Small Towns

[Mabus]

It was interesting to see Obama's campaign attack presumptive GOP VP nominee Palin as "the former mayor of a town of 9,000".

Although Obama later attempted to downplay the release of the statement by Bill Burton, Obama Campaign Spokesman, it does show that his staff and he still hold small towns in some form of contempt or disdain. He then later in an interview tried to denigrate Palin's time as mayor, even though Obama has zero executive experience.

"Well, you know, my understanding is, is that Governor Palin's town of Wasilla has, I think, 50 employees. We have got 2,500 in this campaign. I think their budget is maybe $12 million a year. You know, we have a budget of about three times that just for the month." -Obama

After Obama's "small town" comments during the primaries you would think they would learn. Instead he reminds us that he is above those that work in public service in small towns, because he is in a political campaign.

Keep attacking her on the "small town" front. Act like small towns do not face challenges, are not that important, or service in them does not matter.

People that live in small towns are listening, and they vote.

[Keller]

It was interesting to see Obama's campaign attack presumptive GOP VP nominee Palin as "the former mayor of a town of 9,000".

Although Obama later attempted to downplay the release of the statement by Bill Burton, Obama Campaign Spokesman, it does show that his staff and he still hold small towns in some form of contempt or disdain. He then later in an interview tried to denigrate Palin's time as mayor, even though Obama has zero executive experience.

"Well, you know, my understanding is, is that Governor Palin's town of Wasilla has, I think, 50 employees. We have got 2,500 in this campaign. I think their budget is maybe $12 million a year. You know, we have a budget of about three times that just for the month." -Obama

After Obama's "small town" comments during the primaries you would think they would learn. Instead he reminds us that he is above those that work in public service in small towns, because he is in a political campaign.

Keep attacking her on the "small town" front. Act like small towns do not face challenges, are not that important, or service in them does not matter.

People that live in small towns are listening, and they vote.

He's not denegrating small towns.

He's downplaying her "experience" as a mayor of less than 8k people.

I hadn't heard the town had only 50 employees. That's yet more ammunition in my arsenal.

I LOVE this nomination. I just don't understand throwing a hail mary in the middle of the third quarter.

[sst]

It was interesting to see Obama's campaign attack presumptive GOP VP nominee Palin as "the former mayor of a town of 9,000".

Although Obama later attempted to downplay the release of the statement by Bill Burton, Obama Campaign Spokesman, it does show that his staff and he still hold small towns in some form of contempt or disdain. He then later in an interview tried to denigrate Palin's time as mayor, even though Obama has zero executive experience.

"Well, you know, my understanding is, is that Governor Palin's town of Wasilla has, I think, 50 employees. We have got 2,500 in this campaign. I think their budget is maybe $12 million a year. You know, we have a budget of about three times that just for the month." -Obama

After Obama's "small town" comments during the primaries you would think they would learn. Instead he reminds us that he is above those that work in public service in small towns, because he is in a political campaign.

Keep attacking her on the "small town" front. Act like small towns do not face challenges, are not that important, or service in them does not matter.

People that live in small towns are listening, and they vote.

Well, I think people are forgetting she IS the governor of Alaska.... which has some 700,000 people and what a 11 or 12 billion dollar budget... When Obama's claim to experience is "running a campaign" I think it was a mistake on their part to put that out there... Give it a day or two and it will bite him in the ass like quite a few of his previous comments.

[Keller]

Obama's had over 10 years of executive experience.

Why are people so dense?

[Mabus]

Obama's had over 10 years of executive experience.
Really?

He was mayor of...?

He was governor of...?

He was an officer in which branch of military service...?

Perhaps you can list his governmental "executive experience".

[Mabus]

He's downplaying her "experience" as a mayor of less than 8k people.
And while he does that he conveniently forgets she is governor of the largest state in the union.

Alaska has over 700,000 people and a total state revenue of over $12 billion.

In case you, and Obama, need help:
$12 billion > $36 million

[Keller]

Perhaps you can list his governmental "executive experience".

So Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have no executive experience because it's not governmental?

[Keller]

And while he does that he conveniently forgets she is governor of the largest state in the union.

Alaska has over 700,000 people and a total state revenue of over $12 billion.

In case you, and Obama, need help:
$12 billion > $36 million

Is she a competent governor?

[Keller]

While I'm at it -- did you ever read any of Cone's books?

[Apathy]

Has John McCain had executive experience that I'm somehow missing?

[Keller]

Has John McCain had executive experience that I'm somehow missing?

Good point.

I think Palin may be more prepared to be President than McCain.

[Mabus]

Has John McCain had executive experience that I'm somehow missing?
He was an officer in the United States Navy. Perhaps you had not heard.

[Keller]

He was an officer in the United States Navy. Perhaps you had not heard.

I guess, since that's governmental, it fits Mabus' definition of executive experience.

Hey, Mabus -- did you read any of Cone's books yet?

[Mabus]

I guess, since that's governmental, it fits Mabus' definition of executive experience.
From that statement I take it you feel the military is in the legislative or judicial branch. You are incorrect.

[Keller]

From that statement I take it you feel the military is in the legislative or judicial branch. You are incorrect.

No. I feel the military is part of the government.

I was correct.

[Mabus]

No. I feel the military is part of the government.

I was correct.
Does the military make laws in our system? No.

Does the military interpret laws in our system? No.

Does the military execute and carry out the will of the laws, within the interpretation of the laws, in our system. Bingo.

What is the chain of command? Does it lead all the way up to the Chief Justice of SCOTUS, the Speaker of the House, the Senate Majority Leader or the President?

That's right! The President!

I hope this has been educational for you, Keller. This lesson was free.

[Keller]

Does the military make laws in our system? No.

Does the military interpret laws in our system? No.

Does the military execute and carry out the will of the laws, within the interpretation of the laws, in our system. Bingo.

What is the chain of command? Does it lead all the way up to the Chief Justice of SCOTUS, the Speaker of the House, the Senate Majority Leader or the President?

That's right! The President!

I hope this has been educational for you, Keller. This lesson was free.

So you're positing the following:

(1) The military is not part of the government; and

(2) John McCain has no executive experience as his career as a Navy officer was not part of the government and therefore is not executive experience?

I just want to understand what you think today.

[Keller]

Is she a competent governor?

I'd also like an answer to this, while we're at it.

[Mabus]

Let me help you, as I have aided the mentally challenged before.

So you're positing the following:

(1) The military is not part of the government; and

The executive branch is part of our government.

The executive branch of the government contains the military.

(2) John McCain has no executive experience as his career as a Navy officer was not part of the government and therefore is not executive experience?

McCain was an officer in our military. He therefore has experience in the executive branch of our government.

I just want to understand what you think today.
I think you are purposefully being an idiot, as you already know that the military falls under the executive branch of our system.

Hope this was helpful.

[Keller]

So then Palin DOESN'T have executive experience because the governor isn't part of the executive branch of the federal government?

What intricate webs you're weaving!

[Mabus]

So then Palin DOESN'T have executive experience because the governor isn't part of the executive branch of the federal government?

What intricate webs you're weaving!
You are either being purposefully obtuse, or just trying to increase your post count. Either way, enjoy yourself.

I do thank you for allowing me to point out that Obama has zero governmental executive experience as well as a disdain for the citizens in small towns.

For that, thank you.

[Tsa`ah]

So what you're saying is that my brother has more executive experience than Palin ... and likely a portion of the 2mil homeless vets have more executive experience than Palin.

I would also like to note that Obama's disdain for small towns is somehow winning him more and more lawn space around this area and into IN ... strange.

[Parkbandit]

I thought we had all agreed that you would have to be a mental midget to somehow think that Palin has more or less experience than Obama? Is that somehow not the case any longer? Obama should stay clear of this topic IMO since it only puts his own lack of experience under scrutiny... And stick to attacking her kid.

[crb]

Obama doesn't have a campaign manager running it for him? I wasn't aware he was acting like his own campaign manager?

Obama is like today's bill gates, not today's steven ballmer. And if running for president is all the experience you need to be president, consider me a candidate.

[TheEschaton]

Sarah Palin's executive experience is akin to the executive experience of a mayor of a mid-sized city. Boston has about the same number of people as Alaska, maybe Mayor Thomas "Mumbles" Menino is ready to be President!

As for the "largest state in the union", this would be relevant if people lived in more than, like, 10% of the state. Montana's pretty fucking large too, surely you're not saying Montana is more complicated to run than smaller states like, say, New York. In fact, I'd say large size/low population density makes things significantly easier, as you don't have the myriad host of problems associated with urban centers.

Also, by calling "being a captain in the Navy" executive experience, but not "being a Senator", you're arguing the semantics of what's in the executive branch and not, as opposed to the degree of skill and acumen needed to manage things. No doubt that McCain is more experienced even when you finally assent to the idea that political, legislative experience counts, but the argument isn't that Obama is more experienced than McCain, but that he has enough experience to be President, which he does.

-TheE-

[crb]

Sarah Palin's executive experience is akin to the executive experience of a mayor of a mid-sized city. Boston has about the same number of people as Alaska, maybe Mayor Thomas "Mumbles" Menino is ready to be President!

As for the "largest state in the union", this would be relevant if people lived in more than, like, 10% of the state. Montana's pretty fucking large too, surely you're not saying Montana is more complicated to run than smaller states like, say, New York. In fact, I'd say large size/low population density makes things significantly easier, as you don't have the myriad host of problems associated with urban centers.

Also, by calling "being a captain in the Navy" executive experience, but not "being a Senator", you're arguing the semantics of what's in the executive branch and not, as opposed to the degree of skill and acumen needed to manage things. No doubt that McCain is more experienced even when you finally assent to the idea that political, legislative experience counts, but the argument isn't that Obama is more experienced than McCain, but that he has enough experience to be President, which he does.

-TheE-
Do you really think the duties of a mayor are akin to the duties of a governor? Really? You think they only differ in population?

The rest of this argument is silly. Executive experience is not defined by which branch of the government it is in. Executive experience is experience when you are the boss. When you make decisions not by committee or by voting, but by yourself, with your decisions affecting those under you. An executive neither passes the buck (above my pay grade) nor takes a vote. They responsibilities and pressures are therefor different.

Obama, of course, does have executive experience. He is the executive of his senate staff. He doesn't manage the day to day operations of his campaign, to think so you'd have to be a moron, but his part in major decisions is him being an executive to a degree.

John McCain also has such experience, his own campaign, his chairmanships, his military experience.

Biden as well.

Palin, though, has the most of the four in executive experience, even though she has only been governor for 2 years. That, coupled with her time as mayor and commissioner job, she has been in a leadership role and has had to make more leadership decisions than probably the other 3 combined. Face it, the other three are primarily legislators.

Here is how I'd rank them

Executive Experience:
Palin, McCain, Biden, Obama

McCain edges out Biden because of the military experience. If running a campaign and a senate office and committees count, both Biden and McCain edge out Obama simply because he has not run as many campaigns, has not chaired a committee, has had an office for far less time, etc.

Legislative Experience:
Biden, McCain, Obama, Palin

This is purely based on years in office. Pretty easy to quantify. Palin's commissioner experience counts for executive, but not legislative.

[CrystalTears]

Doesn't Palin have a high approval rating as governor of Alaska? About 80% or so?

[ClydeR]

People that live in small towns are listening, and they vote.

To hear Palin tell it, the whole state of Alaska is devoid of any semblance of "culture."


Palin must have had a glamour-gap in 1996 because she dropped everything and drove to Anchorage when she heard Ivana Trump was in town peddling her perfume.

"We want to see Ivana because we are so desperate in Alaska for any semblance of glamour and culture," Palin once told the Associated Press.

More... (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/republican_race/2008/08/29/2008-08-29_shes_john_mccains_running_mate_but_who_i.html?p age=1)

[Keller]

I thought we had all agreed that you would have to be a mental midget to somehow think that Palin has more or less experience than Obama? Is that somehow not the case any longer? Obama should stay clear of this topic IMO since it only puts his own lack of experience under scrutiny... And stick to attacking her kid.

Quite the opposite.

We all agreed you'd have to be dumber than Xcaliber to believe that Palin had more experience than Obama.

Sorry you mised the memo.

[Keller]

You are either being purposefully obtuse, or just trying to increase your post count. Either way, enjoy yourself.

I do thank you for allowing me to point out that Obama has zero governmental executive experience as well as a disdain for the citizens in small towns.

For that, thank you.

Obtuse and/or pointing out how self-serving and rediculous it was that mere posts earlier in this thread you added the requirement that executive experience be "governmental" in nature for it to be counted.

[Keller]

He doesn't manage the day to day operations of his campaign, to think so you'd have to be a moron, but his part in major decisions is him being an executive to a degree.

...

Here is how I'd rank them

Executive Experience:
Palin, McCain, Biden, Obama

McCain edges out Biden because of the military experience. If running a campaign and a senate office and committees count, both Biden and McCain edge out Obama simply because he has not run as many campaigns, has not chaired a committee, has had an office for far less time, etc.

So you're not counting work experience prior to the government?

Do you subscribed to the Mabus definition of executive experience?

[crb]

Doesn't Palin have a high approval rating as governor of Alaska? About 80% or so?
Palin has the highest approval rating of any current governor from either party in any state.

[Ashliana]

Palin has the highest approval rating of any current governor from either party in any state.

She isn't ruling in the toughest of times. Alaska is benefitting from the absurd oil prices--citizens of Alaska get huge checks from the oil companies, and Palin's government is sending out additional $1,200 rebates for energy costs.

Free money from the government tends to create good will.

[crb]

So you're not counting work experience prior to the government?

Do you subscribed to the Mabus definition of executive experience?
I think MAbus was describing it as saying it was when working for the executive branch, which I already said was wrong.

And no, I am not going to give "community organizer" as much weight as "governor" or "State oil and gas commissioner" if I did, to be fair, I would have to count Sarah Palin acting as Team Captain when she was in highschool, and see if she was ever in the PTA.

My Mom was/is heavily involved in her community, chairing multiple organizations, working to get government grants for projects. Chairing the local economic development group, recreational development group, being in charge of AYSO soccer for half the state of michigan for a few years even. None of these things I would consider relevant to the presidency. Nor do I consider Barack Obama's various community activites to be either. Sorry, I just don't. If you wanna assign a point system. Governor = 1000 points. Community Organizer = 10 points. Why bother comparing them?

[Warriorbird]

Your degree of rationalization is so thick as to be hilarious. I see no particular reason to critique Palin for her level of experience... suggesting she has more than all of the other candidates is pretty laughable though. The people making up false claims about things she'd done are even worse. Refueling stop in Ireland ring any bells?

[crb]

She isn't ruling in the toughest of times. Alaska is benefitting from the absurd oil prices--citizens of Alaska get huge checks from the oil companies, and Palin's government is sending out additional $1,200 rebates for energy costs.

Free money from the government tends to create good will.
That is true, however the previous governor of Alaska didn't have as high of approval ratings. You'll have a hard time finding any governor even during good times to break 80% approval ratings. The inference of your post that she owes it all to rebate checks is bogus.

Besides... I guess can I then attribute Obama's popularity to a promised $1000 rebate for "working families"?

[Ashliana]

That is true, however the previous governor of Alaska didn't have as high of approval ratings. You'll have a hard time finding any governor even during good times to break 80% approval ratings. The inference of your post that she owes it all to rebate checks is bogus.

Besides... I guess can I then attribute Obama's popularity to a promised $1000 rebate for "working families"?

Perhaps, once/if the rebates actually go out.

[Clove]

So Bill Gates and Steve Jobs have no executive experience because it's not governmental?Keller, I have to ask this; you're not really comparing Obama's business experience to Bill Gates or Steve Jobs, while at the same breath validating Obama's criticism that Palin's executive experience of a small town wasn't significant enough.

[Kefka]

Doesn't Palin have a high approval rating as governor of Alaska? About 80% or so?

However, in Alaska, the 44-year old Governor and hockey mom earns good or excellent ratings from 64% of voters statewide. Just 14% say she is doing a poor job. In a state whose senior Republican Senator has been indicted for ethical violations, 84% say Palin is at least as ethical as most politicians. Most (51%) say she’s more ethical than her peers (full demographic crosstabs available for Premium Members).

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/election_20082/2008_presidential_election/sarah_palin_unknown_nationally_popular_in_alaska

[Kefka]

He was an officer in the United States Navy. Perhaps you had not heard.

Under that logic, a Seaman Recruit is better qualified to be president than both Obama and Biden. Is that your stance?

[Tsa`ah]

To put things into perspective ....

Palin won her mayoral position with under 700 votes (Wasilla population at the time was 5470).

17% of Alaska's voting age population turned out to vote for the next governor 20 months ago .... Palin won with under 100k in votes.

By the standard set, Daley (Mayor of Chicago) is qualified to be our next CiC .... and the mayors of every burb surrounding Chicago could put in a bid ... along with the mayors of almost every college town in IL.

Any VP has a one in three shot of taking office via succession and a one in two shot at attaining the nomination after a term limit. Ya ... Palin was the best choice ... really she was.

Country first my ass.

[Kefka]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrG8w4bb3kg

:cringe:

[Clove]

Wait. Am I to draw a conclusion that because voter turnout in any given region is poor the conclusion is its public officials are low-quality, and vice-versa?

[Drunken Durfin]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrG8w4bb3kg

:cringe:

I love it when they forget they are mic'ed.

[Mabus]

I love it when they forget they are mic'ed.

Nice of MSDNC to leek it.

[Mabus]

By the standard set, Daley (Mayor of Chicago) is qualified to be our next CiC .... and the mayors of every burb surrounding Chicago could put in a bid ... along with the mayors of almost every college town in IL.
Daley was not a governor. Daley, and his whole political machine, is corrupt, and the Daley machine is one of the main backers of your candidate.


Country first my ass.
That seems to be the rallying call of many Obama supporters.

[Parkbandit]

Under that logic, a Seaman Recruit is better qualified to be president than both Obama and Biden. Is that your stance?

I could make the argument for Obama.. given the rest of his resume. It doubt I could against Biden though.

[Parkbandit]

To put things into perspective ....

Let's be honest.. what you are trying to say is "Let's put this into a bad prespective"... so fine, lets!



Palin won her mayoral position with under 700 votes (Wasilla population at the time was 5470).

How many people voted in that town for the race? If it's anything like most local elections.. sounds like winning by 700 votes was a landslide. I'll await you to provide those stats.



17% of Alaska's voting age population turned out to vote for the next governor 20 months ago .... Palin won with under 100k in votes.

Pretty sure you have your 'facts' fucked up... unless you are somehow saying she won by 100K votes.. and less than 120K people actually voted... which would be a huge landslide. You do realize there are only like 650K people who live in Alaska, don't you?



By the standard set, Daley (Mayor of Chicago) is qualified to be our next CiC .... and the mayors of every burb surrounding Chicago could put in a bid ... along with the mayors of almost every college town in IL.

Pretty sure they didn't have a budget anywhere close to the state of Alaska to deal with.. nor had the same responsibilities of running the largest state in the country.



Any VP has a one in three shot of taking office via succession and a one in two shot at attaining the nomination after a term limit.

Didn't realize that you could make this statistical leap.. but hey.. if it works for you...


Ya ... Palin was the best choice ... really she was.

I didn't think so at first (I was a Romney fan) but I think you might be right. She does seem perfect.




Country first my ass.

Sounds like a typical Liberal Democrat to me. You should make it into tee-shirts.. I bet you could sell a shitload in CA and NY. I looked for one, but didn't find anything but this one (which is close)

http://www.dems4mccain.info/images/we-trusted-the-dnc-shirt.gif

[crb]

To put things into perspective ....

Palin won her mayoral position with under 700 votes (Wasilla population at the time was 5470).

17% of Alaska's voting age population turned out to vote for the next governor 20 months ago .... Palin won with under 100k in votes.

By the standard set, Daley (Mayor of Chicago) is qualified to be our next CiC .... and the mayors of every burb surrounding Chicago could put in a bid ... along with the mayors of almost every college town in IL.

Any VP has a one in three shot of taking office via succession and a one in two shot at attaining the nomination after a term limit. Ya ... Palin was the best choice ... really she was.

Country first my ass.
Was Bill Clinton qualified? Al Gore?

Your whole premise seems to rest on the concept of her not gaining any experience between now and a day when she becomes the next republican presidential nominee in a potential 8 years.

She is a bad pick because in 8 years she may be running for President after serving 8 years as VP?

Attack her because you disagree with her social conservative stances, this experience "what if" argument is really lame.

Atleast the Republican ticket is in the right order.

[BigWorm]

Man on top?

[Parkbandit]

Man on top?

Isn't that the way God intended?

[TheRoseLady]

L
McCain was an officer in our military. He therefore has experience in the executive branch of our government.



Mabus you are really stretching it. This reminds me of that old story about the USDA during the Reagen era who proposed to add ketchup and pickle relish to school lunches as vegetables. The plan was revoked.

[TheRoseLady]

Isn't that the way God intended?

From behind...most definitely.

[Tsa`ah]

Daley was not a governor. Daley, and his whole political machine, is corrupt, and the Daley machine is one of the main backers of your candidate.

First I'll have to ask you what proof you have of "the Daley" machine being Obama's main backer. At last check the average donation to said campaign was under 100 bucks ... that would mean that the main backer of the Obama campaign would be the every day common citizen.

What all three of you special ed rejects are missing is that a mayor has many of the same responsibilities as a governor. While Palin has "governed" the "largest" state in the union for the last 20 months, she has also governed one of the least populated states for the past 20 months. Rhode Island (the smallest state) has nearly twice the people.

The mayors of any major city in the US have two to ten times the responsibility. Hell, Wasilla had 50 damned city employees (pre-firing) ... take a stab at how many people are employed by the state of Alaska and compare that, the budget, the committees ... et all to say Dallas.

Give me a fucking break with all the tail chasing.


Was Bill Clinton qualified? Al Gore?

Thanks for finally catching up speedy. You missed that point more than a few posts back.


Your whole premise seems to rest on the concept of her not gaining any experience between now and a day when she becomes the next republican presidential nominee in a potential 8 years.

She is a bad pick because in 8 years she may be running for President after serving 8 years as VP?

Let's slow this down for you sparky.

She's not remotely capable of stepping into the position AT THIS POINT. If she has a one in three chance of succession .... it happens, historically, early ... as in the first few years.

She's a bad pick because she's not capable.

[crb]

First I'll have to ask you what proof you have of "the Daley" machine being Obama's main backer. At last check the average donation to said campaign was under 100 bucks ... that would mean that the main backer of the Obama campaign would be the every day common citizen.

What all three of you special ed rejects are missing is that a mayor has many of the same responsibilities as a governor. While Palin has "governed" the "largest" state in the union for the last 20 months, she has also governed one of the least populated states for the past 20 months. Rhode Island (the smallest state) has nearly twice the people.

The mayors of any major city in the US have two to ten times the responsibility. Hell, Wasilla had 50 damned city employees (pre-firing) ... take a stab at how many people are employed by the state of Alaska and compare that, the budget, the committees ... et all to say Dallas.

Give me a fucking break with all the tail chasing.



Thanks for finally catching up speedy. You missed that point more than a few posts back.



Let's slow this down for you sparky.

She's not remotely capable of stepping into the position AT THIS POINT. If she has a one in three chance of succession .... it happens, historically, early ... as in the first few years.

She's a bad pick because she's not capable.
So some scientific phenomenon strikes down presidents early in their terms rather than late in their terms, thus causing you to worry?

I'd be more worried about voters just straight out electing an inexperienced person as president, rather than an off chance that an experienced candidate will die before being able to impart any wisdom to his VP.

[Mabus]

Mabus you are really stretching it.
And from behind...
;)

[Mabus]

She's a bad pick because she's not capable.
She is every bit as capable, and more experienced, then Obama. To state otherwise is to live in a fantasy world.

[Apathy]

Keller, I have to ask this; you're not really comparing Obama's business experience to Bill Gates or Steve Jobs, while at the same breath validating Obama's criticism that Palin's executive experience of a small town wasn't significant enough.

No his argument is against the concept that Palin somehow has more, or any, relative "executive" experience to the presidency when compared to Obama (in other words, its completely fucking retarded and if you have half a brain you can realize that).

[Clove]

No his argument is against the concept that Palin somehow has more, or any, relative "executive" experience to the presidency when compared to Obama (in other words, its completely fucking retarded and if you have half a brain you can realize that).So you're saying Obama doesn't have executive experience pertinent to the Presidency either?

At the end of the day I consider two years of gubernatorial experience in addition to mayorial experience (even of a small town) more significant than running a small business or a large political campaign. If I were hiring based on executive experience alone, I'd pick Palin. If I were hiring based on legislative experience, I'd pick Obama.

Personally, I think it's a mistake for Obama to even engage in discussions comparing himself with Palin. He's not running against Palin, he's running against McCain. If I were him I'd deflect with comparisons of her to Biden. The main reason they come up is the simple fact that Obama supporters are so critical of Palin's executive experience when Obama hasn't any more.

At some point you have to realize that there isn't an experience that compares to running a nation and experience doesn't guarantee you'll do a good job. Bush has had almost 8 years experience at being President (after being governor of a very large state) and it doesn't seem to have made him particularly good at the job. Despite this, I'm more confident in someone who can run a state and a town with a high degree of success, more than I am of someone who can run a successful political campaign even though I've acknowledged that Obama deserves credit for that experience; I simply think it doesn't compare to gubernatorial or mayorial experience.

Obama, in my opinion has (generally) demonstrated the ability and sense to take the office of President. So has McCain. Palin and Biden are qualified to be Vice-President. Arguments to the contrary are retarded (and anyone with half a brain can see that). What matters at this point are the plans and vision these candidates have for the country- and I'm still waiting to hear the specifics of these so I can approve or disapprove of them.

[Keller]

Keller, I have to ask this; you're not really comparing Obama's business experience to Bill Gates or Steve Jobs, while at the same breath validating Obama's criticism that Palin's executive experience of a small town wasn't significant enough.

Not at all.

The only came up after Mabus added the special requirement that executive experience be governmental. I just listed the two most successful executives I could think of -- neither were involved in government.

[Clove]

Not at all.

The only came up after Mabus added the special requirement that executive experience be governmental. I just listed the two most successful executives I could think of -- neither were involved in government.Yeah I noticed the exception of business experience too.

[AestheticDeath]

I keep seeing the mention of Alaska being the largest state and it going towards Palins experience... But there are a ton of cities larger than that state as far as population goes.

Who cares if you can govern empty land?

[Clove]

I keep seeing the mention of Alaska being the largest state and it going towards Palins experience... But there are a ton of cities larger than that state as far as population goes.

Who cares if you can govern empty land?I'm sure there's some special challenges to governing large areas of land, but I'm confused by that chant too.

[Mabus]

I keep seeing the mention of Alaska being the largest state and it going towards Palins experience... But there are a ton of cities larger than that state as far as population goes.

Who cares if you can govern empty land?
Only 16-17 cities (based on population estimates) in the USA would have a larger population then Alaska, which is hardly "tons".

How many of those cities deal with their largest trading partners being foreign, and how many have budgets between $11-14 billion dollars a year?

Alaska is also a state that requires much preplanning and coordination. Many cities require air travel, for instance.

[Daniel]

Oh...okay. Our bad.

[Warriorbird]

Managing a town of 9,000 is kind of a big deal.

[Mabus]

Managing a town of 9,000 is kind of a big deal.
I am glad you have stated so.

[crb]

The other hypocritical thing Obama did today. he said he thought it was unfair republicans would call out his "community organizer" experience while ignoring everything he did since -- which is exactly what he did with Palin, saying she was just a mayor of a small town, ignoring everything since.

[Daniel]

Yea. You know, especially since that was 20 years ago and all.

[Tsa`ah]

How many people voted in that town for the race? If it's anything like most local elections.. sounds like winning by 700 votes was a landslide. I'll await you to provide those stats.

Wow ... Sounds like you need to tighten the straps on your padded helmet super tardo.

She won with under 700 votes ... 616-413. Allow me to do the math for you, I know you find digging up your own facts (or checking them for that matter) troublesome ... I can only imagine what basic addition and subtraction does to your fragile nugget.

She won by 203 votes. A grand total of 1029 turned out to vote.


Pretty sure you have your 'facts' fucked up... unless you are somehow saying she won by 100K votes.. and less than 120K people actually voted... which would be a huge landslide. You do realize there are only like 650K people who live in Alaska, don't you?

My god your inability to comprehend the simplest things never ceases to astound me.

Palin won the gubernatorial election with, not by, 99,619 votes. She won by a margin of just under 16k.


Pretty sure they didn't have a budget anywhere close to the state of Alaska to deal with.. nor had the same responsibilities of running the largest state in the country.

Umm ... the 2008 Chicago budget is about 9 billion. NYC kicks about 60 billion around each year ... LA, best guess, is somewhere between 15 and 20 billion.


Didn't realize that you could make this statistical leap.. but hey.. if it works for you...

There's no leap ... maybe if you bothered to look into the history of the office, took off your shoes to help in your counting ... you would get it.


Managing a town of 9,000 is kind of a big deal.

At the time it was under 6k. She cut her pay .... but hired a city manager. At the end of her run she left Wasilla 20 million in debt and a slew of meth labs.

[Warriorbird]

I bet all the meth addicts didn't dare have abortions though!