politics

Republicans beat democrats to woman VP! Gotta be chafing the NOW girls.

"Dem talking point: Palin is a bad pick, she scares us because she's one heartbeat from presidency. McCain had cancer so it's a big risk to have an inexperienced VP. How about this - Biden has 2 brain anyeurisms and had brain surgery. Glad he recovered, but let's not pretend Palin is a scary pick because she's got x amount of experience. What's scary is that if Obama is elected and Biden kicks the bucket, we're looking at Nancy Pelosi!" from another post in the Strib.

I would hope that Hillary's supporters would take slight offense that she worked so hard to fall just short of the ticket. And now this Palin will just slide in and get a spot on the ticket? Also I have heard many critics of Obama say that if he were a white first term senator that he would never have won the primaries. Who knows if that is true. I can say for a fact that if Palin were a male governor of Alaska for only two years, that name would NEVER have made the GOP ticket!

Nothing. So McCain will win the Alaska vote now...which he would have won anyway. Making an issue out of Obama's limited experience is now completely off the table now that his running mate has even less practical experience. Does he think he will win over women who would have voted for Hillary...no chance now. McCain was liberal enough that he probably had a few Hillary defectors, but now with this ultra conservative, heavy anti-abortion rights, anti-gay rights, he just lost those votes. Does he think he will get the blue collar working man vote because she's kinda hot? Well, he most likely had those votes anyway. I fail to see any advantage in this pick. Which I'm ok with, since I will not be voting Republican. Now, if we can keep Nader out of the picture and figure out the "hanging chad" problem, we should be able to win this one.

You guys are missing it. This isn't a play for the votes of women--that's WAY too obvious, and it's what you're meant to think. McCain knows he won't get many votes from the Hillary camp. He picked Sarah Palin to play for the votes of the *men* who refuse to vote for Obama, and the moderate *men* who would have been iffy on voting for either Clinton or Obama at all. Sarah Palin is the perfect, photogenic, non-threatening excuse to feel virtuous for voting for McCain. She's a honey trap, people. Keep your eyes on the ball.

This is a candidate who supports teaching creationism in schools and wants to deny women the ability to control their reproductive rights. Do we really believe the same women who supported Hilary Clinton and her progressive and inteligent ideas will vote for this woman because she is a woman? It's a sad desperate ploy by McCain.

For the record..I have been a registered independent for 28 years... The 2 differences I see... Obama/Biden.. Everyone in the senate cringes when these guys get up..They talk, they talk, they talk...And they ONLY vote party lines. Obama has been a senator , what one year? Mccain/Palin are leaders not just talkers like the other sides. Many accomplishments, but more important they BOTH have a history of working with both sides of the isle. That's governing... Records speak for themselves... Being an independent this race is a complete no-brainer...We want people to govern our country, to get things done..

Were you not yet born or were you just tuned out in 1984 when Walter Mondale, a Minnesota Democrat running for President, selected Geraldine Ferraro to be the first woman on a mjor party ticket?

He's got the eskimo vote wrapped up.

John McCain has shown a lapse in judgment that surprises me. Should the GOP win the election and Sarah Palin assume the presidency because something happens to McCain, we are going to find ourselves with the equivalent of a jr. executive in charge of the mail room suddenly promoted to the head of the equivalent of a 7 trillion dollar, 305 million stakeholder 'corporation'. Now this may excite the Haters of Gub'ment, but it's highly irresponsible to foist this un-vetted choice on the American people (and by extension, the World). At least Obama had to run the gauntlet and make his case for 19 months before his nomination. Palin, from all accounts is a firecracker (that's ok), but, we're finding, she does not show skill either running the Alaskan government at this stage in her career, or working well with those across the legislative aisle (even less-so than Tim Pawlenty). Given the tendency of most of the American electorate to take the easy route of choosing candidates based on their gut (Males:"Could I sit down and have a beer with this guy?") rather than educating themselves on the candidate's issues, now we'll have many American women voting--not on whether Palin has pragmatic solutions for the complex issues facing us-- but rather "Would I identify with this woman after we sat down to have coffee and talked about our kids?" Far fetched? Listen to woman-on-the-street interviews in the next week. There is a dilema facing Joe Biden. Does he have a spirited, no-holds-barred debate with Palin on the issues to allow us to really gauge the mettle of these v.p. candidates? Or will he be seen as 'mean' or 'too rough' on this 'hockey mom' by taking her to the mat? I hope he decides to go full-bore during the debate. I hope he then tells those whose sensibilities were offended to _ _ _ _ off.