John McCain's pick of Sarah Palin as his running mate is brilliant and asinine.
She is beautiful, well-spoken and likeable. She has a certain "it" factor that also could be said of Obama. She is unvetted. She is deeply conservative. She has a 4-month-old son with autism. She supported Pat Buchanan in the 2000 presidential election. She said recently she doesn't know much about the Iraq War and that she wasn't sure just what the Vice President does. She is the personification of "change" and is the consumate "Washington outsider" -- two desirable qualities after eight years of Bush. She's a former union member. She hunts. She looks like Tina Fey.
It'd be foolish to underestimate Palin. In the absence of some revelation or other scandal, she is not Dan Quayle and she is not Geraldine Ferraro. Quayle came off like a deer in the headlights during his vice presidential debate with Lloyd Bentsen. My gut feel is that this former beauty queen is more fox than deer -- and not because of the way she looks.
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Choosing Palin was a liberal, bold gamble made by a conservative. Chosing Biden was a conservative, prudent pick made by a liberal.
McCain's pick was a Hail Mary pass to help him win an election -- more than it was to help him govern. Obama's pick was a run up the middle on first down (five-yard gain) to help him govern -- more than it was to help him win an election. Wouldn't a true conservative prefer the Obama methodology? Is now a good time to gamble as Americans are dying in the Middle East and as our economy tanks?
This will either help McCain win, just barely, or it'll help Obama win in a landslide. I don't think Obama wins a close election. He'll either win big, or he won't win at all.
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John McCain, who has battled the deadliest form of skin cancer on multiple occasions, turned 72 on Friday. Sarah Palin would be one heartbeat away from the most powerful job in a dangerous world.
If that doesn't make your heart race, what would? On this level, this bold, liberal, non-traditional choice is reckless and asinine.
2 comments:
I agree sort of...
Gambling is,at its core, a reckless behavior. You stand to lose far more often than you win...even with a calculated gamble.
It's one thing to gamble with your own money, career, etc. It's quite another to gamble with other people's. In this way, McCain's pick shows a disregard for other people. I'm all for unusual choices and even going against the mainstream, but this pick has all the earmarks of pandering on it.
I would be sincerely disappointed (it wouldn't be the first time) if Hillary supporters switched to McCain because he chose a runningmate, who like Hillary, has a uterus. Palin and Clinton, couldn't be further apart. And to choose some one "outside the beltway" is one thing...to choose some one without any real experience or grasp of the issues is quite another.
I'm sincerely frightened for America, when a reasonable and competent leader, like John McCain feels that he has to make reckless choices to get the voter's attention.
bobbyM
i, for one, am scared to death.
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