She sounds like George W. Bush with a vagina.

I agree but, why? Why is it chilling? I think it is time that those who share your view about Palin to become much more specific in why her behavior as governor, laid out in this article, should disqualify her from being VP or, god forbid, President.

She is insular, depending only those loyal to her for advice and council on important matters of state.

She hires cronies and friends, without regard to their qualifications to do the job.

She is petty and vindictive to those who do not fall in line behind her and offer unequivocal support for her positions.

She lies and misleads in order to gain political advantage.

If all this sounds familiar it is because the very same applies to Bush and it is for these very reasons that this country now finds itself in a very precarious position, domestically and internationally.

She sounds more and more like Bush-- only worse. Her department of agriculture director reminds me of Brownie being selected to run FEMA.

As far as I can remember Bush didn't run Texas the way that he has governed from the White House. In that way Palin is much, much worse because she has been vindictive and petty from the get-go. All of this makes me think that "troopergate" might really expose her because it completely fits with her personality and track record.

John McCain doesn't matter any more. The election isn't about him. A jumped-up Harpy from Hell has seized the limelight, hypnotized the populous, confounded the media, neutered the opposition, and charted a sure-fire beeline to World Domination (a.k.a. the White House}. Is it all just theater? Are we dreaming? Has Stephen King cast a spell?

I love the "cows" part of the Havermeister lady's qualifications ...

no wonder the McCain campaign can't talk about serious issues: the entire staff is doing Palin Damage Control 24/7

note the operative idea in Palin's appointments, namely, that expertise does not matter: it also applies to herself and her selection as VP nominee

Great: Wasilla Yearbook, class of '86 is going to collectively run the free world.

I thought we'd be going down like the Roman Empire... but this is more like Easter Island... from thriving civilization to extinction within a heartbeat.

Todd seems to be popping up all over the place.

Yeah, this is worse than Bush. She actually believes what she is doing is Right. Bush did most of this because he wanted to be re-elected, and after that, he didn't give a shit.

Being from Cleveland, this reminds me of the Boy Mayor, Dennis Kucinich. The guy was a total disaster. Secrecy, cronyism, us vs them... he ruined the city for years.

Thank you Tina Fey, thank you...... what a performance last night. It hit all the nails..... dumb, hiding behind her sex, the media needing to grow a 'few', the breathtaking naivete, etc.

This was what grabbed me:

Ms. Palin chose Talis Colberg, a borough assemblyman from the Matanuska valley, as her attorney general, provoking a bewildered question from the legal community: "Who?" Mr. Colberg, who did not return calls, moved from a one-room building in the valley to one of the most powerful offices in the state, supervising some 500 people.

"I called him and asked, 'Do you know how to supervise people?' " said a family friend, Kathy Wells. "He said, 'No, but I think I'll get some help.' "

I disagree that it is "chilling" that Palin may soon end up U.S. President.

It's "chilling" that Palin is about to contract Dick Cheney's unaccountable, all-powerful "Fourth Branch of Government" Vice Presidential office. If you liked Dick Cheney's brand of power-mad manipulation of everything he wanted, but thought he lacked enough fundamentalist crazy, you'll love Sarah Palin.

It's "run screaming to the hills frightening" that Palin may soon end up U.S. President.

If you liked George W. Bush Jr., but thought he was too calm, collected, diplomatic, open-governing, respecting of the Constitution and the law, and fair-handed, and that he wasn't apocalyptic Christian enough, you'll LOVE Sarah Palin as President.

If the entire Democratic Party, every member of Congress, every existing and former politician, fail to do everything they can to get Obama elected, the Democratic Party just needs to dissolve and re-register as Republicans.

Maybe we can use her "proximity to Russia" foreign policy experience against her---and start referring to her as "Stalinist"---because her penchant for "getting rid" of qualified people, only to replace them with personal acquaintances who have absolutely no qualifications, looks a whole lot like one of those early Stalinist pogrom.

Bush "looked into the eyes of Putin and saw his soul" he enabled a resurgent Russian machine that smacks of Soviet militarism. Cheney and all the other Bushylvanians further enabled the sleeping monster to revive itself by playing "war" in Iraq---and grinding the American military into the dust through attrition and crony-ist quartermastering. The Right-wing "noise machine" labeled Progressives and Liberals and anyone else who dared question or criticize the Bush regime as "fascists."

Palin is an evil blending of Stalinism and Dominionism; a religious-minority construct of a political-minority construct. Mightn't we contemplate this as "putting lipstick on the Antichrist?"

While all the items listed above might be problems for most candidates, for a Republican, they're qualifications.

For me the most frightening part of the article was the use of private email for official business.

From the NYT:

dozens of e-mail messages obtained by The New York Times show that her staff members studied whether that could allow them to circumvent subpoenas seeking public records.

That is exactly the kind of behavior that has to be avoided in our government. Whether popularly elected or appointed, all government officials are paid with taxpayer money and need to be accountable to the taxpayers for their actions.

By hiding their communication from subpeoenas, how do the good citizens of Alaska know what they are doing with their tax money and who they are doing it to?

Steve wrote. "Forget Sarah Palin's multiple scandals. And put aside her series of demonstrably false claims. And disregard, for a moment, her thin resume, lack of qualifications, and apparent disinterest in current events."

If Ms. Palin were 'disinterested' in current events that would be just fine with me. It's her complete 'uninterest' in current events that is disturbing.

Sadly, I think a slim majority of Americans would love to be lorded over by this woman. I'm afraid that's the core of the GOP's appeal, they offer to become the parent to an infantilized America. The "daddy party" has now become the "mommy party" and American democracy is now under serious threat.

NYTimes:

Last summer State Representative John Harris, the Republican speaker of the House, picked up his phone and heard Mr. Palin’s voice. The governor’s husband sounded edgy. He said he was unhappy that Mr. Harris had hired John Bitney as his chief of staff, the speaker recalled. Mr. Bitney was a high school classmate of the Palins and had worked for Ms. Palin. But she fired Mr. Bitney after learning that he had fallen in love with another longtime friend.

—————-
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122092043531812813.html?mod=special_page_campaign2008_topbox
What happened in between? According to Mr. Bitney, Gov. Palin got a call from another old friend, Scott Richter, informing her that his wife, Debbie Richter, and Mr. Bitney were having an affair. Mr. Bitney had kept that secret from the governor, even as he told her of his divorce, he said.

Allies of Republican presidential nominee John McCain like to point out that his running mate is the governor of the largest state in the union. But at times, Alaska seems more like a small town, run by folks with overlapping professional, political and personal ties that can be difficult to untangle.

Gov. Palin and her husband, Todd Palin, were also close friends of the Richters. Ms. Richter served as treasurer of Gov. Palin’s gubernatorial campaign and her inaugural committee. After taking office, Gov. Palin put Ms. Richter in charge of the Permanent Fund Dividend Division at the Department of Revenue. The fund allocates oil revenues to Alaska residents; this year each Alaskan is expected to receive $3,269.

The two couples owned property together on Safari Lake, north of Wasilla, according to Gov. Palin’s financial disclosure reports. Each couple had its own cabin on the land, where the families would vacation side by side, according to Ms. Richter. In the most recent disclosure form, the governor reported that she and Mr. Palin now own the property with Mr. Richter alone.

“They were, you know, professionally my bosses, but they were my friends,” Mr. Bitney said of the Palins. “And so what caused them to want me to leave the governor’s office was my relationship, my divorce, my dating a woman with whom they had a personal relationship.”

When Gov. Palin was notified by Mr. Richter in July 2007, she called Mr. Bitney into her office. She already knew he was going through a divorce, and, Mr. Bitney said, he had “led her to believe there weren’t going to be any more surprises.”

Mr. Bitney said the governor “indicated to me that she was hurt, disappointed and upset, and that she didn’t know what she wanted to do.”

A few days later, Gov. Palin’s chief of staff “indicated to me that I needed to leave the governor’s office,” Mr. Bitney said.

“I understand why I had to go,” Mr. Bitney said. “I accept that. I was in the governor’s office and a trusted adviser. I betrayed that trust by not being forthcoming about what was going on in my personal life.”

My big problem with Sarah is how she keeps portraying the tazering incident. Without explaining the incident it seems her sister's ex just goes around tazering kids. It's just not true! and a deliberate intent to deceive.(lie)

For an interesting comparison between Gov. Sarah Palin and Gov. Rod Blagojevich of IL, read "Rod and Sarah, Part II":

http://thecapitolfaxblog.com/2008/09/12/rod-and-sarah-part-2/

Actually, as has been suggested elsewhere, I think McCain is in the early stages of some serious cognitive decline-- think Reagan post assassination attempt. McCain is strictly a figurehead, and, as Frank Rich points out in the NYT today, a weaker figurehead than Bush II.

Contrast the NYT article with CNN's Palin Revealed last night. CNN treated her with kid gloves - just a religious, folksy hockey mom turned governor. They did talk about Troopergate a bit, but made it sound like it was Wooten's fault. They also talked to the former mayor about their contentious campaign, but he caved (or perhaps the interview was sliced and diced ala Colbert). No mention of most of the stuff in the Times article. And the only people they interviewed other than Wooten and the former Wasilla mayor (whom Sarah defeated) were her dad, friends and sister, all sympathetic.

Heckuva job, CNN!

McCain and Palin have vowed to clean up Washington. Well someone is going to clean up, but it isn't going to be us. Unless you are one of their "friends of the program".

So many appalling points to comment on, so little time. One that struck me was her telling her colleague 10 years ago that she wanted to be president; apparently she has spent none of those years learning about anything she would need to know to actually, you know, BE president. George Bush with a vagina, indeed.

Palin and Bush don't govern: they rule. In Bush's case he thinks he's entitled because of his pedigree, and in Palin's case she has learned how to use power ruthlessly. Palin is probably better at it than Bush, and less concerned about it showing.

How would a cowering Congress respond to Palin's dictatorial style? Talk about a reality show.

the "myth" of the "idyllic" small town America is just that... a myth, this type of clique dominated government happens in a lot of small towns. Some of that is because like in any small organization 20% does 80% of the work...

this is Know-Nothing ism raised to an art form by the modern GOP

McCain is Palin's "towel boy" now and the faster the Obama campaign makes that known , the better.

It's a good thing some foreign dictator didn't try to kill her Daddy.

Goldilocks wrote: "Has Stephen King cast a spell?"

Yes. Sarah Palin is a female version of Greg Stillson.

"McCain/Palin?

Thanks, but no thanks."

Hmm, has a certain ring to it, don't you think? Sounds like a good campaign slogan to me...

GoBama/Biden '08!

Mooselini!

[all-caps trolling deleted]

SecularAnimist: Sarah Palin is a female version of Greg Stillson.

See, I was thinking she was more like the real-life Tracy Flick.

Why not shout a bit louder - there's someone somewhere in Alaska who can't quite hear you.

You know, if you shout loud enough, you might even make it true.

If only in your own parallel universe.

Well then, feel free to keep her as your governor and the hell away from the levers of power in Washington.

I also wonder about her actual popularity, given that the anti-Palin protest in Anchorage yesterday drew a larger crowd than the Palin Rally a few blocks away. Check out the pictures at Mudflats.

It won't matter a diddle, anthony, how much lipstick you put on your evil empress; she's not going to win a damned thing except a complete and utter rejection by the majority of American voters. Hell's bells, child---you can't even get the majority of Evangelicals to back her!

Now take your freaking Bullwinkle-in-heels sock puppet, and go back to the polar bears---before we sell you both on eBay to the Moscow Zoo...

John McCain has picked someone to be Vice President who thinks the Freedom of Speech shouldn't be used except to show agreement with authority figures. His judgment isn't very good and he isn't the person we need as President in 2009.

She sounds like George W. Bush with a vagina.

I agree.

Palin is too much of a loyal Bushite to have been picked by McCain. McCain isn't running the show, and everybody knows that.

And over at Daily Kos - Doctors are worried about McCain health - now that we may seriously get Palin for Preznet, it's pretty scare stuff.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/9/14/1447/28754/449/598558

That the Democrats picked Obama for the TOP of your ticket makes even less sense.

What you don't get about Sarah Palin is that she is tapping into the spirit of what this nation is all about... rugged individualism ... not a hand out expecting the government to take care of her. She is a true feminist who made it on her own rather than riding the coattails of her husband.

Thim Scott,

Not a hand out expecting the government to take care of her.....

Holy fuck you jackass...

What the fuck do you think those earmarks were you fucking idiot?

How she likes to govern? She doesn't. That's the whole point. She's a libertarian, who believes in cutting back the size of government. Which of course, has the liberal establishment screaming from the rooftops, (of their Starbucks and Tea Parlors).

Never since Goldwater have we had such a libertarian candidate on a major party ticket. Predictably, the liberal elite doesn't know how to react, so they're lashing out at everything hoping something will stick. Problem is more they lash out, the more her popularity grows.

It's not so much Sarah Palin, it's the appeal of libertarian views that's raising her popularity.

Two gracious ladies questioned my defense of GOP Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin for attempting along with her husband and father to remove her former brother-in-law from the Alaska State Police Force. My defense of Sarah Palin has nothing to do who I am voting for; Ralph Nader, as of this date.

Palin, in my opinion, acted with restraint. Trooper Mike Wooten should have been promptly removed from the police force and any officials protecting him were not worthy of command. In support of this contention, I am relying an Amnesty International Report detailing the number of fatalities caused by Tasers.

The Amnesty International report points out the 150 fatalities caused by police use of Tasers in alleged line of duty. There is no question that Wooten conducted a "test" of this dangerous weapon on a 10-year-old boy. Wooten's Taser was government property and before Sarah Palin became Governor Palin, he was suspended for about a week because of this. That was a farce, in my opinion. Tasers should only be used when the sole alternative is deadly force from a pistol or handgun.

Breslin's column is about a 2001 mayoral debate, which minions of Mark Green at the New York Times and elsewhere and Alan Hevesi tried to bar me from but Father O'Hare, chairperson of the Campaign Finance Board (CFB), sponsor of the debate, insisted that I appear in both debates the CFB had control of. Both Green and Hevesi were critical of my criticism of the Israeli occupation which did not appear in the Breslin column. Also, my campaign emphasized ending Stop and Frisk and Entrapment and also equipping police with handheld weapons detectors which would negate the often wrongly used deadly force when it was not needed. Breslin did note that (see below) that I was for legalizing marijuana and decriminalizing other drugs.

The consequence was I was banned from Channel one and regulations were changed so candidates like George Spitz were barred from the debate in 2005. Ironically, one of the candidates who was excluded, Christopher Brodeur, got almost as many votes as the best financed candidate,City Council Speaker Gifford Miller and actually more votes than Miller in the Bronx.

Progressive Democrats like Amy should be careful of doing the work of the machine Democrats by careless criticism of Sarah Palin. We have seen how quickly they act to crush progressives like Steve Harrison or Jonathan Tasini, who Notorious Lexington Democratic Club State Committee Members took the lead in preventing him from speaking at the Democratic State convention and later bragged about it.

Palin’s Democratic opponent, Senator Joe Biden is a questionable choice. Biden took over $200,000 from the leading credit card company in Delaware and his son was put on the payroll of that firm at $100 thousand a year. If Obama had nominated a superb woman Governor, such as Kathleen Sebelius, for Vice President, Sarah Palin would not present a problem and likely would not have even been nominated.

Two gracious ladies questioned my defense of GOP Vice Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin for attempting along with her husband and father to remove her former brother-in-law from the Alaska State Police Force. My defense of Sarah Palin has nothing to do who I am voting for; Ralph Nader, as of this date.

Palin, in my opinion, acted with restraint. Trooper Mike Wooten should have been promptly removed from the police force and any officials protecting him were not worthy of command. In support of this contention, I am relying an Amnesty International Report detailing the number of fatalities caused by Tasers.

The Amnesty International report points out the 150 fatalities caused by police use of Tasers in alleged line of duty. There is no question that Wooten conducted a "test" of this dangerous weapon on a 10-year-old boy. Wooten's Taser was government property and before Sarah Palin became Governor Palin, he was suspended for about a week because of this. That was a farce, in my opinion. Tasers should only be used when the sole alternative is deadly force from a pistol or handgun.

Breslin's column is about a 2001 mayoral debate, which minions of Mark Green at the New York Times and elsewhere and Alan Hevesi tried to bar me from but Father O'Hare, chairperson of the Campaign Finance Board (CFB), sponsor of the debate, insisted that I appear in both debates the CFB had control of. Both Green and Hevesi were critical of my criticism of the Israeli occupation which did not appear in the Breslin column. Also, my campaign emphasized ending Stop and Frisk and Entrapment and also equipping police with handheld weapons detectors which would negate the often wrongly used deadly force when it was not needed. Breslin did note that (see below) that I was for legalizing marijuana and decriminalizing other drugs.

The consequence was I was banned from Channel one and regulations were changed so candidates like George Spitz were barred from the debate in 2005. Ironically, one of the candidates who was excluded, Christopher Brodeur, got almost as many votes as the best financed candidate,City Council Speaker Gifford Miller and actually more votes than Miller in the Bronx.

Progressive Democrats like Amy should be careful of doing the work of the machine Democrats by careless criticism of Sarah Palin. We have seen how quickly they act to crush progressives like Steve Harrison or Jonathan Tasini, who Notorious Lexington Democratic Club State Committee Members took the lead in preventing him from speaking at the Democratic State convention and later bragged about it.

Palin’s Democratic opponent, Senator Joe Biden is a questionable choice. Biden took over $200,000 from the leading credit card company in Delaware and his son was put on the payroll of that firm at $100 thousand a year. If Obama had nominated a superb woman Governor, such as Kathleen Sebelius, for Vice President, Sarah Palin would not present a problem and likely would not have even been nominated.