The much-anticipated VP debate is over and both stuck well to my debate warnings on an earlier post. Neither candidate had the “train wreck” that was predicted leaving many viewers more disappointed than the remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. 

In a nutshell here are some initial poll results (compiled from several news sources)… 

Who won the debate? 

The edge has gone to Joe Biden by about 2/1. Sarah Palin did well and certainly did not lose ground (other than her obvious dodging of some questions) but she needed a home run. Biden only needed to hold firm.  

Who is ready? 

Although both exceeded expectations, Palin fell well short in the polls related to “Do you think Sarah Palin is qualified to be Vice President.” People felt about 4/1 that Biden was more qualified to be VP. 

Did it change your mind? 

For the most part, the VP debate did not change the minds of those who had already decided whom they were voting for. Those that were undecided gave Obama/Biden a bit more of a nod for the November win (2/1). 

Other Stuff…

Most people found Gwen Ifill very fair in moderating, some thought Biden smiled too much at Palin, and others are still trying to get use to Sarah Palin’s voice (one reader went so far as to say she would turn on the “close captioning” to avoid hearing her). 

At this point it will be like most elections; The VP’s did well and the focus will, once again, fall back on those at the top of the ticket. 

Feel free to add your thoughts in the comment section…

Apparently Sarah Palin is special (and I don’t mean short bus special). She gets treated differently than all the other candidates…ever. 

She doesn’t have to do interviews and if she does, no one is allowed to ask a question off script. Of course that didn’t work on a few occasions so lately it is no interviews with anyone. 

So why the brush off? 

One school of thought is the McCain camp is simply sexist. Frankly I don’t believe that or he never would have chosen her in the first place. 

I think in reality the McCain team is trying to get a short-time governor up to speed in a real hurry. When Palin has answered questions lately she has been off the mark or outright inaccurate – she is showing how much she doesn’t know. 

The “Educating Sarah” phase will have to go pretty quickly as the Vice Presidential debates will be coming soon and people are going to look for substance, not just wisecracking comments from a “hockey mom” – she is not auditioning for the Last Comic Standing after all.   

Sarah, stop the hiding. Get out and answer questions like the big boys (no pun intended). You won’t get to pick what issues you get to deal with if you make it into office, so no sense in starting now. It is how you answer the tough questions that define your character, not simply sidestepping them and blaming others. 

I think I see at last how Sarah Palin fits the mold of a politician. Her carefully crafted image in the foreground (what we are suppose to see) is maintained well in the background (with secrecy and questionable actions).

If you are on her side, good things happen. Her high-school classmate, Franci Havemeister, was appointed to a $95,000-a-year job.

On her bad side, such as Sherry Whitsine (a local blogger who was chronicling inconsistencies in Palin’s activity online) you then receive phone calls from the governors’ office saying to immediately stop.

The New York Times reported that Palin and her staff sometimes used personal e-mail accounts for state business. Why? Well her staff members studied whether that could allow them to circumvent subpoenas seeking public records.

Yea Palin, you will fit right in…

I think once everyone gets beyond the charming looks and the “hockey mom” persona, they are going to want to know a little about Alaska and Sarah Plain at the helm. 

Not “just like” the lower 48 states… 

• Alaska ranks number 1 in spending per resident. 

• Alaska’s tax burden per resident is more than double the national average. 

• Alaska residents get an annual check for $2,000 from oil revenues PLUS an additional $1,200 (obtained by Palin last year) to take advantage of increasing oil prices (hey, where was the help for the rest of us?!)

The state has four different taxes on oil before it leaves the state. Despite that revenue…

• Alaska ranks number 1 in money obtained from Washington.

• Alaska ranks 18th in federal taxes paid by residents ($5,434).

• Alaska ranks number 1 in federal spending received by residents ($13,950). 

McCain did well choosing someone that is starting to realize “celebrity” status – it may just be what his campaign needed. 

If Sarah Palin’s speech sounded familiar last night it should. It was written by George Bush’s writer Matthew Scully. Although I don’t think the McCain campaign thought people would pick up on the similarities, they did. 

The speech, designed to walk a tightrope of attacking Obama and laying hooks for McCain’s speech tonight was actually written before they even knew who would be reading it. 

I suspect it is a lot like playing Political Mad Libs. You remember, that game as a kid where you picked nouns, verbs and adverbs and placed them in “blanks” just to see how a seemingly normal text could be funny? Same thing there. 

Stick to the same Bush plans but insert some “Alaska” references, “all families have it tough”, and being “compassionate.” Viola – you have a speech for Sarah Palin. 

Next up, McCain! 

Place Your Bet on Sarah! I don’t usually pass on Newswire info but since we were on the subject anyway…

DUBLIN, September 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Ireland’s largest bookmaker, Paddy Power, have reported a “steady flow” of support for Barack Obama to be the next American President. 

The betting company were forced to slash Obama’s odds yesterday 02/09/08) from 1/2 to 4/9 after punters seemed to react negatively to recent revelations around Republican V.P. Nominee Sarah Palin. One Irish based punter wasted absolutely no time

First off, it is not rumor. Sarah Palin’s 17-year-old unmarried daughter (Bristol) is pregnant. 

McCain insists he knew about this when he chose her for the VP spot in his campaign (I still wonder about that part). And, unless it was some bazaar sequel to Juno, the entire Palin family has been well aware of the situation. 

Of course several groups (no, not just Democrats) are all over this suggesting she is no longer a good choice for VP. 

Come on guys, you mean to tell me our individual character and work ethics will always be defined by our kids? If that is the case, we will never be able to elect a qualified person to office. What if your grandson is gay? What if you paper boy stole a cookie? What if your neighbor three doors down read an issue of Playboy? Where would the “association” end? 

The opposition is always looking for reasons to attack the other party. In this case Sarah Palin’s daughter is now on the table. To Obama’s credit, he has stated that “family” is off-limits in the campaigns and will have no part in attacks on Palin’s character as a result of her daughter. But it seems to end at Obama as many religious groups are already in a voting quandary. 

I say move on. Palin’s daughter is pregnant and it will be an issue for the family to deal with. I seriously doubt it will affect Sarah Palin’s ability to perform her duties. As always, let the candidates stand on their own merit.