Well, McCain may have shot himself in the foot with his V.P. announcement. If the American voters bothered to think about important issues anyways, instead of just caring that she's both a woman, and kind of pretty. Sarah Palin is, to be blunt, a terrible choice.
She may be a governor, and she was a beauty queen, but that doesn't necessarily make you a good V.P. candidate. And this coming from someone who is a firm supporter of having attractive people in important positions.
Think about it this way, McCain is 72. He has a history of health issues, and being President is a very stressful position. Were he elected, it must be considered that he might not be able to serve a full term because of death or illness. Wouldn't it make sense to have a V.P. who is experienced and capable? Some foreign policy experience might be a good idea too. It is a very real possibility that, were McCain elected, Palin would have to take on all the responsibilities of President for part of his term. Do you really want a vice president who is so completely naive in foreign politics? Do you want a vice president who doesn't believe that human activity having an effect on the climate? Do you want a vice president who will actively help to overturn abortion rights?
Palin is a selfish choice by McCain, he wants someone who can help make up for his charisma deficits, and he chose someone who will not stand up to him on important issues. The vice president should be willing to give the president an opposing point of view, if they consider the president to be wrong about something. Palin will not do that, she will be a cheering section, nothing more.
John McCain also must think that he can lock up the female vote just by having a woman as his running mate. To me, that shows a great disrespect for female voters in America. Are there some people who will vote for a candidate just because of their gender? Absolutely. Is it a large proportion of the voting population? I don't think so. I have no problem with the idea of a woman as president or vice president, but to choose someone so inexperienced tells us that McCain thinks women are an easy vote to grab. It also tells us that he is more concerned with what happens on November 4th than with what happens after it. He cares more about being elected than he does about governing.
Is Palin (by far) the best looking Vice Presidential candidate ever? Absolutely. Is she probably the least qualified Vice Presidential candidate in my lifetime (so far)? Absolutely.
Custom Search
Posts
1 comment:
No doubt McCain thinks Hillary voters will flock to vote for him with a woman on the ticket but the effect could very well be just the opposite. I think Hillary will be even more passionate for Obama now to be assured that she, and not Palin, is the first woman in the oval office (2016?). There is no doubt that some of Hillary's support is gender based but it is also a bit of a cult following of the Clintons - since Bill Clinton arguably had the most successful presidency since Eisenhower why would they not have a following?
No offense to Idaho and Alaska, but having spent most of her life in these states she doesn't exactly have the best perspective on the US as a whole.
Post a Comment