Given John McCain's well-documented uh contempt for celebrity, I have to say that the very last place I expected to find him and his new running mate was in the pages of the new People magazine.
I have been utterly confounded by this pick since it was announced yesterday. After reading the thorough vetting of her done by the DKos community, I remained mystified, to say the least. But now, having read their first joint interview--in the pages of a weekly Hollywood celeb magazine, I'm kind of offended. Barack Obama and Joe Biden have to work their butts off to defeat this ticket????
People magazine talks to McCain and Palin
Let's start with the photo:
Now, I'm no body language expert here but a couple of things strike me as odd. First, McCain's smile is more forced than usual and he is leaning away from Palin and her family. Second, the appearance of only her infant son, Trigg, makes me a bit uncomfortable. On the one hand, it reminds me of the baby she will be leaving behind to go out on the campaign trail. Second, it seems to be an exploitation of a child with special needs in order to make his mother harder to attack. But, that is nothing compared to the interview itself (hint, if you're looking to be reassured about Palin's qualifications, look elsewhere):
MEGHAN MCCAIN: It's girl power and you know I'm all about that. She's very smart, has a sweet family...She's such a cool role model – and she's got great shoes! (Laughs)
OK, she appeals to young, female voters who care about fashion.
SARAH PALIN: Morning person. Yup. We don't sleep much. Too much to do. What I've had to do, though, is in the middle of the night, put down the BlackBerries and pick up the breast pump. Do a couple of things different and still get it all done.
I'm just trying to picture this woman talking to Mssrs. Brown, Sarkozy or Medvedev, not to mention Ms. Merkel. Right now, I can't see it.
Sen. McCain, of all the candidates you considered, what drew you to her?
JOHN: Obviously, I found her to be very intelligent and very well-versed on the issues. But I think the important thing was that she's a reformer. She's taken on special interests since she ran for the PTA and the city council and mayor. The courage, I guess, is what most impressed me.
One of my least favorite McCain habits is when he begins an answer with "Obviously....". It tells us that anyone who doesn't know or agree with what he's about to say is a complete idiot and unworthy of his time or attention.
A woman on the ticket is what a lot of Hillary Clinton voters wanted to see. What's your message to women who might see a second shot at shattering the glass ceiling?
SARAH: Certainly in this election cycle, women aren't finished yet. And women can shatter that glass ceiling once and for all.
JOHN: I think that Sarah appeals to a lot of voters – I think because of her independence, because of her reform agenda and her record of balancing both family and service. It is motivation to not just Clinton voters but to lots of voters.
Her reform agenda? What reform agenda? Can we get some specifics, something that doesn't fit on a bumper sticker or a button?
Sen. McCain, of all the candidates you considered, what drew you to her?
JOHN: Obviously, I found her to be very intelligent and very well-versed on the issues. But I think the important thing was that she's a reformer. She's taken on special interests since she ran for the PTA and the city council and mayor. The courage, I guess, is what most impressed me.
I must be hallucinating because I thought I just saw the words 'PTA' and 'city council' in a discussion of the Republican VP nominee's credentials. That aside, could you give us an example of some of those issues on which she's very well-versed? Perhaps not, as you'd only met her once before.
Given her young age and relatively short resume, why is she any more ready to be president than Sen. Barack Obama?
JOHN: I don't think it's a short resume. She first ran for office back in 1992. I don't know what Senator Obama was doing then, but the first time she ran was 1992. That's 16 years. I think that's a pretty, pretty event-filled and record-filled resume.
SARAH: And I haven't had too many years other than that to fill up yet.
JOHN: There you go.
There you go???? Is he serious? For the record, in 1992, Barack Obama had recently graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, was writing his first book, teaching constitutional law at the University of Chicago and directing Illinois Project Vote. It isn't the Wasilla City Council, but I think it's pretty impressive.
The DKos editors and diarists have offered much commentary about the Palin selection and I agree with all of it, so I won't re-hash it. I will end by echoing Governor Tim Kaine's comments on Real Time with Bill Maher last night. The pick speaks volumes about John McCain's judgment and none if it good.