Do you see what happens when you turn on your base (the press), John McCain? Do you see what happens?
CARSON CITY, Nev. (AP) — Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin made her first solo campaign appearance outside her home state Saturday, sticking largely to a speech that has boosted her popularity among Republican faithful but drawn criticism for having misstatements.
The Alaska governor repeated her claim to have killed the now-famous “Bridge to Nowhere,” which her running mate, Arizona Sen. John McCain, has derided as wasteful pork. Palin first approved of the project. She turned against it only after it proved to be a political embarrassment.
That’s an Associated Press article that will be appearing in non-elitist local newspapers all over the country tomorrow. Right there in the lede, with no equivocation whatsoever, it says Sarah Palin is making a mistatement. It’s calling her a liar. And, lest you think that’s the limit of the blowback McCain is now getting from the press, you should read the rest of the article.
Watch how many ways they make Palin look weak:
Palin spoke less than 20 minutes, using a teleprompter, at the late Saturday event in a roller hockey rink…
Palin’s first steps alone on the trail without McCain have been cautious…
…the Alaska governor flew to Reno, Nev. and drove 30 miles to the sleepy state capital, the sort of small community she is expected to win over…
The rally was the only public event planned in Nevada before Palin headed to Denver. She had no events scheduled Sunday, and is expected to rejoin McCain on the campaign trail next week.
…The governor has limited her public appearances and chances to mingle with voters or reporters since leaving McCain’s side earlier in the week…
About two hours after Palin’s speech Saturday, hundreds of people protesting the policies of Palin lined a busy Anchorage street, waving signs and chanting “Obama!”
…Palin stayed for two days at her Wasilla home on Lake Lucille, missing a hastily planned rally of about 100 supporters gathered at a hotel near her home Friday evening. Organizers had hoped she’d stop by or say a few words through a special video conference connection they had set up.
What’s ironic is that when this campaign started, my biggest concern was that the love affair between the press and John McCain would mean he’d never get called on anything. But you can’t use the GOP Convention to declare war on the press and then lie to and about them, and think you are going to get the same kind of coverage you got when you were grilling them hamburgers on the back porch.
The press in not going to report Sarah Palin’s lies as truths anymore. And, you know what that means? Without a bigger base or any advantage on the issues or more charisma or an advantage in the news coverage, McCain will have to go for the lizard brain. He will have to play on people’s deepest fears and prejudices to have any chance to win.
