Free Republic

If the Republicans win the presidential election in November, it may well be said that they won it last night -- the night that John McCain's brilliantly screwy choice for a running mate changed from laughingstock to national star. Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's acceptance speech wasn't brilliant rhetoric, and she's not entirely accomplished as a public speaker, but she put herself over with slick, self-assured skill. To those in the hall and probably to millions watching at home, she came across as genuine and down-to-earth, a self-described "hockey mom" whose confidence and bravado were not exactly ingratiating but were somehow...

Tom Shales just told Chris Mathews that he hopes the Republicans responsible for creating the phony CBS documents are nailed before the election. He said it was unfortunate that Watergate didn't unravel until after Nixon was reelected. I've known this guy was a crackpot for sometime, but this just demonstrates how unhinged him and those like him have become. This is delicious.

Man of Steel Flies Into Gotham By Tom Shales Wednesday, September 1, 2004; Page C01 People don't commonly associate adjectives like "cool" and "hip" with the Republican Party, but the first broadcast television coverage of the party's convention, from Madison Square Garden in New York last night, revealed the GOP to be more media-hip and glitzy than the Democrats were earlier this summer. The event, a giant rubber stamp convened nominally to renominate George W. Bush for president and -- unless Rudolph Giuliani comes riding out from the wings on a white horse -- Dick Cheney for vice president, was...