I thought she started a bit slow. But she picked up steam when she spoke about her experience as governor and compared that to Obama's experience. But honestly, she seemed almost over the top with her sarcasm, especially toward the end of the speech. I'm not sure that's going to play well. It lacked a little class. It also was a bit exaggerated. Maybe to the point of lacking credibility.

She wasn't a flop by any means. But she also seemed somehow a bit more ordinary than I had expected. And maybe not quite so likeable.

If she stumbles when she's not so scripted, McCain may still regret his choice.

I think most people have consistently said she galvanizes and excites the Republican base. However, she doesn't (as yet) appeal to the independents and moderates that McCain needs to win. I don't think the Bush strategy of busing in evangelicals is going to play in 2008. And it ain't exactly sitting pretty when your VP drowns out the top of your ticket.

McCain may have deserved his moment of gloating -- I'm content to wait until Nov. 4th to do mine.

Yeah, some "joke" candidate, eh? Only net gain for me tonight is that maybe it'll shut some of these morons up for a while. She's a pitbull with fuckin' lipstick - and she's dangerous. My main hope is that people are sick of that resentful, sarcastic, contemptuous thing the Republicans seem able to churn out.

Meanwhile, Palin & John have gone Pirate. Maybe "privateer" is better, where you're licensed by the sovereign to run outside the law, forget tradition & discipline, just get out there & do some damage. Chris Matthews hit one line tonight. Palin's not aimed at Hillary voters, or at Biden.... she's a cultural torpedo, aimed at Barack & Michelle. Maybe she still explodes, makes an outlandish statement, gets too snide too fast, gets sunk by scandal. But I'd hope they're rethinking the "Safe & Calm" theme a bit right now.

And anybody that thinks she didn't NAIL that speech tonight - like her or loathe her - really has no clue as to what the Republicans are after.

Governor Palin did everything she had to do last night which was: (1) to prove that she can walk and chew bubble gum at the same by giving a well-delivered albeit eminently canned speech; (2) to prove that she can take a punch, which she did by making light of the media obsession over her this past week; and (3) to show that she can and will give give a punch, which some folks were turned off by but which a woman candidate in general, and which vice presidential candidates in particular. ordinarily must be able to do. [Note to the TPM Cafe punditry: In the history of United States presidential elections, particularly those since the 20th century, vice presidential candidates have often been expected to serve as attack dogs. It's kind of like the good cop/bad cop routine. I chuckled last night when Olbermann kept suggesting that now, just now, Senator Biden has cause to take the gloves off. Why was he still wearing them?]

Governor Palin crossed an important bar last night with flying colors. She is not home free by any of stretch of the imagination. She will be hated even more by portions of the media that feel she insulted them last night, and she will be caught at some point in more impromptu situations. She will also have to explain her free trade views in Ohio, and her other more zany world perspective and so on. But I think the mockery of her that we were subjected to all week is over and done with, and in any event consigned to places like this. Regular media folks for the most part will write of the folks on the other side of the tree were the ones who were deriding her without mercy; it was the other guy.

There are only a few more weeks in which we will be able to discuss the election with objectivity. After that, going off message to any extent will be seen as some form of concern trolling. Good thing that's not happening now.

Well, is Sarah Palin vetted enough for you now?

Anyone who viewed Palin as a serious candidate and a serious threat was quickly derided as a "concern troll."

She is not a serious candidate. A serious candidate would actually bother to prepare for the job, and to learn about foreign and national policy. A threat? Maybe.

Maybe she's not. She just galvanized the Republican base and put small town America out of our reach, but who needs those rubes anyway?

She galvanised the Republican base, sure, but also the Democratic base. At best, a wash, and that is dubious with registration numbers the way they are. And how do you think it went over with the independents?

Yours was a weird post, Mr. Glad. You explain in no way why she is such a magnificent force, merely present it as a truism. I am not sure you are "concerned," Mr. Glad, but are you perhaps afraid?

Let us for the moment hypothetise that you were correct all along, and Palin is a grave threat to Democratic existence. Glaringly lacking from your, ahem, "treatise" is any advice.

Mr. Glad, how do you propose we thwart this cataclysmic threat?

Billy,

Yes, its easy to see why McCain put her on the ticket. She's a typical Republican, divisive, cocky, and vacuous.

It became clear that she was not selected for her readiness to fill the presidency should McCain should drop dead. She was selected for her "Barracuda" attack style and to attract so-called Hillary voters. Which means you, Billy.

Is she a serious candidate? No. She's a serious shark, whom, for whatever else she may have displayed, did not display the character to lead a nation, nor the grasp of issues to be president in an emergency.

Did she galvanized the GOP base? Maybe. If she has, there can be no excuses when the GOP loses this election. The country will have clearly rejected the McCain/Palin brand of leadership and the GOP brand of conservatism. We shall see in November.

Oh, and you ARE a concern troll, Billy.

I listened to the economic reform plan and it revolves around industry contracts for domestic pipelines and making the tax cuts permanent. Both of these reforms are continuations of Bush's policies.

Bottom line on Palin:

Nothing is going to distract enough voters to swing them towards perpetuating more of the last eight years. Social red meat delivered by a Hawkey Mawm will deliver the tried and true self-destructive small town voters. But too many are overwhelmed by medical bills, unfunded education, and property value fallout to buy into the same old hate.

There was nothing in her speech that played to health care, education, and any other plank of a coherent domestic platform. Once the mass huzzah dies out, many people will begin to wonder, "now what?" And that now what is a perpetuation of Bush/Cheney politics... the increase of the class divide and the further ruination of small town life.

The "what about my pocketbook" contingent will not be mollified by snark and tax cuts. Because the tax cuts have not made their lives better. All flash. No substance.

She did good. McCain lucked out. But it WAS luck, remember he wanted Leiberman. If he had seen this Palin, she would have been his first pick, so clearly he was surprised as anyone.

Bottom line, Johnny Mac still makes reckless, slipshod decisions - but he has a good "gut". Classic gambler. He is NOT the safe choice this year, not by a long shot.

Oh, and the speech was great for the base, but the GOP is reading Party ID numbers backwards. This is the year you can't insult Dems.

She reads a speech well. She is sarcastic. She's a pitbull with lipstick. She's a Republican. She is totally unimpressive. Her speech was naive pap. Listen to your wife Billy. I'm listening to mine and she had to turn Palin off last night. Lots of women smell something rotten around her--for a lot of different reasons--and I think her smarm will turn lots off. Yeah she mobilized a nearly dead Republican base. They turned their ventilators back on. But she also will mobilize Obama's base. It's a wash at best.

Billy writes: "At this point, she is completely the creation of the McCain campaign. Whether she is anyone in her own right we'll find out as we go along. My point is she is an unusually effective creation, both for what she does to them and what she does to us."

Agreed and well put. Last night she proved she could deliver a good speech (sound familiar?). With the bar having been set so low, now she is routinely portrayed as having "delivered,"
"hit a home run," "energized the ticket," etc., somehow vindicating her selection. My concern is that the overwhelmingly positive coverage of her speech gives her instant credibility and will make it far more difficult to expose the obvious lack of serious thought given to issues of national and international concern other than those derived from religious dogma. We will have to see how she comes across in less scripted environments - if the campaign ever permits it - divorced from her talking points.

Thus far, though, the selection does appear to be pretty canny. The better part of the Democratic convention was spent trying to show that despite his unorthodox background, Obama is just like one of us. Maybe they had no choice given the lack of familiarity and widespread misperceptions about the candidate. Now, the Republicans have put up an authentic small town soccer mom, mayor and now governor. Sure, she has almost no relevant experience, but bring it up and she will remind you that hers ain't so different from Obama's and if he's qualified so is she. So you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.

What seems obvious at least to this point is that the Democrats were caught off guard and haven't figured out how to respond to this woman. The criticism that her speech was "divisive" and "partisan" is just lame beyond belief.

Billy writes: "At this point, she is completely the creation of the McCain campaign. Whether she is anyone in her own right we'll find out as we go along. My point is she is an unusually effective creation, both for what she does to them and what she does to us."

Agreed and well put. Last night she proved she could deliver a good speech (sound familiar?). With the bar having been set so low, now she is routinely portrayed as having "delivered,"
"hit a home run," "energized the ticket," etc., somehow vindicating her selection. My concern is that the overwhelmingly positive coverage of her speech gives her instant credibility and will make it far more difficult to expose the obvious lack of serious thought given to issues of national and international concern other than those derived from religious dogma. We will have to see how she comes across in less scripted environments - if the campaign ever permits it - divorced from her talking points.

Thus far, though, the selection does appear to be pretty canny. The better part of the Democratic convention was spent trying to show that despite his unorthodox background, Obama is just like one of us. Maybe they had no choice given the lack of familiarity and widespread misperceptions about the candidate. Now, the Republicans have put up an authentic small town soccer mom, mayor and now governor. Sure, she has almost no relevant experience, but bring it up and she will remind you that hers ain't so different from Obama's and if he's qualified so is she. So you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.

What seems obvious at least to this point is that the Democrats were caught off guard and haven't figured out how to respond to this woman. The criticism that her speech was "divisive" and "partisan" is just lame beyond belief.

Billy writes: "At this point, she is completely the creation of the McCain campaign. Whether she is anyone in her own right we'll find out as we go along. My point is she is an unusually effective creation, both for what she does to them and what she does to us."

Agreed and well put. Last night she proved she could deliver a good speech (sound familiar?). With the bar having been set so low, now she is routinely portrayed as having "delivered,"
"hit a home run," "energized the ticket," etc., somehow vindicating her selection. My concern is that the overwhelmingly positive coverage of her speech gives her instant credibility and will make it far more difficult to expose the obvious lack of serious thought given to issues of national and international concern other than those derived from religious dogma. We will have to see how she comes across in less scripted environments - if the campaign ever permits it - divorced from her talking points.

Thus far, though, the selection does appear to be pretty canny. The better part of the Democratic convention was spent trying to show that despite his unorthodox background, Obama is just like one of us. Maybe they had no choice given the lack of familiarity and widespread misperceptions about the candidate. Now, the Republicans have put up an authentic small town soccer mom, mayor and now governor. Sure, she has almost no relevant experience, but bring it up and she will remind you that hers ain't so different from Obama's and if he's qualified so is she. So you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.

What seems obvious at least to this point is that the Democrats were caught off guard and haven't figured out how to respond to this woman. The criticism that her speech was "divisive" and "partisan" is just lame beyond belief.

Alaska and Palin gettin drilled by mccain
http://www.salon.com/tech/htww/2008/08/29/sarah_palin_and_anwr/

Jezebel vs Palin. who looses?
http://jezebel.com/5044818/ask-not-what-bristol-palin-can-do-for-you-ask-what-sarah-palin-can-do-for-your-pregnant-daughter

There was something very unpleasant about the speech, which I actually watched for some reason.

I couldn't put my finger on it - was it the obvious, in your face rudeness?

Or the clear anti-intellectual bias?

Or the populist anger-building with some code that was not transparent to me?

Or the unabashed nationalism, which has little to do with love of country?

This morning, reading the gushing reviews, I think I started to feel something I almost never feel in America with respect to politics - fear.

Exploring further, I think that my body is telling me American incarnation of modern fascist ideology will look very much like what I witnessed yesterday.

I hope I am wrong. However, the standard Democratic "replies" with politeness and sensitivity will not work very well here.

Billy writes: "At this point, she is completely the creation of the McCain campaign. Whether she is anyone in her own right we'll find out as we go along. My point is she is an unusually effective creation, both for what she does to them and what she does to us."

Agreed and well put. Last night she proved she could deliver a good speech (sound familiar?). With the bar having been set so low, now she is routinely portrayed as having "delivered,"
"hit a home run," "energized the ticket," etc., somehow vindicating her selection. My concern is that the overwhelmingly positive coverage of her speech gives her instant credibility and will make it far more difficult to expose the obvious lack of serious thought given to issues of national and international concern other than those derived from religious dogma. We will have to see how she comes across in less scripted environments - if the campaign ever permits it - divorced from her talking points.

Thus far, though, the selection does appear to be pretty canny. The better part of the Democratic convention was spent trying to show that despite his unorthodox background, Obama is just like one of us. Maybe they had no choice given the lack of familiarity and widespread misperceptions about the candidate. Now, the Republicans have put up an authentic small town soccer mom, mayor and now governor. Sure, she has almost no relevant experience, but bring it up and she will remind you that hers ain't so different from Obama's and if he's qualified so is she. So you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.

What seems obvious at least to this point is that the Democrats were caught off guard and haven't figured out how to respond to this woman. The criticism that her speech was "divisive" and "partisan" is just lame beyond belief.

Hey Billy, you'll recall (or maybe not) that I was very much against the stories about Palin's kids and family. However, I'm 100% in favor of the pursuit of the actual scandals, but that's beside the point.

Do you really think that Palin is going to take rural America away from the Dems? I honestly don't get the feeling that she does anything other than fire up the base. I think Obama does have a rural appeal (weaker in the midwest, but stronger in the west and south) and I don't see how she changes this. Her speech had alot of fire behind it, but the whole thing was complete bullshit. I'm really not impressed with her, but I'm not predisposed to like her at all.

Billy writes: "At this point, she is completely the creation of the McCain campaign. Whether she is anyone in her own right we'll find out as we go along. My point is she is an unusually effective creation, both for what she does to them and what she does to us."

Agreed and well put. Last night she proved she could deliver a good speech (sound familiar?). With the bar having been set so low, now she is routinely portrayed as having "delivered,"
"hit a home run," "energized the ticket," etc., somehow vindicating her selection. My concern is that the overwhelmingly positive coverage of her speech gives her instant credibility and will make it far more difficult to expose the obvious lack of serious thought given to issues of national and international concern other than those derived from religious dogma. We will have to see how she comes across in less scripted environments - if the campaign ever permits it - divorced from her talking points.

Thus far, though, the selection does appear to be pretty canny. The better part of the Democratic convention was spent trying to show that despite his unorthodox background, Obama is just like one of us. Maybe they had no choice given the lack of familiarity and widespread misperceptions about the candidate. Now, the Republicans have put up an authentic small town soccer mom, mayor and now governor. Sure, she has almost no relevant experience, but bring it up and she will remind you that hers ain't so different from Obama's and if he's qualified so is she. So you're damned if you do and damned if you don't.

What seems obvious at least to this point is that the Democrats were caught off guard and haven't figured out how to respond to this woman. The criticism that her speech was "divisive" and "partisan" is just lame beyond belief.

Sara Palin is touting the Republican line - Democrats are educated elitists while Republicans are the party of the working, not college educated people. Sara Palin can talk the talk.

Check out how the RNC idolizes mediocrity now revisit Palin's speech. It is exactly the same isn't it?

Sarah Palin = Bush 2.0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhjuRMi_78U

Here we go again!

Another "reformer with results" country governor who masks extreme rightwing views and total incompetence with folksiness and platitudes about being "compassionate".

Just another pretty face on the ugly policies of environmental destruction, more subsidies for Big Oil, more wars and hatred abroad, and more partisan warfare and religious extremism at home.

Thinking on it again, the absolute worst phrase in her whole speech last night was the bit about how the "terrorists are coming to get us!" and Obama is worried about "someone reading them their rights." This whole subtle, or maybe not so subtle, way of almost advocating torture and detainment and a complete desertion of everything I hold the Constitution to be and doing it with such dripping contempt and sarcasm, as if she were mocking someone for something so trivial as...

Hell, I don't know. But it made me sick.