Readers Write: What the Palin Pick Means for America

By Tana Ganeva and Isaac Fitzgerald, AlterNet. Posted September 4, 2008.

On the bright side, some feel that Palin's unpreparedness may be one of the best things to have happened to Democrats in a long time.

Writes Atheistcable:

Personally, I hope that McCain keeps Palin as VP choice through October. I am glad that McCain is recognizing the demands of James Dobson and others. I hope that in mid-October, McCain tells the voters that he will appoint Born-Again Christian Tom DeLay as Secretary of the Treasury, and Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN) as head of Health and Human Services. I hope that McCain recommends Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania as Secretary of State. If this list doesn't result in an 89% landslide victory for Barack Obama -- I don't know what would. But picking Palin is a great start -- I think she's wonderful for the Democrats.

Not everyone is as optimistic as Atheistcable, however. Many see McCain's pick not as an embarrassing slipup that will profit Democrats, but as brilliant "Rovian" politics:

Jimidee writes:

Palin's pick was not a reckless act by John McCain, but a carefully calculated one by the McCain staff, and maybe the "Architect," Karl Rove himself. It has his fingerprints all over it. How else can you explain this act that is irrational on the face?

The fact that Palin has a pregnant daughter was part of the decision to select her. They knew full well that with the MSM's penchant for smut stories, that it would jump all over this one. This was guaranteed if they let it out after the fact, like they were trying to hide it. The MSM took the bait and swallowed the hook and ran it like they stole it. Predictably, the right wing base evangelicals felt so sorry for the girl and rallied in supported the mother. Mission Accomplished.

Meltedpriest warns:

Discount Sarah Palin at our collective peril. ... She could well help the Repugnicans into another 4 years. She plays well to crowds; she's not Dan Quayle; and she's a woman who represents a change from the status quo (at least, symbolically).

larryo also believes that picking Palin was a smart move:

I think they knew all about Sarah Palin and they nominated her as a distraction because of the skeletons in her closet and her eccentricities, knowing it would appeal to the evangelical loonies (of which she is one, in spades) and divert everyone's attention from the real issues, discussion of which is bad for them.

Bmikkelsen agrees:

You are absolutely right. This is win-win for the dark forces. They have already succeeded in 24/7 coverage of this woman, re-introducing the culture war discussion, and setting the media up as the fall guy if she ends up pilloried.

Whether a brilliant tactic or a fatal mistake, many commenters thought McCain's underlying reasons for picking Palin were sexist.

According to Spiritgirl, McCain's decision to go with Palin

... assumes that no one is paying attention to politics. This assumes that all of the women that voted for Hillary just want a woman in office! This is an insult to the intelligence of all women regardless of party affiliation! This is just another example of McShame's reasoning! To think that he could pander to the female vote by selecting a rabid right wing woman shows his poor judgment, lack of critical thinking, and his disdain for American women!

ava1984 sums up concerns about McCain's sexism with: "Does McSame think that Hillary supporters will follow just any vagina? I hope not."

With all this controversy surrounding Palin, it will be interesting to see how the months leading up to the election play out.

PaulK captures Palin's first week on the national stage quite nicely:

That's it, I'm speechless. My only regret is having temporarily run out of popcorn.

It's easy to agree. At least until we remember that this is for the White House.
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