The American Spectator

james falkenberg| 11.6.08 @ 12:31PM

this should strengthen palin's position with the true conservative base of this country-these aides are disgusting and should be exposed by name and fired from any future dealings with conservative candidates-the republican party had better get it's act together or our future is dismal

Oliver| 11.6.08 @ 12:40PM

Yes! The staffers must be rounded up! For they are... (wait for it) ...UNAMERICAN. They should be "exposed by name and fired..."

How dare they -- employees; criticizing their boss? Don't they know that what made Americans great is their uncritical acceptance of people in power?

By the way, are you guys having fun yet?

WendyG| 11.6.08 @ 12:48PM

>>>> How dare they -- employees; criticizing their boss? Don't they know that what made Americans great is their uncritical acceptance of people in power?

By the way, are you guys having fun yet?
********
If anyone has benefited from "uncritical acceptance of people in power" it's Barack Obama. Because the press refused to do their job during the campaign.

But nevertheless, yes, I am having fun. I mean it's only been two days and we already have stories of the Obama campaign stiffing campaign workers (some of them black) out of their pay. Obama's new slogan can be "Change We Refuse To Give You." Comedy gold!

JanC| 11.6.08 @ 1:25PM

Huge difference between truthful criticism and derision of character for personal benefit..... think before you type.

pomoc| 11.6.08 @ 1:27PM

HA the pirate thing is in let Wallace walk the plank we do not need back stabbers in the movement.

Tailgunner| 11.6.08 @ 1:42PM

If the allegations are true...then I see no problem, though I am repulsed by such character assassination, with the leaks.

If they are false, which sounds likely to me, then Wallace deserves to pay a heavy price.

William R| 11.6.08 @ 1:48PM

This isn't good that Palin has Kristol and Randy Scheunemann defending her. She needs to stay clear of the Neocons who are responsible for the disaster known as the Bush adm.

Oliver| 11.6.08 @ 1:53PM

I am so jealous of Palin, Even after my sex change operation, she's still hotter than I am.

ruth| 11.6.08 @ 3:03PM

Oliver, are you having fun yet? The DOW sure isn't, last I checked it was DOWN about 1,000 points since your messiah was elected. Democrats--good job!

nate| 11.6.08 @ 3:37PM

I would love to see spectator face up to the fact they wrongfully blamed all the Wallace rumors on Romney last week and they owe an apology article to him.

It wont happen.

Captain America| 11.6.08 @ 4:06PM

Look, here's what happened:

Gov. Palin was McCain's choice but not Nicolle Wallace's choice.

Wallace set up the interviews with Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric. She was recently a political analyst at CBS, so she knew what an early, out of the gate interview with Couric would bring. Gov. Palin was also booked up at the UN with foreign leaders that week, so she was given little time to equip herself for the interviews.

Gov. Palin had to call Glenn Beck herself to arrange a radio interview with him. What does that tell you about the support coming from Wallace?

Oliver| 11.6.08 @ 5:21PM

Hey, the same loser guy who writes fake comments in other people's names followed me to a different website. Greetings, fake guy! How's your sad, sad life?

So Wendy, you're in favor of employees being allowed to actually criticize their superiors... so, that means that you support what I had to say, right? Or did your reasoning not take you that far?

All comments written after this in my name will be fake. Enjoy the next eight years, my friends...

Foley| 11.6.08 @ 5:25PM

I suspect there will be multiple sources for the dirt about Gov Palin's lack of knowledge about NAFTA, Africa etc and about how she spent 150K and more at Nieman Marcus, Sacks et al.

But if there is any debate between Nicolle Wallace and Gov Palin, I would take Wallace any day for smarts, truthfulness, knowledge and judgment.

We know enough about Gov Palin at this point to know her stories and the truth can be very different things (e.g., that Bridge story and other fictions in her convention speech).

The truth does out -- no point in blaming the sources. My friends, the question really is why are some folks so willing to excuse Gov Palin for spending GOP money so lavishly and for her vapid answers to simple interview questions?

Donna Cahill| 11.6.08 @ 5:48PM

To: RNC Leadership
Subject: How dare they?
Date: November 6, 2008
--------------------------------------------------------------I, like millions of Sarah Palin supporters, am saddened by the actions of Steve Schmidt and Nicole Wallace, two key McCain campaign aides. During and after the election, they have tried to destroy Sarah Palin's political future and discourage Republican supporters throughout the country. How dare they? As a Republican women, wife, mother and self-employed marketing consultant, I am ashamed of my party! These petty and self-serving comments are an insult to John McCain and our party.

I have been involved and inspired by our Vice Chairman Jo Ann Davidson's commitment to building our women's grassroots movement. These recent comments are a slap to Jo Ann's hard work and to the thousands of Republican and Moderate Democrat women who called, knocked on doors and donated money to elect McCain/Palin. Schmidt and Wallaces actions are an insult to the dignified conduct of John McCain and are in stark contrast to Rick Davis' support and endorsement of Sarah Palin.

I feel I have a right to express my opinion because I have not sat on the sidelines; I have been an active Republican at the grassroots level. I have spoken at Jo Ann’s regional women workshops and been an active participant in the Pink Elephants. I was also Maryland's Small Business Coalition Chair for Bush/Cheney '04, Director of MD Small Business Coalition for MD Republican Party and the Maryland Political Field Director for the US Chamber of Commerce during the 2006 elections.

For over 13 years I have been proud of the Republican Party and when John McCain selected Sarah Palin as the first Republican women nominated to a national ticket, I was elated!! I live outside the beltway and I have seen first-hand how she has energized our demoralized base. She is the future of this party no matter what Schmidt and Wallace say! Sarah Palin is an intelligent, confident, practical and self-made woman. With so little role models in the Republican Party, she is exactly what we need as we look to the future. Like most women, she became involved locally through her PTA and as a small business owner. She didn't attend an Ivy League college, she graduated from a state university and along the way also attended a community college because she couldn't afford college full time.

Schmidt and Wallace, have been on a mission to trash Sarah Palin to the media! I can only imagine this was done to deflect their "brilliant" strategy of introducing the most popular governor in the United States through interviews with Charlie Gibson and Katie Couric. How did that strategy work? For Schmidt, who never graduated from college, to question her intelligence is very interesting indeed. Recently, the media asked Schmidt if Sarah Palin cost McCain votes and his response was no comment! Nicole Wallace, a Berkley grad, former CBS employee and co-worker with Couric, has been the source of leaks and deliberate misinformation to defame the first national women candidate for the GOP. Is there any wonder why Americans are turned off by the political process?

Sarah Palin drew record-breaking crowds because America connected with someone who is real and genuine. Schmidt and Wallace are Washington, DC creatures that rise and fall because of someone else’s accomplishments. Sarah Palin was not only targeted by the media, but also by a couple of rotten apples in her own campaign!

Our party needs new leadership and we need people who want to build up our party and not tear it down. If we plan on growing our base, we need extensive outreach to women, minorities and small business owners. This email is being sent to thousands as a call to action to take back our party.

The Republican Party will be selecting a new Chairman in the upcoming months and my choice is Michael Steele! Please contact your state party and show your support for Michael. I have just created a site called www.steele4gopchair.com

Like the ultimate multi-tasker Sarah Palin, I woke up today dropped my kids off at school, set up a web site and wrote this email. This is only one person’s opinion, but I hope many Republicans who are frustrated about the direction of our party will agree with me.

Oliver| 11.6.08 @ 9:08PM

Hee. No, sorry, this is still the real me. Hey! Any time that you can repost an email that in deperate, overlong form, makes the case that with lots of exclamation points (!!) that your vice-presidential candidate was really okay after all!!!!!!

Ah, no, I don't really care. But continue on with your own embarrassment.

All comments written after this in my name will be fake. Enjoy the next eight years, my friends...

Real Republican| 11.6.08 @ 9:16PM

I think we need to find somebody even dumber next time.

truthie| 11.6.08 @ 9:31PM

Oliver: Did that sex-change hurt?

bk| 11.7.08 @ 2:26AM

the truth of the matter is that no one running for high office in the past several decades have been subjected to the withering and biased press Sarah Palin has been subjected to.

Conversely, no one has had their ass kissed quite as much as barry obama has had his ass kissed by the media.

Let's hope he flounders (which I suspect will happen)

bk| 11.7.08 @ 2:27AM

my apologies:

"has" not "have"

my bad

Lynn M Rogers| 11.7.08 @ 2:56AM

I truly believe it is either Steve Schmidt and Nicole Wallace after seeing some videos they have done for other networks....this is my gut feeling-I am sure there will be a reckoning....Governor Palin has class and style and she represents to me a Conservative Republican not a moderate one and that is what some people are afraid of.

I hope there is a formal apology but ufortunately the damage has been done-these are truly cowards in every way and to let media report on this is inexcusable in everyway.

I am so glad that we got to know Governor Sarah Palin-she will do great things in the future-I hope she does not stay away too long and I hope the Republican Party can pull itself together-start to remember the party they once were and could be again.

Best,
Lynn M. Rogers

Becky| 11.7.08 @ 9:08AM

Seems to me that many people are conflating two issues. One is whether these allegations about Palin's ignorance, bacchanalian spending, tantrums etc. are true and/or believable and the second issue is whether it is appropriate for these aides to be making these claims anonymously. My opinion is that while we don't know for sure whether the unflattering claims are true, they certainly are believable based on what we already factually know about Palin - her lies, unsupportable per diem claims, glaringly obvious ignorance during the Couric interview, and divisiveness etc. Whether it's appropriate for the aides to be behaving this way is another matter - it probably isn't but it gives us some insights into some of the people McCain surrounded himself with. The contrast with the well organized, effective and cohesive Obama campaign is striking. I am also appalled that many Republicans would consider Palin a future leader of their party - it says something unflattering about their standards when it comes to intelligence, accountability and ethics. If anything, toxic and phony Palin is a poster child for everything that is wrong with the GOP.

Diet Soda Kills Brain Cells| 11.7.08 @ 1:41PM

Quote: "The only thing I've ever seen her ask for is a diet soda."

THAT is enough to damn her in my book! Everyone knows that DIET SODA that is full of ASPARTAME is a brain-cell killer. Could explain some of Palin's MENTAL MISHAPS. What a dolt! (By the way, WHAT NURSING MOTHER lives on a daily intake of DIET SODA??)

Pig In Lipstick| 11.7.08 @ 1:52PM

Sorry, Bill, you are WAY TOO INVESTED in defending Palin. WHY?

It was not John McCain who "chose" Palin. It was Steve Schmidt, who lived to REGRET it. Schmidt was so disaffected with Palin by election night that he refused to permit her to speak at the Concession Speech! :-) LOL!

WHAT A DUMB-A$$ED selection Palin was! You see where it got you guys! Palin was a joke and will go down in history as the goofy Northern Exposure "pig in lipstick."

ruth| 11.7.08 @ 2:18PM

I thought you liberals would be happy when your messiah was elected, but no, you are the same old haters. Losers.

REAL AMERICAN| 11.7.08 @ 3:17PM

THE LIBERAL VITRIOL AND HATE CONTINUES

GLAD TO THE THE MCCAIN AIDES FINALLY SHOWING THEIR AND MCCAIN LIBERAL SIDE

WONT HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT HAVING MCCAIN CONTINUE TO PRETEND TO BE CONSERVATIVE IN THE FUTURE.

Thomas| 11.7.08 @ 4:25PM

The whole thing smacks of retroactive ass covering. 'Of course we failed, here's all the awful things she (Palin) did to undermine our efforts.' In other words, the campaign was all about us not gettinf McCain elected. Idiots! And Carl Cameron, did he have a sex change too? This is snippy girl gossip between the stalls and nothing more. Can't believe it rises up to the threshold of news.

Jan| 11.10.08 @ 7:56PM

I live in Wasilla, Alaska, only 3 miles away from the Palins, and while I don't know them personally, I know Sarah & Todd better than all of you who have posted messages. I also had an exchange student from Germany living with me, necessarily find in the newand she went to Wasilla High along with Bristol Palin.
Due to my past experiences with Sarah Palin, I can honestly speak up and be a positive reference. Here is some information you won't necessarily find in the news:
I have had interaction with her on both a personal level, and when she was my Mayor several years ago.
On a whim, I sent a letter into the Mayor's office which included a magazine article about a city that became debt-free. When I called the Mayor's office a week later, I had no idea that the city was looking into moving the overcrowded police station, or that Wasilla City Council was undecided on what to do about it. Even though Sarah and I had never met up to that point, she still took my letter, copied it to everyone on city council, and as a result, city council choose to renovate an old bank building instead of constructing a new building, which saved the city a couple million! I even got a thank you letter from Sarah in the mail. Basically, I'm living proof that she listens to people, and gets the job done!
I know where she goes to church, I know lots of the same people she knows, and, I've spoken with her several times. As a result, I have learned that she is a person of integrity, she isn't a liar, and she has been a very hard worker and a genuine server of others in our beautiful state. She blew the whistle on politicians in Alaska that were crossing ethics lines (one was a Democrat, and the other was a Republican), she also worked to raise the bar on ethics standards in Alaska - all of which was reported in Alaska news as very commendable, and a whole bunch of other wonderful things that people like Foley and Becky obviously have been led to believe and know nothing about as shown by their negative opinions in their message posts - and things that they THINK are facts. People who live outside of Alaska haven't been able to follow Sarah Palin as closely as Alaskans have and so it kind of stings a little for us to just sit and watch people believe the false negative spins that they get fed from the media. For example, the comment that Foley makes about "that Bridge story and other fictions in her convention speech"...don't you know that Sarah's speech actually did contain all accurate and truthful information? All you have to do is ask a resident from Ketchikan, Alaska to find out about why they needed a bridge. It wasn't a "Bridge to Nowhere" like the national media spinned it. It was a way for Ketchikan to connect to their airport! I was okay with Sarah choosing to put the money into something else that was a much higher priority. However, I got pretty hot mad when the media called it "The Bridge to Nowhere" because their airport is on an island since they don't have enough room in their city for an airport which is tightly nestled between mountains and ocean. They have to pay money to take a ferry in order to get to it, and I have been on bridges across our country for lesser reasons than an airport. Ketchikan residents have been working very hard on that bridge for many years to try to get it passed through. So, why did Sarah "say no to the Bridge to Nowhere"? Because that money was needed for even more important things like for example, energy for our great nation, and all too often leaders have no choice but to make difficult decisions based on order of: priority, balancing the budget, and other people's input/judgements - because leaders can't always do it all. Also, do you know what really happened to the jet plane Sarah mentioned in her speech that she sold in order to save money? She WAS telling the truth because I live up here, and I remember hearing it reported in the news when it happened. I remember when Alaska news confirmed that she tried to sell it on E-Bay, and when it didn't sell, she sold it to a broker, saving the state lots of money. Also, did you know that most Alaska politicians have to fly from Anchorage to our capitol in Juneau just to get there? Did you know that several times Alaskans have voted on whether or not we should move our capitol to a different location? Did you know that Sarah found a way to do most of her work in Anchorage (only an hour drive from her house), except when she must be in Juneau, so it doesn't cost so much, which allows her to sell the jet, thereby once again, costing the state even less. This also meant that she didn't need the cook at the Juneau Governor's residence, thereby saving the state more money - this was also reported in Alaska news at the time that it happened, which was also BEFORE she was announced for the VP ticket. Since all these changes saved the state lots of money, the changes were good ones that made sense and served Alaskans well. She also took the power away from big oil companies, and put it in the hands of us - the people! I know, because I got a check in the bank from all her hard work! I already knew about all this stuff in Alaska before Sarah was ever announced on the VP ticket - I already knew all the things that Sarah mentioned in her convention speech were all true statements! And, these items were reported in Alaska news before she was ever aware of the possibility of being selected by McCain's campaign.
This kind of proven track record doesn't sound like someone who is flippant with money. So, like Thomas said, this "snippy girl gossip" about clothes is very silly and immature. How does someone who needs so many body guards go around to do their own shopping without attracting a large crowd? I thought that people who needed lots of body guards didn't go shopping since it's too dangerous - someone else always does it. And, aren't they too busy working anyway to go shopping? Also, didn't the campaign always know where the Palins were at all times? The accusation is so directly opposite with the Sarah that I have come to know. Those of us who live in Alaska and in Wasilla and the surrounding areas are so tired of the negative untruthful smears that people across the country have been fed about all of the candidates, that many of us started to tune the national news out over a month ago. For example, when the media reported the size of Wasilla, I finally realized how facts can get spun out of whack. While it's true there are 7,000 people - that's not the whole story! Wasilla is soo spread out! But, city limits are only about 3 - 5 miles in diameter, and the media didn't include all the people living in the surrounding area which is also regarded by residents as being part of Wasilla and they too depend on the city. Nor did the media report that people living within a 25,000 square mile radius also traffic to Wasilla since it is the only city close enough to get what they need - food, clothes, etc. Otherwise, they have to drive an extra hour to Anchorage to get what they need! Anyway, many Alaskans, like myself, see how much value Sarah has brought to Alaska, and while we were somewhat reluctant with the possibility of having to try to find someone to fill the Governor's shoes who was of Sarah's high quality character, we were also willing and excited at the prospect of sharing her with the rest of the country. Many of us figured that since she is so well respected here for all the service she has done for Alaska (opinion polls were 80% earlier this year) , she would also have pretty good ratings across the country. I'm very glad she is home again, and I hope and pray for the very best for her. Hopefully, the Republican camp will get themselves in gear quickly, and this whole thing will boil over very soon. In any case, we have a new President and VP elect now, and it's time to put the negatives aside, join together as Americans, and support / pray for Barak Obama and everyone working the White House for the next 4 years!

sceskimo| 11.12.08 @ 12:20AM

Excellent Jan! You are exactly right. If the national media, including our own in Anchorage had done their homework and viewed the public hearings that Sarah Palin has held as Governor they would see a bright, intelligent, articulate, thoughtful, focused woman that leads her bipartisan lawmakers. She could not have accomplished all that has been done in Alaska without the ability to mediate and implement ideas submitted to her by many to accomplish all that she has in 2 years. Sarah Palin's heart is to love others, even her enemies. At the same time she is not afraid to hold others accountable, even herself. She is not a perfect person and she will not do everything right. That is not why we elect leaders!!! Just because you can twist someone's words and make "something" of absolutely NOTHING only means you are a wordsmith, and critical one at that especially when it came to Sarah Palin. However, what is will be and we must unite to follow our new president's lead and continue to vote and encourage our leaders to make decisions that will be for the good of the country. Our children's future depends on it! Why would I vote for Sarah Palin? 1. Because we serve the same one and only True God as described in the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) 2. Because she is a leader that isn't afraid to let others be strong in her organization 3. She has proven herself in Alaska to Alaskans who are a very diverse people. And, getting a check from the oil for over $3,200 per family member for each household is a huge blessing, especially for low income families. But guess what, it's also nice for those with wealth because they are resident's too! Why should they give up their amount just because they have more in their banks? That is what Obama would do!

Grateful to have our Governor back! And by the way, Alaska is in the BLACK! Not the RED like many other states! Come to think of it I think we might be the state that loans out lots of money to everyone else! No one is faulting Palin and her team for that!

Stackpole| 11.12.08 @ 9:14AM

I AGREE WITH DONNA CAHILL. Wallace should pay.

nrod| 11.12.08 @ 9:32AM

HI,I AM FROM NY,AND I VOTED FOR HER.JUST KNOWING THAT SHE IS A WOMEN,TAKING CARE OF HER FAMILY AND ALASKA,AND BELIEVE IN JESUS,AND SERVES HIM,IS IN ENOUGH FOR ME!!!CAUSE GOD WILL ALWAYS BE HER EXAMPLE.

ronald f| 11.12.08 @ 3:51PM

It's quite interesting --- Palin polarizes across all groups - the facts of her behaviors negate her 'christian' claims. She has shown herself to be intolerant, narrow minded, uneducated and self absorbed. She has demanded the spotlight, worked every angle to get more, used homespun jargon to manipulate the unwary and taken every step to put Sarah first. Sounds like the quintessential Republican to me.

bea| 11.13.08 @ 9:54PM

It is amazing to me that Joe Biden, Barack Obama, Niccolle Wallace, Katie COuric all did not know who Sarah Palin was---the Governor of the largest state in the Union? How could media be this illiterate? All about who you know--right Nicky?

bea| 11.13.08 @ 9:58PM

Nicky and Steve Schmidt, I happened tomeet them in Toledo OH shortly after Governor Palin was selected. I saw them in the hallway and said what a great pick--They both asked WHO IS SHE? It was unbelievable how the mainstream media had no CLUE about American politics. What I heard them say as I turned around I will never forget Shame on you 2 for being so ignorant and thinking other people weren't taking notes!

pigment Red| 4.4.10 @ 6:05AM

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