I certainly found this entry from today’s Mudflats blog intriguing (and it isn’t what I’m hearing on television):
Well, this Alaskan is sitting here in disbelief. This is a total gift to the Obama – Biden ticket. As the nation scrambles to figure out who Sarah Palin IS, the thinking people of Alaska are simply mystified. I’ll be posting about this a lot later in the day after I’m awake, (it’s early a.m. here in Alaska) but first impressions: – McCain obviously is looking for the Hillary vote since obviously women need no other criteria than a set of ovaries to mark their ballot, right? I mean women don’t actually make policy decisions, do they?
He’s also looking for the Evangelical vote. Palin, a creationist, pro-lifer will appeal to this crowd. Her fondness for creationism in schools, and the recent birth of a Downs Syndrome child can’t hurt here.
The pro-drilling crowd will be pleased too. Why she’s even suing the Federal Government for daring to suggest that polar bears should be listed as `threatened’. Can’t have those damned bears interfering with the oil rigs.
And did you know there is currently a state ethics investigation of Palin going on?
Then there was this comment from one of Mudflats’ Alaskan readers:
McVictim picked a bible thumping breeder who has a pro Bush, anti Environment stance that goes beyond the ordinary.
It’s clear they hope to grab some disillusioned Hillary voters and the Christian Right.
That alone spells defeat in THIS election.
It was a bad choice and I couldn’t be more pleased.
Looking through Mudflats’ background pieces on Palin I also found this comment:
Palin’s meteoric rise to governorship, and unbelievable popularity both stem, ironically, from her squeaky-clean image, and pledges for honesty and transparency in government. So how about releasing the Alaska Department of Fish & Game’s analysis of the polar bear situation? Oh….you won’t do that? Hmmm. Could that be because the scientific evidence that was so incontrovertible it even persuaded the Dept. of the Interior, also persuaded Fish & Game? Transparency when convenient. Honesty when advantageous to your own `oil & gas’ agenda? It’s hard to stay squeaky-clean when you’re covered with oil.
So I guess McCain picked her because she only had one house.
Under The LobsterScope
.
(CREW) 31 Jul 2008 – When Sarah Palin was elected governor as a Republican outsider in 2006, she didn’t just take on an incumbent from her own party. She took on Alaska’s Republican establishment.
Ms. Palin vowed to clean up a long-cozy political system that had been sullied by an FBI corruption investigation. She endeared herself to Alaskans by making good on her reform promises and showing homey touches, like driving herself to work.
Now, one of the bright new stars in the Republican Party has suddenly become tarnished. The state legislature this week voted to hire an independent investigator to see whether Ms. Palin abused her office by trying to get her former brother-in-law fired from his job as an Alaska state trooper.
In And Out Of The Courtroom, The Case Against Senator Stevens Is Growing
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence.".
“As the head of Alaska’s National Guard and as the mother of a soldier herself, Governor Palin understands what it takes to lead our nation and she understands the importance of supporting our troops.”
John McCain’s risky choice of Gov. Sarah Palin gives him a running mate who doubles down on his maverick image, may appeal to “hockey moms” and other women, and counters Barack Obama’s aura of new-generation change. But he may have undercut his best attack on the Democrat.
If Obama is an empty suit, as McCain has suggested, is Palin suited for the Oval Office herself?
She is younger and less experienced than the first-term Illinois senator, and brings an ethical shadow to the ticket. Just 20 months ago, she was mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, a town of 6,500 where the biggest issue is controlling growth and the biggest annual worry is whether there will be enough snow for the Iditarod dog-mushing race.
McCain earned praise from evangelicals and other social conservatives who have been skeptical of him. Palin is a vocal opponent of abortion.
“Conservatives will be thrilled with this pick,” said Greg Mueller, a conservative GOP strategist.
The price for that support could be high. Palin’s lack of experience flies in the face of GOP charges that Obama is not ready to be commander in chief. McCain himself has said he was determined to avoid a pick like Dan Quayle, the little-known Indiana senator George H.W. Bush put on his ticket in 1988 in a choice that proved embarrassing.
Gov. Sarah Palin addresses AIP :: Alaska First!
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."Are you sure she only has one house?
She has three:
According to the Center for Public Integrity. It’s toward the end of the article.