John McCain did something totally unexpected, (though not totally surprising), on Friday when he tapped the Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin, to be his running mate. It’s amazing how much talk and discussion and potential scandal has surfaced over the Labor Day weekend. Is she a good pick? Will she help McCain? Will she attract females upset about Hillary? Will her teenage daughter’s pregnancy have an impact on the campaign?
There was a hurricane on Monday, too. Not a political and scandalous one but a real one that nearly struck New Orleans. The republicans, obviously feeling a little bit of guilt from their inability to respond adequately after and during and pre Katrina, delayed their convention.
Now that Gustav has come and gone, it’s back to Palin.
Republicans are saying she was a good pick. But is that because they want to maintain party loyalty or because they actually believe it? On whereIstand.com, the opinions of many public figures are aggregated and you can see how people are reacting. David Brooks, conservative columnist for The New York Times, was one of a few lone conservatives who think Palin was a bad choice.
It seems to me that the Republicans are trying so hard to win that they are making bad decisions. They are appealing to the lowest common denominator in people by picking Palin. They think because she is a woman she’ll attract votes. They think because she is a house wife with strong Christian moral values she’ll attract votes. And she probably will. But Palin can’t hold her own in any kind of debate on national or international issues. Joe Biden will destroy her.
And now, with her daughter Bristol pregnant, this whole thing is looking more and more like a soap opera. But I guess that’s American politics?