The Vice-Presidential Debate

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http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/opinion/03fri1.html?ref=opinion

We cannot recall when there were lower expectations for any candidate going into a national debate than preceded Gov. Sarah Palin’s appearance in Thursday night’s vice-presidential debate with Senator Joseph Biden. That’s a big plus: all the candidate has to do is show up, say one or two sensible things and avoid an election-defining gaffe.

By that standard, the governor of Alaska beat expectations. Senator Biden did as well, avoiding one of his infamous gaffes, while talking confidently with a clear grasp of the big picture and the details. But this debate was more about Ms. Palin than Mr. Biden.

(snip)
Indeed, Ms. Palin’s primary aim seemed simply to repeat the same thing over and over: John McCain is a maverick, and so is she. She is a governor. She understands Americans. To stay on that course, she had to indulge in some wildly circular logic: America does not want another familiar Washington figure. But they want Mr. McCain (who has been in Congress for 26 years).

Ms. Palin sounded like a prairie populist when she said Mr. McCain would “demand” strict oversight of Wall Street. In virtually the next breath, she said government should “get out of the way” of American business.

(snip)
In the end, the debate did not change the essential truth of Ms. Palin’s candidacy: she can learn her talking points and make a good impression under controlled circumstances. But Mr. McCain made a wildly irresponsible choice when he picked someone with far too little experience or evident knowledge for the post. That choice shattered the image that Mr. McCain created for himself as the tempered, seasoned, experienced man of principle and judgment. Picking Ms. Palin was either an act of incredible cynicism or appallingly bad judgment.

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1. This says it all....

...she can learn her talking points and make a good impression under controlled circumstances.

What delicious disdain.