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Report: Sarah Palin Debate Advisers Predicted 'Debacle of Epic Proportions' [Steve Schmidt]
Politics Daily ^ | January 7, 2009 | Patricia Murphy

Posted on 01/07/2010 9:06:44 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet

An adviser to John McCain who was preparing Sarah Palin for the vice presidential debate became so worried at Palin's weak performance in mock debates that he placed a panicked phone call to Steve Schmidt, the McCain campaign manager.

"He told us the debate was going to be a debacle of historic and epic proportions...she was not focused...not engaged," Schmidt says in an interview.

Specifically, "Palin had a reflexive tendency to refer to Biden as "O'Biden," says Schmidt, a tick that he said had to be corrected before the internationally televised debate in October 2008. The fix: "It was multiple people -- and I wasn't one of them-- who all said at the same time, 'Just say, Can I call you Joe?' Which she did."

Schmidt says Palin "more than held her own" in the debate, and never called Joe Biden "O'Biden." He also says that Palin strengthened the ticket, which, in his view, would have performed worse without her. . Schmidt recounts the story to Anderson Cooper in an interview for this Sunday's "60 Minutes" on CBS, which includes political reporters Mark Halperin and John Heilemann discussing the 2008 presidential campaigns.

Heilemann and Halperin will also talk about their new book, "Game Change," which they wrote after interviewing more than 200 people involved the historic elections, including many directly involved in the McCain campaign.

The authors and Schmidt reveal other new campaign details, including that John McCain had decided to choose Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) as his running mate, but reversed course days before the Republican convention because of "blowback" from the Republican ranks


TOPICS: Alaska; Campaign News; Parties
KEYWORDS: biden; palin; rino; rinos; romneybots; sarahpalin; steveschmidt; waronsarah
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

O’Biden is a terrible Vice-President.


21 posted on 01/07/2010 9:33:31 PM PST by Dr. North
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To: Darkwolf377

“As I wrote on the other thread, I don’t support Palin for president, but I’m definitely closer to doing so than I ever have been. When I see the endless obsession all the wrong people have with her, I figure there’s something there I should support.”

She sure has all the right enemies. And the fact that the left (and moderate R’s) were still attacking her madly AFTER the election says she scares them.

I mean, how many LOSING VP candidates get any press attention at all in the month after the election. Quick, who was George McGovern’s VP candidate? Dole’s? Ford? I know the answers. But I have to think about it for a bit. Because losing VP candidates are non-persons in American politics.

Palin has a bigger-than-life quality that quite overwhelmed McCain on the ticket. Heck, McCain turned out crowds in the 2-5000 range. She routinely turned out 20,000. Plus, she obviously scares the bejeezus out of a bunch of really bad guys, who have been attacking her ever since she was nominated.

She’s a fascinating character and I’m very interested to see what she makes of the next few years.


22 posted on 01/07/2010 9:35:47 PM PST by ModelBreaker
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To: Sarah Barracuda
“Can I call you Joe?”

She won the debate at that moment.

It was almost "I paid for this microphone!"

23 posted on 01/07/2010 9:36:44 PM PST by Dr. North
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Comment #24 Removed by Moderator

To: Dr. North

She kicked Biden’s ass in that debate. Actually I prefer to call Biden by his real name..Dumb ass


25 posted on 01/07/2010 9:39:48 PM PST by Sarah Barracuda
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To: onyx
I am just amazed at how inept the entire McCain campaign was. His unwillingness to call out Obama on his ties to all sorts of enemies of our way of life plus his mishandling of the financial ‘crisis’ were just two of the myriad of missteps and mistakes that doomed his campaign.
26 posted on 01/07/2010 9:40:46 PM PST by jwparkerjr
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To: abigailsmybaby

Shillery’s been pretty quiet, too.


27 posted on 01/07/2010 9:44:12 PM PST by Josephat
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

The left and rinos are running scared bigtime.This shit will go on for months.Blowing off cpac was a damned fine idea but then what would one expect from a conservative.


28 posted on 01/07/2010 9:45:55 PM PST by HANG THE EXPENSE (Life is tough.It's tougher when you're stupid.)
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To: toddausauras
You know “they” want to destroy Sarah when they attack her for her debate prep, even though the debate itself was at least a tie if not a win for her.

Without going back to the specifics, I do recall that Biden literally told six or seven huge whoppers in the debate.

29 posted on 01/07/2010 9:46:15 PM PST by torchthemummy (No Obama: Not Because He's Black But Because He's Red)
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To: Darkwolf377

Glad to see you coming around.


30 posted on 01/07/2010 9:49:12 PM PST by HANG THE EXPENSE (Life is tough.It's tougher when you're stupid.)
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To: Niteflyr

My variation on that is “Every time a liberal cries, an angel laughs his ass off.” :)


31 posted on 01/07/2010 9:49:16 PM PST by Darkwolf377 (Bostonian conservative, atheist prolifer)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

‘A debacle of epic proportions’? Brother, they really are trying to make Sarah out to be a train wreck. I didn’t personally care for the debate. But they think saying McCain wanted Liebermann makes it better?

I hope this man loses his re-election bid and goes away. And takes his ‘people’ with him.


32 posted on 01/07/2010 9:51:08 PM PST by ReneeLynn (Socialism is SO yesterday. Fascism, it*s the new black. Mmm Mmm Mmm.)
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To: torchthemummy
Without going back to the specifics, I do recall that Biden literally told six or seven huge whoppers in the debate.

I understand that it should be pretty easy to shut him down. Just say, "Joe, tell us, in your own words, about <X>."

33 posted on 01/07/2010 9:55:04 PM PST by thulldud (It HAS happened here!)
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To: jwparkerjr
It was disastrous. John had plenty of chances to win, thanks only to Sarah, but his willful, unyielding stubbornness stood in his way. For example, Sarah gave him the most golden opportunity to change his stupid position on ANWR but he didn't accept it. DRILL BABY DRILL, from no less than the Governor of Alaska, his running mate, the expert on ANWR and energy!

I'll never forgive him for not personally taking care of her and for not overseeing the people he put in charge of her campaign. She was his ticket to the White House, which he realized on the first day he introduced her, but he neglected to make certain that she was properly advised and protected from the news media. Stupid McCain, she should have been sent to Rush and Fox News Channel and the hell with the networks. They were already in obama’s camp, and McCain KNEW it.

34 posted on 01/07/2010 9:56:32 PM PST by onyx
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Steve Schmidt is a wreck, and he’s doing CYA. He’s even got a weenie lib Sacramento Bee opinion dude, Marcos Breton, carrying his water.


35 posted on 01/07/2010 9:58:01 PM PST by norge (The amiable dunce is back, wearing a skirt and high heels.)
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To: Sarah Barracuda

I assumed she asked to call him Joe in preparation for the “Say it ain’t so Joe” line she hit him with at the end.


36 posted on 01/07/2010 10:28:16 PM PST by freedomrings69
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To: Josephat

She’s traveling the globe, saving the whole world.


37 posted on 01/07/2010 10:48:24 PM PST by abigailsmybaby (To understan' the livin' you got to commune wit' da dead.)
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To: Darkwolf377

I know, you can sometimes tell the best person from his/her enemies.

When I see who shrieks with venomous hatred at her, I figure she’s got a lot going for her.


38 posted on 01/07/2010 10:52:48 PM PST by Marie2 (The second mouse gets the cheese.)
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To: freedomrings69

Since she is saying that she asked him to let her call him Joe to keep from making a mistake and calling him O’Biden, her comment “say it ain’t so, Joe” shows just how quick and clever she can be.


39 posted on 01/07/2010 11:07:15 PM PST by imfrmdixie
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To: Sarah Barracuda
Actually I prefer to call Biden by his real name..Dumb ass.

I'm sitting here giggling with delight. Also imagining her walking across the stage, holding out her hand to shake, and saying, "Can I call you Dumb Ass?"

She may not have won the debate, but at least half of America would have fallen in love with her in that instant!

40 posted on 01/07/2010 11:18:36 PM PST by Finny ("Raise hell. Vote smart." -- Ted Nugent.)
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