NM Pop Politics

I’m sorry, Sarah.

The consolation, I guess, is that FOX was duped first.

That’s right, FOX NEWS REPORTS, Palin didn’t know Africa was a continent.

“She didn’t understand, McCain aides told me, that Africa was a continent and not a country and actually asked them if South Africa wasn’t just part of the country as opposed to a country in the continent,” Fox News chief political correspondent Carl Cameron said on The O’Reilly Factor programme.

That, and a lot more coming out now about McCain’s aides problems with Palin.

Americans, here it is: solid and unequivocal proof that John McCain is not planning on living much longer and, by extension, has been setting up Sarah Palin for the presidential post all along. In his presumably final campaign email this morning, there resides the following curious clause:

I humbly ask you to make the choice that will allow me to serve my country a little while longer by casting your vote to elect me as your next President of the United States.

Just a “little while longer!” Jesus, get out and vote or get shot from a helicopter by your new commander in chief.

See the selection and the whole horrifying email below.

(more…)

OK, so it’s no big secret which way Swing State of Mind swings, but that doesn’t mean we don’t read and adore those on the other side of the pendulum’s swoop. We like to think Moralia Blog (”Parenting and culture, religion and politics”) is to SSOM what Pat Buchanan is to Rachel Maddow: proof that polar opposites can still be kindred spirits in love with political discourse.  In our swung state of mind, Moralia’s Brigette Russell is also New Mexico’s #1 Sarah Palin expert, so we asked her to contribute a guest blog during these last breakneck days about why we shouldn’t be terrified of Caribou Barbie. - Maassive

SWING RED

By Brigette Russell (aka Moralia)

If New Mexico has now moved from swing state to full-fledged blue state, then I’ve lived all my life in blue states, and in the bluest of blue cities within those states. I’ve never lived in a city where the letters to the editor in my local paper did not vilify the candidates for whom I planned to vote.  Every morning I sit down with my coffee, open the Santa Fe New Mexican, and read letters from my neighbors about how stupid Sarah Palin is, how unqualified, how inexperienced, how neglectful of her children, how ignorant, how dangerous, how embarrassing, and above all, how frightening.  Ladies and gentlemen, the good people of Santa Fe are simply terrified – dare I say, scared well and truly witless – by the specter of President Palin.

Wait, isn’t she running for Vice President?  Well, yes, but we all know what’s-his-name is older than Methuselah and has one foot in the grave already, so let’s just call the old geezer down for the count and run against the chick instead.  After all, when the enemy wears high heels the scrupulously impartial media can have fun playing Presidential Pin-up along the way.

I endorsed Palin for Vice President back in mid-August, before John McCain chose her and before most Americans had heard of her, so I’ve felt compelled to defend her a number of times.

Exactly what do these terrified epistlers think she’s going to do?  Single-handedly force every woman in America to have their unwanted babies?  I’ve explained on my blog why the abortion issue is essentially a non-issue and people who are pro-choice can vote Republican without fear.  Drop a nuke-yoo-ler bomb on that country she can see from Alaska?  Those on the far left may claim they’re afraid Palin will start WWIII, but I think what they’re really afraid of is simply having their party deprived of the presidency for four more years, of being unable to implement policies they call progressive and conservatives call socialist.

Oh, I forgot.  We’re not supposed to say “socialist” because it’s really just a code word for black.  Sorry, folks, but this race isn’t about race.  When Barack Obama says he doesn’t look like all those other presidents on the dollar bills, it’s true.  He looks a hell of a lot better than most of them.   He is tall, slim, athletic, looks like a million bucks in his clothes whether it’s a suit and tie or the casual Friday look.  He has a great voice and a way with words, coming across as serious without being stuffy, and likeable without being a lightweight.  He is a very appealing candidate, and both he and his supporters know it.  White people of all ages and income levels have flocked to support him, and the idea that some “Bradley effect” is going to derail him is insulting.  It’s his Big Government policies that will derail him, if anything does – exactly the same kind of policies that derailed the candidacies of Al Gore and John Kerry, who in case nobody noticed, happen to be white guys.  Nevertheless, if McCain wins, I expect to read a slew of letters in the Santa Fe New Mexican calling me and everyone else who voted for him racist.

Before McCain picked Palin, conservatives called Obama inexperienced, and liberals were incensed.  Maybe “inexperienced” was a code-word for black, too?  But then along came the Caribou Barbie, and suddenly liberals were very concerned about inexperience.  Suddenly people who had thought a first-term senator eminently qualified for the top job were fretting that a first-term governor was supremely unqualified for the job of attending funerals and breaking tie votes in the Senate and being ready to step up to the plate in case something should happen to her running mate, whose experience and credentials not even his opponents ever so much as hinted at questioning.

If I haven’t convinced any you to vote Republican yet, how about this shameless plea:  Don’t you like being swing voters, voters who actually matter?  Candidates take solid red and blue states for granted.  New Mexico has been crawling with candidates the past few weeks.  In California the only time any of them showed up was for star-studded Hollywood fundraisers.  Then it was right back to the swing states with no time to spare for rallies with ordinary Californians whose votes were already counted.

Besides, “Blue State of Mind” isn’t half as catchy as “Swing State of Mind.”  So let’s keep this blog from having to change its name by making New Mexico swing red next Tuesday.

OK, so it finally happened. Some down-home upstanding American shouted the N-word at a Palin rally. Palin was struggling to make a point about Obama’s “ideological commitment to higher taxes” when some fucktard helps her out by making the trenchant remark, “and he’s a nigger.” Sorry this Daily Kos YouTube makes sure you don’t miss hearing a thing. Good job Sarah on doing anything about this.

You may remember La Pequena from the primaries, back when you couldn’t go two days without a new, brilliant viral video  (Baracky was brilliant, Hillary’s Downfall was hilarious). Back when La Pequena was playing Hillary Clinton, it was just creepy. She’s still creepy, now, but this time she’s giving Tina Fey a run for her money.

La Pequena Sarah Palin is much, much freakier than La Pequena Hillary Clinton (though, maybe not nearly as cool as La Pequena Hillary Hulk).

This is one (perhaps the only) reason I love Gov. Sarah Palin’s nomination. Political humor was so starting to stagnate.

(Hat tip to Black Coffee Gasoline)

UPDATED: Ok, this music video from Vlad and Boris (submitted by Zane) is even better. It’s called “Song for Sarah,” and features the line: “Misses Palin, I want to flying into your airspace/Misses Palin, I want to reer [sic] my little head.”

Oh, that makes me happy.

I know we posted these clips from Katie Couric’s interview with Gov. Sarah Palin before. Just watch ‘em again. I betcha you’ll notice something new.

Hat tip to Colagiovanni and, of course, Terry Tate, office linebacker.

In a Q&A (via The Page) with People magazine, master of manipulation and comedic genius Sarah Palin had this to say of Tina Fey’s imitation of her—or her, er, imitation of Tina Fey:

PEOPLE MAGAZINE: Tina Fey plays you sort of bubble-headed…
SARAH PALIN: That’s funny. I play her bubble-headed too when I imitate her.

This statement is supremely meta or an exercise in perverse-reverse psychology or severe reaching—or just bat-shit crazy. It follows an incredibly bankrupt kind of passive-aggressive logic. It’s the kind of passive aggression that is so fundamentally passive it doesn’t hurt anyone.

The Q&A also showcases this little gem:
SARAH PALIN: …Besides the kids and sports, reading is my favorite thing to do.

That is some kinda unfortunate grammar.

We are a mere two weeks away from the highly anticipated, November 4th elections.  We are also just 10 days away from Halloween.  Combine the two and you have a fantastic opportunity to express your political opinion one more time before the polls close.  So, if excessive candy and outrageous costumes aren’t enough to keep you amused this Halloween, and you’re looking for a hands-on project, we’d recommend pumpkin carving as an outlet.  You can follow chef Marc de Giovanni’s example and carve your own, terrifying politician-o-lantern….

De Giovanni’s ‘Scary-Palin’ Pumpkin, to the right, can be seen at the Matador (hat tip to Cocoposts).

Associated Press has a 11 different political stencils you can print out, including Barack and Michelle Obama, Joe Biden, John McCain and Sarah Palin…and of course all the logos for the campaigns and the parties.

Last year, by the way, then-food editor Gwyneth Doland carved a Dick Cheney pumpkin. Her Boston Terrier, Riblet, also carved a pumpkin, which, in retrospect, kinda reminds us of  the economic bailout package.

(Reported by Bonar Blagden)

Dan Savage, whose Savage Love column appears in the Reporter, has issued a video challenge to VP candidate Sarah Palin. He’ll teach her kids about sex if she teaches his little one about moose. Sounds fair.