ABC has released excerpts from tonight's final portion of the Gibson-Palin interview...and, surprise, she lies AGAIN.
link with video of Bridge question.
Transcript excerpts below the fold for those who don't have the stomach or time to watch the interview later tonight.
GIBSON: But you were for it before you were against it. You were solidly for it for quite some period of time...
PALIN: I was...
GIBSON: ... until Congress pulled the plug.
PALIN: I was for infrastructure being built in the state. And it's not inappropriate for a mayor or for a governor to request and to work with their Congress and their congressmen, their congresswomen, to plug into the federal budget along with every other state a share of the federal budget for infrastructure.
GIBSON: Right.
PALIN: What I supported was the link between a community and its airport. And we have found that link now.
So she spins it, albeit rather ineffectively. She never really addresses Gibson's point regarding her support for the Bridge to Nowhere during her gubernatorial campaign. And, she fails to elaborate on how they've "found that link" now.
The best part, however, came just earlier in the interview:
GIBSON: But it's now pretty clearly documented. You supported that bridge before you opposed it. You were wearing a t-shirt in the 2006 campaign, showed your support for the bridge to nowhere.
PALIN: I was wearing a t-shirt with the zip code of the community that was asking for that bridge. Not all the people in that community even were asking for a $400 million or $300 million bridge.
So that t-shirt was just a t-shirt...it had nothing to do with supporting this earmark for the Bridge to Nowhere. Too bad the t-shirt actually says "Nowhere Alaska."
In other places in the interview, she defends her "reform" as governor by reducing earmarks...but she never really answers Gibson's challenge regarding Alaska as the highest state per capita in receiving earmarks.
GIBSON: The state of Alaska, under OMB figures in 2008, got $155 million in earmarks for a population of 670,000. That's $231 per person in Alaska. The state of Illinois, Obama's state, got $22 per person. You got ten times per person as much. How does that square with your reforms?
PALIN: We have drastically, drastically reduced our earmark request since I came into office.
GIBSON: But you still have multiple of any other state.
PALIN: We sure are
The excerpts from ABC end with a question regarding whether Obama should have chosen Hillary. Palin acknowledges that Hillary took some tough shots during the campaign.
After first being announced, she tried to draw a parallel between herself and Clinton (as well as Ferraro). Here, she acknowledges the tough shots Hillary endured. Yet, Palin continues to be "okay" with being cocooned within the McCain campaign, being protected from facing tough shots herself.
At the very least, Gibson appears to have surpassed most of our expectations thus far. He doesn't seem to have shied away from asking some "tougher" questions; however, I'm sure we'll all be able to identify several questions that never were asked in this interview. Regardless, we can expect this interview to be much tougher than whatever chat-fest she'll enjoy with Hannity next week.
From the comments:
Chumley adds:
Weak follow-up from Gibson. (1+ / 0-)
I've given him credit for being far better that I'd imagined, so far.
But the follow-up is missing here:
PALIN: I was for infrastructure being built in the state. And it's not inappropriate for a mayor or for a governor to request and to work with their Congress and their congressmen, their congresswomen, to plug into the federal budget along with every other state a share of the federal budget for infrastructure.
GIBSON: Right. (Chumley adds:) But you're boasting now that you were against the bridge, and against the funding. It's a blatant LIE, isn't it?
Hey, a boy can dream...
Another possibility would have been to ask why she didn't give the bridge money back to the Feds rather than keeping it for other projects.