Fri Aug 29, 2008 at 12:57:44 PM EDT
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So the word is out that John McCain has chosen Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate to serve as Vice President. I'm reading the reaction from local Republicans gushing and wondering what the effect of her on the ticket really means for NJ races. First the gushing:Lonegan thrilled with Palin pickO'toole says Palin pick is stroke of brilliance Allen welcomes a fellow reform Republican who took on her own party Baroni says Alaskan Gov will put New Jersey in play I keep hearing people talk about whether NJ is in play or not, but I don't see how Palin makes that possibility much more likely. I wonder how she will play in districts 3, 5 and 7 where races are expected to be close. Do Republicans really think she will be able to give their candidates an edge they need, or does she fill a void in the campaign ticket as a whole?Her pick would seem to negate the experience argument as she has only been Governor since 2006 and served as Mayor of a small town before that. She is pro-life, which will go over well in some parts of the state, but like a rock in others. She supports drilling in ANWR and has encouraged John McCain to take another look at his prior opposition, which makes you wonder how NJ Republicans will respond if she comes out in support of more drilling off the Jersey shore. She brings youth and some gender balance to the ticket which I'm sure will be exploited while trying to court those still disgruntled Clinton voters, but when women get past her gender and look at her stands, will they still support her? Palin seems to come complete with her own built in scandal already as well. Besides that potential issue, you would have to think that Democrats will try to tie her to Ted Stevens and all of his corruption in Alaska. Another area sure to draw some attention is her stand on teaching creationism: The volatile issue of teaching creation science in public schools popped up in the Alaska governor's race this week when Republican Sarah Palin said she thinks creationism should be taught alongside evolution in the state's public classrooms. Palin was answering a question from the moderator near the conclusion of Wednesday night's televised debate on KAKM Channel 7 when she said, "Teach both. You know, don't be afraid of information. My favorite however, is what she said when asked recently about her interest in being Vice President:Larry Kudlow of CNBC's "Kudlow & Co." asked her about the possibility of becoming McCain's ticket mate.
Palin replied: "As for that VP talk all the time, I'll tell you, I still can't answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it exactly that the VP does every day?" Let's hope by now at least that someone has let her know what she will be doing every day should they win. Regardless, it's certainly good to see a woman on the ticket with McCain, even if I probably won't agree with much of what she has to say. |
| Jason Springer :: What does a Sarah Palin VP candidacy mean for NJ Republicans |
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