Who is Sarah Palin? Part 2

Last night we got to hear Sarah Palin address the Republican National Convention. She proved herself to be a strong speaker, bringing together the previously written anti-Obama attack speech with her own self-descriptions. Her rhetoric was strong, her critique of Obama dripping with mockery and sarcasm. I heard Joe Biden this morning praise her rhetorical abilities.

All that said, what we didn't hear last night was anything about how the GOP would help American people deal with a faltering economy. Yes, we heard about cutting taxes, but remember George Bush and a Republican Congress cut taxes while engaging in a costly war. That decision turned the surpluses of the Clinton era into the deep deficits of the GOP era. Notice that nothing was said in praise of the current President, only that she and John would sweep into Washington and clean house -- but whose house? The GOP house?

But back to substance -- of which there was little -- Palin spoke about her ability as governor to send rebate checks to the people of Alaska. Why? Well because of record oil prices. Why does she want to "drill, drill, drill?" Because it brings in money to Alaska -- at the expense of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania. I mention those three states because she ticked them off, but besides telling us she and John would cut taxes she didn't say anything about how she would help these areas of the country get back on their feet.

Yes, all we heard last night was the old GOP saw about "tax and spend" democrats. Obama, we were told would raise your taxes. Well, if you look at the tax plans, we who make under 250,000 stand to do much better than we would under McCain's. Now, as for those making over $5 million (McCain's definition of rich) they would see an increase in taxes. So, listen carefully to the full story.

And, as for that claim to be anti-corruption and turning down earmarks. Apparently she was pretty good at hauling them in while mayor. And as for that "bridge to nowhere," the one she campaigned for before she said no, apparently she said no the the bridge, but kept the money for other projects!

So, yes she did herself proud as a speaker, but now we want the substance.

Comments

Anonymous said…
This my take on Governor Palin. Absolutely no charm. I understand that her role as VP candidate is to be the "attack dog" of the campaign, and role she performed well, very well. But there was no charm in her delivery. I am sensitive to the response that a woman will always be called a powderpuff or a bitch, so she must choose her strength and run with it. However, I think all successful politicians, male or female, blend together strength and charm, and each must come to terms with their gender and with the political circumstances which they are working within. Joe Biden attacked John McCain with teeth but did so with charm. Rudy Giuliani attacked Obama and Biden and he did so with teeth and with charm. Palin attacked and did so with mockery. She is indeed a pit bull with lipstick. Frankly, I think her speech confirms my emerging image of her as hyper-competitive, whether as a basketball team captain, as a beauty queen, as hunter - fisherman and as a politician. She is by nature a fierce competitor, and not one to be crossed, not by friends, not by opponents, and not by foreign interests.

I am also deeply concerned about the ramifications of her continuing denial of the human role in global warming and her support for teaching creationism in public schools. She is an ideologue, and her ideological commitment compels her to view all significant issues through the lense of her ideology and to ignore facts or evidence which call into question her ideological principals and/or imperatives; of even greater concern is the risk that her mindset is such that she will tend to ignore crises which are of relative unimportance in her ideological worldview such as global warming or the environmental sensitivity of the Alaskan National Wildlife Reserve.

Republican that I am, I still must echo the sentiments of last week: Character Matters.

John
Anonymous said…
Palin is a BIG PROBLEM for dems! My wife and other "Target moms" are fired up for her. These are the same soccer moms that Clinton got in the 90's.

Obama will raise taxes and at the worst possible time for the economy. You don't tax your way to prosperity.. and as the Wall Street Journal recently reported, its why Obama isn't gaining traction. People are smart and realize all these promises come with a price tag.

The best story I can give on this was the infamous yacht tax. Congress decided only rich people have yachts, so they jacked up taxes on yachts. (that will get 'em) Well, rich people aren't dumb.. they said, fine, I won't buy a yacht. So the poor guy who builds the yacht, sells yachts, is a crew member on a yacht, cuts down trees to build a yacht, nails the boards on the yacht.. you get the idea.. was suddenly out of work. The economy is a rubber band, you can push on one end, but it dramatically effects the other. My former job put me in direct contact with Wealthy folks. They will get around the $250k hurdle. Maybe they get paid in stock, find a tax break, get other non-comp benefits.. they have CPA's to answer these questions. Meanwhile, the government is left with an albatross over its neck. (see social security) No one is talking about that issue.. and it will break the US before global warming or terrorists bombing do. Its the HUGE elephant in the room no one is dare talking about.
Robert Cornwall said…
There is a long way between last night's speech and the election. Palin is a "Pit-bull" by her own definition. So far she has claimed sexism when she's critiqued. But if she goes after people she's going to have to receive it.

Some of the critique was over the top, but no one knows her. So we must wade through all the "stuff" to find out who she is. She's not pure -- no politician is. She has an ethics issue to deal with and as for her reformer's image, well she knows how to make use of the federal largess. So, we'll see. I'm not worried because ultimately this is about John McCain and so far John McCain offers no solutions to the problems of our country. And neither did Palin.
Anonymous said…
Seriously though.. you can't say Palin is "worse" than Hillary..they aren't even in the same ball park.
Ethics - Palin fired a state trooper who TASERED his 10 year old step son.
Hillary - White Water, the infamous commodity trade, could easily keep going.
"Pit bull" - again.. if one speech make Palin a pit bull, Hillary would be the junk yard dog!

It just sounds so hollow to hear these charges from the Hillary party! Again.. name one major piece of legislation Obama has made.. I love how thats such a hard question!!!!!
Anonymous said…
Anon: I think Hilary has more class and integrity than Palin whose sarcastic abuse was cheap and ugly. Obama had only defended her and in fact Obama has been outspoken about his respect for McCain. But I am not a supporter of Hilary, I am a supporter of Obama.

Palin's attack of Obama claiming he had "only" been a "community organise", was beautifully responded to later by Obama, who explained what he did as that "community organiser" when he was only 22 or 23, having turned down more lucrative work.

Obama's experience is more impressive to me than any "war record":
He was born to white a woman from Kansas and a black man from Kenya in Hawaii, then moved to Indonesia for five years with his step-father from ages six to ten.

After returning to Hawaii for middle and high school, he went Occidental College, a liberal arts school in L.A. After a couple years at Occidental, he transferred to Columbia University, where he majored in political science with a specialization in International Relations.

After graduating, he went to work as a community organizer in Chicago. Following three years of helping some of Chicago’s poorest residents recover from a steel mill closing through job training programs, he went to Harvard Law. There, he became the first black editor of the Harvard Law Review. Instead of seeking a high paying job upon graduating from Harvard, he returned to Chicago and went back to the neighborhood communities by organizing and helping to register 150,000 voters. He then began working at a civil rights firm and went on to teach constitutional law at the University of Chicago. He did all of this before his career in politics began.
ten years experience in public office
His first law was passed with Republican Tom Coburn, a measure to rebuild trust in government by allowing every American to go online and see how and where every dime of their tax dollars are spent. He has also been the lead voice in championing ethics reform that would root out Jack Abramoff-style corruption in Congress.
Obama has co-sponsored immigration related bills related to his service on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee including the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act.

I like that.
Anonymous said…
This is Obama's gracious response to Palin's attack:
Obama this evening in Lancaster, Pa., told voters, “the Republicans really had fun with the work I did after college. I don’t know if they understand what it means to, at the age of 22 or 23, to pass up more lucrative options and work with people who are having a tough time, and seeing when people work together, we can do amazing things –- rebuilding communities, and setting up job training centers and starting up after-school programs for kids.”

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