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02 October 2008

Immediate Impressions

In order, with notes on the beginning of the debate on top:
  • Perhaps Palin's most unique political charm is her ability to pull of the folksy anecdotes. All politicians in this era of universal Heepism try to pull of the soccer-game examples and almost all of them seem clumsy, unnatural, and awkward. They fit Palin perfectly.
  • Biden called attention to violence against women, putting police on the streets, etc. as instances of his leadership on controversial issues. Really? Since when is violence against women a controversial issue? Putting more police on the streets is only controversial amongst some members of the radical Left.
  • At least at the beginning, their was a notable differnce in their tones, pacing, cadences, etc. Whereas Palin's inflections were dynamic, Biden was, well, boring.
  • I'm very disappointed with the leaders of the GOP, Palin included, concerning their explanation of the financial situation. This is a perfect opportunity to trace the ruinous effect of the government's artificially created credit on the economy, but most (notably excluding Jim DeMint) seem to be hung up on Wall Street corruption. Perhaps there was corruption on Wall Street, but there's no reason to think that there was any more corruption on Wall St than normal.
  • I guess the populism might be profitable or necessary in this election, though. I'm actually preparing an editorial on an opportunity to score some populist points that McCain missed out on.
  • Another CR plug- We will have a comprehensive statement on the causes of the financial crisis in the next issue of the Review.
  • Does Biden think he's fooling anyone with the comb over?
  • In response to Biden's remarks on tax policy, I'll quote William F. Buckley: "I would like to electrocute everyone who uses the word 'fair' in connection with income tax policies."
  • The most annoying- maybe the only thing I find annoying- about Palin's remarks is the dangling "also"s which are unattached to any other claims, utterly unnecessary throw-away phrases, circular sentences and the like. I guess everyone has their ticks, especially in such high-pressure situations.
  • I think anyone who has ever watched a (political) debate could agree that moderators should really just suggest topics to discuss rather than go through the hassle of asking questions which will, in all likelihood, not be answered. Politicians will always answer the question they wanted to be asked.
  • Since when did the Obama-Biden team want to go ahead with nuclear power? I guess our energy situation has made the cost of certain opinions prohibitive.
  • Palin has done a good job of tying her own record into the debate. I won't say that it's not always natural or smooth, but very important.
  • I'm glad that gay marriage is back on the table. After the California decision (which allows homosexuals from other states to marry in California), it rightfully should have been established as a much bigger issue than it has been so far.
  • I've already been asked who the Talabani is (did she mean the Taliban? Is she going to talk with the Taliban?). Talabani is actually the President of Iraq. Which leads me to my next point that...
  • Palin has sounded positively knowledgeable on foreign policy issues.
  • Biden claims that "Nobody has been a better friend to Israel" than Biden himself. I'd actually probably rank Lieberman above everyone else, Senator.
  • Biden was wrong- Article 1 of the Constitution is devoted to the Legislative Branch, not the Executive Branch. I have to say, though, that I'm never surprised when a liberal manifests ignorance of the Constitution.
  • Also, Biden claims that Cheney is the most dangerous Vice President we've ever had. No. Not at all. Completely and utterly false. The most dangerous VP we ever had was Aaron Burr, who literally tried to annex (or, more accurately, steal) part of America for himself. The only reason he wasn't convicted of treason was that he told different stories to all of his co-conspirators , and you need to have at least two people to corroborate an accusation of treason. Cheney hasn't done anything close to stealing America.
  • Overall, it seems that Obama and Biden are talking about changing America. McCain and Palin are talking about changing America's government. I have to side with McCain/Palin.
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