The Obama campaign has released a video attacking Palin for being for the Bridge to Nowhere before she was against it.
So, is Obama now against the egregious earmark?
In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, Republican Sen. Jim DeMint writes:
Mrs. Palin also killed the infamous Bridge to Nowhere in her own state. Yes, she once supported the project: But after witnessing the problems created by earmarks for her state and for the nation's budget, she did what others like me have done: She changed her position and saved taxpayers millions. Even the Alaska Democratic Party credits her with killing the bridge.
When the Senate had its chance to stop the Bridge to Nowhere and transfer the money to Katrina rebuilding, Messrs. Obama and Biden voted for the $223 million earmark, siding with the old boys' club in the Senate. And to date, they still have not publicly renounced their support for the infamous earmark.
The efforts to dismiss the first Republican female vice-presidential nominee as little more than “lipstick on a pig” brings to mind a truism: a drowning man will grab a razor blade.
For the first time in the three months since the general election campaign began, John McCain last week generated more coverage than Barack Obama. But he was still outshone by another newsmaker during the GOP convention—his own running mate.
Sarah Palin, the first woman on a Republican ticket, was the focus of feverish attention as the media tried to find out more about her, convey her record and biography, and calculate her impact on the race.
The surge in interest in Palin has powered McCain’s lead over Obama in new national polls and closed the gender gap. The Washington Post reports:
Much of the shift toward McCain stems from gains among white women, voters his team hoped to sway with the pick of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice presidential candidate. White women shifted from an eight-point pre-convention edge for Obama to a 12-point McCain advantage now.
But as New York Daily News Washington Bureau Chief Thomas DeFrank writes, it ain’t over till it’s over:
For now, the CW has McCain soaring and Obama slumping, just another rookie phenom fading in the stretch.
McCain had a strong convention with three unadulterated days of prime-time Obama bashing. His pick of Sarah Palin has rallied a dispirited base and shored up a couple of red states where Obama might otherwise have been competitive...
So once the GOP's post-convention bounce and Palinmania subside - and they will - how does Obama get the mojo back?
By sticking to his blueprint, painting McCain as a third Bush term, relentlessly hammering home bread-and-butter economic issues - and a debate performance on Sept. 26 as compelling as his Denver acceptance speech.
Obama has 56 days to get his mojo back. It remains an open question whether he can.
While it’s known as the City of Brotherly Love (and Sisterly Affection), Mayor Michael Nutter is not showing Sarah Palin any love:
I was astounded, astounded at what I saw at the Repulsive National Convention on Wednesday night, at the RNC between Giuliani and Governor Palin.
I last saw Nutter in Denver at a reception for Hillary Clinton’s delegates. At that time, he was astounded, astounded by the sexist attacks on Hillary Clinton.
I am a big fan of Hillary Rodham Clinton…There was some hurt at the end. The hurt that some of us are feeling today will be so much worse if John McCain is elected President of the United States.
Anyway, that’s politics.
But discordant political notes are not “The Sound of Philadelphia.” Two visionary songwriters and producers, Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, turned the intersection of politics and popular culture into music that has inspired three generations of political activists, entrepreneurs and community organizers.
From time to time, politics and music collide. The rock group Heart reportedly sent a cease and desist letter to the Republican National Committee asking it to stop using their hit song, “Barracuda,” as the unofficial theme song for Palin.
With both Obama and McCain promising “change,” it was fitting that I spent part of Sunday afternoon in the original studio of “American Bandstand,” where Sam Cooke performed “A Change is Gonna Come.”
For me, the highlight of “Back to Bandstand” was Chubby Checker whose remake of Hank Ballard’s “The Twist” was recorded in the studio that was taken over by Gamble and Huff.
Palin tore the roof off the Excel Energy Center, as well as the television ratings. According to Nielsen, 37.2 million viewers tuned in to watch her speech. That was just 1.1 million shy of the record-breaking audience for Barack Obama’s acceptance speech. Palin was a ratings hit even though her speech was carried on only six networks (BET, TV One, Univision and Telemundo bailed out).
Johnny wasn’t as good as Sarah. Frankly, the speech was too long and his delivery was monotonous. I probably would have nodded off if I hadn't had the text to read along.
While McCain's policy proposals are GOP perennials, e.g., tax and budget cuts, strong defense, free trade, school vouchers, etc., he said he would be good for hard-pressed Americans:
These are tough times for many of you. You’re worried about keeping your job or finding a new one, and are struggling to put food on the table and stay in your home. All you ever asked of government is to stand on your side, not in your way. And that’s just what I intend to do: stand on your side and fight for your future.
McCain vowed to end partisan rancor, but he couldn’t resist taking a swipe at Obama:
I’m not running for president because I think I’m blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need.
After telling his POW story for the umpteenth time, McCain ended on a crescendo note:
Fight with me. Fight with me. Fight for what’s right for our country…Stand up, stand up, stand up and fight. Nothing is inevitable here. We’re Americans, and we never give up. We never quit. We never hide from history. We make history.
History will indeed be made on Election Day. In the meantime, McCain and Obama will "go at it" so buckle up. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.
The first female Republican vice presidential nominee, Sarah Palin, took the podium at the Excel Energy Center last night, flashed a smile and rocked the house.
Palin introduced herself to the American people:
I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small town. I was just your average hockey mom, and signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my kids’ public education better. When I ran for city council, I didn’t need focus groups and voter profiles because I knew those voters, and knew their families, too.
Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown. And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves. I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a “community organizer,” except that you have actual responsibilities.
I might add that in small towns, we don't quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they are listening, and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren't listening. We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.
Ouch. Palin then took a bite out of the media elites:
Well, I’m not a member of the permanent political establishment. And I’ve learned quickly, these past few days, that if you’re not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone. But here’s a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I’m not going to Washington to seek their good opinion - I’m going to Washington to serve the people of this great country.
While I disagree with Palin on abortion, guns, sex education – pick an issue – the media’s coverage has been blatantly sexist. Should Joe Biden have called it quits when his wife and infant daughter were killed in a car accident? Biden was sworn into office from the bedside of his injured sons.
Did anyone question whether the late Robert F. Kennedy should have run for president? Kennedy had 10 children and a pregnant wife. Fast forward 40 years, did the media call for John Edwards to drop out when his wife was diagnosed with an incurable form of cancer?
I am one of 11 children. My father was a blue-collar worker and my mother was a domestic worker. It was exponentially harder for my mother to juggle her dual roles than it would be for a mother of five living in the Vice President’s Residence at the Naval Observatory.
So, attack Palin on the issues, her experience and readiness to be a heartbeat away from the presidency. But the notion that Palin has “crossed a tipping point” as a working mother begs the question: Says who?
The Republicans’ "hockey mom," Sarah Palin, will make her prime-time debut tonight. The reaction to John McCain’s veep pick falls along partisan lines, according to a Rasmussen poll. While the bloom is off the rose, 52 percent still have at least a somewhat favorable opinion of Palin. Thirty-one percent view her very favorably.
Among Democrats, 63 percent think Palin was a bad choice. Thirty-six percent have an unfavorable view of the Alaska governor, including 16 percent with a very unfavorable view. By contrast, 69 percent of Republicans think Palin is all that.
Sean Combs, aka Diddy, also thinks Palin is wack and McCain is "bugging."
Diddy should stick to hip-hop videos and fashion because he doesn’t know diddly-squat about blacks in Alaska or Palin.
Hell, I’ve even met a few, including state Sen. Bettye Davis who can go toe-to-toe with anyone in the Lower 48.
Richard Benavides is an Alaska resident and political observer. He first met Palin in 1988 at KTUU-TV in Anchorage, where she was an intern and he was the sports director. I asked Benavides whether he agreed with Diddy that McCain’s choice of Palin is "completely irresponsible":
That depends of course on your political views. From a conservative standpoint, she hits quite a few of the areas that energize that base when compared with the lukewarm reception McCain’s presidential bid had with them previously.
As a local observer of Gov. Palin, I can say this much: She is incredibly savvy in the world of public relations. She knows how to speak publicly to the media in a nation where how you look, how you come across on TV and your ability to smile and stay on point is more important than the issues. She is a godsend to many Republicans who have had to watch others who put forth the same ideological message as Gov. Palin does without her "gosh, gee, I’m just a normal person like you" persona.
So, is Palin all that:
As to her job as governor, it depends on who you ask. The public still loves her, although her high approval rating (80% to 90%) has dropped over her dismissal of popular Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan allegedly for not firing a state trooper who is her ex brother-in-law over issues that paint a poor picture of both the trooper’s actions and Palin's family and staff's handling of the situation.
Several state legislators and members of the capitol press corps perceive her as not having a good handle on her policies or departments’ missions. Some feel she has been focused on the pipeline contract to the detriment of all the other major issues the state faces such as rising health and social service budgets.
Benavides added:
There are many who on Friday were stunned and proud of the pick. As time passes and we learn more, some of that excitement has abated. Many still like her but feel she is being used. Others feel she knows a good chance for national exposure for her future ambitions win or lose.
While the McCain camp says Palin was fully vetted, time will tell whether the selection was half-baked.
McCain moved quickly to distance himself from Bush. In addition to visiting Mississippi, he scaled back the convention schedule. In a conference call with reporters, Campaign Manager Rick Davis outlined efforts to raise funds for charitable organizations in the five Gulf states, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
The McCain campaign has established the Affected States Working Group to regularly brief delegates and coordinate assistance to the Gulf Coast.
A hurricane relief center has been set up inside the Xcel Center. Delegates and convention volunteers will assemble and send 80,000
“comfort packages” to affected residents.
Within hours of the briefing, McCain probably could have used a shot of Southern Comfort. Sarah Palin’s fairy tale entrance on the national stage is turning into a soap opera.
