The republican candidate for Vice President is more impressive as a speaker than the man above her on the ticket. She blew away her audience in St. Paul, Minnesota. Take nothing away from her performance under such scrutiny and given the pressure she must have felt. To the world Sarah Palin was cool, calm, collected and had the audience eating out of the palm of her hand. She was refreshing.
I would hate to be John McCain. I bet he hates to be John McCain. He has to follow her tonight and he has troubles remembering where the teleprompter is located. Actually, he sometimes forgets where he is located, but that is an entirely separate matter. Hopefully, the latter will not happen to him tonight. Maybe he should consider letting Palin give his acceptance speech. I wonder if that is an option… probably not.
This columnist is still waiting to see how Palin performs under tough media and debate style questioning formats. Immediately following her selection by McCain one news channel aired an old interview with her. She gave long winded answers to every question and she repeated herself numerous times during the long windedness.
Barack Obama still has the slight edge over her as a speaker. Perhaps she can edge him out in the interview category. I realize that she is the Republican Vice Presidential candidate, but she is their buzz, not McCain. For the next few days the media will focus on Palin, Obama and McCain, in that order. Joe Biden gets lost in the mix. He can go fishing, or whatever he does for fun. He is irrelevant.
McCain's health is critical mostly because there are people out there, one of which is me, who believe he will not make it through a full term in the Oval Office. So, I want to know that Sarah Palin can step into the funny shaped room and take over as Commander in Chief. If I believe she is qualified, the republican ticket has my vote in November. Last night the lady from Alaska caught my attention and the attention of millions of other Americans. Can she now hold that attention and show that she is qualified for the job?
No one was more critical than me of her lackluster performance in the interview which aired immediately following her selection announcement. I was prepared to be very disappointed in her speech at the Republican National Convention. Instead, I have now listened to it three times. Now I want to hear her take the tough questions and I would also like to know that I agree with her politics before I vote for her.
There was no shortage of pundits and political figures weighing in on her speech. Most everyone, republican and democrat alike, thought she gave a remarkable performance, even if those evaluating her did not agree with her. Conspicuously absent from the lineup of those commenting were Hillary and Bill Clinton. I do wonder what Hillary thought of the woman who made it into the final four without campaigning.
Hillary Clinton got eighteen million votes in the primaries while racking up a huge campaign debt, yet she was not even considered for her party's final two. Obama never even looked at her for his running mate. Palin's path to the final four was very easy. She was building igloos, or whatever they do for fun in Alaska, rubbing noses and having a baby while Hillary Clinton tracked around the country trying to claim the prize that was earmarked for a Clinton, or so she thought.
It is ironic that the “man” who is capable of captivating an audience in the way Barack Obama captivates them is actually a woman. The hubbub over a woman was on the Democratic side of the primary race. Barack Obama overcame that hubbub only to find there is yet another woman blocking the door of the Oval Office and she may take some of the votes he marked on the tote board as his.
So, Sarah Barracuda, all eyes and ears are on you… put your best foot forward and be the first woman in history to make it to the Vice Presidency of The United States. I am ready to pull the lever for you if you give me substance outside of a prepared speech.
