Monday, November 23, 2009

Opinion

McCain and Palin Need a Game-Changer Before It's Too Late

October 07, 2008 06:03 PM ET | Bonnie Erbe | Permanent Link | Print

I've been doing 180s this whole election season, bouncing from poll to contradictory poll and changing my assessment of which candidate was going to win the White House. I've been wrong every time so far. Still, I would like to point out that my blog entry of last week was way ahead of the media crowd about McCain's current meltdown.

At this late date, I cannot see a way out for McCain-Palin.

A "game-changer," as I alluded to last week, would have to be tsunami size to turn around this pair's meltdown in the national polls and Electoral College votes. Tsunamis are possible but rare.

One way not to turn this thing around for her ticket is Gov. Sarah Palin's pit-bull approach to politics. Her attacks on the media, which show biases, to be sure, do not excuse her to rile her supporters to the point where they assault or confront members of the media in racially tinged ways, such as this event described in today's Washington Post:

Worse, Palin's routine attacks on the media have begun to spill into ugliness. In Clearwater, Fla., arriving reporters were greeted with shouts and taunts by the crowd of about 3,000. Palin then went on to blame Katie Couric's questions for her "less-than-successful interview with kinda mainstream media." At that, Palin supporters turned on reporters in the press area, waving thunder sticks and shouting abuse. Others hurled obscenities at a camera crew. One Palin supporter shouted a racial epithet at an African-American sound man for a network and told him, "Sit down, boy."

Palin loves to compare herself to a pit bull, but methinks she has taken it a bit too far, lipstick or no lipstick. Back off, baby!

Tags: presidential election 2008 | John McCain | Sarah Palin

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Reader Comments

Liberal Media

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH ALREADY! AMERICANS CAN SEE THROUGH WHAT THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA AND PRESS ARE DOING! WHATEVER IT TAKES TO CHANGE OUR NEWS AND PRESS BACK TO FAIRNESS AND STRAIGHT STORIES IS WHAT IS NEEDED. PERHAPS WE SHOULD QUIT WATCHING THE NEWS AND READING THE PAPERS ALTOGETHER UNTIL IT IS WORTH OUR TIME! THE PUBLIC HAS A BRAIN AND WE ARE BEING INSULTED!

Palin is an idiot

and a disgrace to women. That's all I have to say.

liberal elites

Who are these liberal elites? Are these the people with college degrees who analyze the issues and aren't afraid to be called unpatriotic? A couple of months ago it was clear to me the media was Republican-biased. Maybe it was McCain at the time wasn't as controversial and interesting as Obama- now with his horrendous mistakes and insulting things McCain has been saying it's clear the media is just pointing out what is going on. It was their campaign's choice to label Obama a terrorist. They are trying to SCARE YOU INTO VOTING REPUBLICAN because they know that given the past 8 years, there is no other way. McCain can't stand being behind, and he's crying about it. I've got news for you McCain, victory in a war is not always cut and dry. Would you rather let twice as many Americans die than lose your oil connections in the middle east? You are the most unpatriotic person in this whole country.

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About Bonnie Erbe

Bonnie Erbe is a contributing editor at U.S. News & World Report and hosts PBS's weekly news analysis program, To the Contrary with Bonnie Erbe. She also writes a weekly syndicated newspaper column for Scripps Howard News Service.

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