Sarah Palin, the Worst VP Candidate
The Lack of Foreign Policy Knowledge Should Disqualify Palin
Oct 2, 2008
Senator McCain surprised most Americans when he decided to select Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska to be his VP candidate. Not only most of us never even heard of her, but ever since her appearance in the campaign the stewardess/Barbie-esque governor seems to hurt the Conservative presidential nominee almost every single time she opens her mouth without having a previously written speech.
McCain Campaign Strategy
Senator McCain’s campaign knew very well the advantages and disadvantages of selecting Sarah Palin as the running mate. Even though the latest developments suggest that Palin’s only true advantage is her attractive appearance, her history shows that she is, indeed, on the “right” side of the political spectrum. She was chosen to join the Conservative campaign because of her pro-gun and anti-abortion history, which usually appeals to the Neo-conservative voters. On top of that, she is a rare political commodity: she is an attractive female politician. Whoever believed that the American voters will be satisfied with only that was making a big mistake.
The McCain campaign was well-aware of Palin’s foreign policy limitations and decided to put her on the ticket anyways. In order to protect the McCain campaign from Palin’s shortcomings, they decided not to let the media approach her with any unrehearsed questions. This short-term strategy only worked until Palin appeared in Katie Couric’s interview and confirmed, again, that the she is lacking the fundamentals of foreign policy and international affairs. Palin’s interview with Couric on CBS hit the bottom when Palin was asked a question regarding the planned economic bailout. Palin panicked and came up with an answer similarly confusing and pointless as the poor Ms. Teen USA from South Carolina last year when she was asked to explain why many Americans cannot locate America on the world map. Both ladies proved that they are unable to think under pressure and answer simple unrehearsed questions. Even though Governor Palin was not asked (yet) to locate America on the world map, she made it clear for most viewers that she cannot defend her previous claim that she has foreign policy experience (or knowledge for that matter). The sad fact is that the McCain campaign does not see foreign policy as a critical issue and thus continues to supports Palin as the VP candidate.
Vice Presidential Debate
The first big test for Palin will be on Thursday, when she will have to debate senior Senator Joe Biden on issues such as foreign policy. Senator Biden has been a long-time member and currently the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and possesses the foreign policy knowledge needed for such a debate, however, Governor Palin needs to prepare very well since Senator McCain will not be able to hold her hands and repeat the debate for damage-control purposes as they did with the Katie Couric interview. There is only one Vice Presidential debate before the elections in November, and Governor Palin must prove herself there.
Political strategists have been talking about the fact that Senator Biden has to be careful on Thursday about how much he is going to attack Governor Palin simply because the Obama campaign cannot afford to lose the female vote. Using double-standards, on the other hand, will prevent the American people to see for themselves if the Republican VP nominee is capable or incapable of discussing key issue under pressure, which is precisely what the position will require the person to do, regardless of gender.
Following the VP debate, the McCain campaign will need to make a decision about Governor Palin. Unless she proves that she understands basic foreign policy issues, the Conservatives will be wise to recommend Governor Palin to resign and look for a more educated candidate who will be able to discuss issues with the media and with other politicians.
 |
