I just thought y'all should know that I am, in fact, Harry Truman.

You, maybe it's because I was too young but I've never found that line particularly good.

I mean, I know the context and seen it, but so what?

Of course you're going to think your friends are great and this other person you don't like is not as cool.

Um anyhow, she is very not vice-presidential material.

More Spectacle theory of government. The Republican party puts it's faith in Potemkin villages, because they have worked in the past. They always offer painted cakes to satisfy hunger.

I wanted to make that point last night. In addition to all the facts Eva points out Harry Truman was the administrator of a county with a larger population than Alaska. His work as the head of the Truman Commission was widely praised. It really helped win the war. Harry's road to the White House was long and distinguished.

And don't forget which political party mocked Truman as a tool of the corrupt Pendergast machine in Kansas City & as a failed small businessman.

The only thing she has in common with Harry Truman is her tendency to talk through her nose.

I grew up in Independence, Missouri. My junior high school was a block away from the Truman home. Encountering him on his daily walks, I said "Good Morning, Mr. President" more times than I can remember.

What I'm saying is: I knew Harry Truman. He was a neighbor of mine. And, Sarah Palin, you're no Harry Truman!

I know a little about Harry. I drive by his house on a regular basis. Pendergast was corrupt, but there is no sign that Truman was. It was sort of like Pendergast decided to keep Truman in the clear while old Tom sold his concrete.

Harry Truman seized steel mills. Maybe Palin's planning on seizing some oil derricks.

Truman was an cog in the Pendergast machine. Maybe Palin's acknowledging that she was a cog in the Stevens machine.

Truman let an unpopular war in Asia fester so long that it required a change in party to bring about a break in the hostilities. (Well, you know she's not about to go that far.)

Ummm, Steve?

Spelling Buddy says "Haberdasher."

Just ask Nigel Tufnel. "What size are you sir? I think we have that!"

I also doubt whether Harry attempted to inject extreme partisanship and fundamentalist christian ideology into the workings of a previously non partisan town government. Opening a can of pit bull whoop ass on his neighbors and governmental underlings was most likely not his style. Her small town antics sound more like something in China or the former Soviet Union than the US.

Oh, and for the record:

Sarah Palin just lost the Owosso Michigan vote. They still haven't gotten over 1948.

Sarah Palin has amusingly brought up Harry Truman, a man who succeeded to the White House when the President died in office.

Really, you want to make the comparison Governor?

Orange

She actually got that obscure quote from a Buchanan book:

http://books.google.com/books?id=iwl4C221N8AC&pg=PA31&lpg=PA31&dq="We+grow+good+people+in+our+small+towns,+with+honesty,+sincerity,+and+dignity"+buchanan&source=web&ots=jAc9hdznxp&sig=GlhbcisTCtsKznCkfnG3FzAVkHc&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result#PPA32,M1

Joe Biden has extensive governmental experience.
Joe Biden has proven his ability to lead.
Joe Biden is an expert in foreign policy.
Joe Biden is direct and truthful.
We know Joe Biden.
Joe Biden is no Barack H. Obama.

Reminds me of Quayle comparing himself to Kennedy. I knew the man, you're no Kennedy, yadda yadda, said Bentsen. Ooh, snap. And we all know how that turned out. Moving on....

Truman? Wasn't he president during that war where the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Wasn't he the guy who had to resign because of the Cuban Missile Crisis?

"Long ago, a young farmer and haberdasher from Missouri followed an unlikely path to the vice presidency."

...really? I mean - war hero, county judge, US Senator, led a massively successful anti-waste committee in the Senate, national prominence as one of the most famous senators in the governing party - that's not really a hugely unlikely path to the vice-presidency.

It's not like, I don't know, he was visiting Washington as a tourist in 1940 and Roosevelt looked out the window just as he happened to be passing and said "Yes! That man! With the little round glasses and the tape measure round his neck! He looks honest - bring him in and make him vice-president!"

i watched the convention last night and i was horrified. the republicans have spent their convention time whipping their adherents into a frenzy. one minute laying on thick that partisan politics has broken washington, the next minute screeching about "the angry left" as bush put it and belittling and rejecting the service of obama, biden and all democrats, declaring once again, in effect, "if you're not with us you're against us." the republican convention speeches further the story line that the far-right has been and continues to be unfairly victimized by people (democrats) who have no other goal in life than to screw them. the religiosity in palin's speech was palpable but apparently the news commentators don't recognize rapturist tags.

i find this entire tack alarming because of the potential effect in the not too distant future. when mccain and palin lose this election, how long will it be before we start seeing more murrow building type bombings?

these people have guns and, as they like to remind everyone frequently, they are willing to use them to defend their beliefs. the problem is, they don't want to defend their beliefs, they want to impose them on everyone.

the next minute screeching about "the angry left" as bush put it

They're still trying to place dissent with Republican governance out of bounds.

Unfortunately for them, an overwhelming majority of Americans agrees with the so-called "angry left" that the mendacious, incompetent and corrupt right sucks. That dog won't hunt.

Again, it's obvious: Obama used his convention to reach out to the center; the Republicans need theirs to rally the base. Not exactly full of win, is it?

Harry Truman? why not compare yourself to the last small state governor to elevate himself to the Oval Office? Clinton didn't even need the VP stepping stone. Oh right, because Bill Clinton is white trash and the worst president ever (in that hall, if nowhere else) If Bill Clinton can make the jump from Little Rock to the Oval Office, certainly Palin can make the jump to the Naval Observatory. this is their one decent arguement that might win over moderates, but they are too full of hate to use it. (and they know it would terrify the few people who actually like them) must be tough.

oh, can can Governor Palin actually pronounce Obama? I notice she didn't even give a US senator and presidential nominee the common respect of using his name. guess it's easier to demonize someone that way.

oh, and I wonder what kind of disconnect would allow the republican convention to scream madly for 'change'. isn't the last 8 years a GOP wet dream? do they get that when everyone talks about 'change' they are directly appealing to the people who can't stand the policies enacted by the heroes of the people in that room?

it's the same disconnect that allows Palin to mock Democrats' concerns for civil liberties of detainees and five minutes later discuss how being tortured makes McCain a better man. I tell you, we must be created a lot of really great Arab men, huh?

As somebody who actually STUDIES American history for a profession, I don't know what is more horrifying: That Palin invoked HST who, as this article points out, had EXTENSIVE political and international experience, OR, that a lot of people will probably eat this right up and think: Harry S Truman = Sarah Palin.

I don't know what is more horrifying: That Palin invoked HST who, as this article points out, had EXTENSIVE political and international experience, OR, that a lot of people will probably eat this right up and think: Harry S Truman = Sarah Palin.

What's worse is that Bush's defenders have been comparing him to HST, noting that Truman was vilified during his Presidency but his stock has gone up since. Huckabee was spouting this line on NPR this morning.

No one points out guys like Garfield, Grant and Hoover, whose presidencies were considered failures then and are still considered failures.

Wow ... I didn't know there were so many other Independence folks here -- small frickin' world! I currently live about 7 miles east of the Truman library, drive past the old Truman home weekly, and have looked up quite a bit about him.

And from that research, I can assure anyone that it's an insult for her to compare herself to him. That's not to say he was as pure as fresh snow -- not at all.

But he did actually EARN his way into the job. He worked his ass off, played the game, and made onto the ticket.

The job wasn't handed to him because FDR needed to placate some clinically insane group of supporters who didn't think FDR was radical enough.

So please, Palin, stop. Just ... stop.

So McCain thinks he can be the proud possessor of both a trophy wife and a trophy vice.

Don't worry Cindy. I'm sure he won't confuse the two of you.

Hey Palin, Truman was a member of the Democratic Party.

Not to throw a wrench in their convention, but can't they find a republican for comparison ? And his infamous "the buck stops here" line was because republicans were trying to get him tossed for corruption.

So by her making the comparison and Bush making the comparison, don't the rules of algebra tell us Palin has to equal Bush ?

It must be nice to never have to know anything about anything and have your entire party get right behind w/o question. Nice for them, but man it's been hard on the rest of us.

Here you go again Steve, attacking the patriotism of John McCain. Why is it that, on every topic of discussion, you believe that you must attack our next president's patriotism?

To attack Sarah Palin for comparing herself to HST is not only attacking John's patriotism, it is also sexist! To question Sarah's qualifications is to attack John's patriotism! To question her understanding of national and international policy is to attack John's patriotism!

Did you surrender monkeys forget that Senator McCain was a P.O.W. for 5 1/2 years! On that basis alone, you should never question his patriotism. The next one of you blogger jerks who questions anything about Senator McCain will get our republican owned media back into their role as protector of the great American hero!

Repent! Become a republican.

She even tried to steal the 'do-nothing Congress' line from Truman. However, he had a Congress that had a prominent Republican majority, not a paper-thin one. But I hope she uses it again, so we can point out which party's obstructionism has kept the Congress from achieving anything.

I was hoping Margaret Truman was still alive, so she could be interviewed on this, but sadly she died this year.

Look, Independence, MO, is not a small town. It's a large suburb of Kansas City. See here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence,_mo

Until this year, the most of the Independence schools were party of a consolidated KC school district. Likewise, Wikipedia notes that the KC Library system runs some branches in Independence.

Is "habber-dasher" a sign of a phonetically written speech? I think I saw a reference to "new-clear" elsewhere. It would have been funny if she had bragged about her resemblance to a habe-er-daesh-er.

"...but can't they find a Republican for comparison?..."
Off the top of my head, the only Republican that I can think of that literally worked his way to the top via the system is one A. Lincoln. Wonder what he would think of today's Republican Party?

palin and mccain are schemers,they know they hold no shance to stand up against the embodiment of Integrity,Trith,Righteousnees Mr.Barack Obama so they stooped so low to boo and mock Obama.He would never stoop to the level of these lousy power hungry'put-nation-first-crap',when all they are lookin forward to is get into the whitehouse and turn themselves into the next evil Hitler like Bush has become.

dsmkv qvzkp oryn bmzw xswziyce hxbket ztoncugw