Column:  

Gov. Palin  And The McCain  Campaign Implosion

 

 

 

The Republican Party, as I write this piece, is gripped in a paroxysm of fear, nervousness and dread. The honeymoon period for it's the vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, appears to have worn out, as most Americans are openly questioning her qualifications and intellectual ability to handle the job of vice president of the United States, a position that is just a heart-beat away from the Oval office.

 

Since Governor Palin was thrust onto the national spotlight last month as John McCain's vice presidential pick, she has evolved from the conservative's rock star, one who pulled crowds in thousands, to one that has become the butt of jokes on late night television. Her parody on Saturday Night Live, SNL, the popular NBC News late night show has been seen by millions of people across the globe. Republicans, who a few weeks ago, hailed her as the saviour of the party, now hold their breath whenever she opens her mouth. Conservative op-ed writers such as George Wills and David Brooks, who had withheld their judgment, when she was picked, have now come out openly to say she is not qualified to be the U.S. vice president.

 

Governor Palin's star dimmed mostly due to her embarrassing performance during her recent interviews with ABC's Charles Gibson and CBS Katie Couric. Her rambling and befuddling answers, to some basic foreign affairs questions during the above interviews made a lot of Americans cringe in horror as to her lack of intellectual curiosity. It was confusing and disheartening to watch her state that since Alaska shares border with Russia that she knows how to deal with Putin. When asked by Couric to name another Supreme Court ruling outside of Roe V. Wade, she could not come up with one, telling Couric that she would have to “get back” to her on that.'  That too, has made the rounds in late night talk shows. Independent voters, especially women, who a few weeks ago, were willing to give her a second look, now openly question McCain's judgement in selecting her in the first place.

 

The result of her less than stellar performance on interview circuits, coupled with worries about the stability of the markets, has sent McCain's polling numbers on a free fall. McCain's politically motivated attempt to suspend his campaign, in order to devote time to the bail out proceedings in the Congress was seen by many as opportunistic. His call for the cancellation of last Friday's first Presidential Debate, which was not honoured, was equally not well received by the public.

 

Obama now has commanding leads in most polls and as more Americans focus their attention on the elections and their economic concerns, it can't be a winning issue for McCain. The role of the House Republicans in killing the Economic Bail out Bill earlier this week has compounded McCain's problems. His initial taking of credit for the anticipated passage of the bill, which unraveled on Monday, was a severe miscalculation, which led many to conclude that politics played a role in his decision to suspend his campaign to face the economic crises. The bill was later passed by the House on Thursday October 2.

 

Last Thursday, October 2, 2008, 9 pm Eastern Standard Time, the vice presidential debate between Senator Joe Biden and Gov, Palin took place. Republicans were anxious over governor Palin's performance. Given her halting performance at pervious interviews, and her lack of grasp of most issues, all eyes were on her. As you are reading this, the verdict would have been in. If she imploded, as most commentators believed she would, then McCain's hopes for a White House berth would be cut halfway. Americans, except those on the fringes of the political spectrum are unwilling to reward a ticket that appears not to be in command of issues dear to their hearts.