Posted by
beltway girl on Friday, October 03, 2008 2:55:26 AM
"it is an unfortunate fact that we can secure peace only by preparing for war"-- John F. Kennedy
The realities of a violent world were not lost on President John F. Kennedy. Caroline Kennedy endorsed Barack Obama in a beautifully crafted and moving piece some time ago. But after hearing Joe Biden defending Barack Obama's positions on Iran and other nations, one really has to wonder whether or not John Kennedy's words were lost on Barack Obama.
It is odd that Obama's views seemed to be more clearly highlighted in the vice-presidential debate than the presidential debate. How did this happen?
Barack Obama is a charismatic figure on the political landscape. He is, truly, transcendant. His persona actually does allow him to stand on a stage and talk about sitting down at a table to attempt negotiations with someone who wants Israel wiped off the map.
But Palin came out tonight speaking what may have seemed like plain sense on foreign policy issues. And many, listening to Biden playing cheerleader for some of Obama's espoused tactics, got to think about what Obama actually proposes to do, minus Obama's powerful presence. The average viewer also couldn't have helped but notice that this foreign policy "guru" on the ticket, Sen. Biden, recognizes that the man he once said wasn't ready to take office will call the shots in the event of his victory in November.
This is not a "mistake." It's simply a reality. And the average viewer should be thankful for it. Because that viewer should be aware of the fact that this will be the situation once candidate Obama becomes President Obama. We won't have candidate Obama succumbing to to more level-headed views held by Biden, the foreign policy expert; rather, it will be the other way around.
Sarah Palin did not just clearly put forward the facts on foreign policy tonight, though. Had this been all she did, she would herself have been dismissed as a cheerleader for her ticket, playing up the big strength of McCain.
No, Sarah Palin shone through this entire performance. She talked plainly and simply to the American voter, and she called out a hostile press in the presence of the average American.
She owned more than half of that stage because Sarah Palin communicated as Sarah Palin, establishing a presence for herself, much as Obama has. She took a clear shot at Obama, noting she didn't say one thing to one set of ears and say something different to another. And, importantly, she was not afraid to differentiate herself from John McCain.
Biden made no such effort, and he came off looking like the head of the Democratic Party Cheerleading Squad.
In doing this, he cheapened himself and highlighted the political dangerousness of some of Obama's foreign policy stands, while also underscoring the fact that Obama will wear the foreign policy pants in the family that makes this ticket. With swing voters and states enjoying the significance that they do in this election, this may have been a blunder of epic proportions for the Democrats this year.
Returning to the head of the Democratic Cheerleading Squad, this may also have been a mistake, this partisan cheerleading with little else to it. While McCain-- and now Palin-- are able to effectively divorce themselves from unattractive and generally unmarketable aspects of politics and their own party, Obama and Biden clearly are not able to take issue with their own party on, basically, anything. In even the biggest of Dem years, such lockstepping may not be viewed favorably by many voters, even those in their own ranks.
Sarah Palin was Ragin' Palin tonight, Sarah the Barracuda. She took swipes at Obama and Biden that left Biden rattled enough to cattily suggest she come with him to the Home Depot to see what the real score was.
At no time did she look like the incompetent nitwit the left-dominated press has tried to depict her as. At no time did she look like the dizzy beauty queen with astronaut wife hair, fumbling for answers she'd memorized in a bubble bath, and now, on stage, ultimately lost.
No, as she stood on that stage tonight, she was a formidable figure on both a national and international stage. John McCain may well end up winning his race against the United States economy. If he does, it will be because tonight, Sarah Palin won her race against Barack Obama. And Joe Biden, and the "mainstream" media. All in one, fell swoop.
Returning to the quote by John Kennedy, John Kennedy also said, "The wave of the future is not the conquest of the world by a single dogmatic creed but the liberation of the diverse energies of free nations and free men."
Tonight, Palin stood on that stage with Joe Biden, and she, alone, invoked the concept of freedom. It is apt. Her ticket is far more free from the dictates of politics and party than their rivals. If global freedom begins at the grassroots level, i.e., individuals, Sarah Palin proved in this debate that she is far more free.
Let's hope it spreads.