TPMDC Sunday Roundup
Palin Attacks "Main Stream Media" Not Understanding Her Resignation
Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) released a statement yesterday to comment further on her decision to resign -- and again, she attacks the media for going after her. "The response in the main stream media has been most predictable, ironic, and as always, detached from the lives of ordinary Americans who are sick of the 'politics of personal destruction,'" Palin writes. "How sad that Washington and the media will never understand; it's about country. And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make."
Obama's Day Ahead
President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will depart from the White House tonight at 8:15 p.m. ET, leaving for Obama's overseas trip this week starting with Moscow, Russia.
Biden: We Misjudged How Bad The Economy Would Be
Appearing on This Week, Vice President Biden said the economy is continuing to suffer, despite the predictions made about the stimulus bill, because the White House misjudged just how bad the economy would be. "The truth is, there was a misreading of just how bad an economy we inherited," said Biden. "Now, that doesn't -- I'm not -- it's now our responsibility. So the second question becomes, did the economic package we put in place, including the Recovery Act, is it the right package given the circumstances we're in? And we believe it is the right package given the circumstances we're in."
McCain: Palin Will Continue To Play An Important Leadership Role
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) gave the following statement yesterday about his former running mate: "I have the greatest respect and affection for Sarah, Todd, and their family. I was deeply honored to have her as my running mate and believe she will continue to play an important leadership role in the Republican Party and our nation."
Huckabee: Palin Will Have To Explain Resignation -- Or Get Out Of Politics
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR) said that the resignation by Sarah Palin -- a potential rival of his for the 2012 GOP nomination -- is something that she should be prepared to explain. Well, it's a risky strategy, and nobody knows whether it's going to pay off or not," Huckabee said. "And even if she did get out, primarily because of a feeling of being chased, that's not going to stop if she continues in politics. The only way that stops is for her to completely exit the stage and the spotlight."
Palin's Attorney Threatens Legal Action Over Investigation Rumors
Sarah Palin's attorney, Thomas Van Flein, is threatening legal action against Web sites and other news outlets that have published rumors that Palin may be resigning due to a possible federal investigation. "I can say definitively I am aware of no criminal investigation whatsoever involving Sarah Palin. Zero," said Van Flein.
Schumer: "There Will Be A Public Option In The Final Bill"
Appearing on Face The Nation, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) spoke out forcefully for a public option. "There will be a public option in the final bill, some form of it. And hopefully Chuck Grassley and I and others can come to an agreement on how that should work," he said. He added: "We don't trust the private insurance companies left to their own devices and neither do the American people. Seventy percent of the American people support a public option."
Mullen Worries Any Strike On Iran Would Be "Very Destabilizing"
Appearing on Face The Nation, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Adm. Mike Mullen voiced his concern about any potential strike on Iran's nuclear infrastructure by Israel. "Well, I have been for some time concerned about any strike on Iran. I worry about it being very destabilizing not just in and of itself but the unintended consequences of a strike like that," said Mullen. "At the same time, I'm one that thinks Iran should not have nuclear weapons. I think that's very destabilizing. I worry about the proliferation of the technology. I worry about other countries thinking in the region they might have to have that capability. So it's a very, very narrow window with respect to that."
Josh
Matt
Eric
Brian
A Preview of Letterman's 'Take' on the Palin Resignation
http://satiricalpolitical.com/?p=7705
July 5, 2009 12:59 PM | Reply | Permalink
Who are those "countless others" who have left office to pursue a higher calling when they're not actually running for something at the same time?
Bob Dole was running for president when he resigned. What other politician has left office, for no apparent reason, a year and a half out, when not running for another office? She just makes shit up, doesn't she?
And the "sacrificing my title"? You're not a beauty queen, Governor.
July 5, 2009 1:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
And of those countless others, how many actually held their office (or other offices) for many years, compiling a resume of service that goes far beyond mayor of smallville before resigning to accomplish other things?
Before you rest on your laurals don't you have to actually have some laurals to rest on?
July 5, 2009 1:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
But if you point this out, I guess you're just part of the evil media, trying to do poor Sarah in.
And to think she had the gall to imply that Hillary Clinton needed to suck it up.
July 5, 2009 1:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
Stick a fork in her. She is done. What an idiot. It's a shame that she did this though, obama would have crushed her in 2012. It's the unknown that is frightening. Now all the "leaders" of the real old party are toast, so there is someone in the wings who we don't know about right now who could come in and be a "star." The unknown is frightening.
July 5, 2009 5:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
Yeah, Palin just hates the "politics of personal destruction." At least when it's directed at her...
July 5, 2009 1:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Boo-hoo, it's all about me. Nobody understands me, everybody should love me. Look at me, like me, why don't you like me, I'll make you sorry you don't like me.
What a complete narcissist. The "politics of personal destruction" start at home, Sarah. Do us all a favor: get a therapist.
July 5, 2009 1:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
therapy rarely works with stupid people.
July 6, 2009 12:52 AM | Reply | Permalink
Good God.
I am oddly reminded of the interview with Alica Shepard, NPR's ombudsman, I heard on "Talk of the Nation" last week. Shepard and Cronyn were discussing the (to them) inexplicable controversy over NPR's continued refusal to call waterboarding "torture." In the case of Sarah's comment and Shepard's argument, there's a level of brick wall obtuseness at work that causes stroke-inducing levels of incredulous exasperation.
July 5, 2009 2:47 PM | Reply | Permalink
That NPR segment is what finally convinced me to delete my podcast subscription to Talk of the Nation. I had come to realize that I simply wasn't learning anything from it and I didn't care to give NPR any more viewership numbers.
And it helped that Science Friday actually has its own separate podcast feed.
July 5, 2009 6:51 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, that sure removes any possibility that there are any investigations (or subsequent prosecutorial activities) involving Palin.
July 5, 2009 4:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
A civil investigation? SEC?
July 5, 2009 8:46 PM | Reply | Permalink
Have any of you been over to HuffPost? She is suing one of their writers, Shannyn Moore for defamation of character! If you haven't visited the blog, I suggest that you do.
Palin seems very thin skinned for a individual who constantly maligned Obama's character during her brief time on the campaign trail last year.
She does not mind being the rotweiler in lipstick when she is the attacking bitch, but reverse it, and she is a lamb.
July 5, 2009 4:45 PM | Reply | Permalink
She has not filed any suit, she is simply "threatening to sue," which is what any dweeb can do any day of the week, and it means nothing. How can she possibly sue anyone for reporting tht there are rumors of scandals?
She is already over her due date, but if Obama can't sue her for the shit she said about him, she surely can't sue anyone for "defamation!"
July 5, 2009 6:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Did Palin just claim that she and everyone knows she quit for less than honorable reasons and not for a higher calling?
"And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make."
Now I know she was aiming at media sources, but if you read the sentence as stated she's actually saying that her own standards for her own conduct are different than honorable or for a higher calling.
Since this was not an ad hoc or ad lib verbal remark, but rather a published statement, there's no reason to give her leeway on casual language use. As a communication major, she's clearly telling us the truth about herself.
July 5, 2009 5:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
(zing)
Thanks eds.
July 5, 2009 5:17 PM | Reply | Permalink
Hey, Bwak, how's it going? I've been "away" a lot recently...
July 5, 2009 6:05 PM | Reply | Permalink
OK eds, I've been away a bit meself. I hope you've been having fun rather than working like a dog.
=D
(That's my excuse)
July 5, 2009 6:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
No that is not my excuse. I burned out on blogging but am not working either. :(
July 6, 2009 3:49 AM | Reply | Permalink
Sarah Palin - she likes to dish it out, but she sure can't take it. She admonishes Hillary for 'whining', and yet says this? She runs a truly mean-spirited hate-mongering campaign in '08, and then laments the 'politics of personal destruction'?
This woman takes hypocrisy to a whole new level. The real hoot is seeing how the fringers still glom onto her as the Savioress for the GOP.
July 5, 2009 5:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
I believe Palin is threatening to sue, complaining that rumors have been reported as facts. They haven't been reported as facts, they've been reported as rumors and suspicions.
Palin's attorney also threatened the Washington Post and the NY Times who haven't even reported the rumors. In fact, this morning's NY Times article on reaction to Palin's quitting was so wimpy one could read it and not even suspect that people find the whole affair rather fishy.
Poor Sarah - I guess she wasn't paying attention in school the days that they covered freedom of the press, or probably any of the Constitution. It's pretty hard to convict someone of libel when they are speaking about a public figure, and impossible when rumors are being discussed as rumors.
Sarah can use her new free time to bone up on the Constitution, a smattering of political science, and perhaps some basic geography. Maybe some public speaking lessons that include the use of whole sentences and logical thought would be useful. Not.
July 5, 2009 5:19 PM | Reply | Permalink
"And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling..."
Another so called Christian who throws ethics to the wind and jumps on the "situational ethical excuse" bandwagon.
Since when is it honorable for politicians to just walk out on those thousands of folks to whom you promised to serve (as governor, congressman, senator, etc.). I find it deplorable for ANY of them to just quit their job in midstream so they can do other things... INCLUDING run for another, more prestigious job. I rather find this characteristic a "lack of honor"... to just abandon all these folks who voted for someone because they were told something which was not worth the effort fulfill.
It appears, however, that many folks are right in line with this thinking... as our society continues to slide down that hill... and those same politicians float to the top of the heap...
(and, yes, I realize Obama did this also... both mobs are falling in line with the same concept... that your word is only good as long as it suits your purpose... then it is no longer needed) IMHO
July 5, 2009 6:44 PM | Reply | Permalink
Nice false equivalence. Obama didn't do "this"; he didn't resign halfway through a term to do something unspecified and claim it was honorable and for the good of the country. He resigned his Senate seat after he was elected President.
Considering that this has been common through much of the country's history, your attempts to attribute some sort of societal decline are rather ludicrously grandiose. In other professions, people gain promotions without it being seen as some sort of dishonorable abandonment of commitments; I doubt we'd see better politicians if we required them all to be out of office before entering another race.
July 6, 2009 2:43 AM | Reply | Permalink
Is it me or is Palin just completely incoherent? How does anybody figure out what she was trying to say in that press conference. At the time I thought surely something is getting ready to hit the fan, but maybe not. Maybe this is her screwy way of starting her presidential campaign. Weird beyond measure.
July 5, 2009 9:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Since when has Half-Baked Alaska cared much about coherence? Or, indeed shown any hint of knowing what coherence is or why it's a Good Thing?
Time yet for an Alaskan Palinectomy?
July 6, 2009 3:59 AM | Reply | Permalink
Half-baked Alaska.
Nice!
July 6, 2009 1:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
I hope when you have children a David Letterman joke about them at the baseball game will be funny and you will just laugh it off when a Letterman fan sees your teenager at the park he will have a good time at you expence, because children are just a joke, right...
Who would want to be a public servent in the Obama Government.
July 5, 2009 10:30 PM | Reply | Permalink
Poor put-upon Sarah. She entered a presidential race while her teen-age daughter was "knocked up" and honestly expected that it wouldn't cause comment? I asked all the moms I know if they would put their kid in the spotlight like that under those circumstances. Universally, regardless of political leanings, they said no, they wouldn't do that to their own child. Maybe none of my acquaintances are power-hungry enough to feed their errant children to the wolves.
Sarah couldn't figure this out? She has no right to complain.
July 5, 2009 11:25 PM | Reply | Permalink
Poor put-upon Sarah. She entered a presidential race while her teen-age daughter was "knocked up" and honestly expected that it wouldn't cause comment? I asked all the moms I know if they would put their kid in the spotlight like that under those circumstances. Universally, regardless of political leanings, they said no, they wouldn't do that to their own child. Maybe none of my acquaintances are power-hungry enough to feed their errant children to the wolves.
Sarah couldn't figure this out? She has no right to complain.
July 5, 2009 11:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
This is as coherent as Palin's prose. Good job!
July 6, 2009 12:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
If she couldn't handle Letterman, what was she going to do with Ahmadinejad, Kim, Putin, etc.? Threaten to sue THEM too?
Sorry, but like it or not, this was a perfect comeuppance for this appallingly ignorant snowbilly. She accused Obama of palling around with terrorists, implied that neither he nor his supporters were "Real Americans" (a meme that Scarborough's airheaded sidekick Mika is STILL bandying about as of this morning), had supporters shouting "Kill him!" and "Traitor" at her rallies with NO repudiation (even McCain had the good sense at long last to recognize that it had gone too far at one of his rallies), and we're supposed to feel sorry for her? F*CK THAT.
Time to get the terminally stupid people off the stage. As Ms. Moore so gracefully stated to Her Mooseness (hereafter to be referred to as the Queen of the Iquitarod), SUCK.IT.UP.BUTTERCUP.
July 6, 2009 1:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
Sarah Palin now has a pattern. She now has quit 2 high level state jobs in Alaska. She is a liability and has a pattern of quitting when the going gets tough.
She has ethic charges filed against her because she is ethically challenged. Her ethics board consists of people appointed by her and depend on her for their jobs. She was found guilty of an ethics violation when she challenged by her own legislature, which is a republican majority.
She has not spent her post election time wisely, nor did she do anything of substance in her own state this legislative session despite having a republican majority.
She has proven that she is intellectuality incapable of learning from her mistakes and is not going to improve her knowledge base.
She is a female GW Bush. And God knows, we know how this scenario works.
She had a wonderful opportunity after Sanford's fall from grace. She squandered that. She is an accident waiting to happen.
July 6, 2009 3:56 AM | Reply | Permalink
IMAGINE THIS BY THE WAY:
In 2008, McCain was elected.
Not to long later, tragedy strikes and we lose him.
Sarah is the President of the United States.
Is that terrifying or what?
How could McCain have *dared* expose us to this? For shame!
July 6, 2009 4:32 AM | Reply | Permalink
I confess. I have speculated as to the reason for Sarah's lunacy, and published these speculations on blogs.
Come get me, Sarah's lawyers. Make my day.
July 6, 2009 10:43 AM | Reply | Permalink