Palin and the Experience Issue

There is lots of commentary floating around about Palin. My opinion is that, in terms of the election, we will have to wait about two weeks and then check the polls and see where things stand. In the meantime, I'd say that it is a pretty amazing turnaround for a Party that has been hammering Obama on experience and foreign policy leadership issues. They put someone in the #2 slot who is really, truly lacking in these areas? I think it says a lot about the current state of the Republican Party, McCain, and his campaign. One might even characterize it as a flip-flop. We'll see if it works for them.

Here are some related articles that caught my eye today:

"All we have heard from John McCain for months is, 'Barack Obama is too young. Barack Obama is too inexperienced to be commander-in-chief. Who do you want answering the phone in the White House at three a.m.? Blah, blah, blah.' So what does McCain do? He picks someone to be his running mate who is even younger than Barack Obama and has less experience." McCain V.P. pick younger, less experienced than Obama

"The selection of a running mate is among the most consequential and the most defining decisions a presidential nominee can make. John McCain’s pick of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin says a lot about his decision-making — and some of it is downright breathtaking." 6 things Palin pick says about McCain

"Throughout this presidential campaign, one of the most pernicious and constant critiques emanating from the GOP strategists has been the idea that Barack Obama, by virtue of his public service record, is simply too inexperienced to legitimately be expected to be capable of holding the highest elected office in the nation. That point has been hammered home relentlessly by John McCain, his surrogates and subordinates, and by the Republican party at large, and has been a key element in a broader tactic to suggest to the American people that McCain's experience and tenure as a long standing US Senator will play a more important role in determining his readiness to lead the country, than his political judgment or his policy record. Are you freaking kidding me?" McCain Meant Lack Of Experience Was A Good Thing

"When a Fox News morning host, Steve Doocy, testified to Sarah Palin's national security experience on Friday by saying that her state, Alaska, was so close to Russia, it drew hoots across the media and blogosphere (and even, no doubt, from a few Fox viewers). This morning, on ABC in an interview with George Stephanopoulos, Cindy McCain endorsed this very view." Cindy McCain on ABC Today