Excitement. Dynamic. Inspiring.
Posted on 08/31/2008 5:23:53 AM PDT by reaganaut1
WASHINGTON — In the end, the choice of his running mate said more about Senator John McCain and his image of himself than it did about Sarah Palin, the little-known governor of Alaska whose selection has shaken up the presidential race.
For weeks, advisers close to the campaign said, Mr. McCain had wanted to name as his running mate his good friend Senator Joseph I. Lieberman of Connecticut, the Democrat turned independent. But by the end of last weekend, the outrage from Christian conservatives over the possibility that Mr. McCain would fill out the Republican ticket with Mr. Lieberman, a supporter of abortion rights, had become too intense to be ignored.
With time running out, and after a long meeting with his inner circle in Phoenix, Mr. McCain finally picked up the phone last Sunday and reached Ms. Palin at the Alaska State Fair. Although the campaign’s polling on Mr. McCain’s potential running mates was inconclusive on the selection of Ms. Palin — virtually no one had heard of her, a McCain adviser said — the governor, who opposes abortion, had glowing reviews from influential social conservatives.
Mr. McCain was comfortable with two others on his short list, Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts. But neither was the transformative, attention-grabbing choice Mr. McCain felt he needed, top campaign advisers said, to help him pivot from his image as the custodian of the status quo to a change agent like his Democratic rival, Senator Barack Obama.
Not least, Mr. Obama’s decision to pass over Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton as his running mate opened the possibility for Republicans to put a woman on the ticket and pick off some of Mrs. Clinton’s supporters.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
This is different from the account offered by the WSJ. As one of McCain’s advisers said, “The fact that Palin’s name is not mentioned much in the media, doesn’t mean she was not a front-runner!” or something to that effect. The McCain campaign is good in preventing or controlling any leak so far.
How the heck would the New York Times know? No one in the McCain camp (or any Republican) talks to them anymore. More wishful thinking and liberal fantasy from the Times.
LIberal ire picked Obama from picking Tom Ridge. LOL
That should be: LIberal ire kept Obama from picking Tom Ridge. LOL
I guarantee if McCain had picked Lieberman, he would not have gotten $7 million in online donations Friday!
T.S. NYT! They didn’t go with your choice to guarantee a Republican loss? Pitty.
Sure, McCain thought about Joe. He, like Bush, has this goofy "can't we all get along" utopian vision of Washington, but in the end, real politics forced his hand, and that's good. I can live with that. It's not your motivations that count for me, it's your actions.
Picking Lieberman would have killed the party. As little influence a VP choice realistically has on affecting voters, that would have been the final straw for much of the base. Bad as BHO is, there is a point where even the “I’m voting _against_ X” bloc sees insufficient difference between the alternatives.
Picking Palin, as little influence VP choice has on voters, shows that McCain at least does not hold his base in contempt.
One full term? I’ll take 2 years and 1 day, so President Sarah can serve out the balance of that term, and run twice for election in her own name.
The Slimes: Less credibility than The Enquirer
No way, no how would I consider voting for McLame and Lieberman.
I will happily support McCain-Palin.
Fact is I’d much prefer Palin be in the top spot.
I agree
I think they will continue to throw out this type of information to make it appear as if McCain is not the maverick he claims he is and caved into conservative demands.
I think they are running scared because one of the biggest things the Dems had against us was the fact that the conservatives didn’t have nearly half as much passion for McCain as they did President Bush in the 04 elections.
Everyone knows that if your base is in tatters you are at a disadvantage (example: The Hillary supporters). Now many in the conservative base are behind McCain and not only willing to vote for him, but contribute $ to his campaign and volunteer for him.
They wanted the conservative base in shambles because that would lesson McCain’s chances of winning IMO.
BINGO!
This is the same NYT who endorsed McCain - in the certain knowledge he would be the weakest GOP candidate in the GE.
The NYT underestimated McCain’s character and his stubborn dedication to serve this Nation.
We can only hope that the NYT has underestimated the American public’s ability to distinguish between CELEBRITY media hype AND sober common sense & sanity.
Why don’t you look at the positive aspect, assuming this story is even true? When enough conservatives actually made their voices heard, McCain actually listened.
That’s why he’s also come around (a tiny bit, but it’s a start) on his illegal immigration stance.
And John McCain's mom is how old?? 96??
If Lieberman was a true friend to McCain, he’d’ve refused the job.
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