News-Miner Editorial
What the job involves
Palin’s talents carry the day
Published Friday, September 5, 2008
Digg
delicious
Facebook
Mixx
Reddit
Stumble It!To expand slightly on a question posed by our governor, what’s the difference between a vice-presidential candidate and a bulldog? Lipstick, no doubt, but there must be more.
Gov. Sarah Palin offered much more than lipstick Wednesday night. Her speech was a remarkable demonstration of her toughness, that unflinching ability to put on a smile and a steady voice and march on despite adversity. And what adversity there has been. This newspaper expressed strong doubts about her qualifications immediately after her selection by Sen. John McCain. That hasn’t changed, and there is plenty of company in that camp. However, the storm of foul criticism and bizarre speculation that has poured out of the nation’s myriad of media outlets has shocked us all.
As Alaskans know, Palin has a public persona that attracts and inspires people. She is no fake, and that comes across well. She is rightfully proud of her background, her family and her public service. All of that is being sifted through a finer fishnet than any Alaskan politician has seen. The mesh has found inconsistencies, embarrassments and potential pitfalls in Palin’s record. No surprise there. Life carries such baggage.
How a candidate handles these challenges is important. Part of the skepticism about Palin’s new-found position of prominence arises from the fact that she hasn’t been tested nationally in this fashion, and it will be hard to do so in the short time remaining before the general election.
Her speech Wednesday, with the ad-libbed equation of a lipsticked hockey mom and a bulldog, was a great start toward quieting the doubters. The teleprompter she used apparently wasn’t working, but you couldn’t tell that from watching. Palin’s voice strengthened as she expressed admiration of McCain for his support of a U.S. troop surge in Iraq last year. “As the mother of one of those troops, that is exactly the kind of man I want as commander in chief,” Palin said.
Many people think Alaskans should support Palin because her time in the spotlight will be good for the state, regardless of whether she wins. Others observe that we all have weaknesses, but someone must be vice president. So why not someone who inspires us with a message, even if her resume lacks weight? Sen. Barack Obama’s might be judged even lighter, Palin suggested while referencing her time as Wasilla mayor.
“Since our opponents in this election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves,” she said. “I guess a small town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities.”
It was a clever line, even if Obama and Palin are most distinguished by their actions in the time since they organized and presided over their respective communities. The point is: Thin qualifications shouldn’t force a disqualification.
But broad experience is important. Palin is getting some of that experience through events such as her successful Wednesday speech. The state and the nation are watching to see how she handles such events. If it goes well, maybe we’ll be able to focus on the candidates’ positions on issues, which also greatly distinguish the two from one another.
Community Discussion
Newsminer.com doesn't necessarily condone the comments here, nor does it review every post. Read our full user's agreement.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080904/ap_o...
fake speech but well rehearsed
I agree it was much better than Hussiens fake speech. Maybe he should rehearse more
Sarah Palin was far more inspiring in her speech than John McCain. She was better than Biden could ever hope to be. This is not surprising to those of us who know Sarah... she has risen to the occasion.
37.2 million Americans tuned in to watch our Governor shine. That is almost as many who tuned in to watch Obama.
Will the News-Miner be happy to see her elected to the White House? All those snarky, derisive editorials you've written have made it clear that you do not like our Governor. Will you be happy when she is gone?
We all know Exxon wants Sarah the hell out of Alaska. They want another shill- a Knowles, a Murkowski- anyone who will roll over and give them back Pt. Thomson with its hundreds of millions of barrels of oil and trillions of cubic feet of gas. They need to sit on our hydrocarbon wealth to keep prices high.
Go Sarah! I am sick and tired of the press crucifying her and her family. From what I see she is what this country needs. It's just too bad it's a good old boys club in big politics.
My vote is for the McCain/Palin team.
Wake up America!
Great speech she gave.
Much stronger than McCain's that's for sure.
But cracking sarcastic jokes about the opponent does nothing for results.
What do you plan to do about the state of our country?
My good friend Sarah Palin must now venture out of the protective cocoon of the lily-white (and it was) GOP Convention, and interact with folks that don't necessarily adore her.
I'll tell you this...because it's where I come from....her "Hockey Mom" status won't be worth a damn while trying to turn the African-American vote in say inner-city Ohio.
To hell with the "winning smile," they could care less about the "family drama" involving Bristol, Levi and all that mess.
"What plan do you and Candidate McCain have in store?"....is what they're going to want to know.
Americans who are truly struggling, of ALL races, are going to want to know.....WHY should we vote for you and a man who seemingly represents 4 more years of the same B.S.?
I heard alot about reaching out to "the rural parts of our country," but that's about it.
What about the inner-city?
The minority vote?
Heard absolutely nothing about that.
There's alot more to this country than just the rural "heartland."
I've received calls from many, many friends and family from all over the Lower 48 asking just "who the hell is she?"
I've spoken very well of her as well.....but have been told the same thing every time.......helping run the country is alot bigger than running the State of Alaska.
Not knocking her skill set one bit, but it will be interesting to see how she makes her way through this country these next 60 days, and if she truly has the moxie to "wade in troubled waters" that are not necessarily comparable to say, small town Alaska.
“Since our opponents in this election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves,” she said. “I guess a small town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities.”
Way to go Sarah. You insulted a whole group of people who help others put food on their tables, find jobs after they lost theirs to foreign competition, apply for food stamps, etc. You showed yourself to be mean-spirited and condescending, and you only aided in keeping the people of this country divided. All that just to insult Obama. You threw out a lot of insults and snide comments the other night. You and McCain have to resort to such tactics, because your platform has no substance. America is still waiting to hear the specifics of how you will improve our nation.
Obama has shown himself to be the better person through all of this. He has provided details about how he will bring our country together and improve the lives of its citizens. And he has chosen to challenge McCains's proposals regarding how he will run our country (that's legitimate), be has not personally insulted McCain.
I guess you and McCain have to insult Obama personally, because you don't stand a chance of winning the election if you take the high road and only debate the issues.
Sarah Palen stated "What is the difference between a hockey mom and a bull dog?.....lip stick" not VP????
Well put "AKhusky!"
I think the wisecracks about "community organizers" will come back to haunt Sarah and Old John down the road.
Especially when they travel to places where the position is of utmost importance in a given area that's not dominated by "Big Money Rollers."
I want to see her reaction, and what she'll have to say when a bunch of "community organizers" that don't look like residents of Wasilla, or politicians in Juneau, etc...give her "the business" about her comments....and how unappreciated they were.
The "Barracuda" will then be surrounded by "Sharks" of all races and creeds. Folks that take such a position as a serious matter.
"Hockey Mom" will need to come with some answers, because jokes won't do.
At least every article in the newsminer doesn't appear to be a smear campaign against Palin.
I liked her pitbull comparison.
the trouble with folks like inner city poor and college students is that they tend not to bother to vote.
The other difference is that a pitbull does not have a voice that will peel paint.
Does it really matter what the presidential candidates promise in their speeches? They say what the public wants to hear. Do some research...action speaks louder than words. Vote for the person who has your best interests at heart, and have shown that they do.
AKhusky
I wonder how familiar you are with politics, or the history of party conventions. It's the V.P.'s task to throw the elbows at the opposition. The President stays above that fray, as John McCain has. You see, Sarah Palin isn't the presidential candidate. She's doing exactly what she's supposed to do.
You people that feel like everyone's supposed to be friendly are in for a rough 4 years. Obama has a momentum that will likely not be slowed, and it will propel him into the white house. Unfortunately plans like forcing all businesses to provide employees with health insurance will keep those businesses from hiring PEOPLE in order to afford the insurance. Taking $300,000,000,000 from oil companies in the form of a profit tax so each citizen can be given $1,000 will result in lower oil production which will mean still higher gas prices. Forcing insurance companies to accept any applicant for coverage, no matter their pre-existing condition, will mean fewer insurance companies, which will drive up the cost of insurance. Needless to say, there'll be 4 years of Republican foot-dragging as Obama tries to take us places we shouldn't be going.
You can blame the Republicans and their reckless spending for the falling value of the dollar, to some degree. The trade agreements that have sucked jobs away, as Ross Perot promised they would, were enacted by Clinton, not Bush. The mortgage crisis was caused by millions of ignorant Americans too dull to realize they couldn't afford a $575,000 home on a $43,000 salary, and not George Bush. The exploding cost of oil, which rose because investors fled home mortgage backed securities looking for a place to invest their money, is not George Bush's fault.
The fact is John McCain has long spoken the truth about reality. Manufacturing jobs are gone. They're not coming back. America needs to get educated for the future of jobs in America. People don't want to hear that, though. They want a government check in their mailbox and free health insurance. Heavily taxing the people with wealth and taking money from them that otherwise would be left in play within our economy, perhaps to start a new business, or open a new office, which would pay someone a salary, is no way to create jobs. Obama is just telling desperate people who haven't thought things through just what they want to hear, most of which is impossible to deliver. You guys will find that out later, though.
allhaileris:
You are right. I am a former Fairbanksan living in Illinois. The masses want insurance, more free money, higher pay, etc. I say that people should work hard, take a class or two, overcome their disadvantages and earn those things. SOMEONE has to work if ANYONE is to have it. Since we have become a nation of lazy people who want something for nothing, and since we have no individual right to rob people of what they work for, we have come to expect the GOVERNMENT to use its authority and tax it out of someone's pocket and put it in someone else's.
It makes me sick to listen to lazy people in the office next to mine who sit and do nothing, as they complain that Sarah Palin is a lousy choice for VP. They fear that if Obama isn't elected, they won't get as much for nothing. Get-it-done people are always a threat to the lazy.
I notice Obama has trouble talking, sometimes and does a lot of stammering.
Any of you Obama campaign people posting in the News Miner discussions know why?
Thank you.
Obama is doing just fine. Maybe he is just still in shock that beauty-queen addicted McCain would put our country in so much peril by selecting someone like Palin when he is on is deathbed.
Palin's history and family are an embarrassment. I am not impressed by dysfunction, such as her pregnant teenage daughter, her son that was forced into the military because of vandalism and her Down's Syndrome baby who will never truly know his mother. As for those who say family is off limits I beg to differ. It shows her ability (or lack of it) to manage her affairs at home which to me reflects on how she would manage this country. She also opened the door when she decided to bring the choice of what I do with my body to the table.
She isn't doing the job I voted for he to do. While she is gallivanting around the country generating dollars for the good old boy clubs that she said she was not a party to. Sad to think I was duped into believing her.
Wildvisions, I am not thrilled about her either, and I agree with most of what you said, but taking a shot at her because she has a child with Downs Syndrome?!? Really? Her older kids made descisions, and are now living with those descisions, but an infant with Downs Syndrome? Come on.
Wildvisions said "her son that was forced into the military because of vandalism."
I have never read this anywhere. Do you or anyone have anything to back this up? His enlistment date, Sept. 11, would be an awful big coincidience for such an enlistment, as is the fact that he is in the infantry.
Lets stop attacking the children. You Obama people are continuing to demonstrate that Obama is not able to lead. If he was a good leader, he would have been able to encourage his troops to leave the kids alone. By continuing to attack the kids, you make a mockery of the concept that Obama is able to motivate people to do what he says.
Funny, how some just miss the big picture.
As for a judge ordering a kid to go into the military. Sorry. No. This is the 21st century.
For Palin, here's what the job involves ---
"During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been pushed to hire this administrator by party power-brokers after she had gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings which had given rise to a recall campaign."
[Sorry, can't reveal my source on this one...]
Anyone care to comment on this?
Was there a recall campaign?
[Comment on the content of the post, please. Don't just respond with ad hominem attacks].
I wonder how many of you stood up for Chelsea when the "she's too ugly" was all the rage. How quick you all are to forget or maybe you were just the ones in that camp crying "she's too ugly". I don't think wildvisions was taking a swipe at her child, just her use of said child. Maybe it was the audacious claim that we need less govt and apparently less community groups (since they are "do nothing" anyway), but that, of all the community organiz--strike that--people in the world, she would now be an advocate for special needs kids....through her position as a govt employee? I see grand contradictions here but no one has yet had an answer as to how that course of action might actually pan out.
Yeah, exactly Big Mike. Your opinion is the only one that matters, isn't it?
The Governor is generating additional tourist dollars from the media onslaught (hotels, rental cars, meals, moose nugget souvenirs, etc) :)
And now school children across the Lower 48 will learn to identify Alaska on a map.
"Lets stop attacking the children. You Obama people are continuing to demonstrate that Obama is not able to lead. If he was a good leader, he would have been able to encourage his troops to leave the kids alone. By continuing to attack the kids, you make a mockery of the concept that Obama is able to motivate people to do what he says."
What a ridiculous thing to say. Like any of the candidates have any control over what some of the yahoos around here like to spew.
Boy I hate to respond to this....but "CJG"...what the HELL are you talking about in your last post?
If I'm getting this right, you're upset over the whole Bristol Palin/Levi Johnson pregnancy/"you're going to marry my daughter" drama.
Last I checked, wasn't it Candidate Obama who said "children are off limits." and that he would "fire ANY staffer in his camp who crosses that line."
Yeah! I think that was him standing there addressing the whole issue of candidate's and their children (OldSkool wiping glasses...looking real hard at Obama soundbyte with FOUR...not TWO eyes!).
Please get up to speed on the issue at hand before you spew such drivel as well.
BigMike: Alaska is that island just west of California about the size of Oregon according to most weather maps in the lower 48.
The legalease of wordsmithing has begun. Governor Palin defended her experience as a mayor versus Senator Obama's experience as a community organizer. Wasilla is an average size town for a State like Illinois where the average town population is 8577.
This is not the nation of the offended. If her words offended anyone reading this, then you need to buck up. You need to remember what it is like to actually be attacked as this nation was nearly seven years ago. If she were attacking community organizers rather than defending her own experience you would know it very clearly.
Both presidential candidates need to get off the stump, and start talking to experts on economics, trade, and national defense to facilitate a smooth transition of power. Obama will have an especially difficult transition if he continues to ignore the fact that the budget he inherits will be passed by a democratic congress and the fiscal policies will be those of President Bush. Who ever is elected needs to aknowledge that fact early and start building a plan to integrate their agenda into the current reallity.
Governor Sarah Louise Palin is by far a better Presidential Candidate than Barack Hussein Obama; Sadly for this election cycle she is only the Vice Presidential Candidate. Not a problem.... Sarah Louise Palin is at least wise enough to move up the ranks in a systematic measured way; unlike that Marxist who has had so much Media disinformation and the able assistance of the Chicago Mud Slinging scumbag political hatchet people.... I wonder just how many votes Barack Hussein Obama will get from the Cemeteries? Typically the Chicago Mud Slinging political machine gets quite a few votes for their supported candidate that way; Of Course Barack Hussein Obama will have "NO CONNECTION WITH THAT GROUP"..... Pull the other one! LOL
Sarah Louise Palin did great; The Barack Hussein Obama crowd are seeing the veneer of lies begin to melt away from the Marxist scumbag. So it goes.
newsreader-
They don't want to hear it. You're just upsetting their pretty, manufactured picture and vicarious brush with fame. These people embrace fake as long it soothes their dependent souls.
Hi Hybrid-
Whatcha drinking tonight? I notice you and my lookalike don't post at the same time. Weird.
"Please get up to speed on the issue at hand before you spew such drivel as well."
I think you misunderstood my comment. Read what I quoted. CEO seems to think that Obama can somehow control his troops (ie. the Obama supporters that might be posting here). He said, "You Obama people are continuing to demonstrate that Obama is not able to lead." Think about how silly that comment is.
Also, I'm not sure where you got that I'm upset about "the whole Bristol Palin/Levi Johnson pregnancy/"you're going to marry my daughter" drama." Maybe you do need to wipe those glasses.
At this point I am assuming that Wildvision is seeking a lawyer for defense against a charge of defamation. It seems he was clearly lying about Track Palin.
He also insulted every American Infantryman and Servicemember with his slander.
ONAPA, you clearly will hear what you want to hear. She spoke directly to her low opinion of community organizing. If it makes you feel better, it clearly appeared to be a well-scripted line provided to stoke fear--a constant theme at the convention. She made the comparison in order to inflate her own limited experience to a crowd of believers.
Governor Palin's speech was one of the very best political speeches I've ever heard, and I've been listening to speeches for many years. There might have been a little hyperbole, but that goes with the territory. What I mean by hyperbole, if you are an Obama supporter, is that everybody in the country knows what Senator McCain meant with the 100 years in Iraq comment, but does that stop Democrats? I think that we, the listeners, are supposed to filter the bs.
But in this instance, the Dems are so frightened of our good Governor, that they not only will dissect every comment she makes, but also every action that she, Todd, and their children have taken for the past 10 years, heck make that 40 years. That, not being enough to satisfy their blood lust, they will lie and slander. The carp that I've heard about this family this past week is the most vicious that I've heard since the Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings.
Liberals not only have no sense of decency, willing to destroy people and families to further their goals, but they are hypocrites. They dont advocate for women, they advocate for "liberal" women. They dont advocate for minorities, they advocate for "liberal" minorities.
I would say that liberals should be ashamed of themselves. But that would require a conscience.
I never did like carp....
Wow, it sounds like you need to take a breather and get some perspective on the judgments you're making. But I do think I recognize your seething bubbling hatred--I saw it all last week in every speech. Some unity.
CJG- You need to think about what has been written here a bit more. A good leader INSPIRES. He/she MOTIVATES. When a leader is at the top of his/her game she can move people to do what he/she wants.
For example, Kennedy was able to inspire us to go to the moon.
Obama has been unable to inspire his supporters to stop making baseless attacks on children.
That does not say much about his leadership abilities, now does it?
tok242, The difference between attacking an occupation and defense of one's personal experience is the context. Governor Palin said the difference between a small town mayor and a community organizer is that the mayor actually has responsibility.
I would have gone one further and said that the mayor is a community organizer who was selected by the people to represent them. The mayor manages an organization that solves problems that community organizers identify. The community organizer tells people they have a problem and builds support to fight for the organizer's solution to a problem they didn't previously know they had or care enough about to solve themselves. Every official in Government should have good organizational skills, but only a few actually have executive leadership skills.
"...the fact that [Hussein Obama] hasn’t been tested nationally in this fashion, and it will be hard to do so in the short time remaining before the general election." This could have been said for the first term Illinois Senator - no one knows who he really is to this day...no one even remembers his speech...only that oprahs eyelashes almost fell off!
And to wildvisions who said her child w/ DS will never know his Mother - you are so ignorant about people with disabilities! You really should think before you post (speak)! Sick.
And to Imusuallyright(always wrong) - I hope Hybrid kicks your @@@ in cyberspace soon...your posts are full of stupidity to the point of amusement.
And when Hussein Obama can define community organizer then he'll have to remove that from his resume - he is the equivalant of a slum lord keeping the Blacks in low income housing in Chicago right where he wants them and Whitey to the right...Palin was being sarcastic or can't you bleeding hearts see that.
1AkFox - dontcha know why he stammers? Hussein has started drinking with ol' Joe - only way they gonna get thru this!
Thanks ONAPA for defining community organizer...alas though "they" will continue to slam Palin for words they do not understand...
I hate to tell you this but there is plenty of need for community service out there. For example, let's take my special needs child.
The agency I go to is run by people who are filling a real need for me and my family. I know because I volunteer there. Community organizers do have real responsibilities, they provide services and information to sometimes desperate families. The difference is they often times handle all of the administrative burden (including securing funding) themselves rather than rely on staff to do it. For Gov. Palin or you to insinuate that suddenly being a community organizer is a "lazy" or nebby job simply doesn't square with what I thought was supposed to be the family values cornerstone of the R platform.
There are many differences between being a community organizer and a mayor, and had that been the only thing on Sen. Obama's resume, then I think it may have been leveled as a legitimate comparison. However, Sen. Obama has served on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, is a sitting Senator, was a state Senator. Because of those pesky facts, I think it was an obvious attempt to make an apples and oranges comparison that would resonate well as a sound bite.
"Liberals not only have no sense of decency, willing to destroy people and families to further their goals, but they are hypocrites. They dont advocate for women, they advocate for "liberal" women. They dont advocate for minorities, they advocate for "liberal" minorities."
It always amazes me, g'les, how you can take the words right out of my mouth. Of course, here, you have substituted "liberal" for "conservative".
BTW, what happened to Hybrid? Seems he's gone... completely.
I will miss the sound of his laughter (out loud).
Maybe Hybrid was finally kicked out of the forums.....rightly so. Something was seriously wrong with that person!
Post a comment
Commenting requires registration.