The Pitch
PalinLess Than Meets the EyeThursday, October 02, 2008 By Ben Mangold
Six weeks ago, if you were told any woman besides Hillary Clinton would have had a shot at the White House in the coming election, you would have been laughed at. But as you undoubtedly know, John McCain has chosen the fine Governor Sarah Palin, of Alaska, to join him on the Republican ballot. After the announcement at the Republican National Convention, the two continued to campaign together, as opposed to the typical campaign move to separate and campaign separately. During their time together, Palin was sheltered from the media, and avoided making a public statement until an ABC interview that aired on Sept. 11, 2008. In that interview, Palin was vague, indecisive and unclear when answering straight questions on her beliefs about this country. Palin offered no concrete answers as to her qualifications and experience in politics and whether or not she was prepared enough to potentially run the country. Even when asked point blank, yes or no to if she agreed with the Bush Doctrine, she strayed from giving a definite ‘yes.’ Her long, wordy answer suggests that she feels that we have the right to invade anywhere the government feels there are terrorists, all the while leaving the exact meaning of her answer vague and in her terms. Should we really put this woman in the White House? Sure, it’s typical of politicians to avoid giving concrete answers to such questions, and that there’s nothing more we should expect from her. Wrong. As inexperienced as Palin is, she should be straightforward with the American people. Right now she is hiding behind a wall of words, cowardly trying to protect herself from the media. In order for McCain to make his vice presidential nomination seem more than just an attempt to garner Hillary Clinton’s former supporters, he needs to throw Palin out into the fire fight that is the American media. Hiding her away is just going to make her seem like more of a cowardly n00b who isn’t ready to be potentially put in the White House. This point is exemplified by her response to the question concerning the Bush doctrine, in which she strayed from the question, as if she was doing everything in her ability to answer the question without showing she actually knew what the doctrine entailed. And once it was made it clear what ideals were represented within the doctrine, she supported it even though we have seen over the last eight years that it is extremely flawed and dangerous for ourselves and the rest of the world. |