Maybe Ted Stevens loses, but could Obama win AK? Probably not.
Will Alaska papers like the Anchorage Daily News endorse Obama/Biden?
It sure looks that way. The governor who supposedly has an 80% approval rating up there has perhaps not done herself a favor by accepting (readily) the VP nomination. I think a lot of what has come to light about Alaska and the way that state works might still be under the radar if Palin had not been catapulted into the national spotlight.
People I am talking to, including some conservatives and friends and family of conservatives are saying that Palin, supposedly appealing to the small town and rural voters, reminds them of the worst of that world. The Ted Stevens trial adds to that. And the "First Dude" is a dud.
Most of the papers endorsing Obama/Biden have comments about the Palin choice being a disaster, and though she's a talented actress, it seems to me that she has been a major factor in dooming the McCain ticket.
Just take a look at this editorial from the Anchorage paper and consider if they could go on to endorse McCain.
Ronald Reagan once said that he couldn't understand how anyone could become President who had NOT been an actor, and Palin has some talent not unlike Reagan's. But whereas Reagan was all about congeniality and upbeat feelings, Palin is just the opposite. She got that annoying accent and she hasn't been able to "accentuate the positive". Some political experts contend that winners always end on a positive note.
I am still bewildered that Schieffer couldn't ask McCain why his running mate cannot handle a press conference. Is she a wind-up doll like Olympia in Offenbach's "The Tales of Hoffman"?
Here's the editorial from the Anchorage paper. And the Ted Stevens trial plays right into the Alaska "small town corruption" theme.
http://www.adn.com/...
One of my favorite conservatives, Andrew Sullivan, has a running series on Palin's strange lies. Palin's SNL appearance was a little strange too, especially her announcement that she would not take any questions, a reminder that "Joe the Plumber" has fielded more questions from reporters than she has.
Here is a link to Sullivan's site:
http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/
I think the Palin choice was designed to help McCain in states like NM, CO, and NV, but she has turned out to be such a bizarre personality that she is perhaps the major drag on the McCain ticket.