If there was any doubt left among voters, pundits, and politicos alike that John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin was based purely on politics, tonight's speech should lay to rest any notion that Republicans chose their candidate based on anything other than a shallow political calculus.
With her snarky, amateurish, almost Student Council-like speech, Palin proved today that she can attack like a candidate for vice-president. And she demonstrated that she can support the top of the ticket like a candidate for vice-president.
But nowhere in her speech did she demonstrate that she can be vice-president. She's still the former Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, who didn't even know what the vice-president did until a couple weeks ago, who admitted that she doesn't pay attention to Iraq, who's stonewalling investigations into her alleged misconduct, and who took advantage of the very earmark process she claims to be against.
In sum, she demonstrated that while she can serve as the second person on a ticket, she is unquestionably not ready to serve as the second most powerful person in the world.