All y’all better get on board the McCain-Palin express, because this train is leaving the station. McCain today announced several steps they are taking to proactively counter “the shameless smears that have prevailed during Governor Palin’s introduction to the American voter.” These include:
Oh, and about that ridiculous “non-vet” smear?
“Gov. Sarah Palin is an exceptional governor with a record of accomplishment that exceeds, by far, the governing accomplishments of Sen. Obama. Her selection came after a six-month long rigorous vetting process where her extraordinary credentials and exceptionalism became clear. This vetting controversy is a faux media scandal designed to destroy the first female Republican nominee for vice president of the United States who has never been a part of the old boys’ network that has come to dominate the news establishment in this country. Sen. McCain picked his governing partner after a long and thorough search. Gov. Palin looks forward to addressing the nation and laying out the fundamental choice this election represents for the American people.
“The McCain campaign will have no further comment about our long and thorough process. This nonsense is over. It is time to begin the debate about how to win the two wars this country is engaged in,how to make this country energy independent and how to create jobs for American families that are hurting. The American people get to do the vetting now on Election Day — Nov. 4.”
Good answer. Folks, it’s time to stop holding the liberals’ water for them and get our heads screwed back on straight. Palin is an incredible woman, and we can win this thing if we stop this absurd circular firing squad.
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:59 am
Amen! Matt C for Press Secretary!
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:00 am
McCain is great with this stuff. It’s why he is our nominee. I don’t we should underestimate his ability to shape the discussion.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:02 am
And I still say that if Barack spends the rest of this campaign comparing his experience to our Vice President’s experience, we win this thing. How pathetic is Obama that he can’t campaign against McCain anymore, because he knows he’ll lose that battle? He’s got to now, as a Presidential nominee, campaign against a Vice Presidential nominee.
This is looking more brilliant, not less, everyday.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:03 am
Woohoo! Time to kick butt and take names.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:07 am
I am so glad they are doing this. I just wish they’d hit a little harder over the weekend, but I understand they were trying to keep the focus on Gustav.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I will be writing the editors of US Weekly and giving them a piece of my mind. That’s all they’re getting, because they will never get another dime of my money.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:07 am
That a way baby! Tonight will be the start of a great journey for Sarah Palin and i think she will hit her speech out of the park tonight and then McCain will give a great one tomorrow night and the tides will start to turn. Don’t underestimate this ticket b/c it could end up being very powerful!
MCCAIN/PALIN!
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:10 am
I think it was a jiu-jitsu move to let the echo chamber produce fodder for a few days before responding.
Also, think of how much it will increase viewership of her speech tonight.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:12 am
…just like it was great jiu-jitsu for McCain to sit back and not define Obama this spring/summer, until Obama had said enough things on camera that McCain could use them in the “celebrity” ads.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:14 am
I hope they do a great job with the “Palin is more qualified than Obama” ad… it will be hilarious to see the dems argue how Obama is more qualified than Palin… game. set. match.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:15 am
“I just wish they’d hit a little harder over the weekend, but I understand they were trying to keep the focus on Gustav.”
I agree with Metro. In addition to not trying to be heard over Gustov, the McCain/Palin campaign was giving the Democrats enough rope to hang themselves.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:16 am
I’ve barely been able to watch the coverage, because I just moved, and haven’t hooked up my cable yet, but what I’ve seen is the most disgraceful spectacle I’ve seen in my 21 years. As Ace says, “they’re not even bothering to hide it anymore”. If it weren’t for the need to combat them, I’d boycott every single left-wing institution from CNN to DailyKos. The essentially the entire media apparatus has become an arm of the Obama campaign; and he still can’t put away McCain. Has there ever been a weaker presidential candidate in history? That’s what we ought to be discussing; it seems like a fairly interesting story to me. Far more interesting then whether or not mothers can be Vice Presidents.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:16 am
But this jiu-jitsu strategy is very risky, because a paramount rule in politics is to define yourself and your opponent before others do it.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:28 am
I’m glad Giuliani is giving a primetime speech tonight. Go Rudy!
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:29 am
I have to tell you guys, 95 out of every 100 email I am getting to the http://www.palinforvp.com site are from angry women, angry at the press and Obama. The polls may not sbhow this now, but I am telling you, you will not believe the email I am getting.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:37 am
I heard Rudy will talk on Thursday?! Did it change for today?
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:40 am
I agree totally with you Matt C
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:41 am
Yes, Rudy is TODAY. 10pm ET.
Looks like he may be introducing Palin?
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:43 am
#3 MattC
BINGO!! Obama played right into McCain’s strategy, what a fool Barry is starting to look like (finally!!).
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:44 am
#18, you are so correct. I heard some GOP Senators and Congressman saying the other day that Obama was walking in to a trap.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:47 am
nice … time for McCain to hit back and hit back hard. Then let Sarah wear the lipstick for the speech tonight but pretend it’s not there!
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:47 am
Mitt and Huck in the 9pm ET hour.
Rudy and Sarah in the 10pm ET hour.
http:// politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/09/02/sources-romney-huckabee-giuliani-slated-for-wednesday
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:56 am
I had laid the ground work for a great comparison ad between Palin and Barry but I don’t have any technology expertise to actually put the ad together and pull in the clips I wanted in the ad. If there is anyone with the expertise to put together an ad I’d love to talk to you and see if we can put something together before the McCain team releases their ad. I talked to my wife about this over a week ago but never follow up with anyone. I can be reached at rbrun79 at gmail dot com if anyone has some free time today and would like to put together an ad to submit to team McCain/Palin.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:57 am
Rudy, Huckabee, Romney, and Palin all in the same night. Who could ask for more? I wouldn’t be surprised if tonights TV audience is bigger than tomorrow’s.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:59 am
Does anybody not see the negatives in that this entire convention is now about Sarah Palin — and not the republican presumed nominee? Clearly a Pawlenty pick would not have caused the initial curiosity/shook impact and would have left Obama’s speech center stage, but by this time we would have been focusing on McCain — who, by the way, is still the focus of many mainstream voters.
We need to make a consertive effort to get the spotlight back on John McCain. Being reduced to running “defensive” ads, wall to wall defensive surrogate squads and non-stop discussion of the fair maiden Sarah is lending a note of ridiculousness to this campaign. By the way, I noted from another website, Sarah and her scandals have hit the cover of a tabloid magazine — not the National Enquirer. That will most likely be her first introduction to shopping moms across the country.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:01 am
Great, it is about time:
The Dems, the MSM and NetRoots deserve some major, catastrophic BLOWBACK.
On top of everything, I have no doubt she is going to hit a grand slam tonight with her speech, all the idiots did was hype her and make an even MORE sympathetic figure to the base & disgruntled Clintonistas!!!
Teddy Roosevelt, Annie Oakley, Maggie Thatcher and Wonder Woman all rolled into one…
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:01 am
#20 Jerry,
“nice … time for McCain to hit back and hit back hard. Then let Sarah wear the lipstick for the speech tonight but pretend it’s not there!”
It is nice that all the GOP’ers are sticking up for Gov Palin (as well they should be)! I think this is all part of the McCain Strategy (Brilliant I might add), to have everyone up in arms, get people wanting to know more about this Gov Palin. People I work with (who are mostly Dems) are talking and looking forward to her speech, I think the speech will be heart warming and leave everyone wanting more when she steps off that podium. I just bet that when I get to work tomorrow everyone will be talking about
this remarkable woman thus taking Obama off the front page yet again….BRILLIANT I tell ya!
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:03 am
tonight’s audience might rival that of Obama’s speech last week. Palin is going to hit it out of the park!
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:03 am
voter,
The focus will be back on McCain soon enough. But McCain needed a game changer, he needed to give the base a reason to be enthused, and the rest of America a reason to tune in to the convention. Palin accomplished that in a way noone else could.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:10 am
Ras “Fifty-two percent (52%) of Americans have a favorable opinion of Palin. A separate survey found that Obama is number one and Palin number two on the list of candidates people would like to meet.”
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:10 am
More on Palin coming out… now its her church and religious beliefs:
http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/09/02/1327574.aspx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QG1vPYbRB7k&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VtF7Ypr1hY&feature=related
It makes sense to me what she’s saying in the video, but I’ve got to admit its not going to be taken well outside of people like me who are religious Christians.
As for the anti-evangelical video, I think there’s a huge clear difference between a racist church and evangelical churches that are a bit on the zealous side. I’d take Palin’s zealousness over Obama’s racism and anti-Americanism anyday.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:22 am
Did anyone see Rasmussen’s Hillary vs Sarah for POTUS poll?
Hillary 52, Sarah 41.
In THIS climate.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:24 am
And that 52% is only after the entire GOP apparatus went easy on Hillary so we could use her to bloody up Barry.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:36 am
#28 — he needs a lot more than that — he needs to appeal to independents and moderate women, and the polls are showing none of that. I know the motto is now to disregard polls, but the RCP average for Obama is 6.3+. This has NOT been a game changer for McCain — Obama’s convention was a game changer in that it appears Hillary voters are coalescing around Obama. Absolutely no one is focusing on that extremely important factor.
Republicans had better get back into the real game pronto — otherwise, they are in for a very sorry disappointment.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:39 am
voter,
The polls didn’t change in Obama’s favor until days after he read his magic speech from a teleprompter. Before you bemoan the fact that the sky is falling, why not wait it out – at least until the woman speaks – and it has a chance to show up in polling?
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:42 am
Voter,
Obama up 6-8 points is not that large, considering the polls were after his convention, and before the Republican convention. I suspect that after this weekend, we are somewhere between a tie race and McCain/Palin up 4.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:45 am
40 million american’s watched Obama’s speech and he has the same bounce as after his Berlin speech.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:58 am
Obama’s bounce = 1/3 that of GORE!!! just a little perspective. Worst Dem bounce since 1964… do a little research and stop buying all the liberal talking points.
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:38 am
36, did you really just say “worst Dem bounce since 1964″? Isn’t that when Johnson CREAMED Goldwater in a landslide? Please don’t make that comparison!
September 3rd, 2008 at 12:18 pm
It is soooo important we all stand behind Sarah Palin and I commend John McCain for doing so and he m,ade the very best choice for VP in my opinion she is awesome. Job well done. She is Me , she is the womwn next door, we can all relate…..
September 3rd, 2008 at 12:52 pm
Newsweek had good things to say about Sarah Palin last year –
http://74.6.239.67/search/cache?ei=UTF-8&p=newsweek+breslau+women&fr=ush-groups&u=www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21162322/site/newsweek/&w=newsweek+%22news+week%22+breslau+women+woman&d=fgCeqBg5RTlk&icp=1&.intl=us
September 3rd, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Thanks for the link Lucy. Good article and shows that this reformer narrative about Palin wasn’t made up my team McCain. She took on the corrupt GOP leadership in Alaska and slit their political throats and they deserved it. She then set out to amend the oil contracts that the fomer adminstration “gave” to the energy companies. Contracts made up by the good ole’ network and not in the best interest of the citizens of AK. They laughed at her but in the end she got them to do just what she wanted. Then she, WITHOUT federal support, signed an agreement to build a natural gas pipeline that had been stalled for 20+ years at the federal level. She signed that agreement at the annual convention of the Alaska AFL-CIO. She has done more to solve our energy problems in two years as governor then Biden has done in 30+ years in the Senate.