A Preview of Sarah Palin's Debate Game Plan

From the hints that I have picked up on from the McCain camp, here is a glimpse of what I believe the Palin (Republican) VP debate strategy might be (nothing too unexpected).

She will likely be feisty

She will tout her exec. experience (lol)

She will appeal to those who respond to style over substance. She knows that she might struggle when it comes to command of the issues, so she will likely opt to compensate with distractions, and will gloss over facts & specifics with generalizations. The American public is just as clueless as Palin on many foreign policy issues...so viewers may not recognize all of her mistakes. The Republicans understand this... so they will opt for style.

She will hijack Obama's change message & co-opt it as if it was her own all along.

She may attempt to cast Biden as an old timer; a Washington insider who is part of the problem in government. This was one of the main problems that I had with Obama's decision to pick Biden. In many ways, it undermines his change mantra, as well as the perceived distance (ideologically) from Washington D.C. that he enjoyed. Republicans will attempt to exploit this contradiction, just as I suggested.

She may mention the low approval rating of Congress and will attempt to tie that negative perception to Joe Biden (and perhaps even Barack Obama).

Just as McCain has done, Palin will recreate herself in front of a national and international audience. She will cast herself as a Maverick who took on corruption and mismanagement in her own State (barely half true). She will repeat lies that have already been told and debunked....with the hope that Americans won't be paying attention - which unfortunately will probably be the case. The strategy of McCain/Palin seems to be to repeat lies & misinformation over and over again, with the hope that with repetition, voters will begin to believe the lie, even when the lie has been debunked. (the Debunkers never have the same size platform as the liar, so the facts won't reach everyone). This strategy will be at work tonight...watch as she lies about issues THAT HER CAMPAIGN KNOWS are untrue and THAT THEY KNOW have been debunked.

Don't be surprised if Palin is condescending she seems to be at her best when she is patronizing & condescending, just as she was at the Republican Convention.

She may try to bait Biden into a trap by being condescending. Republicans may try to illicit an angry response from Biden or a response that they can later frame as sexist or patronizing. This will help to paint Biden as a Bully.

She will attempt to cast herself as a fresh face, and as a regular everyday American who is looking out for the average Blue collar Middle Class American. Biden will be framed as an elitist New England Democrat. (This is how they will label him because he is well traveled, knows foreign leaders, etc).

Palin may make comments directed at women... as an appeal to women. Don't be surprised if she mentions Hillary Clinton and the glass ceiling.

Be prepared for an attack on Biden... regarding some item from his past that no one is expecting. There is no certainty that this would happen, but it should be seen as a possibility. Any politician with 35 years of experience probably has at least a small graveyard in his/her closet. Obama will also be fair game for Palin. And just about anything goes. McCain/Palin will do anything to win.

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In addition to the above strategy, Palin will also be tasked with remembering her lines. She will feel more pressure at this debate than she felt at the Republican Convention or in any of her previous debates when running for Governor. We know that under the added pressure of the national spotlight and when forced to talk about specifics, she can be rattled. If she gets rattled by the cameras, the crowd, the national spotlight, and the questioning... then all bets are off. This might cause her to forget her lines and lose her footing.

Another pitfall for Palin could be the strict format. The McCain camp put all sorts of restrictions of the debate process, including limits on response times, thinking that this would be helpful to Palin. But it might end up being more harmful. The time limitations will only add to the strain that Palin will be under. She will have less time to formulate her thoughts... this could end up making her shaky.

There will be no lifelines for Palin tonight... all of her lifelines have been used up.

Biden? Biden must maintain poise, must be a gentleman at all times, must avoid patronizing Palin, and must not fall into any of the traps that I mentioned.

The Post Debate Strategy

Spin, Spin, Spin, Spin, and more Spin.

The Republicans are already prepping for this. They have been lowering expectations all week. They have lowered expectations so much that even if Palin does a poor job it won't be so bad afterall. They are also attempting to invalidate the importance of the debate itself. One argument they may use is that Gwen Ifill is Pro-Democrat/Pro-Obama and therefore the debate is invalid (these seem to be the talking points).

Republicans may also attempt to label Biden as sexist and arrogant. There will be no shortage of excuses for Palin, if she gives a poor or mediocre performance.

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NPR Discussion About Past Debates...and Pitfalls that Biden May Face

Now That Vetting Has Taken Place, Palin's Star Is Fading

Favorable/Unfavorable Rating Track

Source of Graph: DailyKos from Research 2000 Polling Data


Now that the public (led by bloggers) and eventually the mainstream news media have put Sarah Palin through some sort of vetting process - although not complete- her star has begun to fade. (see other data from FiveThirtyEight, and Research 2000, ). Her image is falling so fast that it is starting to go through the floor. It appears that McCain may have gained all that he can from his rash VP choice. I wonder if the McCain team now regrets (behind the scenes) the crude political stunt pulled by their candidate.... or if anyone was against those who advised it (Rove is probably in the mix somewhere in all this). Will this be another case of McCain gambling and losing? It depends on what happens in November. There will be plenty of time to look back and evaluate what went right or wrong after election day. But Conservatives are beginning to go into panic mode.

Perhaps Palin can redeem herself and regain traction in the upcoming VP debate. The staging of the event seems to be aimed at bolstering her image, and showing that she can handle the job of VP...or of President. I am looking forward to the debate...even with the phony staging (strict rules, the staying on script approach, and short leash) that the Republicans fought for. The VP debate might be Palin's last chance to show that she can do the job.

I have noticed that she is good at following a set script...But she sometimes gets nervous... and gets rattled. Once she is rattled...once nervousness sets in, she begins to forget her lines. She is currently being coached and taken through crash courses on foreign policy... but that is only good if she can remember her lines...and remember issues surrounding certain topics, certain Countries, etc.

My guess is.... she won't be able to remember all of her lines or what line goes where. LOL The crash courses can only do so much. Cracks might start to form somewhere...and I hope Biden is able to sense it... (without coming off as arrogant).

But of course, all of this depends on what kinds of questions will be asked by Gwen Ifill. Will the questions be substantive and serious requiring substantive and serious answers, or will they be fluff questions designed to make Palin look good for Prime Time? That's what I really want to know... the first 5 minutes will determine whether or not I listen to the rest of the event. If it's fluff, I plan to change the radio station (unfortunately i'll be tuning in via radio).

Special Rules For VP Debate Designed to Help Palin

Exactly how does it benefit women when the VP candidate has to be given special treatment? I don't recall Hillary Clinton getting these special debate arrangements... because she was actually expected to know the issues.

If anything, this sets women back. I suspect, that this is exactly what women DIDN'T want to see happen... at least I would hope that a significant number of women would feel that way.

I was excited about the VP debate being held in St. Louis next month... but it appears that it will be just another dog and pony show. I suspected that something like this would happen, because Palin is such a lightweight. It didn't take Republicans long to take over the debate and impose their own rules.

But even with the new rules and with the cue cards, i'm pretty confident that Palin will still be beaten by Biden; unless he does something really stupid. But then again, Palin doesn't have to win... there is always a lower standard for Republicans. All she has to do is basically show up....and not stumble over too many questions. If she manages to do that, then the whole affair will be seen as a huge success by the McCain campaign... because they'll be able to spin her like a top... touting her foreign policy credentials, her poise under pressure, and other assorted nonsense. And of course these will also be the talking points for the media... they will likely spin it the same way.

Sarah Palin: She Would Make a Great VP

...of her local PTA


Sarah Palin as Miss Wasilla

Sarah Palin's Secessionist Background

Sarah Palin - A former Secessionist. Learn About Her Secessionist Connections. (Let's see how long it takes the Mainstream media to really look into this). hat tip to the Jed Report.

Clearly Unqualified

This woman is not qualified to be dogcatcher. The idea that we can have the Paris Hilton of politics half a heartbeat away from the Presidency should scare the Hell out of anybody with a brain….regardless of Party affiliation. The idea that she could become VP is just as troubling. Yes I said half a heartbeat…. Not the cliché of “one heartbeat away“. We are dealing with a man who is half dead already. Let’s not beat around the Bush. The man is the cousin of Frankenstein.

"Oh Angry Independent, you are just being a sexist pig about this". The Hell I am. The Presidency and Vice Presidency are serious business…. This is not Wasilla Alaska…a town of six, seven, or eight thousand with a budget of a few million dollars. Being a beauty pageant girl, the Mayor and City Council member for a very small town, Being the Governor of Alaska - one of the smallest States by population- for only one full year does not make you ready for the second highest office in the land. It doesn’t come close to making you ready.

This is not about gender for me. I have no problem at all with a female Vice Presidential candidate or even a female Presidential candidate. I have no problem with that whatsoever. In fact, I would like to see one elected in the near future, it has been long enough. But don’t send me the Paris Hilton of politics. Give me a woman who is actually qualified for the job. I guess Kay Bailey Hutchison was unavailable. Was Elizabeth Dole unavailable as well? What about Olympia Snowe (A damn political giant….regardless of what you think about her Party or her politics)? But Olympia Snowe is not Conservative enough. There are at least 2 or 3 other powerful Republican women I could name…. But the 3 I mentioned pretty much make my point. These are Margaret Thatcheresque Stateswomen who, without any doubt, could handle the job of Vice President or President. But McCain is off his rocker. He couldn’t do any better than give us a beauty pageant contestant?

More of the Same Sinister Republican Politics

This was a sinister choice designed for 2 purposes: #1. To exploit the weaknesses within the Democratic Party and to steal some of the female Hillary Clinton supporters who are still upset about the Primary and who are reluctant to vote for a Black candidate…and simply needed an excuse to jump to the other side (even if it means voting against their own interests). And #2. To inject some energy into his Conservative political base. It has been reported that the McCain campaign received $10 million or more in the 2 days that followed the Palin announcement, despite the fact that she isn’t even close to being qualified. Her Conservative credentials trump everything else.

So yes… it was a sinister choice….and tactically, it was brilliant. I will admit that. It was clearly a ploy to fool voters. And unfortunately, it may work for McCain. Why? Because American voters are woefully stupid when it comes to politics, current events, world affairs, history, understanding why at least some qualifications are important for President and Vice President, knowledge of candidates and the issues, etc. Most voters couldn’t tell you who their local members of Congress are. So yes, it appears as though voters are taking the bait on Sarah Palin. And McCain understood this woeful ignorance among the American electorate…and took advantage of it, like only Rovian Politics could.

The Hillary supporters have been rejoicing about the Palin choice…. Giving credence to the McCain approach….showing why and how it just might work…and why it may have been a brilliant move. Only time will tell for sure. But on the same token I think that the rejoicing of the disgruntled Hillary supporters says a lot more about them than it does about McCain’s choice… a choice that some are calling “inspired”… inspired my ass…. Inspired by Karl Rove tactics… that’s about all the inspiration I see behind this choice. This was a calculated, sinister move…. Period! What does this say about the disgruntled Hillary supporters who are now celebrating the Palin pick and will vote for McCain? It shows one of two things (or both). #1. That these women were primarily concerned about gender all along, and were not really Progressive Democrats concerned about their greater interests and the best interests of the Country. They are willing to vote against their own best interests to put a women into the Presidency or Vice Presidency. Or #2. These women (especially White Female Hillary supporters) were so full of racial prejudice that they were looking for an excuse not to vote for a Black candidate. Some probably were not going to vote for Barack Obama anyway. It also shows that many of these women were more Conservative than some may have believed…which might explain Hillary’s Conservative campaign tactics in the Primary, and her support among so many White Moderates and Independents in places like Pennsylvania and Ohio. Many of the Hillary Clinton/Palin supporters are women who are new to politics and have never really followed events closely before. This may be all new to many of them. These women were attracted to the current political cycle when Hillary Clinton announced her candidacy. So some of this erratic behavior on the part of Hillary supporters should not be all that surprising. It's troubling....but it shouldn't necessarily be surprising. Their main concern all along (this is what I noticed) seemed to be gender...not policy. Gender was Hillary Clinton's appeal to many of these women... not much else. That is why they saw any attack on Clinton's positions as an attack on her womanhood....because for them, it was all about getting a woman elected. So far, women's views of Palin seem mixed.
Some women seem to like her, while others are not being fooled by the Republican tricks.

Sarah Palin as Miss Wasilla

And it turns out that McCain didn’t even know this woman. How do you offer the #2 spot to a person that you don’t even know? It appears that this may have been more of a spur of the moment move. Definitely not a good thing when you are talking about the Vice Presidency. Despite this, Republicans seem to be overjoyed by McCain's choice- not surprising. They are already spinning it to their advantage, and the mainstream media (as usual) allows the Republicans to frame the discussion on their terms. This is a person who essentially becomes President the moment John McCain is incapacitated (the swearing in nonsense is for the cameras…to promote confidence in the Nation if the unthinkable happens). The VP has authority over nuclear forces (they have their own football unit that travels everywhere with them), they can control the armed forces…if something catastrophic were to happen and the President can’t be reached, and he has his own National Security Advisor, military attaché, and on and on. This is not the PTA. But McCain didn’t think this was important. This is a person who he only talked to briefly once or twice…and offered the job after meeting her once. Good Lord!!! What does this say about the man’s judgment in general terms? Is this the kind of man who should be in charge during a crisis with Russia, China, Israel, Iran, or Pakistan or any other significant geo-political crisis? I know I don’t want McCain chairing these crisis meetings in the situation room. I definitely don’t want McCain in charge of the nations armed forces, especially the nuclear arsenal.

I have not had time to post about Palin over the last few days because I have been swamped…. But another reason is that I keep finding out more and more interesting things about this woman that are blowing my mind. I feel like a bloodhound … I keep digging things up and I’m not even looking hard. Details keep emerging about this woman faster than I can adjust and wrap my brain around them. And she was vetted? Vetted by who? She certainly wasn’t fully vetted by the McCain camp. But the blogosphere will certainly have a field day doing what the McCain camp was too lazy to do. Now even the usually lazy mainstream media is finding that Palin is a Gold mine. Hopefully there are a few real investigative journalists who won’t let McCain and Palin off the hook.

This choice shows that McCain is a gambler….and is subject to making rash decisions. Is this the kind of person who should be in the White House? I mean, the Bush administration is full of evil bastards…. Perhaps a few crazy evil bastards… but even they have a certain level headedness, despite being arguably the most reckless Administration in American history. McCain seems to lack this important trait.

If McCain was really inspired to choose a woman…. If McCain genuinely wanted to put a woman on the ticket and make history, there were qualified women available. This was not about making history… this was about the Republicans doing what they always do… doing whatever it takes to win, no matter how dirty the tactics. They are a cutthroat bunch… and quite frankly, the Democrats could learn a thing or two about their aggressiveness and “go for the throat” approach to politics. I have stated several times that Democrats should stop fooling around and get just as serious about winning as the Republicans are. With the Palin decision, the McCain camp has been able to erase any Convention "bounce" that Obama could have gotten. It is amazing that in a year that Democrats should be leading by double digits, we are looking at a horse Race. And the election will ultimately come down to Obama being a Black man and whether White America will be comfortable with that or not. We could be looking at the Bradley Effect on steroids.

Women, including the disgruntled Hillary supporters, should be insulted by McCain’s ploy, which was nothing more than an effort to fool them. It shows that McCain thinks that women are stupid. It’s the same thing that George H.W. Bush did with his nomination of Clarence Thomas. He thought Blacks would appreciate the choice…and he assumed that there was some sort of comparison between Thomas and Marshall. Palin is the same Trojan Horse candidate. McCain has revealed what he really thinks of women with this pick. He assumes (and it may be partially true among some segments of the electorate) that women are not doing their homework, that they are not knowledgeable enough about politics to understand what is really going on…and that they are stupid enough to vote against their own best interests…choosing gender over policy. I hope this doesn’t describe most Hillary supporters. But then again they did tend to represent the less educated women. They also made up a good portion of the 15-20% of people in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and elsewhere who stated that Race was a factor in their decision to vote for Hillary Clinton over Barack Obama. But again, McCain and his people understood this very well…so tactically, it may have been a smart move. But morally it was sinister…one of the most sinister political moves that I can recall.

What kind of responsible national leader (who claims to care about the Country) puts such an unqualified person in the #2 spot, especially considering the fact that he could kick the bucket from natural causes at any moment? The VP spot is supposed to inspire confidence among Americans of all political stripes- confidence that there is a proper Shepard in place for the nation if/when they are needed. The Palin choice doesn’t even come close.

Palin recently disrespected the office of Vice President… not only that, but she recently stated, in pure Britney Spears/Paris Hilton style, that she didn’t even know what the Vice President does on a daily basis.

In an interview just a month ago, she said that the VP job didn’t seem “productive.”
From The Huffpost and Politico.

Larry Kudlow of CNBC’s “Kudlow & Co.” asked her about the possibility of becoming McCain's ticket mate.

Palin replied: “As for that VP talk all the time, I’ll tell you, I still can’t answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it exactly that the VP does every day?

Amazing! You can’t make this stuff up.

I guess she doesn’t understand the responsibility of being ready to launch a counter-attack against foreign enemies if the President is taken out, as I mentioned above. I guess she doesn’t understand the role of the VP as a chief ambassador for the U.S. around the World. I guess she doesn’t understand that the VP has to have the same situational awareness that the President does….which requires the VP to deal with a grueling schedule…to read/and listen to intelligence reports, and maintain his or her own intelligence staff (the VP gets his own daily briefing- just like the President, has his own national security advisor, his own travel staff, has his own military liaisons, etc…almost like a shadow government, so that a possible transition would be seamless). I guess she doesn’t understand the VP’s responsibility as an advisor to the President, Or as the leader in the White House's Situation Room or Emergency Ops Center (if an incident occurs when the President is out of Town). I guess she doesn't understand the VP's official role as the President of the Senate… albeit much of it is ceremonial… on the same token, much of the work with Congress is not merely ceremonial in nature. The VP has been known to push the Presidents agenda through Congress. The VP also sells the Presidents agenda to the American people… with constant appearances on the major political programs (that’s not done so that they can look pretty on TV). In the run-up to the invasion of Iraq… who did we see more than anyone else? Dick Cheney (right or wrong…that will be debated until the end of time… the point here is… that was his role). And I guess meeting with World leaders is a joke to Palin as well. I doubt that she could even name 10 world leaders. Scary!!!! George W. couldn’t name half that number of World leaders when he ran… but stupid American voters put him in office anyway… with the help of shenanigans in Florida. This woman doesn’t seem to have an understanding of any of this.

Here is even more evidence that Sarah Palin is not Presidential or Vice Presidential material. Palin is not even in the same galaxy as a qualified VP candidate.

Had enough yet? If not, there’s more….

Troopergate

Palin is currently the subject of an ethics investigation for abuse of power stemming from the firing of her Public Safety director, Walt Monegan. Monegan apparently didn't agree with Palin's effort to get her brother-in-law fired from his job as a State Trooper. The Trooper is involved in a bitter divorce from Palin's sister. Since Monegan didn't want to go along with the illegal efforts to fire the Trooper, he himself was fired by Palin.

Palin has now had to hire attorney's to defend herself. This is yet another debacle for the Republicans. But it seems that they are so used to political scandal....that they did not see this as a big deal. Corruption seems to be part of the Republican Party's culture. Now I know what the pundits meant when they said that Palin is a "good fit" for John McCain and the Republican Party.

Read the Story of Trooper Mike Wooten, and Why Walt Monegan was Fired.

(Do we really want a woman like this in charge of our government?)

Palin Chooses Oil Industry over the Environment

Palin has also aligned herself with the oil industry in Alaska, fighting for Big oil interests over the States environmental interests. In fact, she even has more extreme right wing views about climate change and the environment than the Bush Administration does… she is in the hip pocket of the Alaskan oil industry. She even threatened to sue the Bush Administration over its decision to list the Polar Bear as threatened, because the decision might harm the oil industry. (Now if the Bush Administration lists the Polar Bear as endangered… then to me, it shows the seriousness of the climate situation and the threat to the Polar Bear’s habitat…which is Sea Ice).

From the Anchorage Daily News:

The State of Alaska will sue to challenge the recent listing of polar bears as a threatened species, Gov. Sarah Palin said.

She and other Alaska elected officials fear a listing will cripple oil and gas development in prime polar bear habitat off the state's northern and northwestern coasts.

Palin argued there is not enough evidence to support a listing. Polar bears are well-managed and their population has dramatically increased over 30 years as a result of conservation, she said.

Climate models that predict continued loss of sea ice, the main habitat of polar bears, during summers are unreliable, Palin said.

The announcement drew a strong response from the primary author of the listing petition.

"She's either grossly misinformed or intentionally misleading, and both are unbecoming," said Kassie Siegel of the Center for Biological Diversity. "Alaska deserves better."
Siegel said it was unconscionable for Palin to ignore overwhelming evidence of global warming's threat to sea ice, the polar bear's habitat.

"Even the Bush administration can't deny the reality of global warming," she said. "The governor is aligning herself and the state of Alaska with the most discredited, fringe, extreme viewpoints by denying this."

As marine mammals, polar bears are regulated by the federal government, not the state. Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne last week made the listing decision and said it was based on three findings.

"First, sea ice is vital to polar bear survival. Second, the polar bear's sea-ice habitat has dramatically melted in recent decades. Third, computer models suggest sea ice is likely to further recede in the future," he said.

Summer sea ice last year shrank to a record low, about 1.65 million square miles, nearly 40 percent less than the long-term average between 1979 and 2000.

Palin’s Connections To Other Corruption Scandals

There are also questions about Palin’s connections to the VECO Corporation, the same company at the center of the Ted Stevens corruption case. She has apparently been in bed with these folks for a number of years. Reformer? I don’t think so. She’s playing the game of wagging her finger at the oil industry with one hand, and taking their money with the other.

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Related Links

Palin's own former colleagues don't believe she is qualified

Lukewarm confidence in Palin

Palin caught lying already.... Did she really lead the effort to Kill The Bridge to Nowhere?

Palin unqualified, Scholars say

Obama Picks Biden for VP - Not The Best Choice

I was afraid this was going to happen. On the face of it, Biden has a wealth of experience and might be seen as a good VP choice. Even I have stated in the past that he wouldn't necessarily be a bad pick. But on the same token, Biden was not the best choice that Obama could have made....not by a long shot. Biden was near the bottom for me.

Some of the problems with Biden have actually been highlighted in recent days with the events in Georgia. And the problems with this choice are plentiful.

1. Biden is a Republicrat with hawkish foreign policy views. He represents the American interventionist foreign policy of the past 50 years - a foreign policy built around American imperialism & global hegemony, militarism, American hubris, Democracy at gunpoint, and the famous Truman Doctrine & Reagan foreign policy as well. Biden is a believer in old Cold War thinking. All of these views are more closely aligned with Neo-conservative Foreign policy thought. Read the PNAC's (Project for a New American Century Think Tank) white paper/policy paper from the year 2000 entitled Rebuilding America's Defenses. See a Summary Here. This white paper/policy paper spells out what the future of American foreign policy should be. Learn more about the PNAC here.... here, and here. (The PNAC's policy papers are the bible for Neo-Conservatives). Democratic Hawks like Bill Clinton and Joe Biden largely agree with the Neo-conservative foreign policy view....with only slight differences. The core beliefs are essentially the same.

Biden also believes in empire building and U.S. expansionism. He is a staunch advocate for NATO enlargement, particularly NATO enlargement eastward into the former Soviet Union, and he has no problem with the idea of continuing (and possibly intensifying) an adversarial relationship with Russia. Biden also has hawkish views about China.

Biden does not come close to fitting a "Change" platform, particularly in terms of International Affairs. Biden represents a further turn to the Right for Obama in terms of foreign policy...and this move solidifies Obama's own turn to the right - solidifies all of the traditionally centrist & hawkish foreign policy positions that Obama has taken over the last several months.

2. Biden does not represent genuine progressive ideals.

3. Biden is a Washington DC insider with 35+ years of experience there....contradicting Obama's entire Change theme (he may as well pack it up). The whole Change branding, which was already becoming stale...because he was not living up to it, is now out of the window as far as i'm concerned. Therefore, Obama will have to re-package himself after today. Observers should be on the lookout for any signs of major re-branding either before or during the Democratic Party's Convention. The mantra of "change" will itself have to change. How ironic. I see no other way around it, because it no longer holds water.

--Mr. Obama, reaching back to the American foreign policy of the last 50 years and promising to carry that into the future does not represent the change we need. It certainly isn't the change that I seek as a Progressive. It signals more of the same.... in fact, it screams more of the same. You would have had to pick Senator Joe Lieberman or a Far right Republican to scream the message any louder.

4. Biden has 35 years worth of skeletons... quite a large graveyard for Republican operatives to choose from. Talk about kids in a candy store....

5. Republicans are already using Biden's own words when he himself described Obama as not being ready for the Presidency. That may cause serious damage to the Obama campaign.... it at least has the potential to be damaging. We will have to wait for the smoke to clear. But there will be plenty of these soundbites that will now be used against Obama.

6. Biden lacks any substantial military background.

7. He's experienced.... but as I mentioned above, it is not necessarily the kind of experience that America needs right now. America needs someone who represents a new direction.... represents fundamental change. Not someone who represents the U.S. foreign policy of the last 50 years - a foreign policy ideology (held by both Democrats and Republicans) that has gotten this Country into the mess that it is in today. This is going to be Obama's Dick Cheney???? This is going to be Obama's primary advisor on policy, foreign policy in particular? Not only am I not excited.... I am actually a little frightened about our future.

Essentially you have a Democratic candidate who is offering nothing significantly different from the pro-war Republican candidate. Obama has turned so far to the right that distinctions have been washed away.... and the ideological lines are now blurring.

I was hoping that Obama would choose a running mate who was more of an outsider, but who had all of the tools and experience to lead... the right kind of experience and the right kind of tools.... not just "experience" for the sake of experience. Kaine, Richardson, Strickland, or Clark (among others) might have been wiser choices.

This, in a way, represents the final dagger in the heart for my enthusiasm for Obama. I can't fake it any longer. I have to tell the truth. Unlike Obama.... i'm principled.

Likely Vice Presidential Picks

(at least for Obama....if he gets that far)



In no particular order

*Evan Bayh
*Tom Vilsack (Unfortunately a Clinton supporter at the moment)
*John Edwards
*Jim Webb
*Richard Durbin
*Gen. John Batiste
*Mark Warner
*Bill Richardson
*Rep. Mike Thompson
*John Kerry
*Joe Biden
*Russell "Russ" Feingold
*Gen. Anthony Zinni
*Rep. Jim Marshall (Jim Marshall would be a nightmare for Republicans).
*William Fallon
*Wesley Clark (Clinton supporter unfortunately....perhaps he'll come to his senses)
*Christopher Dodd
*Tim Kaine
*Tom Daschle (barely a good choice... may be seen as too weak or divisive. He also lost his Senate seat & leadership position in 04. But because of his support for Obama, he is someone that Obama may be considering. Very experienced political leader).


This is not a full list... but this would be a good start. Half of those listed are Vets.... the kind of VP candidate that Obama may want to have on his ticket in a General Election matchup with McCain. However, the non-vets are also good choices. He probably couldn't go wrong with any of the above. Although some are supporting Clinton at the present time.

Who do you think Obama will choose as his VP running mate?