“I answered him yes,” Ms. Palin said, “because I have the confidence in that readiness and knowing that you can’t blink, you have to be wired in a way of being so committed to the mission, the mission that we’re on, reform of this country and victory in the war, you can’t blink. So I didn’t blink then even when asked to run as his running mate.”
The McCain campaign is resuming all activities and the Senator will travel to the debate this afternoon. Following the debate, he will return to Washington to ensure that all voices and interests are represented in the final agreement, especially those of taxpayers and homeowners.
Blink. Or, if you will, Marshall’s Bitch-Slap Theory of Politics backfired on McCain. McCain set an ultimatum, Obama told him to piss off.
Such a bunch of tossers. I really do not know what it is that Obama does, whether he has some sort of amazing kung-fu, but he just drives his opposition insane. Now granted, the folks in the McCain campaign were sort of unhinged to begin with, but they are in full meltdown mode right now. The McCain campaign right now reminds of the Clinton campaign in its death throes, when surrogates like Geraldine Ferraro were out there making an ass out of themselves on a daily basis and Hillary was running her White People Won’t Vote For Him Tour and bringing up RFK and the like. They are just sort of running around doing random crazy shit, hoping it works. Monday it was a full frontal assault on the media, Wednesday it was “suspending” the campaign, and who knows what today will bring.
Something Obama does just drives his opposition into madness. I hope he is able to push McCain into a full on eruption tonight.
The other question- what will be their shenanigans to get Palin out of her debate next week, because believe me, they are TERRIFIED? If I were a betting man, I would bet a family emergency. Who could fault a mom for skipping the debate to tend to the kids? Maybe some urgent issue that needs her attention in Alaska. Putin stages some troops in the Aleutian islands and nothing stands between freedom and the Russian horde but Sarah Palin and the 4,000 brave members of the national guard?
JGabriel
John Cole:
Sarah Palin, from the Couric/Palin interview, in response to a question about the bail-out:
Reducing taxes … has got to accompany tax reductions?
I can’t imagine what they’d be terrified about.
.
comrade scott
Obama has a real taoist air about him. “At one with the universe” and all that Kung Fu teevee episode stuff.
Seriously, he projects a totally unflappable image. President 19% never did, his was always frat boy swagger. And McChicken? His head’s been chopped off if his behavior the last 2 weeks is any indication.
mapaghimagsik
I really hope this isn’t a rope a dope — where McCain suddenly comes across as stellar. I realize the odds of this are…
NEVER TELL ME THE ODDS!
Okay, pretty much nil, but still, its just there was this kind of circus atmosphere around Palin first speaking.
Of course, she *is* melting down, so that might have been good too!
Comrade PeterJ
Don’t Blink. Blink and You’re Dead. Don’t Turn your Back. Don’t Look Away. And Don’t Blink.
JGabriel
TBogg has a great new nickname for Palin:
Bible Spice.
.
mapaghimagsik
Oh and another thing…How good is it for McCain if he drops the N bomb tonight?
cleek
they’ll handle the debate(s) with audacious mendacity, just like they do with everything. everyone will stare in stunned bafflement and nobody will be able to say who won and who lost because nobody will be sure they saw what they think they saw…
aimai
Well, I guess she and the dude could rush back and respond to the subpoenas and testify and shit. That would get her out of the frying pan, I bet.
aimai
cmorenc
McCain is having trouble handling Obama because until recently, McCain and his managers thought it was McCain who was a combination of Cool Hand Luke and retired Top Gun fighter pilot up against a bright, but out-of-depth in the real world academic-professorial like black politician.
Turns out that it is Obama who possesses the imperturbable cool, the political version of a cross between Tiger Woods facing down Rocco Mediate in the US Open and a Muhummed Ali-like fighter without the open swagger. Maybe a Will Smith-type personality captures it nicely.
aimai
Well, I guess she and the dude could rush back and respond to the subpoenas and testify and shit. That would get her out of the frying pan, I bet.
aimai
Comrade Josh Vondoktorpepper
Uggghhh…Comrade PeterJ beat me to it.
I’d vote Doctor Who for president anytime.
flounder
He’s the Aikido candidate. His opponent charges and he calmly steps out of the way, further enraging them. Then, on the fourth or fifth charge, he is standing in front of a plate glass window, and they charge right through it.
Comrade Josh Vondoktorpepper
Uggghhh…Comrade PeterJ beat me to it.
I’d vote Doctor Who for president anytime.
Rick Taylor
I’m not sure if this is it, but Obama is able to be sound very amiable and gracious while he’s sticking in the name. It’s a talent that could drive people crazy. He did it when asked if Hillary should stay in the primary, and said of course, and complimented her on her determination, staying in after loosing so many contests in a row. Remember how that gesture of brushing a bit of dirt off his suit drove Clinton supporters crazy? And it’s the way he never gets mad or looses his temper, but just laughs and shaking his head talking to you as if saying, can you believe what they’re doing? Never loosing his temper, being gracious at the same time calling them on what they’re doing is a great way to drive people crazy.
Mike in MI
I was listening to the Radio Factor at lunch. Bill-O was talking to Brit Hume.
Shorter Hume: McCain/Palin week = colossal fail.
JL
Obama called McCain at 8:30am Wednesday without notifying the media in advance and proposed that they issue a joint statement to calm the markets. IMO that sent the McCain camp in a tailspin. You don’t call a fighter pilot, he calls you.
Brian J
It’s probably a mix of envy that he’s gotten so far in such a short period of time and the notion that he doesn’t deserve it, combined with the fact that, as Andrew Sullivan once put it, “Obama is as cool as a cucumber.” Indeed, like Mark Kleiman said last week quoting some former British Prime Minister, a week is a long time in politics. Last week, it didn’t look good, and this week, it looks like it’s only going to get better. What was constant through all of this? Obama’s campaign, which kept chugging along, reacting only to long term trends (pulling out of North Dakota, for instance) and not to short term distractions. It’s a great quality in a candidate and an even better one in a president, but their guy doesn’t appear to have it.
If I were Obama’s campaign manager, I would simply call Palin’s bluff and have Biden show up anyway, using the event as a town hall format, or to insist upon some date no later than ten days after October 2. Of course, if something legitimate happens that causes Palin to need to reschedule, that’s a different story.
maya
It’s Obama’s damn uppityness that has them in a dither.
DonnaInMichigan
Nah..she won’t leave because a family emergency.
What it will be is something HUGE:
Like:
Putin raising his ugly head, and Palin has to rush on home to her coun…er State
to protect her constituency from Russian Invasion….yea that’s the ticket.
Don McArthur
How about this? Todd is on the Time Bandit, 90 miles northwest of Dutch Harbor, and just went over the side! Palin helicopters on scene to direct rescue operations! She’s in an orange survival suit. She jumps in! Campaign contributions flood in!
cleter
Man, this time Obama gets to run against TWO Alan Keyes. Are you enjoying being Alan Keyes, Senator McCain?
CountryFirst
He stays calm, remains focussed, grounds himself in his own first principles and doesn’t toss them aside when the going gets rough. He prepares and knows the facts, or else defers until he knows them.
Not to put too fine a point on this, but Barack Obama is a better man than John McCain is. Especially for the job he is seeking. This doesn’t take away from McCain’s service, but it does mean that McCain’s service doesn’t trump the qualities I am describing above. And that just eats at McCain’s liver, and he can’t really handle it.
mapaghimagsik
This just in: Putin’s ugly head sighted off the coast of Alaska!
cleek
Sullivan notes that both K-Lo and K-Parker have given up on Palin.
tee hee
JGabriel
CMorenc:
One word: Denzel.
.
henry
Obama has grace under pressure. That kind of cool drives hot heads insane.
SamFromUtah
It’s Obama’s damn uppityness that has them in a dither.
Pretty much. My take on it is that Obama’s an intelligent, hardworking, successful and sane black Democrat. Except for “black” and “Democrat”, each of those pairs of words represents something that cannot exist in the wingnut worldview. If he were lower-profile than a presidential candidate, the Pubbies could and would simply deny Obama exists – as it is, he’s cognitive dissonance incarnate for them.
PC
/r/ mashup.
Comrade FLILF Hunter
My money’s on Jamie Lynn (or whatever the pregnant one’s name is) going into “false labor.” Must…save…the…fetus…
Rick Taylor
If they’re going to go that far, I think they’ll have her drop out of the race entirely. Family reasons or whatever. And if you as much as suggest there was any political calculation involved, you hate women and sick children.
Jon H
Obama’s like a cross between Morpheus from the Matrix and Leon from The Professional.
comrade chopper
whats gonna be funny about the debate tonight is how obama has a home field advantage. every mississippian who’s going to be in the crowd is totally loathing mccain for his attempt to move the debate.
Comrade Jake
I’d put good odds that Obama’s wallet has “BAD MOTHER FUCKER” stamped into it.
And folks, sorry for this, but Obama never lOses his temper, while McCain has problems lOOsening his bowels. The extra ‘o’ makes a big difference there.
smiley
I think Haley Barbour may have had a hand in the blinking. Huge economic hit to the state if the debate didn’t take place.
Martin
Win
If they try this stunt with the VP debate, Biden will just show up and call her a poodle and McCain a coward for 90 minutes.
LiberalTarian
Obama knows their game, and he knows the rules. He just doesn’t play it. He mocks them for playing, and asks the spoiled children when they plan to get a real job.
Obama is better than they are, and just gives them that dad-knows-what-you’ve-really-been-doing look that makes them ashamed of themselves.
And, lets face it, after 30 years of being the daddy party, for McCain to offer Homer Simpson getting out-daddy’d by Obama’s Steve Douglas (Fred MacMurray’s character in My Three Sons), you can’t help but, d’oh, clearly fail to measure up.
Dr. Squid
When it comes to driving his opponents insane, Alan Keyes was already insane when he ran as the Illinois Senator from Maryland.
Funny how Obama didn’t have that effect on Dan Hynes.
Comrade Stooleo
Oh yes, please, please, please! I want to see McCain become so unhinged that he tries to start a fistfight with Obama. The aides swarm in to break it up, station quickly goes to commercial break, I can so totally see it.
Dr. Squid
TBogg has a great new nickname for Palin:
I still like the nickname given by Mrs. Unqualified Offerings: Gov. Moose-lini.
JL
Obama’s debate performances have been less than spectacular. Unlike most politicians he’s not good at one liners but he does have a command of the facts.
Comrade Jake
I expect the eruption to go something like this:
McCain: “Why won’t you just admit the surge worked!?!?!?”
Obama: “If we’ve learned anything over the past few days, John, it’s that just because you say it doesn’t make it so.”
McCain: neck blows a bubble. Bubble explodes.
Comrade Zifnab
It’s way, way too late for that. McCain might have pulled the plug a week after the convention, but now he’s in full flail mode and would look incredibly weak. Flipping his VP candidate would upset his entire narrative. He losses his PUMA candidate appeal, his mavericky-ness, and all the support from the base that continues to think Palin is the best VP candidate physically possible. And he’d only have a month to re-introduce his new running mate – a running mate who would have a whole new batch of scandals and embarrassments to uncover.
Comrade Jake
New nickname for McCain: Johnny Drama.
JL
Hillary and John both have giant egos and they felt it was their turn. Then comes along a well spoken man from Illinois who steals their thunder.
Comrade FLILF Hunter
I get the feeling he’s actually really fast and often has the perfect one-liner chambered, but stops short of pulling the trigger for fear of looking un-dignified and un-presidential.
I think he’s at a decided disadvantage because any fast, flip, rapier comment will be perceived (and most certainly spun) as “jivey and uppity.” He’s still got to overcome the racial fears and prejudices of a lot of the fence-sitters.
It’s too bad, because I’ll bet he can really zing ’em.
Comrade Napoleon
I like that!
Lie baby, lie!
Obama reminds me of Neo in the Matrix when he saw the bullets coming and arched his body to avoid them.
comrade chopper
obama reminds me of jesus when he turned water into high poll numbers.
Krista
Indeed.
Comrade Jake
I admit Obama was less-than-stellar in the primary debates, and he might be less-than-stellar tonight. He’s also clearly come a long way since his debates with Alan Keyes.
But there’s a big difference between what we should see tonight and what we saw in the Clinton/Obama debates: he has substantive policy differences with McCain to discuss tonight. Obama believes that his positions are the right ones on the merits.
I think if he has a chance to discuss issues on the merits, and Lehrer’s certainly the type to allow for that, we may just see a candidate who has his ‘A’ game on. Further, simply by being on stage with McCain and discussing issues in a substantive way, Obama will appear presidential. Don’t discount the “Hey, look at that guy, he can hold his own up there” effect.
Of course, that could be counterbalanced by the “When did the Democratic party nominate a black guy?” effect.
Comrade Napoleon
James Fallows in his recent Atlantic piece on both of their debating styles more or less makes this point with examples from when he debated Alan Keyes. In fact in his short advice at the conclusion of the article for Obama he said something like “when you look at McCain, see Keyes”. He felt that he was looser with Keyes and his natural style came through more (he theorized that the “black” factor was nuetralized, plus he likely felt less pressure since he was almost certain to beat Keyes).
Tony J
For my money, McCain’s descent into madness was triggered by Obama’s victory in the Dem Primary.
He won the GOP Primary because the hardcore Base split its vote early on and was left with a choice between a New York cross-dresser, a godless Mormon, and Johnny Boy, who at the time had moved further to the right while keeping the MSM firmly on his side, so also looked the most electable.
If he’d been up against Hillary, as was expected, he could have run – with MSM cover – as a ‘centrist-moderate’ on an anti-Bush ticket, never having to worry about Der Base because there was no way they were ever going to risk letting the Dems put another Clinton in the White House after two terms of Bush. He’d have been able to finger Lieberman for the V-P slot, and in his mind, victory would have been certain, and it would be a smack in the face for those Rovian cock-suckers who sabotaged him in 2000.
Unfortunately, Hillary didn’t win, the young black guy talking about change and bipartisanship did, which changed the electoral paradigm. All we’ve seen since is McCain chopping off hunks of flesh in an attempt to buy back the wingnut vote, while drawing so heavily on his account at the Bank of MSM 4 Maverick that he sucked out all the liquidity and caused a market crash.
Fact is, McCain is looking at this and thinking – “If I hadn’t jumped the shark and run for President on a GOP ticket, I could be in Joe Biden’s shoes.”
And that’s enough to send anyone a bit nuts.
comrade chopper
that is true; it is harder to debate someone with whom you share quite a few ideologies and come off as a better candidate than they are, you have to pick small differences and dwell on them which looks kinda stupid.
when the ideologies differ quite a bit it’s easier to put the screws on the other guy.
actually i hate watching the debates, mostly out of fear that the guy i feel needs to win will just up and say one stupid thing that comes out wrong and the whole thing gets cocked up. i know obama’s good and all but things like that scare me about any good politician.
dslak
Anybody know where to watch the debate tonight online?
liberatemeiexinfernis
the next insane thing they will do after “suspending” the campaign…gather all the older GOP leadership men in a room (and yes, that includes Craig and Foley) and hold a massive jerk off rally before the debate.
Comrade Jake
Obama’s best line from the primary debates: “I look forward to you advising me too, Hillary.”
When he does let one out, his zingers tend to be lethal. He said that in the debate just before the Iowa caucus.
lilly Von Schtupp
I can’t remember the name of the film and am too lazy to google it, but this situation with Obama and McCain reminds me of the Gene Hackman/Denzel Washington submarine movie.
lane
It burns. My eyes bleed reading this crappola.
Please, make it stop.
Comrade Cris Ivanov
Not going to happen. Never. Obama isn’t McCain’s wife.
ThatLeftTurnInABQ
Bingo! Turn in your card and collect your money.
Obama’s secret is that he knows how to deal with people who have a grossly inflated entitlement mentality – which is to stay cool and calm and wait them out while encouraging them to bloviate until they asphyxiate in their own gasbaggery.
I suspect it may have something to do with his community organizer days. That has to be a tough job, dealing with gasbags on a near daily basis, and 99% of them you can’t just up and tell them to go jump in a lake, because you don’t have power, control and leverage over them in the usual sort of way. So instead you have to learn how to use Jedi mind tricks on them.
jibeaux
Krista, that just *had* to go up on the FB, hope you don’t mind.
Common Sense
I liked the “I can’t tell who I’m running against sometimes” line when Hill tried to pass of something Bill said as totally unrelated to her campaign.
ShouldKnowBetter
John McCain IS Mr. Furious;
“That could work. I’m a loose cannon. I’m unpredictable. I stormed off, why can’t I storm back?”
Tsulagi
Yeah, I’d go with that. It’s too late. It would be showing fear, and admitting you fucked up listening to the tards that you needed a certified Bible humper on the ticket to appease the Dobsonites. Then finding you got a middle-aged Miss South Carolina after the selection.
McCain’s campaign is in a damned if you don’t, damned if you do with that debate. Cancel it or move it a month later and the news cycles will play speculation she’s not ready for prime time. Let it go on next week and you run the risk of Palin blathering on about Putin’s molecules. With voters realizing that heartbeat away could come sooner rather than later given McCain’s age and health history.
More popcorn!
b. hussein canuckistani
Krista-
Just thought you ought to know I’m seeing the astronaut comment all over the place. That’s something you should be proud of.
Catsy
JGabriel nails it.
That’s full of awesome. My favorite is “Caribou Barbie”, followed closely by “Pinnochio Palin”.
Chris Johnson
I would just like to see less of the Jesus/Will Smith/Denzel Washington babble, please. I know it’s tempting to get all worked up, but we’ve seen where that got the Republicans, haven’t we?
Barack Obama is simply a smart guy who can think on his feet, has actual principles which he’s thought out, and has a willingness to work hard and study.
He didn’t epically pwn everybody at that bailout meeting because he was a movie star or God, he simply did the research, paid attention and was able to function. THIS IS NOT THAT EXCEPTIONAL, except for an American politician…
And the final zing of calling on McCain and having McCain humiliate himself- you know McCain could possibly have had a really worthwhile observation. Maybe the chances were slim, but Obama specifically sought out his big rival’s opinion and intentionally took the chance that McCain would somehow have a great answer that would make Obama look bad.
That’s the act of essentially a good guy.
Now, he had to know the chance of that was very slim, and that it was much more likely that McCain was refusing to get involved because he was unprepared and had nothing useful, in spite of having called the meeting- and Obama made a point of calling on him anyway.
THAT is the act of an effective politician.
I would not want to be going up against Obama on anything important unless I was honestly in the right, sincere, and really sure that Obama needed to change his mind for the good of the people he represents. I figure if I could say that, I’d have a decent chance at changing the guy’s mind even if I was blundering a little while doing it.
If I was out to con him or aggrandize myself, he’d pwn me, probably by letting me pwn myself, which is the most damaging and efficient kind of pwnage- the judo of letting other people’s bad intentions trip them.
I hope like hell we get to have this guy as our President and main fast-talker when things get weird with China etc… I hope we can also draw on the Clintons but I don’t want them guiding policy too much, I’d rather they were just there to be slick with angry foreign powers, of which there will be lots and lots in the years to come. Everybody’s gonna get crankier because their economies will go splat.
John PM
I have said to several people at work that before this campaign is over, McCain is going to say that word. I would hope that this would be enough to wake most people from their Republican induced stupor.
satby
My late father was a Homicide cop in Chicago in the ’60s; he used to call in “polite(-ing) them into the ground”.
It would get to be a game, the cooler and more polite he would be, the more out of control hissy the opponent /suspect would be. And then they’d always make a mistake.
My old man was a pretty smart dude.
croatoan
McCain is so mavericky he’s already run ads saying he won tonight’s debate. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!
And here’s an advance transcript:
Geeno
I don’t know why, but that phrase cracked me up.
The Confidence Man
I’ve got $100 that says Bristol has a “miscarriage” early next week, prompting Sarah Palin to withdraw from the VP debate (and, possibly, from the ticket) to “attend to her family in this time of most personal crisis.”
Jess
Yeah, it is an excellent strategy, one I happily use against overbearing jerks who think they can intimidate or have some kind of authority over me. I’m surprised more people don’t use it. I saw Obama using it against Hillary when she’d get aggressive, a kind of exaggerated chivalry that undermined her tough talk and made her look like a complete twit. The nice thing about this strategy is that it does actually leave room for your opponent to cool down and start being more civilized as well, as Hillary eventually did. Not that we’re going to see that happen tonight…
nicethugbert
I think Obama is a ventriloquist. He keeps putting crazy shit in McCain’s ear and nobody knows where it’s coming from. Or, maybe MCCain’s just a craker.
JubJub
How’s this for a timeline that day:
Palin ducks the debate.
Biden shows up.
So does Obama.
They talk issues.
America wins.
nicethugbert
Hunting accident, where’s Cheney?
Gemina13
I am officially dead of laughter. :D Now if someone will just animate this with Obama and McCain, I’ll die happy.
Krista
Heh. I guess everybody DOES get their 15 minutes of fame. I don’t know if I’m proud, but I’m definitely tickled pink.