Palin’s Popularity Among Alaskans Continues to Fall
October 7, 2008 - Blogs WSJ.com
Jim Carlton reports on the presidential race.
Sarah Palin remains a big draw on the campaign trail, but the Alaska governor’s popularity back home continues to drop since she joined the Republican ticket as John McCain’s running mate.
Palin’s positive rating dropped to 65% as of Monday from 68% on Sept. 22, according to a survey of likely Alaska voters by Anchorage pollster Ivan Moore. On Sept. 2, her positive rating was a stratospheric 82%, according to Moore’s poll then. The governor’s negative rating in Alaska, meanwhile, has shot up to 30% — the highest since she took office in 2005, according to Moore. On Sept. 2, it was just 13%.
Moore said a big reason Palin’s popularity has taken a hit is that she has taken on partisan attacks against Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and his running mate, Joe Biden. Many Democratic Alaskans who once supported her have been turned off by the attacks, he said.
Other factors that could be at play: The governor’s role in Troopergate, the scandal involving her alleged attempts to get a former brother-in-law fired from his job as a state trooper. Many Alaskans have also groused about the presence of many McCain operatives in Alaska since she was named to the ticket.
It’s not all bad news for Palin: The Moore poll still shows the McCain-Palin ticket trouncing Obama-Biden, by 55% to 38%. Before she was named to the ticket, Alaska was in contention. “Alaska is still a strong McCain,” Moore said.
Read the whole story here:
Palin’s Popularity Among Alaskans Continues to Fall
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Alaska to review per diem payments to Palin
Alaska to review per diem payments to Palin
By BRETT J. BLACKLEDGE
September 7, 2008
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska's top finance officer will review payments made to Gov. Sarah Palin for nights she charged the state for staying in her own home.
Finance Director Kim Garnero said she must determine whether the payments made to Palin in the future should be considered income.
Garnero said, "That's something we need to confer with the governor's office on."
Palin has received more than $17,000 in per diem payments since taking office in December 2006 for 312 nights she stayed in her Wasilla home about an hour's drive from Anchorage. The state provides a home for the governor in Juneau.
Garnero said her review would look at future payments, not those already made.
Palin is the Republican vice presidential nominee.
Read the whole story here:
Alaska to review per diem payments to Palin
By BRETT J. BLACKLEDGE
September 7, 2008
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Alaska's top finance officer will review payments made to Gov. Sarah Palin for nights she charged the state for staying in her own home.
Finance Director Kim Garnero said she must determine whether the payments made to Palin in the future should be considered income.
Garnero said, "That's something we need to confer with the governor's office on."
Palin has received more than $17,000 in per diem payments since taking office in December 2006 for 312 nights she stayed in her Wasilla home about an hour's drive from Anchorage. The state provides a home for the governor in Juneau.
Garnero said her review would look at future payments, not those already made.
Palin is the Republican vice presidential nominee.
Read the whole story here:
Alaska to review per diem payments to Palin
"A Steady Hand at the Tiller"
"A Steady Hand at the Tiller"
Both candidates used the cryptic final question in the second debate tonight to essentially make closing statements. McCain got the last statement of the debate and closed in the worst way possible. His last line was about America needing "a steady hand at the tiller" in these tough times.
There are 5 key problems with this closing:
1) By closing with a blatant attack, knowing that he got the final word, McCain came across as the angry, bitter man that he is.
2) What's a tiller? OK, I know what a tiller is, but the phrase is antiquated in the computer age. Using that phrase made McCain seem old and out of touch.
3) Speaking of old, when I hear the phrase "steady hand", the image that pops into my mind is NOT of a septuagenarian.
4) A "steady hand" has never been McCain's trademark anyway. He is known to be something of a hothead, so selling himself as the "steady hand" is a hard sell.
5) After watching Obama give a steady, calm, and presidential performance for the previous 90 minutes, the line of attack was not going to work anyway.
"That one" may be the phrase that gets the most attention in the next few days, especially if McCain is forced to deny that it was in any way racist. It was the low point in the debate to be sure. The "steady hand" line wasn't as bad as referring to Obama as "that one" but it more clearly illustrates for me just how out of touch McCain really is. For me, "steady hand" trumps "that one" simply because his angry reference to Obama clearly illustrated that McCain does not have a "steady hand".
Read the original post:
"A Steady Hand at the Tiller"
Both candidates used the cryptic final question in the second debate tonight to essentially make closing statements. McCain got the last statement of the debate and closed in the worst way possible. His last line was about America needing "a steady hand at the tiller" in these tough times.
There are 5 key problems with this closing:
1) By closing with a blatant attack, knowing that he got the final word, McCain came across as the angry, bitter man that he is.
2) What's a tiller? OK, I know what a tiller is, but the phrase is antiquated in the computer age. Using that phrase made McCain seem old and out of touch.
3) Speaking of old, when I hear the phrase "steady hand", the image that pops into my mind is NOT of a septuagenarian.
4) A "steady hand" has never been McCain's trademark anyway. He is known to be something of a hothead, so selling himself as the "steady hand" is a hard sell.
5) After watching Obama give a steady, calm, and presidential performance for the previous 90 minutes, the line of attack was not going to work anyway.
"That one" may be the phrase that gets the most attention in the next few days, especially if McCain is forced to deny that it was in any way racist. It was the low point in the debate to be sure. The "steady hand" line wasn't as bad as referring to Obama as "that one" but it more clearly illustrates for me just how out of touch McCain really is. For me, "steady hand" trumps "that one" simply because his angry reference to Obama clearly illustrated that McCain does not have a "steady hand".
Read the original post:
"A Steady Hand at the Tiller"
Palin Continues Hammering Obama on Policy and Character
Palin Continues Hammering Obama on Policy and Character
October 7, 2008, 12:34 pm
Elizabeth Holmes reports from Jacksonville, Fla., on the presidential race.
Sarah Palin continued her routine of attacks-with-a-smile Tuesday, hitting Barack Obama repeatedly at the first of her three rallies.
Unlike recent days, the Alaska governor and Republican vice-presidential candidate mixed her shots at character with hits on policy. She drew ample contrasts between him and her running mate, John McCain.
“I think that the phoniest claim yet in a campaign that’s been full of ‘em has been Barack Obama’s going to cut your taxes,” she said.
To a rowdy crowd of thousands at Jacksonville’s The Landing, Palin boasted that McCain was the best equipped to handle the current economic crisis. She promised to cut taxes, balance the federal budget and eliminate wasteful spending. And Palin also outlined her own accomplishments as a small town mayor and then as governor of Alaska.
“I eliminated personal property taxes and eliminated small business inventory taxes and annoying little things like business license renewal fees,” she said.
There was also plenty on the McCain-Palin energy policies, providing multiple opportunities for the crowd to chant “Drill Baby Drill!”—the most common refrain of late.
Read the rest of the story:
Palin Continues Hammering Obama on Policy and Character
October 7, 2008, 12:34 pm
Elizabeth Holmes reports from Jacksonville, Fla., on the presidential race.
Sarah Palin continued her routine of attacks-with-a-smile Tuesday, hitting Barack Obama repeatedly at the first of her three rallies.
Unlike recent days, the Alaska governor and Republican vice-presidential candidate mixed her shots at character with hits on policy. She drew ample contrasts between him and her running mate, John McCain.
“I think that the phoniest claim yet in a campaign that’s been full of ‘em has been Barack Obama’s going to cut your taxes,” she said.
To a rowdy crowd of thousands at Jacksonville’s The Landing, Palin boasted that McCain was the best equipped to handle the current economic crisis. She promised to cut taxes, balance the federal budget and eliminate wasteful spending. And Palin also outlined her own accomplishments as a small town mayor and then as governor of Alaska.
“I eliminated personal property taxes and eliminated small business inventory taxes and annoying little things like business license renewal fees,” she said.
There was also plenty on the McCain-Palin energy policies, providing multiple opportunities for the crowd to chant “Drill Baby Drill!”—the most common refrain of late.
Read the rest of the story:
Palin Continues Hammering Obama on Policy and Character
DAVID BROOKS SEES SARAH PALIN AS A 'CANCER'
DAVID BROOKS SEES SARAH PALIN AS A 'CANCER'
The New York Times' David Brooks appeared at an event this afternoon, alongside The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg, and had a few provocative things to say about the presidential race. Specifically, the columnist described Sarah Palin as a "fatal cancer to the Republican Party," and compared Palin's anti-intellectualism to the president's.
"[Palin] represents a fatal cancer to the republican party. When I first started in journalism, I worked at the National Review for Bill Buckley. And Buckley famously said he'd rather be ruled by the first 2,000 names in the Boston phone book than by the Harvard faculty. But he didn't think those were the only two options. He thought it was important to have people on the conservative side who celebrated ideas, who celebrated learning. And his whole life was based on that, and that was also true for a lot of the other conservatives in the Reagan era. Reagan had an immense faith in the power of ideas. But there has been a counter, more populist tradition, which is not only to scorn liberal ideas but to scorn ideas entirely. And I'm afraid that Sarah Palin has those prejudices. I think President Bush has those prejudices."
Brooks added that Palin is "absolutely not" ready for national office.
Read the rest of the story:
DAVID BROOKS SEES SARAH PALIN AS A 'CANCER'
The New York Times' David Brooks appeared at an event this afternoon, alongside The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg, and had a few provocative things to say about the presidential race. Specifically, the columnist described Sarah Palin as a "fatal cancer to the Republican Party," and compared Palin's anti-intellectualism to the president's.
"[Palin] represents a fatal cancer to the republican party. When I first started in journalism, I worked at the National Review for Bill Buckley. And Buckley famously said he'd rather be ruled by the first 2,000 names in the Boston phone book than by the Harvard faculty. But he didn't think those were the only two options. He thought it was important to have people on the conservative side who celebrated ideas, who celebrated learning. And his whole life was based on that, and that was also true for a lot of the other conservatives in the Reagan era. Reagan had an immense faith in the power of ideas. But there has been a counter, more populist tradition, which is not only to scorn liberal ideas but to scorn ideas entirely. And I'm afraid that Sarah Palin has those prejudices. I think President Bush has those prejudices."
Brooks added that Palin is "absolutely not" ready for national office.
Read the rest of the story:
DAVID BROOKS SEES SARAH PALIN AS A 'CANCER'
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Aftermath of Debate #2
This is what happens when you pick "My Friends" as the drinking word for a McCain/Obama debate.
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