I am writing this b/c like many of us, I am stumped. There are many levels to my stumpedness, and this may be my attempt to work through them. I cannot, for the life of me, figure out the selection of Sarah Palin as a Vice-Presidential candidate. I assume like a lot of you, I didn't know too much about Palin at first, all I knew was that some pundits had mentioned her as being one of the "Republicans on the rise" and figured she had a lot going for her.
After the interviews with Gibson and Couric, there can be little doubt that she is a mental midget of biblical proportions and much like Ricky Bobby of Taledega Nights, I pray to 6 lb. 8 oz baby Jesus every night that she remains the VP candidate for the Republicans. I make that prayer with one caveat, that she not actually become the Vice President of my beloved United States.
It becomes apparent that with the nomination of Palin, that the Republican rank and file would have been ecstatic if McCain had picked a ham sandwich to be the VP. Hell, a ham sandwich might have even been a better choice, as it has the same foreign policy and economic experience, and at the end of the day, we would have had something to eat.
I've talked at some length about the fact that while the Republican Party is certainly less than diverse, one asset it does have is a number of qualified women members. Not that I agree with their policies, but I would have to say that if there was ever a scenario that a Republican must be in charge of me, the women of the Republican party would be my first choice.
Consider this, that McCain could have picked any of the following women on his ticket:
Kay Bailey Hutchinson - Degrees both undergrad and Law School from the University of Texas. Press Secretary to the Republican National Committe for 1 year. Texas Congresswoman for 4 years. Vice Chair to the National Transportation Safety Board, US Senator (the first from Texas) from 1994 to present.
Olympia Snowe - Served in the Maine House and Senate from 1973 - 1978. Elected to US Congress in 1978, 1994 elected US Senator, 2001 served on the Senate Finance Committee (might be important considering events, no?)
Christine Todd Whitman - 7 years as the Governor of New Jersey and head of the EPA for three years.
Now I know what you are saying, "Ugh." None of like these candidates or their policies, but is there any question as to whether they are sufficiently prepared and/or qualified to serve in the capacity of Vice President. I'm not talking about the job they would do, just that they have something to them other than being over the age of 35, a US citizen, and the ability to fog a mirror. I haven't even mentioned Linda Lingle or Elizabeth Dole. Each has at the very least shown that they are and have been curious and involved in politics on a national level.
Now let's consider Chick Cheney, whose academic career involves a variety of academic institutions including some junior colleges. In a time where college wasn't so competitive or overcrowded as it is today, Ms. Palin took 6 years to complete a degree in communications-journalism. All due respect to those with a degree in that field, but its not like she got a degree in organic chemistry. Yes, she did receive a scholarship for part of her extensive academic adventure....from a beauty pageant for being Miss Congeniality. Yeah, you heard me. Now a lot of you might say that it is commonplace for someone to spend more than four years on their education, and my rebuttal would come from the movie "Tommy Boy" - "Yeah, they're called doctors."
The funniest thing about Palin is that even if you give her credit for the fluff that her own campaign has put out about her, it is horringly lacking:
- Reformer - lies - See Bridge to Nowhere, Ted Stevens, gifts from companies, selling the plane on eBay, firing the chef, Todd Palin's paid "fact finding missions", per diem while she was home, taking gifts both as mayor and governor, earmarks, and so on and so on.
- Titular head of Alaska's National Guard - If anyone thinks that the Pentagon consults with Miss Congeniality about how to best deploy the National Guard in Iraq or Afghanistan, then you really need some professional help.
- Russia - Honestly? I mean really, honestly? The fact that you can see another country from certain points in your home state is a qualification? Does Palin possess some sort of intellectual osmosis, similar to photosynthesis, that allows her to become an expert on a country by looking at it. I would imagine that Dr. Condaleeza Rice feels a little silly getting a masters and Phd in these fields when one day on the beach in Alaska could have given her all she needs to know. The real question for Palin is whether she needs to physically look at the country to become an expert, or will the picture of a country suffice?
Finally, we come to her executive experience. First, Mayor of Wasilla. I work in several rural counties, with many towns the size of Wasilla, and have met many of their mayors. Not necessarily the most impressive group of people. Like Wasilla when she was in office, these town are usually run by a city manager who does all the heavy lifting, leaving the mayor as the deciding vote on city council and cutting the ribbon for the Eggplant Festival.
Concerning the governorship, let's admit this simple fact - local government can be hoodwinked by someone who appeals to the romantic view of the people in the state. It happened to MN when they elected Jesse "The Body" Ventura. It happened to Texas when they saw Shrub. "Oil Man, Owned the Rangers, Daddy was the President - good enough for me" Same for Alaska, which possesses roughly the same population of the city of Ft. Worth, Texas, which is less impressive when you consider that not everyone in Alaska voted for her. She reigned over the only state in the US which operates at a surplus due to heavy taxation of the oil companies. As one pundit observed, this would qualify her more to be the leader of Saudi Arabia than the US. She has never been forced to cut programs and balance out what the state takes in from taxation vs. what costs are necessary. Alaska is so awash in cash that residents get money back at the end of the year at the same time that many states operate at a deficit.
I am amazed that some people have faith in her, based upon reading a speech of a teleprompter that she didn't even write. As always, I invite those disinclined to vote for Obama, or on the fence, to consider this:
How would you feel about Palin if she were a Democrat?