I hadn't been paying too much attention to the now infamous Palin Couric interview yesterday. Kos had many good front page posts already here. But late last night as I went to bed, my wife asked me to see the clip from Huffingtonpost - which focuses on her astoundingly simplistic view of proximity to Russia giving the Governor of Alaska ample foreign policy experience, and includes the cartoonish reference to the "ugly head" of Putin flying over Alaska's airspace. She had it sitting there open on our iMac, I clicked the video link, and was soon left aghast and speechless. It was an OH. MY. GOD. moment such as I had only thought Bush capable of. I was so shocked that I could only reel back and drag myself to bed- not wanting to believe it was real.
Today is a new day though and I decided to check out the reactions this morning of fellow Americans to it across the land. And quite clearly they are as visceral and alarmed and as instilled with fright as mine, and for McCain, they are DEVASTATINGLY BAD:
Palin talks to Couric -- and if she's lucky, few are listening James Rainey - LATimes
Her third nationally televised interview, with CBS anchor Katie Couric, found Palin rambling, marginally responsive and even more adrift than during her network debut with ABC’s Charles Gibson....
Katie Couric carves up Sarah Palin Kansas City Star
Palin looks unprepared to be vice president (and certainly president)...
Couric shines, Palin doesn't in CBS interview The Oregonian
Ouch. Only one of the two women showed poise, focus and a good grasp of the facts, and it wasn't the one who's running for vice president....
I’m sorry — Sarah Palin is a bad joke Jay Bookman - Atlanta Journal and Constitution
Palin is living, breathing proof that John McCain lies when he claims to put this country first over politics. She makes Dan Quayle look like Albert Einstein with a better haircut.
Shameless and clueless Sarah Palin David Horsey - Seattle Post-Intelligencer
How would Republicans be reacting if Gov. Christine Gregoire were the Democratic candidate for vice president and she claimed that, because Washington borders Canada and sends trade missions to Japan and China and Russia, she is, therefore, experienced in foreign policy? And what if Gregoire also claimed to be a seasoned commander-in-chief because she is titular head of the Washington National Guard? We all know how Republicans would react: they would roar with mocking laughter. And they would be absolutely right to mock such idiotic pretense.
and no help from Palin's side of the aisle either:
Jake Tapper quotes conservative columnist Kathleen Parker:
Watching the CBS interview of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin did not exactly fill Parker with confidence:
"Palin's recent interviews with Charles Gibson, Sean Hannity and now Katie Couric have all revealed an attractive, earnest, confident candidate. Who Is Clearly Out Of Her League.
and my favorite, from a compilation on the British "firstpost"
Babbling Palin ‘makes George Bush sound like Cicero’ Rod Dreher
a religious-conservative blogger who frequently appears on Fox News and was as recently as last week a Palin supporter, says the Alaskan Governor "was mediocre". Dreher says he felt "embarrassed" listening to Palin "regurgitating talking points mechanically, not thinking. [She’s] just babbling. She makes George W. Bush sound like Cicero."
Never mind that just with the recent and ongoing breaking story about McCain aide Rick Davis' clear and damaging financial ties to Freddie Mac, that McCain has ample reason to deflect attention with his debate dodging-crisis invoking Washington bailout gambit- this Sarah Palin video alone is enough to end this thing.
And this is confirmed for me in the comments posted by readers on the various sites I looked at- please peruse them- they simply reinforce the fact of how bad this is. So please distribute this videolink by email far and wide- make sure as many Americans see the Palin Couric interview as possible.
I really believe this alone can and will end this thing.
People are almost literally running for their lives from this debacle.
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UPDATE: The NYTimes' Alessandra Stanley has weighed in with the bad news:
A Question Reprised, but the Words Come None Too Easily for Palin
While it is quite likely, and perhaps understandable, that Ms. Palin felt nervous and spooked by all the media attention, it wasn’t a reassuring performance... it may be hard for Mr. McCain’s running mate to recoup. It wasn’t her first interview on national television, but in some ways it was the worst.
UPDATED 2: Wow! over 500 responses- I've selected some of my favorites if you don't feel like wading through all 600 plus:
Quayle was WAYYYY more qualified than Palin.
thats setting the bar pretty friggn low.
by the3Cs
That interview...
...was a total cringe-fest from start to finish.
by cybrestrike
Of course, I said as soon as she opened her mouth
and spoke for herself we would win the election.
But, nobody ever listens to David Kroning.
by David Kroning
Palin is not 'out of her league'...
she's clearly in a league of her own.
by bubbalie 517