Convention Live Blogging
9:00 pm: What a snooze fest so far. Meg Whitman and Carly Fiorina sure are setting the bar low for Sarah Palin.
9:20 pm: What kind of up-is-down world is Mitt Romney living in? Railing against coastal elites? He's a Boston investment banker and the son of a Governor. He's the very definition of a coastal elite. And liberals control Washington? Really? And the Democrats are the party of Big Brother? Is he drunk?
9:32 pm: I still think Mike Huckabee would have been the strongest Republican nominee. He's taking some unfair shots, but he's very effective. He preaches Republicanism with a populist spin.
9:35 pm: Cute line, but I'm pretty sure Biden got more than 600 votes in the presidential election. Exponentially more actually. But math is hard.
9:42 pm: Let me just state for the record that I think Palin will give a well-received speech tonight. And I suspect she'll get praised for it by the pundits. And Republicans will claim that she proved all her doubters wrong even though no one really doubted that she would give a decent speech. And then, after a day or so, the experience questions will resurface. If I remember correctly, Dan Quayle gave a decent speech too.
9:50 pm: Rudy! Rudy! I sure hope he mentions 9/11. Bonus points if he compares being mayor of New York to being mayor of Wasilla.
9:54 pm: Nora O'Donnell is telling me that John McCain chose Palin because he's a maverick. Yes, he wanted to choose a pro-choice candidate but his base wouldn't let him. So instead he threw his base a bone and picked a staunch social values conservative. How mavericky!
9:58 pm: Apparently Palin is going to take a shot at Obama by saying something to the effect of "being a mayor is like being a community organizer, except you actually have some responsibilities." Cute, except for the fact that Palin was a small town mayor just recently and Obama was a community organizer over two decades ago.
10:02 pm: Quick. Somebody save Rudy. He's in the middle of the Hudson.
10:04 pm: Hollywood celebrities don't get to choose are president. Yeah, those darn Hollywood celebrities, like Fred Thompson and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
10:05 pm: I wonder if Sarah Palin's resume is in this hypothetical pile?
10:07 pm: Apparently Obama's experience twenty years ago as a community organizer is something to mock him for.
10:09 pm: Obama is a "celebrity Senator." What does that even mean? McCain is a non-celebrity Senator?
10:11 pm: I can't believe he just said that "this is no time for on the job training." Palin....hello? And is it really a "fact" that Obama is the least experienced candidate? How about Rudy? How about our current president? How about Clinton?
10:13 pm: Rudy is really coming across as a smug jerk. I find it hard to believe he's convincing people that aren't already deeply partisan.
10:13 pm: Stay classy, Cindy McCain. Nice cut away of her nodding eagerly to Rudy's cheapest shots.
10:16 pm: What's this whole riff about Democrats not saying "Islamic terrorism"? Isn't terrorism enough? Are people really confused about what kind of terrorism we're talking about?
10:18 pm: The Democrats "gave up on America." Remember two days ago when the convention was going to be "above partisan politics"?
10:20 pm: That Israel shot was cheap and inaccurate.
10:21 pm: Wow, he's really dissembling now. Newsflash Rudy: McCain asked for a security council resolution too.
10:22 pm: You've gotta hand it to the Republicans. They are way more vicious and way more willing to take incredibly cheap shots at their opponents.
10:24 pm: I seem to have missed when Obama criticized Wasilla as not being "cosmopolitan enough." What a total and complete slimeball Giuliani is. By the way, has Rudy ever spent even a second in "small town America"?
10:26 pm: Who has criticized Palin for not having enough time spend with her kids? The Democrats haven't. They only one I've heard say that is Dr. Laura. This is the most dishonest and downright vicious speech I've seen since Zell Miller's in 2004.
10:29 pm: Well, Rudy set a pretty low bar. I certainly won't be hard for Palin to give a more classy speech. It would be pretty hard to give a less classy one.
10:30 pm: It's hilarious how much these delegates love Palin, and they don't even really know her. They love her in the very same way they mock Obama's supporters.
10:33 pm: Her accent sounds like she's from upstate New York. Weird.
10:35 pm: I feel sorry for Bristol's boyfriend, who the cameras keep flashing to. He didn't sign up for this.
10:38 pm: I can see why she's been successful as a politician. If she can get voters to look past the lack of experience and far right wing ideology, they might find her appealing.
10:40 pm: Some serious small town pandering going on. Fair enough, I guess.
10:42 pm: Question. Do we really want "just your average hockey mom" as leader of the free world? Am I the only one who wants a president to be above-average?
10:44 pm: There's that line about community organizers.
10:45 pm: Message = the Democrats secretly hate you. We like you. Vote for us.
10:46 pm: Yes, she's not qualified because she's not part of the "Washington elite." That's what everyone's been saying.
10:47 pm: It's amazing that Republicans are still pulling this "elitist Washington" garbage when their candidate is an obscenely rich long-time Washington senator who doesn't know how many houses he owns and wears $520 imported calf-skin loafers.
10:48 pm: She stood up to the "good ol' boys." Does she realize she's talking to a room full of the "good ol' boys"?
10:50 pm. This is a pretty well crafted speech, albeit a completely non-substantive one.
10:51 pm: She's still repeating that Bridge to Nowhere line? Talk about doubling-down on a lie.
10:52 pm: "...to help lead America to energy independence." Actual reason: to help enrich our state coffers.
10:53 pm: Some gratuitous foreign country name dropping now.
10:54 pm: "Drill baby drill." Now that's inspiring. Sorkinesque.
10:55 pm: "Our opponent." Can't she just say his name? Is he Voldemort?
10:56 pm: I love the claim that Obama hasn't sponsored any significant legislation. What a lie.
10:58 pm: Prediction. Within five seconds after the end of this speech, some pundit will use the word "fiesty."
10:59 pm: She's descending into Giuliani territory here. Effective perhaps, but pretty cheap.
10:59 pm: Wow, she's really lying about taxes now.
11:00 pm: John McCain: agent of change. If people actually by that argument, well, I give up.
11:00 pm: Only Republicans would come to the conclusion that the way to raise someone's stature is to have them take a bunch of cheap shots at their opponent.
11:01 pm: McCain "doesn't run with the Washington herd." Right.
11:02 pm: And only Republicans would cite the fact that the other party doesn't like their candidate as the chief reason to vote for him.
11:03 pm: There's quite a contrast between Biden's speech and hers. Biden was very sincere and focused on how he shared people's concerns. Palin is very snide and condescending. Maybe her approach is more effective, but it's still quite a contrast.
11:05 pm: She is a good speaker. Much better than Giuliani or Romney.
11:06 pm: Why is this speech so long?
11:07 pm: "If character is the measure in this election..." How about policy? How about issues?
11:10 pm: Oh Boy! A surprise McCain appearance. Who could have guessed.
11:14 pm: The speeches tonight were very heavy on condescension. I'm not sure how that will play. Giuliani's speech was one of the more disgraceful I've ever seen.
11:21 pm. The more I think about it, Palin's speech was incredibly unclassy. She may not be happy with the press coverage she's received, but Obama and Biden themselves have been nothing but respectful and classy, even publicly coming to her defense several times. And she returned the favor by taking a number of very cheap shots at both of them. I realize that politics ain't beanbag, but still, that's pretty weak.
9:20 pm: What kind of up-is-down world is Mitt Romney living in? Railing against coastal elites? He's a Boston investment banker and the son of a Governor. He's the very definition of a coastal elite. And liberals control Washington? Really? And the Democrats are the party of Big Brother? Is he drunk?
9:32 pm: I still think Mike Huckabee would have been the strongest Republican nominee. He's taking some unfair shots, but he's very effective. He preaches Republicanism with a populist spin.
9:35 pm: Cute line, but I'm pretty sure Biden got more than 600 votes in the presidential election. Exponentially more actually. But math is hard.
9:42 pm: Let me just state for the record that I think Palin will give a well-received speech tonight. And I suspect she'll get praised for it by the pundits. And Republicans will claim that she proved all her doubters wrong even though no one really doubted that she would give a decent speech. And then, after a day or so, the experience questions will resurface. If I remember correctly, Dan Quayle gave a decent speech too.
9:50 pm: Rudy! Rudy! I sure hope he mentions 9/11. Bonus points if he compares being mayor of New York to being mayor of Wasilla.
9:54 pm: Nora O'Donnell is telling me that John McCain chose Palin because he's a maverick. Yes, he wanted to choose a pro-choice candidate but his base wouldn't let him. So instead he threw his base a bone and picked a staunch social values conservative. How mavericky!
9:58 pm: Apparently Palin is going to take a shot at Obama by saying something to the effect of "being a mayor is like being a community organizer, except you actually have some responsibilities." Cute, except for the fact that Palin was a small town mayor just recently and Obama was a community organizer over two decades ago.
10:02 pm: Quick. Somebody save Rudy. He's in the middle of the Hudson.
10:04 pm: Hollywood celebrities don't get to choose are president. Yeah, those darn Hollywood celebrities, like Fred Thompson and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
10:05 pm: I wonder if Sarah Palin's resume is in this hypothetical pile?
10:07 pm: Apparently Obama's experience twenty years ago as a community organizer is something to mock him for.
10:09 pm: Obama is a "celebrity Senator." What does that even mean? McCain is a non-celebrity Senator?
10:11 pm: I can't believe he just said that "this is no time for on the job training." Palin....hello? And is it really a "fact" that Obama is the least experienced candidate? How about Rudy? How about our current president? How about Clinton?
10:13 pm: Rudy is really coming across as a smug jerk. I find it hard to believe he's convincing people that aren't already deeply partisan.
10:13 pm: Stay classy, Cindy McCain. Nice cut away of her nodding eagerly to Rudy's cheapest shots.
10:16 pm: What's this whole riff about Democrats not saying "Islamic terrorism"? Isn't terrorism enough? Are people really confused about what kind of terrorism we're talking about?
10:18 pm: The Democrats "gave up on America." Remember two days ago when the convention was going to be "above partisan politics"?
10:20 pm: That Israel shot was cheap and inaccurate.
10:21 pm: Wow, he's really dissembling now. Newsflash Rudy: McCain asked for a security council resolution too.
10:22 pm: You've gotta hand it to the Republicans. They are way more vicious and way more willing to take incredibly cheap shots at their opponents.
10:24 pm: I seem to have missed when Obama criticized Wasilla as not being "cosmopolitan enough." What a total and complete slimeball Giuliani is. By the way, has Rudy ever spent even a second in "small town America"?
10:26 pm: Who has criticized Palin for not having enough time spend with her kids? The Democrats haven't. They only one I've heard say that is Dr. Laura. This is the most dishonest and downright vicious speech I've seen since Zell Miller's in 2004.
10:29 pm: Well, Rudy set a pretty low bar. I certainly won't be hard for Palin to give a more classy speech. It would be pretty hard to give a less classy one.
10:30 pm: It's hilarious how much these delegates love Palin, and they don't even really know her. They love her in the very same way they mock Obama's supporters.
10:33 pm: Her accent sounds like she's from upstate New York. Weird.
10:35 pm: I feel sorry for Bristol's boyfriend, who the cameras keep flashing to. He didn't sign up for this.
10:38 pm: I can see why she's been successful as a politician. If she can get voters to look past the lack of experience and far right wing ideology, they might find her appealing.
10:40 pm: Some serious small town pandering going on. Fair enough, I guess.
10:42 pm: Question. Do we really want "just your average hockey mom" as leader of the free world? Am I the only one who wants a president to be above-average?
10:44 pm: There's that line about community organizers.
10:45 pm: Message = the Democrats secretly hate you. We like you. Vote for us.
10:46 pm: Yes, she's not qualified because she's not part of the "Washington elite." That's what everyone's been saying.
10:47 pm: It's amazing that Republicans are still pulling this "elitist Washington" garbage when their candidate is an obscenely rich long-time Washington senator who doesn't know how many houses he owns and wears $520 imported calf-skin loafers.
10:48 pm: She stood up to the "good ol' boys." Does she realize she's talking to a room full of the "good ol' boys"?
10:50 pm. This is a pretty well crafted speech, albeit a completely non-substantive one.
10:51 pm: She's still repeating that Bridge to Nowhere line? Talk about doubling-down on a lie.
10:52 pm: "...to help lead America to energy independence." Actual reason: to help enrich our state coffers.
10:53 pm: Some gratuitous foreign country name dropping now.
10:54 pm: "Drill baby drill." Now that's inspiring. Sorkinesque.
10:55 pm: "Our opponent." Can't she just say his name? Is he Voldemort?
10:56 pm: I love the claim that Obama hasn't sponsored any significant legislation. What a lie.
10:58 pm: Prediction. Within five seconds after the end of this speech, some pundit will use the word "fiesty."
10:59 pm: She's descending into Giuliani territory here. Effective perhaps, but pretty cheap.
10:59 pm: Wow, she's really lying about taxes now.
11:00 pm: John McCain: agent of change. If people actually by that argument, well, I give up.
11:00 pm: Only Republicans would come to the conclusion that the way to raise someone's stature is to have them take a bunch of cheap shots at their opponent.
11:01 pm: McCain "doesn't run with the Washington herd." Right.
11:02 pm: And only Republicans would cite the fact that the other party doesn't like their candidate as the chief reason to vote for him.
11:03 pm: There's quite a contrast between Biden's speech and hers. Biden was very sincere and focused on how he shared people's concerns. Palin is very snide and condescending. Maybe her approach is more effective, but it's still quite a contrast.
11:05 pm: She is a good speaker. Much better than Giuliani or Romney.
11:06 pm: Why is this speech so long?
11:07 pm: "If character is the measure in this election..." How about policy? How about issues?
11:10 pm: Oh Boy! A surprise McCain appearance. Who could have guessed.
11:14 pm: The speeches tonight were very heavy on condescension. I'm not sure how that will play. Giuliani's speech was one of the more disgraceful I've ever seen.
11:21 pm. The more I think about it, Palin's speech was incredibly unclassy. She may not be happy with the press coverage she's received, but Obama and Biden themselves have been nothing but respectful and classy, even publicly coming to her defense several times. And she returned the favor by taking a number of very cheap shots at both of them. I realize that politics ain't beanbag, but still, that's pretty weak.
posted by A.L. at 8:31 PM
27 Comments:
Did anyone catch what those Yahoos were chanting when Rudy mocked Obama as a community organizer?
You know a party is out of ideas when its members are most enthused by chanting: "Drill baby, drill."
Rudy's speech is laughable: shameful, even. As you said, A.Lib., this guy can't be convincing anybody that isn't already deeply invested in this Republican b.s. He is, however, losing credibility by the second.
I love how he laughs at his own terrible jokes.
Oh...and the Dem Convention had few if any cheap shots. Rudy is racking them up. I mean...allowing and encouraging the crowd to refer to Obama as "zero"? Shameful. And they're upset about the media's coverage of Palin? Totally hypocritical.
Rudy is ripping The One a new asshole.
I disagree. It was nothing more than an attempt to smear Obama. It included personal attacks and half-truths.
Nice try!
Personal attacks and half-truths?
Sounds more like what liberal bloggers have been throwing at poor Sarah Palin.
Yes, a small percentage of liberal bloggers have been attacking Palin unfairly. But major players in the Dem. party, however, haven't been lowering themselves to that level.
Not so with the Repub. party. They marched out one of their biggest names to insult, smear, and personally attack Obama.
Nice try!
Well you don't have to. You have the elite MSM to do it for you.
She's great with a teleprompter and ghost-written speeches. Let's see how she does off-the-cuff.
Oh, I'm listening now... here comes the "Dems are pussies" speil.
I love Palin's outfit. Is that from the "Dr. Evil" collection? I keep waiting for Mr. Bigglesworth to jump into her arms.
" She's great with a teleprompter and ghost-written speeches. Let's see how she does off-the-cuff."
Who are you talking about? Obama or Palin?
"You have the elite MSM to do it for you."
Yes, but only in those fleeting moments when they're not gushing over St. McCain.
I'm not sure liberal bloggers can rightfully be referred to as "mainstream media."
However, all credible media outlets have done nothing but ask appropriate questions about Palin's experience and judgement. In essence, they've been doing their job.
All in all, Obama/Biden, as well as the top level Democratic politicians, have stayed classy when discussing the McCain/Palin ticket.
The same cannot be said about the Repubs.
Well she is ripping your Messiah a new one right now. You underestimated her, admit it.
Haha..."ripping our Messiah a new one?"
Again...half truths and ridicule that borders on bullying is the Repub approach to this campaign. Honestly, the Obama/Biden ticket is above that. They could easily go there, and win that battle. But they choose not to.
I hope the religious right watched Rudy speak and came to realize that if you look at each ticket's approach to the campaign, the Dems. approach is much more aligned with Christian values.
I mean, should we really trust a party whose big ticket politicians rely on lowball smear tactics? No.
"Again...half truths and ridicule that borders on bullying is the Repub approach to this campaign. Honestly, the Obama/Biden ticket is above that. They could easily go there, and win that battle. But they choose not to."
If they don't they'll join Mondale, Dukakis, Gore, and Kerry in the dustheap of loser libs.
If indeed that's true, then I'm ok with that. Because a game that requires dirty tactics to win is one I'm ok losing.
I have faith that Obama/Biden can win by injecting the American electorate with hope, not hate.
Messiah? Really? When did exciting a good part of the population become a bad thing?
goodroots, you said it. A McCain/Palin ticket will only keep this country down. I agree with the author of this, blog, Palin was very unclassy and resorted to smug attacks and smear tactics against her opponents. She should be ashamed of herself. And then there was Rudy the bully. I am thoroughly disgusted.
I just read the speech. No surprises.
While Virginia and his ilk may think these are the actual words of Palin, I see a speech that was largely written by McCain's newly-formed staff for her, to which she added a few phrases to make it seem authentic.
The plan now will be to keep her away from the media, and out of places where she can't get by with talking points. The attacks on the media are part of that strategy.
I agree with A.L. that the speech was drenched in condescension. There was, in fact, nothing in the speech that would impress an adult, thinking person with the insight that Palin displayed.
I can't wait for her to debate Joey Hairplugs.
I thought Palin gave a pretty good speech, although it started slow. Nina Easton called it a home run in the first inning, which seems fair.
However, all credible media outlets have done nothing but ask appropriate questions about Palin's experience and judgement. In essence, they've been doing their job.
Bull. The WaPo is still peddling that phony Troopergate "story". The LA Times still hasn't retracted their own peddling of the Palin being part of the AIP, only that her ties are "played down". It's a lie; she's been a Republican since 1982.
They aren't doing their jobs; they are using Kos and other integrity-free liberal blogs to get their stories, and continue to push them.
It's a horserace now libs. We already knew McCain had the stuff to be President; Palin has proven she can run something (you know, like a state government), and now America has seen that she's tougher than both Obama and Biden.
I guess they don't call the blogosphere left the 'reality based community' for nothing. The conservatives that I've seen on this board seem to traffic in nothing but lies and fantasies. Cling to them my nutwing friends, its truly all that you have.
You want to claim to be the party of 'toughness' and yet whine like little babies when the press rightfully goes after what is the worst VP pick in history. Its a bit like hiding behind babies and children when someone's shooting at you. Why are you cowering behind Palin's skirt?
And speaking of hiding behind children... why is McSame pushing Palin's children into the spotlight? I thought the children were off-limits?
There's an interesting article about Sarah and the Bridge to Nowhere here: http://www.andrewhalcro.com/
complete with a photo of Sarah happily holding a Bridge tee shirt...
Harry Reid just called the speech "shrill".
You're majority leader is SO tone deaf!
Talking about comic relief, Romney, Rudi, Huckabee and the GOP just as lost as the democrats LOL pitiful
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