Sarah Palin: AWOL from Sunday circuit

She's not even ready to talk to the press.

Heckuva job, John Bush on the VP pick.

It is so ironic or maybe just palin-- I mean plain justice, that the Republicans have exactly in Sarah Palin what they falsely accused Barack Obama of. From day one, Republicans loved to say that Barack was a "Roll of the Dice" a "Celebrity"! However, the hand of Karma is swift and the chickens have come home to roost in the guise of Sarah Palin who is the real risk and Roll of the Dice (no foreign or national experience, under ethics investigation, possible member of the AIP) and Sarah, like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton is a Celebrity now (glosses the the covers of US Weekly, People, National Enquirer, etc.). What you Sow you shall Reap!

Maverick McCain who truly loves to gamble, loves Las Vegas, just risked the safety and welfare of this nation with his risky, roll of the dice VP pick, Sarah Palin. However, this is not Las Vegas or Atlantic City, this the United States of America. We cannot afford a Gambler in the White House and his first true test, Sarah Palin, is not even ready to go on Meet the Press (her first true test)! Tim Russert must be rolling around in his anchor seat in heaven.

By the way, it seems that our Republican Vice Presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, who could be a heartbeat away from the Presidency seems, to have switched colleges at least six times in six years.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080905/...

It's not that the McCain campaign is lacking confidence in Palin. The issue is secrecy and stonewalling and blatant lies. This is not simply about the campaign. This is how McCain and Palin will govern - just like Bush Cheney.

The Not Ready for Prime Time pol.

And Republicans want her to negotiate with Putin?????

I think Palin is a one-note wonder. The McCain campaign is too scared to put her on a national talk show because all the can do is attack, not impress the public with her abilities. So far she's been called the barracuda and pitbull by the republicans. Shades of Bush. This reminds me of the Republican's campaign strategies of the last 8 years - fear and hate.

The McCain camp is keeping Palin out of the talk shows this weekend precisely because they don't want an Obama-like political celebrity. Of course everyone wants to talk to her and she'll be plastered all over the newspapers next week if she does "Face the Nation." Palin's perfectly capable of taking the press on -- she was a TV reporter and has a journalism degree. This is just a savvy strategy from the McCain campaign to get the attention back where it should be -- on the next president.

If Palin is not competent enough to speak with the press on issues, why are we suppose to believe she is capable of being VP, a heart beat away from President. McCain couldn't possibly have the confidence in her ability as he and the campaign claim. This speaks directly to his judgement. The main focus of the VP pick is, "Do no harm" Nice going McSame.
It's certainly seems true in this case, silence speaks volumes.

Switching colleges, hmm I know numerous CEOs who do not have a degree and these folks are incredible leaders. Obama did not remember the number of states in one of his speeches but the media failed to report this mishap as usual. You are fed by the MSM - I believe Palin has shown great leadership and is a fresh face as opposed to Biden, Obama. You are accusing McCain of the same old tactics and Karma but Obama picked a Senate veteran - the same old thing to FILL HIS OWN GAPs.

She is just doing what promised--don't cotton to the left wing media!

Amen!

It never ceases to amaze me the sleaze twist of Liberals and Democrats in general. It's no wonder that I became an independent. This guy is the epitome of the dirt and dig Chicago political machine.
The reality is that Obama is the politicians politician; he will say anything to get elected. God forbid that he actually achieves this goaL, too late he will reveal his true intentions, or lack thereof.

PURE BULL Until you nuts calm down ands stop assuming you know everything (and everything is a negative) she shouldn't be bothered with you!!!

of course she can negotiate with Putin? Are you kidding me? Laura Bush said it her self, Palin has great foreign experience with the closeness of Russia to Alaska. Palin and Putin are pretty much neighbors. I wouldn't be surprised if the Republicans would try and say that Palin travels to Russia several times a week. Oh wait that might be hard considering that she doesnt know how she or someone else sold her jet. Contrary to her speech, she did not sell it on Ebay for a profit. It was actually sold by someone else for a $600k loss. I'm sure the Ebay thing was influenced by Meg Whitman and Gramps McCain who probably doesnt even know how to use Ebay but touts it all the time.

The Palin pick clearly shows that the Republicans are wanting to lose on purpose so that they wont have to fix the huge mess they have created in these past 8 years.

We the people will through Obama.

Obama '08

Obamatons,

Thanks for sharing your PDS insanity with the rest of us. It's simply...breathtaking.

Funny thing, The Messiah finally went on *horrors!* the O'Reilly Factor...and was cornered into a de facto admission that he'd been wrong about The Surge. Messiahs do not make bad calls...otherwise they're not really messiahs, are they?

Joe "Motor Mouth" Biden? The guy can't walk past a mirror without blowing kisses to his own reflection.

Q: How do we know Joe Biden is about to make a gaffe?

A. Watch his lips. If they're moving, hilarity will quickly ensue.

It is time for the press to get over itself, People will not vote on a candidate based on your opinions or commentary. So cry me a river just because someone won't talk to you!! Palin will talk to the press when she is ready and not until then. You guys have already attacked her in the most blatent bias I have ever seen in my life. If it were me, I wouldn't talk to anyone of you. You can't try to rip her to pieces one day and expect her to talk to you the next. I am an independent and have not made up my mind yet, but I have made up my mind about the press. They are nothing but self serving, headline getting pigs. Just do your job.....report the facts!!!

Since Gov. Palin just got the nomination a week ago, and has been a governor, (governing two years and 700,000 people more than Sen. Obama has governed) it is to be expected that she is not on first name bases with
foreign leaders (like John McCain is, and Sen. Obama is not) and needs time to brush up on some issues she did not have to deal with a governor. This would be true of any governor, and always has been. No governor has foreign policy experience, and we usually elect governors to be president. Given the hostility of the MSM to her, and the biased coverage we've seen this year, I'm sure she wants to be completely prepared before going on television, and certainly before taking the VP reins in January. Given how she quickly she mastered her acceptance speech, she seems like a quick study, so I'm sure you'll be seeing her soon, but on her schedule. not Obama's or the media's. We still haven't seen Obama at even one of the town hall meetings proposed by Mccain in June, and he's had years to prepare,

"We're going to do what's in our best interests to try to win the election. If we think going on TV news shows are [sic] in our best interests, we'll do it. If we don't, we won't." -- Rick Davis

Country First? or whatever it takes?

What about the interests of the people? We are electing leaders, not an American Idol. So this is how John McCain puts country first? His motives are clear. Win at all cost because it is my last chance. To hell with who would be the best leader for right now.

Smoke and mirrors, the more you look the less you see. This looks more like sarah Abracadabra than Sarah barracuda.
For how long can she hide from the media?

Of course Palin is a lemon....just like a car salesman trying to sell you a lemon...and McCain knows.This McCain guy is pure evil...worse than BushChenney. He is a coward ...only he has wealth beyond measures via marriage and all.He is not fit to be president.

We have always Respected and Honored McCain’s service to this country. But we know who is spinning the message Schmidt and Rove known as the guys that brought us two George W. Bush terms and now they want to sell us a third Bush term.

McCain called for an end to the“constant partisan rancor”. Yet his campaign ads have attacked American Artists by attempting to brand them as just celebrities. Barack Obama is like Ronald Reagan when it comes to support of the Talented Artists of their time. Obama’s message rings of a “Beautiful day coming to America” which is similar to Reagan’s “Its morning in america again”

McCain’s campaign has gone after the media who are asking the important questions that help keep the voters informed about the contrasts between the Democrat and Republican Parties in the most important election of our times. So far McCain's soul mate is refusing take questions about the issues from mainstream reporters.

When McCain says the last weeks of this campaign will be hard fought, nothing personally, just the nature of the business we know what McCain, Schmidt and Rove are saying – more negative attacks, more slash and burn tactics. When McCain says “Change is coming,” to Washington DC – The voters look at the Schmidt, Rove and Fox News attacking and we know what is coming – A Pit Bull? Avoid The Pit Bull with Lip Stick when The Pit Bull attacks. Who says we must fight on their turf? Let them come to ours. This race is still Obama/Biden vs McCain/Bush.

Common sense now says that its Obama/Biden who can end the “constant partisan rancor” in Washington DC.

America can have a beautiful day in November by Voting for Change we can believe in

U2 can have a beautiful day
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omFdpnSu57U

U2 can dance with us
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlfKdbWwruY

Join us!
Vote Obama/Biden ‘08

The thing that makes her so appealing, is that they didn't let the media vet her prior. That made my whole darn day.

MEDIA, festering and bubbling over with anger that they had been dismissed in the process, and that WE ALL ADORE AND WILL SUPPORT HER, gosh that's rich! The fact that she said herself that she is NOT HERE FOR MEDIA's HAPPINESS..... she's here for the people, sweet sweet mother of God, someone speaks my language.

Thank Gosh, someone gets how most of us feel.... not only MEDIA, but that it's the PEOPLES CHOICE on a candidate and man, I can tell ya, I would not want a person that this LIBERAL BUNCH OF YAHOOS FINDS TO BE >THE ONE, for them.

One more point in terms of MSM - isn't it utterly refreshing to not see Hollyweird as a focus. Thank goodness for the Olympics, Hillary and Palin. I would rather hear about these folks then about the rest of the celebs including Oprahbama.

Given the controversy and scandalous accusations, I believe that Sarah Palin would be considered the #1 "get" by the Sunday shows. Unfortunately, the McCain camp has no choice but to excercise tight control over the dialog around Palin. She gave an amazing first impression with a lot of tough talk but she is still a novice; any mistake at this point could be disastrous for the GOP. That said, Felicity is correct that this is savvy strategy from the McCain camp. However, it also clearly underscores Palin's weakness and that of the GOP.

She had to go back to Alaska...she is the governor and has an investigation against her to think about...her kids need to get back to school...She should not go on a scripted show. I want to see her as well as the others in front of the press taking questions from all types of reporters. Not town hall meetings or "debates". Let's get Helen Thomas to talk to her.

The Swamp? The Swamp!!!
Where else would quislings, terrorist, thugs, and socialists hide out? You leftists do NOT determine the agenda. Got that?

Of course she's ready to negotiate with Putin - Bush will pass on all his knowledge.

I'd like to ask Gov. Pallin just how much money she has saved Alaska by selling that jet--not on eBay, of course, where it didn't sell. That jet was used to haul prisoners to out-of-state prisons, since Alaska doesn't believe in holding its own. Unless she's implemented a "take no prisoners" policy, the state is still having to bear that expense in one way or another.

Seem like the "pit bull" has lost her teeth. She can only bark from behind her GOP cage.The GOP is pathetic.

By not appearing on the talk-show circuit, Sara Palin is exposing herself to intense criticism and scrutiny by the media, and it will also them compel to investigate her background. I understand she's green and has no real insight of national affairs, but Palin should keep mind, she is vying to become our nations vice president and as citizens we have a right to know who our elected officials are and where they stand issues

She had just been roasted by most of the media and stated in her speech that she didn't need their approval. So if all of a sudden this weekend she is on those very networks everyone would be calling here a hypocrite.

The Dems are worried, and with good reason, she is a real person. Not another politician or lawyer like Obama & Biden.

Let's see, Palin: administrative experience, Mayor experience, Governor experience; Obama: great speaker, no substantive legislation during short career; Clinton: former 1st Lady holding teas, Senator in orchestrated seat. No wonder the Democrats are jealous. Don't forget, the one with zero executive experience running for President is the Democrat. Palin is running for Vice President with McCain, whose experience and dedication to country is unequaled in the Democratic ticket. Heck, Mrs. Obama just became "proud of this country for the first time in my life" this year. Great first lady material.

Did it ever occur to anyone that if Palin was put out in front of the media, that it would reduce the amount of news coverage she and the GOP party receives?

Call me a cynic, but with the obvious liberal slant of the media, if there wasn't any "controversy" over Palin, there would be less discussion and less air time of the GOP. And that's what the GOP wants. More air time.

Palin's daughter was no secret. Definitely something that would come out during the vetting of a candidate. The issue with her ex-brother-in-law. When the facts come to light, less of a controversy.
(C'mon, do you *want* a person to be a trooper who taser's his step-son? Should he be allowed to carry a gun? Also someone who hunted illegally? Definitely a cause for concern...)

And that's the point. Had the GOP put everything out in the open, Palin would get less air time.

Keeping her a bit of a mystery forces the media to dig deeper and report on it, keeping her in the spot light.

If you look at Obama and McCain, their campaigns do not differ on the main issues by much.

Uhh, folks, it's 60 days to the election. A virtual unknown. No policy positions or papers. No ORIGINAL statements re: anything related to the U.S. economy or world politics. Yet she'll only speak to the press "when she's ready?" And only if it's in "our [the campaign's] best interest?" Hmm...interesting way of putting "Country First."
Peace.

Unbelievable how some people ignore reality.

There is documented proof that Palin has lied, not once, not twice, but many times.

There is NO evidence that being mayor of a tiny town or governor of a population small, isolated state equips anyone with the right stuff to govern.

There is at least some evidence that her 'story' has not been fully told and in some of the details that have not been provided may lie evidence that undermine her credibility to govern the US should something happen to JSM.

Her ONLY public appearnaces have been to slash and burn the opponent. Other than that there has been no substance in what she has said.

Despite what many would like to promote as truth, most of the mainstream media have been hands off about her family, though Palin has had no problem exploiting them herself.

So far this candidate is very much an empty vessel and the McCain campaign is trying to keep it that way. They don't want the American people to know her; they don't want her to state her views or offer her policy positions.

These are the basic requirements we, the American voting public, need to know about a candidate.

Yet some of you have this over-the-top response to any question about her ability to lead, her background, her positions on matters of interest to this nation.

So you attack the media for doing its job.

Shame on you. This woman is an unknown, and we the American people have every right to ask question, via the media (the only way we can get to her). And the longer the McCain campaign trots her out only as the attack dog and then denies any real access to her, the more I am suspicious that there is nothing more there than an empty suit in heels.

I am not anti-woman, anti-McCain, or anti-Republican but in this attitude of thumbing its nose at MY RIGHT to know the person who may be the next vice president of MY country, and potential the president, I find myself appalled.

If they cannot, or will not, accept MY RIGHT to know this candidate before I go into a booth to vote, then I am going to assume there are sufficient reasons why they are keeping her away from ME, the American public, and that is very likely to influence my vote.

McBush says: He will bring the country together...he will reach across the isle. So as an olive branch, he gave us the most divisive person he could find. She is against a womans choice. She is against sex education in schools. She is for censoring books. She is willing to lead us forward into the 1800s. She has basically stretched the truth, or down right lied about her record. She is under investigation. Plain and simple.......she wasn't vetted. Sure she is popular in Alaska, she took earmarks to pay each citizen $1200 on top of the $2000 they already recieve to live there. She taxed big oil to pay for it also. Taxed the big oil? I thought that was McBushs' big no no? It is a slap in the face to women. There were plenty of highly qualified women to chose on the right but this also reved up the religious Jihad crowd. Women are more intelligent than that.

As an Independent, I am looking at this dreadful choice of candidates in dispair. But, whats me laugh is McSame's accusation that Obama is just a celeb, when Palin is running on a celeb platform. I'm just saying...

Boy, 300M Americans, and these are our choices?

Did anyone see McCain and Palin campaigning on TV?
She was reading her lines from a paper using her finger to keep her place.
To be on a talk show she would need an earpiece to have her answers, etc. fed to her.

And does anyone else find her speaking voice very annoying?

Did anyone see McCain and Palin campaigning on TV?
She was reading her lines from a paper using her finger to keep her place.
To be on a talk show, or speak to the press,she would need an earpiece to have her answers, etc. fed to her.

And does anyone else find her speaking voice very annoying?

Why should McCain or her appear on leftist media outlets that are clearly in the tank for Obama? Palin's pick was the beginning of a strategy to bypass the dishonest media and appeal directly to the people. Obama's fellow travelors in the msm have their panties in a bunch because they know this. The msm is increasing irrelevant. McCain and Palin don't need Brokaw and Stefanopoulos and their ilk. No one does but Daley's stooge BHO.

There is NO WAY the GOP allows Palin to speak; unless it is scripted, rehearsed, and in front of a friendly audience. There are SO many questions regarding her candidacy, she would wither under the fire of objective scrutiny. And the GOP knows it.

She is there for one thing, and one thing only. To give the evangelical base of the GOP, that NEEDS to believe in someone, someone to believe IN. Outside of that, she brings absolutely ZERO.

Uh, if she's so worried about the so-called liberal media, why doesn't she go on Fox News then and field a bunch of softball questions? They'll ask questions, allow her to lie about her record, and not challenge her in the least.

And while I could understand the GOP not wanting to put her in front of the ol' Clinton lackey on ABC, there's really no excuse for not putting her on the CBS show or especially the NBC show -- are people really going to claim that Tom Brokaw can't be unbiased? If you do, I think we can safely ignore you as completely insane.

And while some CEOs may not have degrees, they aren't running for to be in position for the biggest CEO job in the world. Don't bring up Gates, he was smart enough to get into Harvard without legacy helping him. He was obviously brilliant. She does not exactly inspire confidence in her intelligence.

Furthermore, asking her serious questions and not taking garbage, spin, or proven lies for an answer doesn't mean "liberal", it means "doing the job". Russert would have eaten her for breakfast and everyone considered him to be an equal-opportunity griller.

The McCain-Palin people are smart. They know the TV talk show hosts are not their friends. They know also that they'll have a list of "gotcha" questions like who's the education minister of Lower Slobovia. The media were badly beaten down last week with their bullying of a defenseless 17-year-old girl and they got caught at it. Now, they'll want to seek revenge. Note the absence of hard questions ever to Obama, like "what did you accomplish as a community organizer," or "list your 5 greatest achievements outside of politics."
No, the media by and large are committed left wing Democrats and should be regarded appropriately.

Why should she appear on the talk shows? Thinking Americans can watch the debates. Did Uh-bama agree to the 12 townhall debates McCain proposed? That's a much more useful question to ask. Would anyone ever ask on a talk show what self-professed Mr. Reform did to reform the notoriously and ridiculously corrupt Chicago scene (answer: SQUAT). Uh, umm, y'know, uhh, I guess they were his friends.
We shouldnl't let him get away from his record---or dismal lack of one.

Palin is heading BACK TO ALASKA FRIDAY EVENING, it has been reported. Is it because her son is being deployed on Sept 11? Doubtful. Is it because she is the subject of that ethics investigation (Troopergate) that the McCain team is trying to make dissapear?? Probably.

Give Joe Biden the same press and air time as Palin.

Of course she's not going to appear on Meet the Press. That would be disaster! But it does kind of make you wonder, if she can't stand up to a reporter, how will she stand up to Vladmir Putin? Ah heck, who are we kidding ... if John McCain couldn't stand up to James Dobson and Karl Rove for his original choice -- Joe Lieberman -- how can we be sure he'll stand up to anyone? This is candidate protection program ticket.

For all that people may claim that Obama is a political neophyte, he's at least let out of the house to go play. The only reason to hold Palin back is because she can't do anything more than recite the most basic GOP talking points and the McCain campaign knows she'd be eaten alive. When the campaign says "We'll let her out when it's in our best interests" and then refuses to let her out... well, I guess it's not in McCain's "best interests" to let Palin talk unscripted.

Here are just a few reasons why Palin on uncontrolled and unscripted interviews is too risky:
PALIN: "I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending ... and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere."

THE FACTS: As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the largest per-capita request in the nation. While Palin notes she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere."

PALIN: "There is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform — not even in the state senate."

THE FACTS: Compared to McCain and his two decades in the Senate, Obama does have a more meager record. But he has worked with Republicans to pass legislation that expanded efforts to intercept illegal shipments of weapons of mass destruction and to help destroy conventional weapons stockpiles. The legislation became law last year. To demean that accomplishment would be to also demean the work of Republican Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, a respected foreign policy voice in the Senate. In Illinois, he was the leader on two big, contentious measures in Illinois: studying racial profiling by police and requiring recordings of interrogations in potential death penalty cases. He also successfully co-sponsored major ethics reform legislation.

PALIN: "The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

THE FACTS: The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's plan would increase after-tax income for middle-income taxpayers by about 5 percent by 2012, or nearly $2,200 annually. McCain's plan, which cuts taxes across all income levels, would raise after tax-income for middle-income taxpayers by 3 percent, the center concluded.

Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

MCCAIN: "She's been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America's energy supply ... She's responsible for 20 percent of the nation's energy supply. I'm entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America," he said in an interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson.

THE FACTS: McCain's phrasing exaggerates both claims. Palin is governor of a state that ranks second nationally in crude oil production, but she's no more "responsible" for that resource than President Bush was when he was governor of Texas, another oil-producing state. In fact, her primary power is the ability to tax oil, which she did in concert with the Alaska Legislature. And where Alaska is the largest state in America, McCain could as easily have called it the 47th largest state — by population.

MCCAIN: "She's the commander of the Alaska National Guard. ... She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities," he said on ABC.

THE FACTS: While governors are in charge of their state guard units, that authority ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. When guard units are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, they assume those duties under "federal status," which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors. Alaska's national guard units have a total of about 4,200 personnel, among the smallest of state guard organizations.

FORMER ARKANSAS GOV. MIKE HUCKABEE: Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

THE FACTS: A whopper. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor's election, and got 909 in her 1999 re-election race, for a total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes in 23 states and the District of Columbia where he was on the ballot during the 2008 presidential primaries.

FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOV. MITT ROMNEY: "We need change, all right — change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington — throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin."

THE FACTS: A Back-to-the-Future moment. George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. Only since January 2007 have Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate.

I see the conservative fruitakes are at it again. They think there are two Americas here. Whether they like the media or not, it is the American media. As a national candidate she is supposed to talk to them. If you conservatives don't like America, then leave.

Here are just a few reasons why Palin on uncontrolled and unscripted interviews is too risky:
PALIN: "I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending ... and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress. I told the Congress 'thanks but no thanks' for that Bridge to Nowhere."

THE FACTS: As mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired a lobbyist and traveled to Washington annually to support earmarks for the town totaling $27 million. In her two years as governor, Alaska has requested nearly $750 million in special federal spending, by far the largest per-capita request in the nation. While Palin notes she rejected plans to build a $398 million bridge from Ketchikan to an island with 50 residents and an airport, that opposition came only after the plan was ridiculed nationally as a "bridge to nowhere."

PALIN: "There is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform — not even in the state senate."

THE FACTS: Compared to McCain and his two decades in the Senate, Obama does have a more meager record. But he has worked with Republicans to pass legislation that expanded efforts to intercept illegal shipments of weapons of mass destruction and to help destroy conventional weapons stockpiles. The legislation became law last year. To demean that accomplishment would be to also demean the work of Republican Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, a respected foreign policy voice in the Senate. In Illinois, he was the leader on two big, contentious measures in Illinois: studying racial profiling by police and requiring recordings of interrogations in potential death penalty cases. He also successfully co-sponsored major ethics reform legislation.

PALIN: "The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, raise payroll taxes, raise investment income taxes, raise the death tax, raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars."

THE FACTS: The Tax Policy Center, a think tank run jointly by the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute, concluded that Obama's plan would increase after-tax income for middle-income taxpayers by about 5 percent by 2012, or nearly $2,200 annually. McCain's plan, which cuts taxes across all income levels, would raise after tax-income for middle-income taxpayers by 3 percent, the center concluded.

Obama would provide $80 billion in tax breaks, mainly for poor workers and the elderly, including tripling the Earned Income Tax Credit for minimum-wage workers and higher credits for larger families.

He also would raise income taxes, capital gains and dividend taxes on the wealthiest. He would raise payroll taxes on taxpayers with incomes above $250,000, and he would raise corporate taxes. Small businesses that make more than $250,000 a year would see taxes rise.

MCCAIN: "She's been governor of our largest state, in charge of 20 percent of America's energy supply ... She's responsible for 20 percent of the nation's energy supply. I'm entertained by the comparison and I hope we can keep making that comparison that running a political campaign is somehow comparable to being the executive of the largest state in America," he said in an interview with ABC News' Charles Gibson.

THE FACTS: McCain's phrasing exaggerates both claims. Palin is governor of a state that ranks second nationally in crude oil production, but she's no more "responsible" for that resource than President Bush was when he was governor of Texas, another oil-producing state. In fact, her primary power is the ability to tax oil, which she did in concert with the Alaska Legislature. And where Alaska is the largest state in America, McCain could as easily have called it the 47th largest state — by population.

MCCAIN: "She's the commander of the Alaska National Guard. ... She has been in charge, and she has had national security as one of her primary responsibilities," he said on ABC.

THE FACTS: While governors are in charge of their state guard units, that authority ends whenever those units are called to actual military service. When guard units are deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, for example, they assume those duties under "federal status," which means they report to the Defense Department, not their governors. Alaska's national guard units have a total of about 4,200 personnel, among the smallest of state guard organizations.

FORMER ARKANSAS GOV. MIKE HUCKABEE: Palin "got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States."

THE FACTS: A whopper. Palin got 616 votes in the 1996 mayor's election, and got 909 in her 1999 re-election race, for a total of 1,525. Biden dropped out of the race after the Iowa caucuses, but he still got 76,165 votes in 23 states and the District of Columbia where he was on the ballot during the 2008 presidential primaries.

FORMER MASSACHUSETTS GOV. MITT ROMNEY: "We need change, all right — change from a liberal Washington to a conservative Washington! We have a prescription for every American who wants change in Washington — throw out the big-government liberals, and elect John McCain and Sarah Palin."

THE FACTS: A Back-to-the-Future moment. George W. Bush, a conservative Republican, has been president for nearly eight years. And until last year, Republicans controlled Congress. Only since January 2007 have Democrats have been in charge of the House and Senate.

Oh yeah, speaking of the horrors candidates face with those nasty "gotcha" questions. Barack Obama spent a week on the O'Reilly Factor and while he didn't win Pappa Bear's vote, he did win his respect. You should watch on O'Reilly's website.

I'm still waiting for Jeff to praise one of his well liked news outlet...National Enquirer. How's the new "story" in their headlines sit with you? Still jazzed over them?

Palin is a product of an culture that loves American Idol and other reality TV shows that throw a "Normal" person on a national stage. It's exciting and adds drama to otherwise dud of a republican ticket. It doesn't matter if it's extremely reckless and proves poor judgment on McCain's part because the lady adds the drama needed to keep America from completely dismissing an out of touch old man. The proof is the TV ratings outshining Obama's acceptance speech. America simply is waiting to see the train wreck, it won't happen unless she's off script. I suspect her handlers will never allow her to be interviewed. We need force the issue and get her off script to see what the lipsticked pittbull will bark.

Paradoxical that Palin’s party urges private charity and faith based initiatives, yet she mocked Obama’s community organizing. I thought it was horrible.

I am shocked. You mean that she doesn't want to go on the Sunday morning talk shows where inside Washington media personalities (it would be a significant stretch to call most of them reporters) talk with inside Washington politicians about what is wrong with the rest of the country. How will we know what to think if Wolf Blitzer doesn't tell us? As a Hillary backer, I was very hesitant to believe the talk of an "anti-female" bias in the media choosing to feel it was just more of a "pro-Obama" lmedia love affair but with the reporting and "stories" coming out since the Palin pick, I am definitely convinced that there is a significant ant-female bias. Where are the opinion pieces on why Barack, Joe or John don't spend more time with their children (or grandchildren)? The current media mind frame (which in many cases is backed by the rants and attacks on many of these blog sites) is based on the sucker being born every minute belief while I think that with the ability to access multiple sources of info (some good and some bad) the American people are more in line with the statement attributed to Abraham Lincoln: You can fool some of the people all of the time and all of the people some of the time but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. People need to wake up.

This "news" piece is a prime example of why the media has a reputation lower than whale offal. They now want to tell the Republicans how to run their campaign. How full of yourself can one get?

And what sunday morning show was Joe B. on the weekend he was announced (8/24) or the following weekend (8/31)? Answer NONE NONE NONE. He is supposedly the seasoned Washington insider who wasn't ready to "Face the Nation" or "Meet the Press" or even talk to Georgie boy. You all should lay off Sarah P. you sound ridiculous!!!!

Until Palin steps out to meet the press and the people, her persona can appear to be little more that a 'cardboard candidate.'
bjzeitz,
women's historian/gender equity analyst

She was made a celebrity by the constant barrage of the media the week before the convention, trying to destroy her. It would be pretty stupid, even as accomplished as she is, to throw her back to the wolves just because they want to make more money and ratings from 'shock' journalism. I have seen videos of her gubernamental debates and she did good, I think once the rabid newscasters are kept at bay that she would do exceedingly well.

Think about this. 85% of Alaska's state budget comes from taxes on oil companies. The other 15% comes from the federal government. Alaskans pay no state taxes because they are the biggest welfare state in the country. Now, consider the two things that Mrs. Palin did while governor. #1) She raised taxes on oil companies. #2) She used revenue from oil company windfall profits to double the size of the check that the state sends to every citizen.

Sounds a lot like Barack Obama's plans that John McCain has been campaigning against!

Find out more here:
http://www.rationalrevolution.net/blog/

How unsurprising. Palin is still hiding from the press so that she can hide her ineptitude and complete cluelessness. Remember, this is a woman who a month ago went on TV saying that she had no idea what a Vice President does.

I wonder how she's going to get out of the VP debate. I guess that they can give her talking points and the instructions that she is NEVER to say anything not on the talking points. More than likely part of the debate agreement will be that the candidates have to be given all of the questions ahead of time. Just wait and see...

I'm still amazed at all of the people out there who claim that she was "so brave" to "confront" all of the criticism that her selection got. So far she's hidden in a hotel room and given one scripted speech that she didn't even write. How sad.

So she's AWOL, that didn't stop many Americans from voting for President Bush, when he was reportedly, missing from his National Guard Unit, during the Vietnam War. As a matter of fact, many American voters voted twice for the Incompetent team we now have in our White House and look at the mess they have left America with, McCain and Palin !!!
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS, BRING THEM HOME, ALIVE AND WHOLE. NOW.

Hey lefties, at least she can continue a speech after her teleprompter messes up, like on Wednesday, unlike messiah who starts to stammer and stutter. Is anybody out there getting tired of his "uh, uh, uh, uh" when he doesnt have HIS script in front of him?

But why on earth is it important for the people to get to know their VP candidates? I mean, it's not like the VP does anything all day, and it's not like a president has ever died in office or had to relinquish command to the VP.

It's one thing to be able to read off a teleprompter. It's quite another to be able to answer substantive questions. Biden will run circles around her in the VP debates. They can't slither their way out of those...

Sarah Palin has no choice. The media and press would go out of their way to throw her under the bus and would not be fair about any interview. She is smart to avoid the media altogether. A lot of people know the media is for Obama and not giving us the opportunity to make our own decisions. Maybe it is time for the media to clean house.

I see nobody is scheduled for Fox News Sunday. Maybe that's what I'll watch.

Mark Silva, I am sure it's not because she wasn't invited.

Thank you BIll R......You summed it up perfectly...Obviously they think all women will vote for anyone in a skirt { or pantsuit } just to say a woman is in office.. WRONG ASSUMPTION!! McCain just gave his chance at the Presidency away with his choice of VP...

The McCain camp will let Palin speak on their terms. When they have written all the possible questions that may be asked and Palin has had time to rehearse her responses and limit the liability that she poses to the Party. McCain, shame on you for allowing your campaign to pick your VP. We do not need another puppet in the White House, make your own decisions and stop trying to pander to the religious conservative and go back to who you are and think for youself. I live in the state of Arizona and at one time had respect for you as a moderate republican and now you are just disappointing us. Obama/Biden in 08 for this voter.

Palin must do media interviews unscripted now. Sign the petition:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/PalinMediaInterviews/

I can't believe people are actually praising this move by McCain's campaign. They're so caught up in their fued with the MSM....what about us people? McCain's campaign woman said that the people learned all they need to know about Palin from her nomination speech.

I don't know about you guys but that certainly isn't "all i need to know"....if your running for VP and could potentially be president then you should certainly be able to stand up to some tough questions on political issues from some reporters. Hell, Obama went on O'Reily

McCain's campaign treating her like a fragile commodity who can't say anything that isn't written for her is pretty sad. She's supposedly a strong woman so let her answer some questions.

Sarah Palin hasn't been doing any real campaigning. All she has been doing is reading from her script.

Palin must do media interviews unscripted now. Sign the petition:

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/PalinMediaInterviews/

I have to ask, Does anyone watch those Sunday morning talk shows anymore? The shows are so partisan, with no substantive value. Talk about an insider bias to the press — the notion that someone they've never even heard of could be nominated for the vice-presidency is inherently offensive to a culture where the host of Meet the Press is treated to near–state funeral (ross douthat).
I say, stay away!

Some people will stoop to being gutter scum. In both of her speeches she told the American public that her son Track is being deployed to Iraq on 9/7/08 to Iraq. Now where in the hell do you think she and her family are going to be. HMMMM just maybe at the deployment ceremony for her son and his unit. My son is being deployed on 10/18/08 go Iraq and believe my my husband and daughters will be at the deployment ceremony. It will mean my duaghters missing college and us missing work. I can only imagine how the Palin family feels as I will be crossing that bridge very soon. The media has been all over Palin about her family and something like her son being deployed that forgot about. Priceless liberal bs. God Bless our Troops who have always fought to allow you to have the freedom of speech to spew you venom.

This is my first presidential campaign (I am 19). I have not like a lot of the highly charged negativity--coming primarily from the Republican side of the aisle, I have to say--and that is influencing how I think about my choices.

I have to say I am really put off by the way the McCain campaign is keeping Ms Palin behind the closed curtains. I have a right to know who I am voting for and it seems to me they are trying to take that right away from me. I don't like that. Tie secrecy to their negativity and what is left?

I am trying to keep an open mind but I have to tell some of your more partisan folks who have blogged here that you are not doing your candidate a single bit of good in attacking the news media AND all the rest of us who simply want to know more about this candidate.

This is the most important decision I have to make right now. The choice I make--we make--affects everything for the next for years. I don't think it is too much to ask that I hear the authentic Sarah Palin, unscripted, unrehearsed, in interviews and on television.

All the other three candidates make themselves available.

And I don't buy for one minute that they have to prep her for prime time. If she wants to be president some day, she should come already prepared.

Nor do I buy that they have to keep her away from the press because the press are collectively bad-boys. I bet you didn't think that when the press was all over Obama about Wright or when they attack Michelle Obama.

So, you really are asking this first time voter to elect someone on a wing and a prayer if I support the Republican party. I don't know if I can do that.

IT'S NOT ABOUT THE PRESS.
it's about hearing more than a prewritten stump speech. there are thing she needs to answer and let voters, not reporters, know where she stands. without any questions she can say whatever she wants. but i want real answers.
questions:
you are absolutely against any abortion? what if the pregnancy is life threatening to the mother? is the child's life more important than the wife and mother of 3 other children?

with your stance on abortion, don't you think educating teens on safety and STD's are also valid, along with abstinence education?

do you thinks it's proper to teach creationism in a public school right along side evolution? and if yes doesn't that go against the constitution?

a few months ago you said you had no clue what a VP does, do you know now?

you keep saying you told congress no to the bridge to nowhere. was the money actually offered? i'm pretty sure it never made it into a bill. also you campaigned for governor saying you wanted the fund. when did you change your mind?

we hear you talk about an all of the above energy plan. why did you veto wind and other energy alternative??

did you go to washington to lobby for earmarks as mayor of wasilla?

how many federal earmarks did you get and for how much money?

did you attempt to ban books and threaten to fire a librarian for not removing them?

your husband was a member of the AIP, did he support the vote to declare alaska's independence for the USA??

she may have great answers for these questions, i'd really like to know the answers to these question. wouldn't you??

She has already said she is not going to Washington to please the media. What was it about that remark that they didn't understand?

Typical left wing crap. I can't wait for Gov. Palin to get ahold of Sen. Biden. See you there. Oh, and bring Putin.

Sarah Palin seems to come in quite cockey it'a my way or the highway she won't sit down doen;t it remind you of anyone

To quote the Late Great Bernie Mac, McCain knows they can't stand the heat. “He’s scared. He’s holding the ball, hoping the clock will run out. That’s a punk move…duckin’ and hidin’ like a little b***h!”

Maybe she only wants forums where she can expect intelligent questions.

Wow, never saw a site with so many "EXPERTS". As a woman with a family /did the thought ever occur to any of you that this woman needs to breath/ she needs to get her own house in order before she embarks on a national compressed run. I am an independent voter / I AM STILL UNSURE WHERE MY VOTE WILL GO, but I am smart enough to give this woman a chance to collect herself. To those of you who have made up your minds already I say GET a book / get online / educate yourself but most of all GET A LIFE AND STOP judging others.

Exactly how many offers has she had, and who made them?

Or, like Big "O," are they for after the election?

VPs don't come to your show, they send for you.

Where in this article does it mention that her oldest son is being deployed to Iraq next week? The last time she might ever see him. As Tom Delay said, "Please, media, keep it up!".

How can she take on our nation's enemies if she can't even handle a few reporters?

Governor Palin said she is not running for journalist approval but to serve the American people well and she will.
There are no bigger egos than those attached to journalist noses. Its called being narcissistic.
Get over it koolaid Obama drinkers! Jerry White, Springfield, IL

She probably goes to church on Sunday mornings. Deal with it.

To borrow a phrase from Obama, “we've entered the silly season.” This time his supporters have gone crazy to defend their blind objective of getting a democrat in the White House.

Forget about airplanes that were put on eBay and then taken off. Forget about believing any pictures you see of Sarah Palin; they're fake. You can pretty much dismiss anything you hear from the biased media and the bloggers that propagate their false accusations. This may be the first election cycle where the media has a dog in the hunt and don’t want to lose.

Let's get to the debates where you see real discussions regarding the issues we care about. How will we fix things? Do we turn Washington and the US totally upside down with decades old democratic talking points? Do we reform government to eliminate wasteful earmarks and get our representatives to actually work towards common objectives? Can the do nothing congress actually do something? Or we can focus on what talk shows people are on and irrelevant details about how Palin saved money for her State.

One thing you can count on is the crazy dems will continue to go over board and the normal Americans will see them for what they are; extremists that want to control the lives of others. These crazies will continue to oversell their positions and confirm to all they are not qualified to control our lives.

Looks like Sarah is inviting the exalted pundits to kiss her ---.
The sad part about this entire disaster has to be the disruption to the.00001% of voters who actually watch those pedantic droning shows.
Has Tony Rezko signed up for the Sunday shows or is he waiting to sing to the Feds before his sentencing?

The MSM proved to be a bunch of low down yellow bellied snakes who out of the gate attacked her family.

Unlike you big city boys, in small town America if you can't say anything nice some rat dog twit, you usually say nothing at all.

The MSM blew it and now want Palin to come to them bonnet in had. She does not need your anointment. Screw You guys!!

Did it ever occur to anyone of you geniuses that Sarah Palin might just want to go somewhere and attend church on her first Sunday morning after her debut? I know, I know. That desire would show she's a religious "fanatic," like all the other millions of church-goers, not just evangelicals, in the country.

If she did go right away on the Sunday morning shows, someone would carp at her, as they're always finding a silly reason to do so, and accuse her "if you're so Christian, why don't you go to church?" Even Bill Clinton did that regularly.

As a college professor who knows and lives in the American heartland, I'm continually amazed by the cultural disconnect that seems to be emanating from these Eastern commentators and blogs about Sarah Palin. If the fury and the ridicule against her were informed, it would be one thing, but it's increasingly dumber than dumb. I can hear the sound of political gravediggers along the Ohio.

In the meantime, Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee for President of the United States, hasn't held a press conference since early spring.

He has never answered reporters' questions about his relationship with the Reverend Jeremiah Wright or with William Ayers, an admitted and unrepentant domestic terrorist.

Where's the outrage about that, Mark Silva? Where's your smarmy, snide item about that, Mark?

Keep it up. Every time one of you fools writes biased trash like this, Palin's approval rating ticks up another point.

I think the GOP may be too afraid she'd blurt out more damaging news about her and her husband's membership in the Alaskan Independence Party, the group that supports Alaska's seccession from the union. Reports are that Palin would use the high office to further strengthen Alaska's independence. "Alaska First, Alaska Always".