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She definitely looked like the perfect ‘ratta maar’ school mate that you hated in high school and her fake folksy mannerisms made me reach for the remote more than once. She never even wavered from her memorized response when Biden choked up while remembering his dead first wife and daughter as her follow-up sentence was calling McCain a maverick for the ten thousandth time as if she never heard her opponent’s response; acknowledging Biden’s moment would’ve in fact won her more than a few voters.
Is it too much of a Vice-Presidential candidate to answer yes instead of ‘you betcha’? And those ‘doggone it’ and ’say it ain’t so’ moments make you wonder if America still respects intelligence. From Andrew Sullivan’s blog, I found this cool Sarah Palin Debate Flow Chart:
And in spite of all cramming, Biden ended up winning the debate in two instapolls so probably there is still hope for America. In a focus group of undecided women voters organized by Time Magazine, I found the following paragraph illuminating:
Overall, the women warmed up to both candidates throughout the evening—both Biden and Palin’s favorability ratings rose 9 points from pre- to post-debate. They liked Palin’s strength and confidence, and the married women particularly responded to her “folksiness” and “down-to-earth” personality. That personal regard, however, didn’t necessarily mean they wanted to see her in the White House. “I’d like to have lunch with Sarah,” said one married woman, “but have Joe running my country.” Another agreed: “I think Sarah Palin is cute as a button and is good in sound bytes, but she just is not ready.” Before the debate, only 10 of the women believed Palin was not ready to be vice-president or president; by the end of the evening more than half of them (21) shared that concern.
If the McCain campaign banked on Palin’s likability factor among women, Joe Biden didn’t do bad at all and actually shared the ratings. Four years back, plenty of voters decided on the basis if they could drink a beer with Bush regardless of the fact that he is now a teetotaler. But this bunch of women proved much smarter than those men on the ability to distinguish priorities. This is the America I like and not the dumb one that McCain-Palin would like us to see.
by Patrix | on Friday, October 3rd, 2008 at 10:42 am | 
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October 3rd, 2008 at 1:32 pm reply
I was tired of her ‘Darn right’s, ‘betcha’s, etc. And yes, they need to find a new nick name for McCain besides Maverick. I cheered for Biden when he called them out on that Maverick bit. I was thrilled!
October 3rd, 2008 at 1:37 pm reply
I was watching the thing on CNN with the audience response gadget and I couldn’t help noticing that women were much more intelligent in their response to both Biden and Palin than men.
October 3rd, 2008 at 2:59 pm reply
I second Gawker’s observation. It looked like some men were being threatened by what they saw as Biden’s macho image or something.
Also based on the response meter in the first election, I get the feeling that independents might end up carrying the day for Obama.
October 3rd, 2008 at 3:53 pm reply
Palin is an imbecile. Who ever is swayed by her is part of a bigger, more fundamental, problem in the United States. Last night she didnt debate. She continually reiterated the same points, which she practiced compulsively beforehand.
October 3rd, 2008 at 4:20 pm reply
I’ve been wondering where the GOP hides this bootcamp where they program their puppeteers. They do such a beautiful job. This flow chart answers my question. It feels like an MRI of Palin’s brain. So concise.
I was ticked off that the moderator was not more creative and agressive in trying to trip these guys up. She did absolutely nothing to step beyond Palin’s index cards. Everybody was all smiles, so happy. So pathetically polite. I could write a flow chart for the moderator that would be equally insulting to the weakness of our country.
The Presidency has become the most shielded job position in all of America.
Gosh darn it.
October 4th, 2008 at 9:39 am reply
@Sampada: Yeah that maverick bs has been shoveled for a long time. It hardly gives you credit when you call yourself a maverick.
@gawker: somehow I prefer to watch it on CSPAN away from those distractions.
@Ashutosh: nice to see you back :) Independents are slowing moving away from McCain especially after his Palin pick. It energized the base but he lost the independents
@Hernando: well thatz the best she could do to avoid gaffes as she so explicitly mentioned that she was not going to answer questions. I was afraid that if she was interrupted during one of her memorized answers, she would’ve to start all over again.
@Johnny Flatline: sadly the rules of the VP debate didn’t give the moderator much leeway so I wouldn’t fault Ifill much. Also, the fact that the Republicans attacked her before the debate didn’t help.
October 5th, 2008 at 10:59 pm reply
I was ticked off that the moderator was not more creative and agressive in trying to trip these guys up. She did absolutely nothing to step beyond Palin’s index cards.
Johnny Flatline, that’s because each and every detail of these “debates” is negotiated between Rep and Dem party hacks, and what you - the viewer - see is a tightly scripted show. If you want to see what an unscripted, free-wheeling interview looks like, check this video out: http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/753853
I doubt that you’ll ever see Obama or McCain answer questions with even a fraction of such honesty or depth, and directness. But hey, that’s what the majority/mainstream want, so that’s what they get. :)
Also check out http://opendebates.org/ if you’re interested in doing something more than simply criticizing the “debates.”