Conservative Says Step Aside Palin
Find a Conversation
| Sat, 09-27-2008 - 1:03am |
Conservative columnist urges Palin to step aside, declares her out of her league
- By Associated Press
- 8:55 PM EDT, September 26, 2008
WASHINGTON (AP) _ A conservative columnist who welcomed Sarah Palin's entry in national politics says she's proven to be a dud and should step aside as John McCain's running mate.
Kathleen Parker, writing in the National Review Online, says her "cringe reflex is exhausted" after watching the Alaska governor stumble through TV interviews and it's become clear to her that Palin is out of her league.
"No one hates saying that more than I do," Parker writes. "Like so many women, I've been pulling for Palin, wishing her the best, hoping she will perform brilliantly. I've also noticed that I watch her interviews with the held breath of an anxious parent, my finger poised over the mute button in case it gets too painful. Unfortunately, it often does."
Palin, new to national politics, boosted Republican presidential nominee John McCain in polls and excited the party's core conservatives when he chose the first-term governor for his ticket. Some of that shine has since worn off in polls.
Parker said she thought Palin was a "refreshing feminist of a different order" when she joined the ticket, but it's become clear she doesn't know enough about economics or foreign policy to be president should that become necessary in a McCain administration.
"Only Palin can save McCain, her party, and the country she loves," Parker writes. "She can bow out for personal reasons, perhaps because she wants to spend more time with her newborn. No one would criticize a mother who puts her family first."
___
On the Net:
http://www.nationalreview.com/

In an AP report that I also found on the ABC site, they had this to say about Palin.
"The two presidential candidates stood behind identical wooden lecterns on stage at the performing arts center at the University of Mississippi for the first of three scheduled debates with less than six weeks remaining until Election Day. The two vice presidential candidates will meet next week for their only debate, and Obama and McCain each put in a plug for his own running mate.
But there was a difference: Democrat Joe Biden made the round of post-debate television shows. NBC and CNN said they invited McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who has granted only three interviews since joining the ticket a month ago, but she declined.
So, Palin again "declines" an interview during one of the most important times in our country's history.
I think she'll do it--not on her own, of course. The big guys will tell her she's got to get out.
It's the only campaign strategy the Republicans have: One big distraction after the other.
If this week's bailout crisis, a reason for McCain to suspend his campaign, ends in a promising piece of legislation tomorrow, the GOP will have to come up with another big distraction.
I say it'll happen before the debate--there's no way they can let her debate Biden.
It's really sad that McCain would treat a woman that way, but i believe that's what's coming down.
-----------------------------------------------
http://www.pnhp.org/news/2009/october/meet_the_new_health_.php
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQTBYQlQ7yM
I think McCain is screwed if he keeps Palin on the ticket and he'll be screwed if he takes her off and replaces her with someone else because then it will REALLY prove that she wasn't properly vetted and he made a terrible decision.
Another enlightening article from Time/CNN called "In Search Of Sarah Palin."
Now, a larger group of GOPers are speaking out. I sure hope that Lieberman or Ridge aren't laying in wait. lol.
GOP concerns about Palin grow
By ALEXANDER BURNS & DAVID PAUL KUHN | 9/28/08 2:24 AM EDT Updated: 9/28/08 2:24 AM EDT Text Size:
A growing number of Republicans are expressing concern about Sarah Palin’s uneven — and sometimes downright awkward — performances in her limited media appearances.
Conservative columnist Kathleen Parker, a former Palin supporter, says the vice presidential nominee should step aside. Kathryn Jean Lopez, writing for the conservative National Review, says “that’s not a crazy suggestion” and that “something’s gotta change.”
Tony Fabrizio, a GOP strategist, says Palin’s recent CBS appearance isn’t disqualifying but is certainly alarming. “You can’t continue to have interviews like that and not take on water.”
“I have not been blown away by the interviews from her, but at the same time, I haven’t come away from them thinking she doesn’t know s—t,” said Chris Lacivita, a GOP strategist. “But she ain’t Dick Cheney, nor Joe Biden and definitely not Hillary Clinton.”
There is no doubt that Palin retains a tremendous amount of support among rank-and-file Republicans. She draws huge crowds, continues to raise a lot of money for the McCain campaign, and state parties report she has sparked an uptick in the number of volunteers.
Asked about Palin's performance in the CBS interview, a McCain official briefing reporters on condition of anonymity said: "She did fine. She's a tremendous asset and a fantastic candidate."
But there is also no doubt many Republican insiders are worried she could blow next week’s debate, based on her unexpectedly weak and unsteady media appearances, and hurt the Republican ticket if she does.
What follows is a viewer’s guide to some of Palin’s toughest moments on camera so far.
Speaking this week with CBS’s Katie Couric, Palin seemed caught off-guard by a very predictable question about the status of McCain adviser Rick Davis’ relationship with mortgage lender Freddie Mac. Davis was accused by several news outlets of retaining ties — and profiting from — the companies despite his denials.
Where a more experienced politician might have been able to brush off Couric’s follow-up question, Palin seemed genuinely stumped, repeating the same answer twice and resorting to boilerplate language about the “undue influence of lobbyists.”