Andrea Mitchell, the liberal talking head for NBC and MSNBC, had this priceless gem last night immediately after the debate. She said Palin did well and did what she needed to do to “stop the bleeding” for the campaign.
You’d think that was good, right? Nope.
Mitchell said Palin’s strong performance was actually bad news for McCain because it brought the attention back to the economy which is bad for him. Ha! These people are so far out on the limb its hilarious.
Update: One a personal note I was sitting there watching the debate. I was so pleased that Sarah Palin was doing well. After all she and her family have been through to have that kind of night was just great.
Update Update: Interesting note is that I think a lot of right-leaning folks were very interested in the debate tonight as both National Review and Newsbusters both crashed. This could potentially reinvigorate the base of the Republican Party.
Update Update Update: I was thinking about not posting this but did Joe Biden look…hmmm…a little weird tonight. Like he maybe had work done. I truly hesitate to say it but it jumped out at me and he just looked a little odd.
Update Update Update Update: Republican columnist Kathleen Parker infamously called on Palin to step down earlier in the week because of two poor interviews. Tonight, while admitting Palin won, Parker’s not being too gracious about it. Here’s what she wrote:
Well, darnit all, if that dadgum girl (wink, wink) didn’t beat the tarnation out of Joe Biden. Maverick Sarah Palin fersure surpassed expectations and said everything under the sun, also. And Biden smiled and smiled.
You see, that’s the key to it all. Parker is a D.C. person. She doesn’t get and obviously doesn’t like people who don’t speak like her. You see, “dadgum” is supposed to make you laugh because people who aren’t from the coasts are to be snickered at, not respected.
This reminds me, once again, that there are two Republican parties. The elites look down on the base. In fact, the base is looked down on by the left and the elite Republicans. I am pro-life. That is reason number one I’m a Republican. Laugh at me all you want. I’m still going to be pro-life.
Final Update: Everyone’s talking about Sarah Palin’s charming and disarming intro to Biden by saying, “Nice to meet you. Hey, can I call you Joe?” Was there a method to the charm? Is it possible that she asked that so she could get off her soundbyte: “Say it ain’t so, Joe.” Think about it. She knew she had a microphone on when she said it so we would all hear it and she would disqualify any sugestion of impropriety of her not calling him Senator when she said her soundbyte. Just a thought.
October 3, 2008 at 4:55 am
This comment has been removed by the author.
October 3, 2008 at 4:59 am
Senator Joe Biden has a problem with his image. His voice gets grating after a bit and he looks like he’s selling rebuilt used cars down at Honest Barack’s Chop Shop and Auto Parts store.
And Gwen Ifill has all the personality of a dish towel late on Thanksgiving night.
That left one big winner–one person upon whom a lot of eyes and ears were fixed. As the debate started, I thought of Governor Palin stepping into this role from out of almost nowhere…there now on the world stage… a woman upon whom such utter hate has been strewn and whose family was attacked by barbarians out of the sewer system. And yet upon whom such responsibility for this campaign and the fate of of nation has been placed.
Tonight she taught me a lot about the meaning of class and courage, duty and civility, and trust in God, her country, and her strong moral values. And she did it all with grace and humor. I stand in awe of her and her Father in Heaven who gave us this good woman.
October 3, 2008 at 5:27 am
“barbarians out of the sewer system”
Wow. You nailed it. I’m really happy for her that she did well and she gives me hope for this campaign and future campaigns.
October 3, 2008 at 5:36 am
I dont’ feel she did well. She just exceeded her extremely low expectations. Joe Biden is obviously the more knowledgable of the two.
Seriously – if one of them were to be president, who would be better prepared? And unfortunately I think in this election the VP might want to be considered more so than in the past. With the oldest ever president (at time of election) and the first black president (with psycho racists).
October 3, 2008 at 5:39 am
p.s. Why can’t a group of Catholics be above politics as usual. It sickens me to see the one sidedness on this blog towards republicans when really there are some good things about repubs, and some about dems. Can’t you be above it and at least admit that some ideas and people of the dem party aren’t all bad?? It just separates us more when we are so polarized and it would be nice if a religious group would try and step above this.
October 3, 2008 at 5:59 am
You’re soooo right. I think Joe Biden and Barack Obama would be exceedingly well prepared to make sure as many babies are killed in America as possible.
When no more babies are killed in America, I will be glad to reconsider tax policy and anything else. Until then…not so much.
October 3, 2008 at 6:04 am
I’m from Canada (and we have our own election coming up, but all the major parties here are pro-death… but that’s another story) but as a Catholic, you are not assigned to a party. Rather, you must vote according to the issues that are present. There IS no issue that is more important than life… economic concerns are important but is this more important than 1.2 million children dying a year? In the 1930’s, Germans voted for a greater economy but what is that time period remembered for? If a candidate is not willing to protect the “poorest of the poor” as Blessed Mother Teresa said then how confident can we be that they will have the best interests of other issues for Americans?
October 3, 2008 at 8:33 am
I wasn’t very happy with the debate. During the discussion of gay marriage, the one social issue discussed, Palin sounded very weak. While I’m glad she opposes gay marriage, it’s alarming to hear her say she and Biden agree. She shouldn’t have gone into all that stuff about not minding who people choose as “partners” and supporting visitation rights; I mean, since homosexual relationships are unnatural, the government should confer no more rights to cogabiting homosexuals than to best friends. To do otherwise is tacitly condoning perversion.
Also, Palin didn’t take her one chance to respond when Biden said his nonsense about Robert Bork and Roe, and while she mentioned education and making No Child Left Behind more flexible, she didn’t mention school choice or voucher programs.
Biden definitely did well. That may have been expected, but he still just sounded so much better even to my partisan ears.
October 3, 2008 at 11:45 am
Do you all remember the moment both walked on the stage? Oh, how off putting I find all this hugging, kissing and shoulder patting… Well, here comes Sarah Palin – determined, strong, takes Biden’s hand, leans over, ever so slightly and says: “Hey, can I call you Joe?”
Who was in charge here? I believe that this set the tone. She was not going to be walked all over!
Good debate – I keep praying!
Blessings,
Mum26
October 3, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Catholics are supposed to be above politics? That sort of thing wasn’t heard when too many Catholics lined up obediently at the command of the Democrats. We’re off the plantation now, ex-boss.
— Mack
October 3, 2008 at 12:54 pm
His eyes looked weird (not good, though). I thought the same thing.
October 3, 2008 at 1:47 pm
That last update is great.
I’m excited to see you’re still updating — Bloglines has stopped showing new posts your feed (it’s happening to me too — ugh) so I thought that maybe you just didn’t have any more to say about the election. 🙂
October 3, 2008 at 1:53 pm
Matthew said:
…When no more babies are killed in America, I will be glad to reconsider tax policy and anything else. Until then…not so much.
Bingo! This is THE evil of our time. People in the 22nd Century will look back at our time scratching their heads saying “what was wrong with those people” the same way we scratch our head about people in the 19th Century on the subject of Slavery.
We cannot let 100 lesser goods distract ourselves from the greater Evil.
When this country stops murdering its own unborn Citizens, I will continue to vote (yes, sometimes even holding my nose) for the Pro Life candidate.
No justice… no peace (as they say on the Left)!
October 3, 2008 at 2:01 pm
Anyone else growing weary of the who-would-be-better-prepared-as-President argument? It usually shows up as the “what’s she gonna do if Putin is across the table”? It’s dumb because it assumes that one’s nerdy, high-brow finesse will carry the day. Nonsense, only a clear stand on decently-formed principles will keep you from wetting your pants when confronted with a thug. As such, Putin need only threaten to stick Biden’s head in the toilet and Biden would sell out half of Europe.
As far as “being above politics”, this indicates to me that Palin did indeed win according to my pet theory (I’ll call it Waddell’s theory): When progressives win, their rhetoric is, “Ride the wave or be crushed by it.” When they lose, it’s, “Oh why must we use these limiting labels like ‘liberal’ and ‘conservative’?”
October 3, 2008 at 4:03 pm
“I wasn’t very happy with the debate. During the discussion of gay marriage, the one social issue discussed, Palin sounded very weak. While I’m glad she opposes gay marriage, it’s alarming to hear her say she and Biden agree. She shouldn’t have gone into all that stuff about not minding who people choose as “partners” and supporting visitation rights; I mean, since homosexual relationships are unnatural, the government should confer no more rights to cogabiting homosexuals than to best friends. To do otherwise is tacitly condoning perversion.”
Agreed. She and Biden both support giving homosexual couples the same civil and legal recognition as heterosexual couples. That means they get all the rights and perks of married folks, indeed, there is no difference between what they will have and what married couples have right now.
Palin and Biden are only against calling it “gay marriage” in official papers. They leave it up to the people to do that.
By the way, there’s absolutely no difference between their proposals and the gay marriage laws in California.
Patrick, respond to this please.
October 3, 2008 at 4:54 pm
I wasn’t very happy with the debate.
And I guess this proves you just can’t please everyone. Even though Palin said squarely she did not support gay marriage (as did Biden…which was WHY she said they both agreed) some people obviously wish she had gone that extra step to not only ban homosexuality but to reinstate public burnings at the stake.
Anyway, back to the rational faction of this readership, I think the debates were a wash. Palin may have poached a few undecideds now that they see how she acts in a high-pressure setting and doesn’t lose her cool. Biden of course solidified his base and appealed to people hoping for more political and international experience (which he clearly has).
I’d have to say I think it was a wash. It didn’t sway me one way or another, though I’m glad Palin came out looking better than her pundits predicted.
October 3, 2008 at 5:09 pm
I actually thought her stance on gay marriage was rather nuanced. I understood her remarks on gay marriage to be more about respecting that people choose how they live, and whatever her opinion on homosexuality (let us not forget that her church prays for homosexuals) she recognises that she can’t make their choices for them. I think Biden tried, and to some extent, succeeded, in slipping in more than she’s really comfortable with, and I wish she had clarified more on that. But overall, she struck a nice balance- traditional values, but not hateful towards people who disagree (hating the sin and loving the sinner, or both orthodox and ecumenical, as you prefer to think of it).
What I do wish she knew or mentioned is that some of the issues Biden brought up are actually fairly easily solvable without changing marriage or granting any additional rights at all. I may be wrong on this, but I thought having power of attorney gave someone the right to visit someone in the hospital, as well as determine medical care. And I also thought you can name anyone you like as the beneficiary in life insurance policies. Maybe these things should be made more clear, for everyone’s benefit, and perhaps a bit easier to obtain, but they’re not the huge walls the homosexual lobbies would like us to think.
October 3, 2008 at 5:39 pm
To the poster who complained about the one-sideness of the forum.
One has to remember that even in the Vatican, the Democrats have been acknowledged as having become the Party of Death. Unfortunately, too many of us are wedded to the past and can’t see that the Democratic party of our parents and our youth is gone and shows no desire to ever come back.
Catholics should be positioned to support whichever candidate is least objectionable – until a good candidate can be found.
October 3, 2008 at 5:43 pm
“It didn’t sway me one way or another, though I’m glad Palin came out looking better than her pundits predicted.”
–deusdonat
deus,
she was not there to “sway” the intelligentsia of our nation, but sappy guys and gals like myself, you know, people who do drink a six-pack, drive trucks, mop floors, own small businesses, change diapers, walk to mass behind a brood of kids, owe the bank not our dads for college tuition.
Joe Biden was there for the rest. And one could feel the earth tremble each time that he mentioned his leader, the SunKing. And as the Democrats have said for years, especially in the SunKing’s home turf, “Vote Early! Vote Often!”
October 3, 2008 at 5:43 pm
“It didn’t sway me one way or another, though I’m glad Palin came out looking better than her pundits predicted.”
–deusdonat
deus,
she was not there to “sway” the intelligentsia of our nation, but sappy guys and gals like myself, you know, people who do drink a six-pack, drive trucks, mop floors, own small businesses, change diapers, walk to mass behind a brood of kids, owe the bank not our dads for college tuition.
Joe Biden was there for the rest. And one could feel the earth tremble each time that he mentioned his leader, the SunKing. And as the Democrats have said for years, especially in the SunKing’s home turf, “Vote Early! Vote Often!”