Democrats versus Republicans

[PBzeer]

(COLORADO SPRINGS) It was less than two weeks ago when Sarah Palin astonished her traveling press corps by lifting the curtain (literally) and journeying to the back of her campaign plane to answer reporters’ questions for the first time after 40 days on the campaign trail. But the candidate who has been criticized for having a bunker mentality when it came to the national media can now lay legitimate claim to being more accessible than either Joe Biden or Barack Obama.


In the past two days alone, Palin has answered questions from her national press corps on three separate occasions. On Saturday, she held another plane availability, and on Sunday, she offered an impromptu press conference on the tarmac upon landing in Colorado Springs. A few minutes later, she answered even more questions from reporters during an off-the-record stop at a local ice cream shop.


By contrast, Biden hasn’t held a press conference in more than a month, and Obama hasn’t taken questions from his full traveling press corps since the end of September. John McCain—who spent most of the primary season holding what seemed like one, never-ending media availability—hasn’t done one since Sept. 23.



Like I said, research, research, research.


You CAN see Russia from Alaska. And, as Governor, she does have to deal with maritime issues between Alaska and Russia. Perhaps you could elucidate us on Obama's far reaching foreign policy expertise. What issues has he dealt with that give him any experience? Going on a concert tour?


While Obama's being cool, she's back in Alaska making decisions. Putting together a budget and other such inconsequential things. And 4 years from now, is plenty of time to be honing up on what she needs to know, if she decides to run. If she does, better get use to saying Madam President.

[PBzeer]

Oh, and sck? You forget to mention the broad breadth of knowledge that Palin is supposedly unfamiliar with. Oversight?

[soulesailor]

Originally Posted by PBzeer

So please, enlighten us about just what it is Palin doesn't know.

Well, for one thing she doesn't know what a vice-president does (direct quote from her). I didn't post that link since I find it difficult to believe that anyone hasn't seen it at least a dozen times (unless you only get your news from Fox).

When she finally believed she knew what a VP does she explained it to 3rd graders by saying the VP runs the senate! So they can get in there with the other senators and work on things. Holy Cow! WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG. She's dumb.

just in case you live in a cave:

YouTube - Sarah Palin doesn't know what the Vice President does

[sck5]

PB

You will notice that all but one of those press conferences were without cameras so there would be no ability to show the public how she does with impromptu questions. And the one that was in front of cameras lasted only a very very short time and was cut off when questions got beyond the fluff type. Even those on the plane were limited to reporters who were allowed on the plane.

She never did a proper press conference with cameras rolling where any reporter could ask any question.

Research research.

[sck5]

areas Sarah Palin doesnt know about may be broader than this, but we wont know untili/unless she does a press conference. But on the basis of the record already she is deficient in knowledge of:

geography (Yeah, she really DID have a problem with Africa - this was reported by a REPUBLICAN)
foreign policy - watch the Charlie Gibson interview
how you learn about foreign policy - not by watching planes fly overhead or stopping in the airport in Shannon, Ireland
the rest of the world - she only got her passport last year and only went to Kuwait and Germany - I imagine she has been to Canada also but I dont know
economics - watch her Katy Couric interviews
how the government works - see above where she thinks the VP runs the Senate
Where to buy clothes at a reasonable price - Come on now. You dont need to spend the equivalent of what you can buy a house for to get decent clothing
ethics - going after your sister's ex is really not OK. She doesnt seem to have figured that out. Not to mention charging the state per diem FOR STAYING IN HER OWN HOUSE
Free speech - Yes, she really did try to can the librarian. Didnt succeed but did try.

and finally

She doesnt know that she is NEVER going to be President!!!

But keep on trying, guys. We Dems are loving it!!!!!

[sck5]

"Perhaps you could elucidate us on Obama's far reaching foreign policy expertise. What issues has he dealt with that give him any experience?"

Well, apart from being a US Senator, there were about 50,000 debates and press conferences in which he was quizzed endlessly by everyone. Also, take a look at his website for policy positions on everything. And on the biggest foreign policy question of the decade, he got it right. There really werent any WMD's and we really shouldnt have gone into Iraq.

Works for me. And he wouldnt imagine that being able to SEE Russia means anything about foreign policy. THAT was the problem with Palin. Hey, I have SEEN major league baseball games. So the Yanks should hire me as their new starting pitcher!!!!!

[US27inKS]

Originally Posted by sck5

US27

Are you telling us that 53% of the population is ignorant? I think it is more likely that they just dont agree with YOU and that there is the same proportion of stupid and ignorant people among Dems as there are among Repubs.

Otherwise, if Repubs are so smart, how come they made such a mess of the country before they got voted out of office?

No, I don't think that 53% of the population is ignorant. It's more like 70%. While there are no doubt ignorant republicans, ignorance seems to be a hallmark of the obama base. The people in the video were picked out of the crowd by a by a democrat black woman. I'm sure this has something to do with the demographics that the video represented (58% black), but then again it could just be the neighborhood. The Zogby report, which I'm sure you didn't bother to look at, is a better representation of the obama base.

The point of my post was the same as the How Obama Got Elected web site. The MSM is clearly liberal biased, and did everything in their power to shoot down McCain/Palin instead of just reporting the news. 73% of the stories on MSNBC about McCain were negative with about 20% negative about Obama. Fox news BTW (you know the mouthpiece for the right wing neo-cons) was 40% against Obama to 40% against McCain.

This is clearly evident in the polling data. Those obama supporters who were polled knew exactly who was unsure of how many houses he owned (McCain), but were unsure who got their opponents kicked off the ballot to win his first election (Obama). One of these questions should be more important to a voter than the other. IMO it's more important to know whether a candidate is in the habit of limiting the choices of the voters, and (legally) circumventing the democratic process that he pretends to uphold, than whether a mans wife has so much money that she can buy a house like other women buy shoes.

The MSM however glossed over what many would call a significant character flaw. Instead they pounded endlessly on McCains failure to keep track of the number of houses his wife has bought, what a horrible person Palin is because her daughter got pregnant, how stupid Palin is for not aborting a baby that would be born with downs, etc and etc until you puke. If you watched MSNBC or CNN there is no way you would think that McCain isn't senile and that Palin isn't an idiot.

[sck5]

"The MSM however glossed over what many would call a significant character flaw. Instead they pounded endlessly on McCains failure to keep track of the number of houses his wife has bought, what a horrible person Palin is because her daughter got pregnant, how stupid Palin is for not aborting a baby that would be born with downs, etc and etc until you puke."

I am something of a news junkie and while I did see endless reporting on McCain's houses (many think this is fair game because it shows he is not living in the same reality as most of us if he has 8 or however many houses) I did NOT see anyone say Palin should have aborted her baby or criticize her for having a pregnant daughter. I did hear a few people say she was a hypocrite for being conservative on birth control issues and having a pregnant daughter but that went away pretty quickly since everyone knows that teenagers will do what they will do and we can try to stop them but good luck with that.

But it IS true the media liked Obama. What is puzzling to me is why McCain didnt play them better - The media used to LOVE him (remember when he called them "his base"?). I actually think the media have the attention span of a flea and the seriousness of a high school newspaper most of the time, but one of the biggest skills a politician can have is an ability to manipulate the news to his/her advantage. Bill Clinton was a master of this. So was Karl Rove (until lately). And so was John McCain until sometime during last summer. He used to have them in his pocket but then he seemed to lose his touch. I saw a glimpse of the old McCain again on Letterman (or maybe Leno) after the election and it made me wonder what the hell happened.

[AdamLein]

Guys? Election was over two weeks ago. So sck, you don't need to offer praise for Obama anymore, nor do you need to continue scraping the sludge off the surface of Sarah Palin's public face. Everybody else -- you do realize that even if you say something super-smart that totally changes sck's mind and makes him realize the error of his liberal-nutcase ways, it won't put McCain/Palin in the White House? (which in my opinion would be only slightly less worse than what we ended up with anyway).

On the other hand, efforts to educate folks about what's behind the worshipful slogans and the twinkle in the eye and the Obamarama are probably much better uses of your time: considering the Ziegler/Zogby (Z/Z?) results, we can't rely on the media for that.

Everybody should have a look at the transcript of an interview between Ziegler and Nate Silver, the dude at fivethirtyeight.com. I think this interview sums up the problem -- which I call Bill O'Reilly syndrome -- nicely: the conservatives give clear, rational, sound arguments that in principle should shut the liberal up. But at the same time, they are so enraged by the evident fruitcakery that instead of delivering their argument as it is, they wrap it up in spit and venom and therefore necessarily lose, at least in the eyes of the already left-leaning commentors on the blog. The commentors were too busy laughing at Ziegler for going nuts to notice that Ziegler's answers completely crushed Silver's stupid theory.

Every conservative posting in this thread is suffering from at least a mild case of Bill O'Reilly Syndrome; I think that's the first thing that needs to change. I also think you need to start being more forward-looking and give up on trying to prove that the electors made a huge mistake. Instead, I think you should focus on the media issue that has been brought up, because it's the only thing that, at least for the next four years, can change (and we voted for change, did we not?).

[PBzeer]

On VP duties, from CNN (hardly the home of Palin lovers):
"Governor Palin was responding to a third grader's inquiry," she said. "She was explaining in terms a third-grader could understand that the vice-president is also president of the U.S. Senate."

In an interview with CBS earlier this month, Democratic VP candidate Joe Biden also said he hoped to play an influential role in the legislative branch if Barack Obama wins the White House.


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No cameras at the press conferences: Well, I guess if you're more interested in how she looks then what she says, it might be a point. BUT, it was still more than the other 3 put together.


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Palin and Africa: a not so Capitol Idea: Remember When Palin Thought Africa was a Country? Maybe, Not so Much...
Chances are she knows there's only 50 instead of 58 states as well.


I didn't say she was a foreign policy wonk, merely that there were instances when she'd have to deal with other countries.


Palin and clothes: McCain camp defends Palin in wardrobe flap | Reuters

Evidently you didn't bother to read the report that said she didn't abuse her power over Troopergate.

That the "list of books" to be banned had books not even in print yet, makes your claim one of perception, not reality.

You go to college for 4 years, get a degree .... does that make you experienced? If just talking about it is all it takes, we sure have a lot of experts here.