Thread: Something interesting to ponder on Palin...

My wife brought up an interesting thought topic I hadn't considered about Palin.

Do you think Palin would have been chosen as a VP Candidate if she were a he instead?


I am not so sure she would have been picked my self but it is hard to support that in my mind since I don't know what McCain and his advisors knew about her before he made his choice. It seems as though she has been a liability to his campaign (less so than the economy as of late).

I would like everyone to try and stick to supporting their position rather than straight bashing or supporting Palin (the two may intersect and that is fine, but support your opinion first and foremost please!)

So then:

What say you?

It seems to me the only reason Palin could possibly have been selected as VP is because she is an attractive woman. If that is accurate, she wouldn't have been considered if she were a he, or even a homely she. It seems apparent that McCain selected Palin without ever having spoken with her. She gets stumped by any question, regardless of the complexity. He must have just picked her from a catalog.

I think Palin was chosen for what I call the "vagina vote". McCain saw an opportunity after Clinton lost the primary to bring a lot of women to his side, and I think it was a bit chauvanistic. I surmise that he thought women would follow a woman simply because of the genitals, not realizing that they vote sex as well as issues. He shoots, he misses.

Originally Posted by sicboater

Do you think Palin would have been chosen as a VP Candidate if she were a he instead?

Oh man, probably not.

Sometimes I also wonder if the polls would be any different (or if the primaries would have produced different results) if McCain were black and Obama were white

Certainly not. She was brought on board in a feeble attempt to attract Clinton voters.

While we're on Palin, does anyone have any thoughts on her refusal to label abortion clinic bombers as domestic terrorists??

If Palin were a male, her extreme right stances (abstinence only teachings, zero abortions, creationsism only in schools, etc.) would not have been tolerated either by the moderate Republicans, or by the general voting public. I believe she was given special lee-way entirely because she's a woman.

Mark

Originally Posted by maplemaker

I surmise that he thought women would follow a woman simply because of the genitals, not realizing that they vote sex as well as issues. He shoots, he misses.

For some reason, this kind of thing reminds me of a Chris Rock joke: "No one hates a white woman more than other white women.".

Chris L

He didn't choose her. He never met her before.
I think it is safe to say that she was chosen for him by the party leadership.
And no, she wouldn't have been chose if she were a he. She'd be another Dick Cheny, but without the benefit of the old boys network and the military affiliations.

Originally Posted by Bruno

He didn't choose her. He never met her before.

Just to set the record straight - according to this article by a reporter who interviewed some of McCain's aides, McCain did meet Palin before offering her the VP slot.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/26/ma...1&ref=politics

Here is a quote from page 7:

"... The next morning was Thursday, Aug. 28. Salter and Schmidt drove Palin to McCain’s ranch. According to Salter, the senator took the governor down to a place where he usually had his coffee, beside a creek and a sycamore tree, where a rare breed of hawk seasonally nested. They spoke for more than an hour. Then the two of them walked about 40 yards to the deck of the cabin where the McCains slept. Cindy joined them there for about 15 minutes, after which the McCains excused themselves and went for a brief stroll to discuss the matter. When they returned, McCain asked for some time with Schmidt and Salter. “And we did our pros and cons on all of them,” Salter told me. “He just listened. Asked a couple of questions. Then said, ‘I’m going to offer it to her.’ ” "

I think McCain picked Palin to placate his "base". He probably felt that he could deliver the middle of the road voters and Palin the right-wingers. Things do not seem to be working out for him.

Lou

Ok he didn't meet her before his campaign, and they only met because she was to be his VP.
They talked for an hour, which means he offered the slot to someone he didn't know before that day, and knew for only an hour.

Initially I thought his choice was a great move and would gain him a lot.
But as the dirt start floating to the top, imo she became more of a liablity.
By now I think he made a fatal mistake with Palin.