McCain, once upon a time, seemed a respectable sort. Don't know what convinced him to give in to those who suggested he run the same kind of campaign that brought him down against Bush in 2000. And I sure as shootin' don't know what possessed him to pick Sarah Palin. But he did, so the whole integrity argument ain't gonna wash.
To say that our country just dodged a (pit) bullet is an understatement. She makes George Bush look like a man of intelligence and moderation. We would have gone from "Mayberry Machiavellis"to the "Wasilla Hillbillies":
NEWSWEEK has also learned that Palin's shopping spree at high-end department stores was more extensive than previously reported. While publicly supporting Palin, McCain's top advisers privately fumed at what they regarded as her outrageous profligacy. One senior aide said that Nicolle Wallace had told Palin to buy three suits for the convention and hire a stylist. But instead, the vice presidential nominee began buying for herself and her family—clothes and accessories from top stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. According to two knowledgeable sources, a vast majority of the clothes were bought by a wealthy donor, who was shocked when he got the bill. Palin also used low-level staffers to buy some of the clothes on their credit cards. The McCain campaign found out last week when the aides sought reimbursement. One aide estimated that she spent "tens of thousands" more than the reported $150,000, and that $20,000 to $40,000 went to buy clothes for her husband. Some articles of clothing have apparently been lost. An angry aide characterized the shopping spree as "Wasilla hillbillies looting Neiman Marcus fromcoast tocoast," and said the truth will eventually come out when the Republican Party audits its books.
And this, from Fox News, of all places:
Cameron: I wish I could have told you more at the time but all of it was put off the record until after the election. There was great concern in the McCain campaign that Sarah Palin lack the degree of knowledgeability necessary to be a running mate, a vice president, and a heartbeat away from the presidency. We're told by folks that she didn't know what countries that were in NAFTA, the North American Free Trade Agreement, that being the Canada, the US, and Mexico. We're told she didn't understand that Africa was a continent rather than a country just in itself … a whole host of questions that caused serious problems about her knowledgeability. She got very angry at staff, thought that she was mishandled…..was particularly angry about the way the Katie Couric interview went. She didn't accept preparation for that interview when the aides say that that was part of the problem. And that there were times that she was hard to control emotionally there's talk of temper tantrums at bad news clippings.
That's who and what would have been a heartbeat away. Pat yourself on the back for that one, America.
I also won't miss Joe the Plumber. Not even a little. I say we employ this guy instead:
11/06/08
PS–Forget Joe the Plumber–here's the real coup: Reid is reportedly meeting with Joe the Lieberman to tell him to take his Joementum and vacate his committee chairs. Now that is refreshing!
Woohoo!
No more undermining of democracy? No more absurd secrecy? No more deception and starting unnecessary wars?
I'm not about to assume our President-elect will fulfill every wish of a lefty blogger. But I gotta say, stepping back from Bush's authoritarian, anti-Constitutional nightmare feels very good.
My blood pressure spikes and helpless twitching at Bush's voice can just get filed away. What a fine day.
