking (8/29)

• Barack Obama 49%
• John McCain 41%

Survey of 2,727 registered voters was conducted August 26-28. The margin of error is ±2 percentage points.

Consider this your McCain/Palin ’08 Open Thread.

Allow me to offer the first comment: Best. Vice. Presidential. Pick. Ever.

An astute reader linked to a discussion thread for Hillary supporters.  It is a must read.

Palin is being greated with near universal acclaim — at least in this forum.

Meanwhile, an ardent Hillary supporter in the office next to me is telling her Democrat husband on the phone that they will be “cancelling each other out.”

Brilliant pick. 

The Politico is reporting just a second ago.

The Chicago Tribune and Bill Kristol are confirming.

Wow!

UPDATE: CNN’s Dana Bash just said that she got off the phone with a “senior McCain aide” who confirmed that it will be Sarah Palin. Wow Wow Wow!

Rasmussen Daily General Election Tracking (8/29)

• Barack Obama 46%
• John McCain 43%

With Leaners

• Barack Obama 49%
• John McCain 45%

Favorable / Unfavorable (Net)

• Barack Obama 56% / 42% (+14%)
• John McCain 53% / 45% (+8%)

Daily tracking results are collected via telephone surveys of 1,000 likely voters per night and reported on a three-day rolling average basis. The margin of sampling error—for the full sample of 3,000 Likely Voters–is +/- 2 percentage points.

According to ABC (via Jonathan Martin), Sarah Palin will be watching the Veep rollout from her home in Alaska. Later today, she’ll be making an appearance at the Alaska state fair.

That brings the total to four confirmed absences at the event so far: Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, and Tim Pawlenty. Kudos to the McCain camp for keeping this thing so tightly under wraps. I’m really anxious to know who it’s going to be now.

Duh.

For the ninety-first time: it was never Romney.

It appears, based on Politico’s reporting, that Tim Pawlenty will not be the choice.

I voted for Mitt in the MN caucus and would be delighted if he is the pick.  I have been intrigued by Sarah Palin for months and think she would likewise make a fantastic veep — even if this current mini-scandal concerns me just a bit.

Hats off to the McCain camp for doing a great job in keeping us all guessing.

According to Ben Stein on Larry King, just a few minutes ago, Rove has said that it will be Tim Pawlenty. Just the latest buzz in a wild ride.

UPDATE: For all of those who made us sit through the constant references to Intrade (which I am in the camp of believing to be totally irrelevent) here is today’s closing number

Pawlenty 61%
Romney 19%
F.D. Thompson 6%
Palin 5.1%
Lieberman 5.0
Ridge 3.2
M. Whitman 2.7
Portman 2.5
K.B. Hutchinson 1.9
Giuliani 1.5
Huckabee 1

UPDATE #2: About that guy currently in 3rd place on intrade. It ain’t happening, although as Geraghty points out, it would be priceless:

I’m told by a reliable source there’s no sign that Fred Thompson is the pick.

Wouldn’t a Biden-Thompson debate be worth the price of admission? “Joe, if you could stop your lips from flappin’ for just one minute, I could set you straight on the freight train of bull you just unleashed on everybody here.”

That would be rekindle my flame!

The local ABC affiliate has some interesting video of Gov. Pawlenty arriving at the airport alone, without staff and without security. 

Meanwhile, the local media has encamped around the Pawlenty “compound” in the modest first ring suburb of Eagan — probably from the much smaller South St. Paul airport on a private charter.

I am told the Governor attended his daughter’s volleyball game this evening.  If he’s going to Ohio, he will have to be wisked away under the cover of darkness — probably on a private charter from the much smaller South St. Paul airport.

I have to disagree with the majority of our readership here at R4’08 over the likely impact of Obama’s address to the DNC tonight. With his speech, Barack Obama began to lay the groundwork for what I’ve been fearing the most since Iowa — the conflation of a hapless incumbent party, tough economic times at home, confusion about America’s role abroad, and the power of a charismatic messenger producing a refurbished, revitalized, unapologetic American liberalism. The threat of Obama always lied more in his ability to make liberalism cool again than in any sort of Clintonian move to the center, something he wouldn’t be particularly good at due to his liberal cultural cues. But most Americans aren’t policy wonks, and very few Americans remember what real liberalism does to the nation. Add a little Bush hatred to all of that and it’s not particularly difficult for someone with the communicative abilities of Obama to make liberalism sound reasonable. The question is whether McCain and the Republicans will be effective over the next two months at explaining why Obama’s policies are not particularly reasonable and why McCain’s change is actually that which we can believe in. McCain’s status as an American hero can only take him so far. To get over the hump, he’ll need to articulate to the average middle class Middle American voter why he or she shouldn’t vote for a middle class tax cut from Barack Obama.

I know that this has been assumed by most of Race42008 for some time, but some others held out hope.

Well, time to break it – It is not Mike Huckabee for VP. Mike posted a blog tonight explaining that he was never contacted and he doesn’t expect to be. He was not being coy, and he wants his supporters to move on and support John McCain regardless of the VP choice. Time for some lovin’. Can we get a group hug?

Here is the blog.

Please be polite and courteous in the comments.

Most. Hyped. Speech. Ever.

Can Obama’s deliver on the most anticipated speech in a generation?

Anyone who thinks that Tim Pawlenty is Quayle Part II needs to put down the crack pipe:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8JfK67X-bM&feature=related[/youtube]

For those who are unfamilar with Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Erick Erickson’s profile over at Redstate is  an absolute must read.

The evidence abounds. From Politico by way of Hot Air:

In a strong sign that John McCain has not selected Joe Lieberman to be his running mate, Republican members of Congress were told today by McCain’s campaign that the Arizona senator would tap a traditional number two, according to a GOP source.

Allah Pundit opines:

“Traditional” has a lovely connotation vis-a-vis Joementum and a not so lovely one vis-a-vis Gingrich’s warning to McCain last month about boring white guys. Drudge, conspicuously, is teasing a link to a weeks-old Journal profile of Pawlenty as I write this, and a reader e-mails to say that David Gregory was dropping heavy hints on MSNBC a little while ago about McCain’s VP possibly appearing on talk shows this Sunday (Pawlenty’s booked for “Meet the Press”). I can’t believe they’d be holding back if the pick had leaked, but clearly everything they’re hearing is pointing them towards Pawlenty.

I’m fine with this selection, and I think most McCain supporters will be, even if T-Paw wasn’t their first choice. That said, I’ll always wonder why Rep. Heather Wilson wasn’t vetted. She checked all of Pawlenty’s boxes, and a few more. Ah well. McCain/Pawlenty ’08!

My own question from the other night (‘Where’s Albert hiding?’) in the comments section has been answered tonight.

DNC Speaking Schedule for Thursday evening:
8:30 pm Gov. Bill Richardson
8:45 pm Former Vice President Albert Gore Jr.

For all the “if they elected Hillary, she’d be running away with this election” talk that has appeared on this site recently, all I have to say is: if Fat Albert, the bearded bard, had decided to run, they would all be dinner for the Goreminater.

I hope we get Angry Albert and he does that thing with the fire…

All of the rumors swirling around Tim Pawlenty and Mitt Romney seem strikingly similar to those surrounding Evan Bayh and Tim Kaine prior to Obama’s announcement of Joe Biden.

Pawlenty clearing his schedule a day ahead of McCain’s pick? Only a week ago Kaine hosted Obama for an overnight stay in Virginia. Speculation hit a fever pitch. Nothing happened.

How about the reported sweeps of Romney’s sister’s house by the Secret Service? Sounds serious. That’s what many thought when word came that Obama-Bayh signs and stickers were under production. Nothing happened.

Hey, I could be completely wrong. Pawlenty may have just received the call from McCain and he is now huddling with the campaign to plan out his first appearance.

My gut, however, believes that McCain will want to counter Biden’s power and stature. He will want a certified leader and plausible Commander-in-Chief. Someone the American people will instantly trust….

His choices come down to Rudy and Powell…Yes, a boy can dream.

OK. They didn’t really say that. But they did say exactly what I have been telling everyone for the past week: Mitt Romney did not make the final cut and that the “Houses Flap” made his selection untenable. They also unanimously predicted that Gov. Tim Pawlenty will be revealed as the GOP Vice Presidential nominee tomorrow.

Gov. Romney was someone that I had gotten behind as a great pick if a female selection was not possilble. The fact that he was likely eliminated because of something that was completely out of his control is really a shame.

Gov. Pawlenty will grow on his detractors here after the initial anger wears off. He is intelligent, accomplished, and has won time and again in a state where all of the chips have been stacked against him. These victories were not an accident folks. Pawlenty won because he is the most shrewd politician that the state has ever seen.

The Democrats will underestimate him, and he will make them pay. Just as he has made them pay here on the tundra.

That is the story that sits near the top of Drudge right now.

Not that it matter, but Intrade responds instantly: T-Paw: 53, Romney: 42.

Carl Cameron just reported all of 15 seconds ago that there are reports that Romney’s family has been “swept up” by secret service.

Update:

This is as good as Primary days

Update 2:

I should also add he mentioned Romney was seen at the airport with an overnight bag. No word on if he packed a toothbrush.

**Kavon Says: I just watched Cameron’s report on my Tivo. Cameron was clearly referring to the same reports of members of Mitt’s family having SS sweeps of their homes that we have been talking about all day.

**Jason Says: Could be. It’s worth noting that Roll Call pulled their story on Mitt’s sister being swept by the Secret Service. Despite all our guessing today I guess the only people that know anything are McCain and a few of his advisers.

Carl Cameron was just on Fox News and reported that he believes that Sen. McCain will have a “tableau” of Republican candidates onstage with him at the rally in Dayton, OH tomorrow, all fully aware of who got the nod.

After making some remarks and introducing the field to the crowd, Sen. McCain will have the pick dramatically  “step forward.”

Among those confirmed to be on stage: Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee.

As they say, developing…