BlogHer - The Power of Palin - Comments

sarah palin

HockeyMomToo — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 20:17:55 -0500

I'm a christian-raised hard-working hockey mom with four kids, including an 18 year daughter (not pregnant though) and a disabled son. I DO NOT FEEL COMPELLED OR OBLIGATED TO VOTE FOR SARAH PALIN and MCCAIN. What if she became president by default? A nightmare for us all.

Go Obama/Biden!

Conversation with an RNC

miteegirl — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 19:22:12 -0500

Conversation with an RNC delegate (Charles Hunter) and a 2008 RNC Convention security guard (Avi Steinberg):

This is the same thing I heard from my parents. And the reason why they decided to vote Democratic this year for the first time in their lives (and they are from SW Virginina, a lovely swing state):

All the hotels in the area are dark. Thousands of Republicans stir
in their beds, dreaming thousands of dreams about Sarah Palin. But
Charles Hunter, an environmentalist delegate from New Hampshire and a
veteran of Republican conventions going back to the 1980 coronation of
Ronald Reagan at Detroit's Joe Louis Arena, can't sleep at all.

"This is my last convention," he tells me, lighting a cigarette.

"Why?"

"I'm a real McCain guy. I served. But I liked the old McCain --
when he was a true hero, before he signed on with the yahoos. I
actually believe in 'country first.'"

"Not a fan of Palin?"

"If I were McCain I'd probably bring her onto my ticket, too. That's
exactly the problem. I guess I tricked myself into thinking that
McCain, even after he watered himself down for the election, could
somehow restore sanity. The Democrats tried to paint him as a twin of
Bush. Not true. But Palin ... she does remind me of Bush. McCain has
made a devil's pact and sealed this party's fate."

Even though he's older, he smokes his cigarette like a young man, with earnest haste, before he flicks it off into the dark.

"That's it," he said, "we're through. Even if we win, we've lost."

*************

Meanwhile, my sister-in-law and her husband from the great state of Alaska just let me know that they are casting their votes for Obama.

Nice.

So what are you saying? For

IVF Friends — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 18:18:42 -0500

So what are you saying? For a women to be a strong leader she needs to be sarcastic and a bully?

You just confirmed my suspicions about republicans and why you all like Palin so much.

You are all just like her, have the same qualities, the same values and no clue about the real world.

Oh by the way, I would love to have a woman leading this country or as VP, but not just any woman!

Strong leadership REQUIRED!!

elusivelise — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 14:43:18 -0500

We must not elect a weak leader in this time. We have troops in Iraq right now fighting to serve our country. Don't let this be another Vietnam. Don't let our nation be turned over into the hands of someone who, though sincere, is sincerely misguided, and is, what I believe, a blank slate in the hands of puppeteers who would propel this nation into DEPTHS of darkness, and entrench us in corruption and danger we can't even begin to fathom nor understand. For those of us who still believe in the necessity of, the sacrifice in, and the commitment to VICTORIOUS wars - We MUST WIN!!! We MUST act now!!!

We have two heroes on the ticket - and only two. I see the good heart in John McCain, and the willingness to truly serve, even though differentiating from the conventional "party wisdom" (I truly do NOT agree with him on every point). But I am glad that he still retains some of that old school "get-it-done", "don't-give-up-even-through-unbelievable-opposition" attitude that has stuck out to me in a man, whose lifetime of experience, sacrifice, and perserverance have crafted a warrior.

Speaking of conserving energy and rescuing the economy, check out the modest stage used at the DNC - it looks like it came straight out of Vegas. Now you know where your tax dollars are going. You won't have to worry about anything if we have a liberal, *ahem* socialist White House - the government promises to care of everything for you. If that's before or AFTER we get blown up with nukes, you'd have to ask them.

What IS important, is that we learn to conserve, be modest with spending, and take care for our decisions - build a fence at the top of the hill, instead of putting an ambulance at the bottom of the hill. Also, FOLLOW THROUGH - don't start out on something without the intention to finish it - and finish it right. DON'T LET OUR TROOPS COME HOME IN DISGRACE, as if their sacrifice has been an unavoidable mistake because of the president (oh, please). God forbid.

Every bit of everyone's efforts count in this war, and this IS a vital war, and WE MUST WIN. We must not switch horses mid-stream, switch plans, and decide to put better jobs, healthcare reform, and the lovely environment above COMPLETION and VICTORY in our worldwide battle for national safety and security. In a hierarchy of psychological human needs, safety and security are fundamentally at the base of the pyramid. Being able to have better jobs and more affordable schooling are not even the third or fourth layer up!

And, Lord have mercy, left-extremists are scared to death of Sarah Palin. Well, she's confident, she derides all of their faux stereotypes - and even better, she's very tricky to attack (unless you want to be go through torturous and painstaking explanations the the 58% of Americans who LOVE Sarah to death - or look sexist - or look spurned - or look like you're jealous, which you probably are - or look like you really don't have the best interests of women in mind (maybe just yourself), after all this IS a victory for women all across the board). She tops Obama and McCain, both at 57% approval .. Biden's down there at 46%, honorable mention. As Newt Gingrich said, liberals MUST destroy Sarah, because she belies all of their most integral messages - which aren't true, of course. And she proves the opposite, which makes them look TERRIBLY bad.

Sarah Palin comes across

IVF Friends — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 04:28:37 -0500

Sarah Palin comes across like a horrible woman to me but I keep hearing
on the news over and over that Sarah Palin gave an “AMAZING/GREAT”
speech as she accepted her nomination as the VP for the Republican
Party; I personally felt it to be just insulting and nothing else.

I could not believe all the hate, sarcasm and divisiveness she
delivered during her speech. Her mocking and bullying really got to me,
and as a mom of a 7 year old I could not believe that she was doing it
all in front of her kids and was being applauded for it. The chanting
of the delegates was even scarier. I teach my child that behavior like
this is not accepted and see a mom bullying on national television for
her kids to see and learn. Are those the values that the republicans
are so proud of (we definitely saw a lot of that attitude from the
republicans this week). Is that why Sarah Palin is now so popular with
them? What a scary way to energize anyone.

This provides some context

miteegirl — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 23:25:18 -0500

This provides some context on Sarah Palin and her background that I think is extremely relevant. A personal letter from an Alaska Resident who has known Palin since 1992:

Fascinating read.

The writer is a homemaker and education advocate in Wasilla, Alaska. Late last week, Anne Kilkenny penned an e-mail for her friends about vice presidential
candidate Sarah Palin, whom she personally knows, that has since
circulated across comment forums and blogs nationwide. Here is her e-mail in its entirety, posted with her permission.

Here's a sample:

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.

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative." During her six years as mayor, she increased general government expenditures by more than 33 percent. During those same six years, the amount of taxes collected by the city increased by 38 percent. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a regressive sales tax, which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefitted large corporate property owners way more than they benefited residents.

Request to seal divorce files denied?

forliving — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 22:21:51 -0500

According to Reddit.com and this is from their website:

1344

Interesting. The business partner that the National Enquirer alleges that Palin had an affair with? He filed an emergency request to seal his own divorce records on Wednesday. It was denied.

Does anyone have any thought on this? If you go the site they even show the court records from the Alaska Government website http://www.courtrecords.alaska.gov/pa/pa.urd/pamw2000.docket_lst?68762762

There is always something surprising about this woman coming out each day, too much uncertainty and suspicion around her.

Ah yes, which brings me

miteegirl — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 20:51:55 -0500

Ah yes, which brings me to...why is the McCain campaign scared to let Palin talk to the media?

If she can't handle herself in front of mere journalists, she has no hope in hell against terrorists.

Lara-- No problem. You're

miteegirl — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 20:50:23 -0500

Lara--

No problem. You're welcome.

And, I just wanted to see this again.

John Bouman, president of the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, said Obama's work helped make the program more consumer-friendly. He also said Obama was often willing to give up credit for the legislation if that helped win Republican support.

"It tells you something that as a relatively junior member in the minority party, he was an important negotiator," Bouman said.

-----------------------

Why did I think that this was worth repeating?

Because I want to point out to our sisters in support of McCalin/Palin that Obama does not have a "messiah complex". You try to paint him as egotistical and smug, when he is anything but. He has let the Left and the Right and the media dig into his record and grill him on the issues. (Most recently O'Reilly.) He has invited citizens in his campaign to give him ideas and feedback and -surprise!- he implments it. He doesn't stoop to petty nastiness and he gives credit where credit is due to others who have done great work.

The Obama supporters have projected that onto him.

Let me tell you the Webster's dictionary defintion of "messiah". It means "any expected deliverer."

We see Obama as someone who will deliver us from 8 long, painful years of Republicans creating a mess of our economy, our communities, our reputation in the world, and our Executive Branch of government.

So, do YOU want to call him the Democratic messiah? Or the American messiah?

Yeah. You're right. He will be. Bring it on.

Once again

Laracolvin — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 10:09:09 -0500

thanks, Miteegirl, for beating me to the punch - and to the others who also provided information about the lies and wordtwists in Palin's speech. I should have been more specific w/examples in my initial comment, but I was rushed. This info is great; I can't keep up with you all! :)

Lara

Notions of Identity

Oh, Jane. You know how

miteegirl — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:21:19 -0500

Oh, Jane. You know how MUCH I love it when you ask me to dig deeper :)

This is for you, dear. A series of posts with the information you'll need.

You'll notice that NO ONE writes these bills on their own. The skills required to make this stuff happen (and it is a long slog of a process) require letting go of ego to work across the aisle, diplomacy, a deep understanding of how legislation will affect action and be defended in a court of law, negotiating issues between parties with different opinions, persistence in the face of complexity, inspiring others to work with you and for you, etc.

You might not think these skills are important. But I think that they are critical. My evidence? The extreme lack of those skills in the Oval Office over these past 8 years has gotten us to....here. A place that a vast majority of Americans are unhappy with according to the polls.

The day when McCain/Palin helps create change is the day that they lose the November Election.

--------------------------------------

Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act of 2007
A bill to provide greater transparency in the legislative process.

Official: A bill to provide greater transparency in the legislative process. as introduced.
Short: Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act of 2007 as introduced.

1/9/2007--Introduced.
Lobbying and Ethics Reform Act of 2007 - Revises the Standing Rules of the Senate or prescribes requirements with respect to:
(1) conference reports;
(2) elimination of certain floor privileges and other benefits and privileges for former... Members, Senate officers, and Speakers of the House who are lobbyists or seek financial gain;
(3) a ban on gifts from lobbyists;
(4) travel restrictions and disclosure;
(5) post-employment restrictions;
(6) public disclosure by Members of employment negotiations;
(7) conflicts of interest with respect to a Member's spouse or immediate family members;
(8) a Member's use of influence on certain hiring decisions; and
(9)
notices of intent to object to proceeding to a measure or matter.
Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA) and the Foreign Agents
Registration Act with respect to various specified disclosures by
registered lobbyists and foreign government lobbyists. Requires:
(1) the Comptroller General to audit lobbying registration and related reports annually; and
(2)
the Select Committee on Ethics to provide certain ethics training and
awareness programs for Senators and their staff. Expresses the sense of
the Senate that the lobbying community should develop specified
proposals for multiple self-regulatory organizations. Amends the
federal criminal code to extend from one to two years the ban on
lobbying contacts by former very senior executive personnel, former
Members of Congress, and officers of the legislative branch with any
Member, officer, or employee of the entity in which such person served
before his or her tenure terminated. Prohibits former employees of
either chamber of Congress, within two years after leaving office, from
making lobbying contacts with a Member, officer, or employee of either
chamber. Amends the LDA to prohibit a registered lobbyist from
knowingly making a gift or providing travel to a Member, officer, or
employee of Congress, unless the gift or travel may be accepted under
the rules of the House or the Senate. Establishes the Senate Office of
Public Integrity.

hide bill sum

NOT IMPLEMENTED -->

Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

-----------------------------------

Obama was elected to the Illinois state Senate
in 1996, when Democrats were in the minority...He did have some successes, though --
particularly in passing legislation sharply restricting the gifts that
Illinois politicians could accept from lobbyists. Illinois has
notoriously weak government ethics laws, and the Gift Ban Act was the
first major new restriction since the Watergate era.

Illinois State Gift Ban Act “Heralded As the MostSweeping Good-Government Legislation in Decades.” [HB672, 3R P 52-4-1, 5/22/98; PA90-0737, 8/12/98]

-------------------------------

Illinois Ethics Bill Most Far Reaching Since Watergate,Product Of
Bipartisan Work. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote of Obama’s bill, “The
ethics restrictions would be the most far-reaching since the
Watergate-era campaign financial disclosure law. They are the product
of months of negotiations among two lawmakers of each party, other
state officials and Mike Lawrence. He is an aide toformer Sen. Paul
Simon, a Democrat, and used to be an aide to Edgar, a Republican.” [St.
Louis Post-Dispatch, 5/24/98]

-------------------------------

John Bouman, president of the Sargent Shriver
National Center on Poverty Law, said Obama's work helped make the
program more consumer-friendly. He also said Obama was often willing to
give up credit for the legislation if that helped win Republican
support.

"It tells you something that as a relatively junior member in the minority party, he was an important negotiator," Bouman said.

-----------------------------

You can check out anyone's record at Vote Smart, Jane.

Also, Politfact and FactCheck give you the scoop on misinformation from any candidate in this election.

These sites are non-partisan (not run by the Liberal Media...whoever they are) and hold politicians on BOTH sides of the aisle accountable

Can I just say that a campaign is MUCH more interesting and enlightening now that we have the internet and digital video/audio?

Waaahooo!

Harsh accusations should come with solid evidence.

Nordette — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 08:44:49 -0500

It's well and good to tell people to dig deeper, but if you're going to make a nasty accusation, then you gain credibility by presenting supporting documentation yourself. Where are the original bills with the other people's names and then the revised bills with their names removed? Where is commentary from the bill creators angry that they will not get credit? (Whenever people don't get credit for work, you can usually find someone pouting in a corner.) How do you know that the bills weren't first suggested by Obama if this went down the way you say? It's possible that what you say is true, but I think the onus should be on the accuser to make the case.

I've seen interviews with Obama in which he's careful to say he "co-sponsored" a bill and not take credit for other people's work. Why would these people be so generous, letting Obama take credit for their hard work, when they once did not believe had a good chance at the presidency due to his skin color?

Nordette is a Contributing Editor with BlogHer.com whose personal blog is hosted on another site at this link.

Dig a Little Deeper

Jane Becker — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:53:17 -0500

Obama didn't pass sweeping reforms in Illinois. Other legislators wrote the bills and when OB was picked to be the star, their names were removed from the bills and his name was attached.

That is, when he wasn't voting present.

As to his work in the US Senate, well, as you said, he was too occupied running for President to actually do his job in Congress.

Palin is Inspiring

HeidiChick — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:38:58 -0500

After watching McCain's speech last night (I never usually watch convention stuff) I realized how inspired I was by Palin's speech. He's good. Barack is good. But she was amazing.

Thanks for the post - I hadn't heard about that stuff, interesting!!

I'm from a military Navy family but wasnt' sure about McCain, now I am extremely excited about the ticket.

Most people think that they

miteegirl — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 07:31:11 -0500

Most people think that they are well-informed. Myself included, until you dig deeper.

You are sooo right. So, let's dig deeper and look at the record.

Sarah Palin said:

Barack Obama supports plans to raise "income taxes ... payroll taxes."

What Sarah Palin meant:

Obama's taxes hit only higher incomes

Sarah Palin said:

And I have protected the taxpayers by vetoing wasteful spending: nearly half a billion dollars in vetoes.

What Sarah Palin meant:

As Mayor, Palin Left Behind Almost $19 Million In Long-Term Debt, Compared to None Before She Was Mayor.

Sarah Palin said:

“It was the spirit that brought me to the governor’s office, when I took on the old politics as usual in Juneau … when I stood up to the special interests, the lobbyists, big oil companies, and the good-ol’ boys network.”

What Sarah meant:

As Mayor, Palin Hired a Washington Lobbyist to Help Get Earmarks for Wasilla – Lobbyist Was Former Chief of Staff for Indicted Senator Ted Stevens.

Sarah Palin said:

“I came to office promising major ethics reform, to end the culture of self-dealing. And today, that ethics reform is the law.”

What Sarah meant:

PALIN SIGNED WEAK ETHICS REFORM BILL & HAS HAD NUMEROUS ETHICAL FLAPS OF HER OWN.

Palin Signed Ethics Reform Legislation That Anchorage Republican Bob Roses Said Didn’t Go Far Enough.
Ethics Complaint Filed Against Gov. Palin Over Alleged Involvement in Hiring a Campaign Contributor.
In July 2008, the Alaska State Legislator voted 12-0 to approve $100,000 for a special investigator to begin an investigation into claims Palin fired a former state official because he would not fire a state trooper who was involved in a bitter custody battle with Palin’s sister.

Sarah Palin said:

“I suspended the state fuel tax, and championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress.”

What Sarah meant:

ALASKA HAS REQUESTED $589 MILLION IN PORK SINCE PALIN TOOK OFFICE & AS MAYOR, SHE HIRED WASILLA’S FIRST FEDERAL LOBBYIST TO SECURE EARMARKS FOR THE TOWN.

Sarah Palin said:

“I understand that we must reduce our dependence on foreign energy. I’ve worked with our state’s energy producers to expand our production so that we can have a safe, reliable supply of energy produced here in the United States.”

What Sarah meant:

PALIN SUPPORTED EXPORTING NATURAL GAS WHILE ALASKA BUSINESSES CLOSED BECAUSE OF SHORTAGES Palin Backed A Two-Year Extension Of The Export License To Export Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) To Japan And Other Asian Countries— Criticized Because Alaska’s Gas Reserves Are Declining.

Sarah Palin said:

“ 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.”

What Sarah meant:

OBAMA PASSED THE MOST SWEEPING REFORMS SINCE WATERGATE IN BOTH THE ILLINOIS AND US SENATES, AMONG OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

Obama And Lugar Passed Law Boosting U.S. Efforts To Keep WMDs AndOther Dangerous Weapons Out Of The Hands Of Terrorists. Republican Sen. Dick Lugar (IN) today said an Obama campaign ad which features him is ‘accurate.’ The ad makes the point the Obama previously ‘reached out’ to Lugar to ‘help lock down loose nuclear weapons.’
Obama Helped Pass The 2007 Ethics Reform Law, Which Curbed The Influence Of Lobbyists And Was Described As The “Most Sweeping Since Watergate.” "Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. who had pushed for the bundlingprovisions and was one of four lawmakers who participated in a Democratic conference call to reporters said the measure marks "themost sweeping ethics reform since Watergate.” [S. 230, 110thCongress; S.1, Became Public Law 109-110-81, 9/14/07; AP, 9/15/07]
Obama's Illinois Ethics Bill Most Far Reaching Since Watergate,Product Of Bipartisan Work.
Obama Proposals Providing Improvements In Health Care For RecoveringSoldiers Were Passed Into Law, Including Requirements For Post-Deployment Mental Health Screenings And National Study On The Needs OfIraq War Veterans. H.R. 976, passed by the Senate on August 2, 2007.
There are more, but my hand is getting cramped from typing this.

So, yes, I agree that you and Sarah Palin probably need to do more to check out the facts.

Excellent point.

The Power of Palin

BackyardConservative — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:59:06 -0500

Huge TV viewing numbers last night for Gov. Sarah Palin, amazingly nearly matching Barack Obama's tally and far outstripping the viewership for Vice President Joe Biden, who is after all her opponent. Sarah Palin is not running for president. And only six networks carried Palin's speech, vs. 10 for Obama, so her numbers are even more impressive. She apparently also dealt smoothly with teleprompter problems-- I certainly didn't notice when she ad-libbed:

Several of the drafts were scribbled on, so one aide gave Palin a wrinkled, folded copy out of his pocket.

Officials said Palin responded in mom-like fashion, concluding, “Well, I suppose I could put a book on it and smooth it out a little. “

During one part of her speech, she couldn’t see the teleprompter because signs were blocking it. That was when she ad-libbed a line about the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull — “lipstick.”

This yielded one of the best lines of the night and evoked huge applause and laughter.

Palin has already achieved superstar status in the political world, and interestingly, even prior to her phenomenal speech last night she was closing the gap in the polls on the experience match-up, especially with independent voters. Rasmussen:

Democrats and Republicans agree on their willingness to vote for a woman for president and the belief that a woman candidate will be elected in the next 10 years. But they split on predictable partisan lines when Clinton and Palin are introduced into the equation.

In the head-to-head match-up, 87% of Democrats support Clinton, while 85% of GOP voters support Palin. Unaffiliated voters go for Clinton 48% to 39%.

It's the power of Palin, and it's just the beginning of the general election campaign.