Saturday, September 6, 2008

The Fair Game Doctorine


From the New York Times Ombudsman

And, yes, it was inevitable, and right to a more limited degree, that her family would come under the spotlight, too. As Bill Keller, The Times’s executive editor, said, “Senator McCain presented Mrs. Palin’s experience as a mother as one of her qualifications for the job.”

So you think Palin's got them pumped?


From today's rally.

Vanity Fair still peddling Palin pregnancy conspiracies

They call them "wingnut," but Vanity Fair is still peddling the conspiracy theories that Bristol Palin is the real mother of Sarah Palin's son, Trig.

But it turns out they are just catering to their readers, as their poll shows 68 per cent believe Bristol is Trig's mother.

This of course comes the same day David Frum argues Democrats are smarter than Republicans.

No, she’s not from another planet.

The Palin smears debunked.

Here's some of the better ones.

yes, she kills animals and eats them, and wears their skins
yes, she was a beauty contest contestant
yes, she was once a sportscaster
yes, she has a college degree in Journalism, but I won’t hold that against her, as she seems to have found honest work as well

The Power of Palin in swing states

From Rasmussen Reports

Ohio—with 20 Electoral College votes--moved from Toss-up to Leans Republican following the second straight Rasmussen Reports telephone survey that showed McCain with a modest lead over Obama.

North Carolina—with 15 Electoral College votes—moved from Leans Republican to Likely Republican. This change was based on the latest Rasmussen Reports polling and changes in the RasmussenMarkets.com data.

Wisconsin—with 10 Electoral College votes—moved from Likely Democratic to Leans Democratic. That move was prompted by the latest Rasmussen Reports polling which shows McCain closing to within four percentage points of Obama.

Colorado—with 9 Electoral College votes--moved from Leans Democratic to Toss-Up, based primarily upon the latest Rasmussen Reports poll in which McCain holds a statistically insignificant two-point lead over Obama.

Oregon—with 7 Electoral College votes—moved from Likely Democratic to Leans Democratic. While the latest Rasmussen Reports polling shows Obama with a 10-point lead, the average of other polls and a national trends adjustment places the state in the leaner category.

South Dakota—with 3 Electoral College votes--shifted from Leans Republican to Likely Republican based upon Rasmussen Markets data and a national trends adjustment.


Ohio is the big news because it's a bellwether state that has picked the winning party in every U.S. presidential election since 1960, four years before Sarah Palin was born.

More on that Fox special on Palin

Here's the back story on tonight's Fox News documenetary on Palin. It was shot as part of an Israeli documentary on extraordinary women around the world.

"I would get up in the morning, drive to her office and just follow her around all day. The amazing thing was that she never asked me to stop filming. I was there for everything – the phone calls and the meetings – and she would answer any question I had, she was very cooperative."

Frank also recorded Palin at home. "I have her with her family, making sandwiches for her daughter after school, watching television. I spoke to her husband and asked him about how it feels to be married to such a dominant woman. I have the two of them talking about private matters. I was able to catch very intimate moments on film. She even played the flute for me."

Like Harper, Chris Matthews has a list for questions

Hot Air has found this interesting tidbit from an RNC convention volunteer.

According to Doug, MS-NBC apparently took no chances on questions from the crowd. Rather than get caught with a question that might make Republicans look good, their producer pre-screened questioners, and Chris Matthews pretended it was random.

New NDP ad

Here's the NDP's first attack ad of the election.

Oh, about that Tory majority

On the eve of Canada's federal election, blogger Canadian Blue Lemons tells it like it is:

I can show the math: that the CPC has to win 155 of 200 seats (assuming - correctly I think - that the party will not win a seat in Montreal, Toronto and Vancouver nor the safe non-big-city Liberal, NDP & PQ seats). Earlier in a post I said 155 of 168, but I'm being generous this rainy morning. Such a sweep - a campaign without seats in the big 3 cities - has never come close to being done.


I myself have looked at all the ridings before the 2006 election. The last time a Canadian conservative party won a majority government was in 1988 and that was with seats in downtown Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. The Tories have slim hopes of winning seats in these big cities.

Hockey Night in Wasilla

From my grasping at straws file.

The Wall Street Journal has sent a reporter up to Alaska to dig up dirt on VP candidate Sarah Palin and this is the best he could do:

WASILLA, Alaska -- The biggest project that Sarah Palin undertook as mayor of this small town was an indoor sports complex, where locals played hockey, soccer, and basketball, especially during the long, dark Alaskan winters.

The only catch was that the city began building roads and installing utilities for the project before it had unchallenged title to the land. The misstep led to years of litigation and at least $1.3 million in extra costs for a small municipality with a small budget. What was to be Ms. Palin's legacy has turned into a financial mess that continues to plague Wasilla.


So it took 8 days for the WSJ to do a story about a hockey rink in Palin’s town. How long did it take for them to do their first story about the Chicago Annenberg Challenge (CAC)?

Read the whole thing. Bottom line is litigation happens.

Good afternoon

From the rainy capital.

Canada's general election is just 16 hours away and the U.S. election is in full swing, so I thought I'd get the blog going again.

I am looking forward to tonight's special on the Fox News Channel on Sarah Palin. It appears to be an incredible behind-the-scenes look at Alaskan governor shot 5 months ago and is hosted by Greta Van Susteren.

Here's a sneak preview.