Palin's Upcoming Smear Schedule:

Oct. 6: "Obama says our troops target and kill civilians in Afghanistan"

Oct. 9: "Obama showed Bill Ayers how to make pipe bombs"

Oct. 12: "Obama showed Bill Ayers how to make pipe bombs and molest kindergarteners at the same time"

Oct. 15: "Obama told his Al Qaeda bosses which school your kids attend, what you packed them for lunch, and what color underwear they have on."

Oct. 18: "John McCain single-handedly stopped Barack Obama from burning down a Presbyterian church...last Tuesday I think it was...but John's too modest to talk about it..."

Etc.

I just started "Nixonland", and this sort of stretegy of lying in this fashion is exactly what got Nixon ahead.  It seems to be a Republican piece of chicanery for some reason, and it works, sadly enough.  It just seems that, no matter how you or I huff and puff (rightly) about the lies, the fact is, Palin's GOP handlers have ample historical data to be convinced that this is how they need to run their campaign.

It makes me want to wash my hands of this once and for all.  Especially when it is so plain that, in choosing Palin as a running mate, McCain has disqualified himself for higher office in my and many peoples' eyes.

Time to remind the voters that this is a woman who claimed that being able to see Russia from an island in Alaska meant she had foreign policy experience.

The media should hammer her for this, and start to go after he bizarre and treasonous associations, (a husband  belonging to the Alaskan independence party? Fine for an eccentric local pol in the frozen north, terrible for the husband of the VP candidate)

Run what Palin said, then run what Obama said, and accuse her of being the lying pos that she is.

I will be so happy after the elections and she will go the rubber chicken circuit, fading into obscurity after getting quickly bounced from the primaries in 2012 (does anyone think any money people will finance her idiocy?)

At this juncture in time,  "a straighforward lie" is nothing less than I'd expect from Palin.  

And perhaps NBC should not only correct its First Read report, but instead point out that Obama's comment was 100% on the mark based on knowledge of what has been happening in Afhanistan.  There HAVE been too many airstrikes; there HAVE been too many civilian casualties as a result.  

As long ago as 2 years ago, Karzai met with Bush and explained the impact of the airstrikes.  Because absolutely nothing was done to correct the problem, Karzai has recently gone on the record pleading his case.  Nobody is asking the US troops to pack their bags and get the hell out, they are only asking that someone in a position of power take a look at the facts and see that the number of airstrikes are resulting in huge casualties.   And do something about it.

williamyar, Oct 18th prediction is precious.  But can we add:  November 4:  McCain gets his ass kicked and hard?  (too optimistic, I know, a girl can dream, no?)

Hey Jeff, what are the people's reactions up there in Alaska to her continuing boobery? It must be pretty horrifying.

More from Governor Tundra Trash!

Point for the Dems to make: the McCain campaign somehow believes it can use Palin as its attack dog but goes into histrionics whenever the press or the Dems question her in any way. If she wants to accuse Obama of supporting terrorism, she has to be prepared to answer aggressive questions like "what newspapers do you read?"

Blackton, she retains a substantial share of supporters, despite her continuing boobery. Her appalling performances with Gibson and especially Couric have definitely cost her some support, though. Pretty hard to defend that. And her endless repetition of "thanks but no thanks for the bridge to nowhere" has not played so well at home, because (a) more people know how it was dishonest, and (b) they don't like her adopting the Outsiders' labeling.

But two other things have people here much more riled up. The first is her turning over the Governor's office to McCain operatives -- if you try to reach the Governor or certain other high officials, you are now routed through the McCain campaign. Washington operatives descending on the State House does not go over well. The second is her stonewalling and the machinations of her staff and supporters to end the Troopergate investigation. She and the her Republican supporters are acting as if she is guilty of something pretty damning, given the lengths they have gone to try to hush the investigation: lawsuits, ignored legislative subpoenas, more lawsuits and appeals, not to mention the ever-changing story. Stay tuned: they are still working hard to suppress the investigation and its report.

Bottom line: no longer an 80% approval rating. But probably still 60%. If the report does back up the rumor that she personally put pressure on the state's worker's comp contractor to deny a claim by her ex-brother-in-law, that number will drop further. And based on the way her team is acting, you wonder if there may be something worse to hide, although if so I have no idea what it might be.

Lots of Alaska politics-related scoop at The Mudflats: http://mudflats.wordpress.com/. For another month. Alaska politics will be surprisingly relevant to national politics, then with luck it will go back to normal.

Been wondering where you were VC - Govenor Tundra Trash makes the wait worth it.

Jeff - thanks for the link.  My respect has gone up in Alaska for their disgust at Palin's behavior.

To think that this was the matchup I wanted from the beginning. McCain v Obama. Bring forth a respite from politics as usual. Substantive definition thus own it and all that. It's safe to say I'm disappointed. At this point it would be nearly impossible for me to vote for Johnny Mac and Sarah P. It DOES matter how you get there. Nearly all of the hoo-hah is absolutely unnecessary and counterproductive. Just once I would have liked to see an election without outrageous lies of cynically angled context, omission or just straight up bullshit. Obama et al are not without sin but in comparison to the McCain camp they are spotless. Way to fuck it up Johnny boy. I have some concerns which require a resposible steward standing forth. As it is I hope you lose your senate seat.

The latest thing I've noticed is the emphasis on Barack's middle name.  (Perhaps this was covered elsewhere and - if so - forgive me for not staying on topic.)

But Palin is really emphasizing the Hussein middle name, going easier on first and surname.

From now on, Obama and his camp should be sure to refer to their opponents as John Sidney McCain and Sarah Louise Heath Palin.  If middle names are now of such importance, let's play fair.

(I have a special interest int this, admittedly.  My husband's first name is Khalid.  When we discuss our future children's first names, we often wonder just how far we'll have to distance ourselves from his Arab roots.  On the one hand, we have no shame in this.  On the other, we certainly don't want our kids getting their asses kicked on the playground by rightwing children.)

Boxo: thanks for your post and sorry to hear about your disappointment, though not surprised by it.  I was a strong supporter of Mrs. Clinton until South Carolina ... the rest is history.  I never liked POWPOW and the more I have seen of him, the more I am convinced of his baseness - I think the campaign has just brought to the fore the "real" Johnny Mac.  Either way, good to have you on board.

I wonder if at this point the McCain Campaign shouldn't begin a legacy salvage phase, wherein they campaign in the way most likely to preserve as much of McCain's reputation and Senate clout as possible if he loses.  They seem to be going the opposite way a lot of the time

Somewhere, a McCain campaign aide is madly scribbling down williamyard's hilarious post and completely missing the point.

Ick: Truth is I've been rooting for Obama, provisionally speaking, since Iowa. By and large I've been well with his general direction and intended incrimentalism. My biggest complaint is his uncompromised hedge concerning Iraq. I think his hindsight 20/20 prescience is questionable not only from the vntage of his personal practical political realities (district and relative resposibility to collective accountabiltiy) but also from the real time Catch 22 which was very present when all influences and consequences were weighing in with fullness. I believe it tis dishonest to advantage such a turn of events as eveidence of better judgement. He was risking little in any eventuality with the luxury of appearing conscientious regardless of outcome. That this relatively easily purchased wisdom should become foriegn policy axiom is my biggest concern. There are going to be some very tough decisions in front of him. Collectivity is desirable but not at all costs. Compromising for consensus sake is dangerous.

Like boxofrox, I'm disappointed with the tenor of the campaign.  I genuinely thought that we might actually get a relatively civil campaign about the issues.  Maybe this was naive, but both men had shown some real signs that they actually meant it.  For example, during the primaries, there was a rally where McCain was being introduced by Billy Cunningham, who was trying to fire up the crowd by talking about "Barack HUSSEIN Obama," and McCain made it clear that that was unacceptable (Cunningham was absolutely furious about it).  On top of that, I thought McCain would stick to the issues because he genuinely believed that he could convince people he was right on the substance, and Obama obviously felt the same way.

Turns out I misjudged how McCain would react once it became clear that he was losing.

I just started "Nixonland", and this sort of stretegy of lying in this fashion is exactly what got Nixon ahead.  It seems to be a Democratic  piece of chicanery for some reason, and it works, sadly enough.  It just seems that, no matter how you or I huff and puff (rightly) about the lies, the fact is, Obama's Dem handlers have ample historical data to be convinced that this is how they need to run their campaign.

It makes me want to wash my hands of this once and for all.  Especially when it is so plain that, in choosing Biden as a running mate, Obama has disqualified himself for higher office in my and many peoples' eyes.

As Lenin is said to have said: “A lie told often enough becomes truth.” And as this lie passes into truth, the Democrats are ready to deploy it “as the linchpin of an effort to turn McCain’s national security credentials against him,” reports David Paul Kuhn of the Politico.

Hence: A Howard Dean fundraising letter charging McCain with seeking “an endless war in Iraq.” And a Democratic National Committee press release in which Dean asserts: “McCain’s strategy is a war without end. . . . Elect John McCain and get 100 years in Iraq.”

It’s a rank falsehood for the DNC to accuse McCain of wanting to wage ‘endless war’ based on his support for a presence in Iraq something like the U.S. role in South Korea.

The Democrats are undeterred. “It’s seldom you get such a clean shot,” a senior Obama adviser told the Politico. It’s seldom that you see such a dirty lie.

article.nationalreview.com

Let us be mindful of Palin's enablers.  You know, the Bill Kristols, Rich Lowrys, Hugh Hewitts and all the rest.  My faith teaches me that there is a very special place in hell for them all.  But we should all resolve to to acclimate them to what awaits them in the next life by making for them a hell on earth in this one.  Palin is an abomination.  Her enablers no less so.  They all need to suffer.

Like boxo I'm disappointed in McCain, but the fact of the matter is that he's trailing by a couple of scores in the fourth quarter, and it's third-and-long. I guess this is what we should expect.

On the other hand, I've been impressed with some of the more responsible conservatives this time around. Will, Krauthammer, Brooks and a few others have actually been tougher on McCain and Palin, or at least more effectively tough, than anyone among the Dems. Meanwhile, Dems who I'm certain know better have for the most part given Obama-Biden a complete pass on a number of their more shaky assertions.

Although I will vote for Obama, I remain extremely concerned that he may actually believe his own bullshit about the relative strategic importance of Afghanistan vs Iraq, and appears to be largely clueless about what we need to be doing in prosecuting the war to a reasonable conclusion. Given recent developments he may luck out in both places, but it makes me damned nervous.

blackton said:

(does anyone think any money people will finance her idiocy?)

Absolutely, I'm certain you are all too aware of this too.  It is just a matter of packaging her with another one of those gem finds of a VP, lke the GOP's current favorite 5 time deferment blowhard named Cheney.  To me, Palin is the second coming of W - merely a younger and better looking but no less homegrown GOP talking-point variety.

I remain extremely concerned that he may actually believe his own bullshit about the relative strategic importance of Afghanistan vs Iraq, and appears to be largely clueless about what we need to be doing in prosecuting the war to a reasonable conclusion.

I share his views, and regard them as intelligent and very arguable at least (not flawless, of course).  However, no level of cluelessness about the war could possibly equal that of the current administration, so the only place we can go is up.

Sorry, the first para in that post should be attributed to Robert Powell -- I hit submit too fast.  Lunch calls.