Sep 26th, 2008 at 10:06 am
Palin on the Bailout
Sarah Palin gives her view of the economic crisis:
I decline to comment on what this reveals about her fitness for office.
59 Responses to “Palin on the Bailout”
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September 26th, 2008 at 10:12 am
Wow, that was an epic spazz!
September 26th, 2008 at 10:13 am
She would make a great beauty pageant contestant.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:14 am
My favorite part:
The rest of it was full of fail, too.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:18 am
Is a principled defense of that verbal tossed salad even possible? Would someone like to give it a try?
September 26th, 2008 at 10:19 am
Sarah Palin, Humanoid Non-sequitur Mad Lib Random Word Generator Model 2000.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:21 am
I love how she’s checking her notes throughout her answer… which, in an odd way, kind of explains her disjointed response.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:26 am
I find it incredible that she can’t answer these questions. These are the most obvious, predictable questions about things that are in the headlines right now.
She’s not being asked off-the-wall questions about the implications of the current crisis for Keynesian economics. Heck, she’s not even being asked a legit-but-less-top-of-the-headlines-question about the concerns that the Chinese and other foreign investors will stop bankrolling our debt.
This is basic. Why are we spending this money bailing out wall street banks instead of main street? But she can’t answer it because she doesn’t understand that credit markets actually are important, and can’t explain how they’re connected to the overall economy. She simply hasn’t asked or hasn’t understood what happens if we fail to fix this. Which, you know, is exactly the kind of thing you want your policymakers to know.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:27 am
In defense of palin, she did answer the question by speaking.. (thats all i got, wait for an op ed by some bs artist in wapo or tnr for a more spirited defense)
September 26th, 2008 at 10:36 am
In defense of Palin: she’s providing us with great comic relief, much needed as the world goes to Hell in a handbasket.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:36 am
I’m glad Matt asked this question about Governor Palin’s fietness for office, and in response I’d like to say that is clearly shows that, this is a very important office,Sarah Palin knows that John McCain is a Maverick and Americans want health care, because we need to increase oversight and reduce government, but taxes are too high despite the importance of the designated hitter rule, and I think it’s important that, in this regard, we remember both the Alamo and the Maine, and really I’m glad to be here on this terrific website. Also, gee whillakers.
I hope this answers your question.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:40 am
Hey, at least Sarah Palin knows how to hunt and kill her own food.
That’s a very underrated skill — which may be making a comeback in a few months.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:43 am
I find myself amazed that she was elected governor. Yes, I know Alaska is a pretty conservative, very sparsely populated state. But still, it’s not as if there weren’t any debates or there weren’t other opportunities for Alaskans to see how unprepared she is even to be a rural state governor. How is it that a majority of (voting) Alaskans thought she good enough to be governor? Is Tony Knowles that unappealing?
But then again, we as a nation did give George W. Bush two terms. So maybe I’m expecting too much from Alaskans.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:46 am
I’ll tell you, that really put me at ease. I was very concerned that reducing taxes was not going to be part of any tax reduction.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:46 am
You failing to understand the brilliance. See, you have to understand that in a process where fungals are flagged and each molecule is tracked, you see how this response fits so nicely.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Here is a partial defense of her response. Palin is supposed to be defending the McCain approach to this crisis. And McCain does not have a coherent approach to this crisis. One would tend to think that McCain couldn’t possibly be considering supporting a complete moratorium on foreclosures. But the way that McCain has been acting of late wouldn’t Palin be taking an unreasonable risk in assuming that he would reject this just based on the fact that his entire history tells against it.
September 26th, 2008 at 10:54 am
Palin has clearly demonstrated her international qualifications. She speaks fluent Japlish.
For those unfamiliar with Japlish, Google it.
(”All your base are belong to Us!”)
September 26th, 2008 at 11:00 am
What makes me really sad is that I can give a responsive, coherent answer to the question.
I don’t have “executive experience,” the last econ class I took was in high school, and financials frankly bore me, but I know enough to be a responsible citizen and to have some basis I can articulate for my opinion on the matter.
Why does SHE get to run for VP?
September 26th, 2008 at 11:00 am
Cancel the debate with Biden and let them go Moose hunting on more level tundra.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:07 am
I mashed this up w/ Miss South Carolina here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQY5QiVCy2w
September 26th, 2008 at 11:17 am
Not only was that authentic frontier gibberish, but it expresses a courage little seen in this day and age!
September 26th, 2008 at 11:26 am
Somebody – I forget who, maybe Matt – said Palin makes Bush sound like Cicero. It’s surprising to me, to put it mildly, that we now have a national candidate who’s even less articulate and knowledgeable than George Bush. Some kind of reversion to the mean has to be in the offing, sometime in the next few decades, one would hope.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:34 am
This particular Palin answer might have compelled McCain and Cheney to yell, “FIRE! Economic FIRE, FIRE, FIRE! Suspend the campaign . . . including any debate activities!”
September 26th, 2008 at 11:42 am
Bravo, Jeremy, for making this post somewhat less depressing.
Yes, Nobi, if it was Bush answering this question then he would have stammered his way through some bland platitudes only vaguely related to the question, instead we have someone stammering their way through incoherent nothings only vaguely related to actual human language. Maybe this is all part of some secret contest between various factions in the Republican party. A giant bizarre game of “chicken”.
September 26th, 2008 at 11:49 am
This reminded me of her namesake’s (Michael Palin’s)Spanish Inquisition sketch: Our two chief goals are tax reduction and health care reform. And Job creation. Our three chief goals are tax reduction, health care reform, job creation, and expanded trade… What a lightweight.
September 26th, 2008 at 12:09 pm
Oh. Mi. God. That’s the worst clip yet, from a sea of bad clips. How many non sequitur talking points did she try and shove into a response about the — um — bailout?
September 26th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
“Here is a partial defense of her response. Palin is supposed to be defending the McCain approach to this crisis. And McCain does not have a coherent approach to this crisis.”
Yes. But Couric asked what is a pretty common, but very important question, which could be answered whatever McCain’s position is: Why not just plow this money into a typical stimulus-type package of the kind that you’d do in any other downturn? I’m sure a few other politicians are also clueless about this, but they really should know why the financial crisis is not just your run-of-the-mill downturn. People could all get $2000 in their pockets, spending money and paying down debt, and you’d still have very troubled financial institutions that are not willing to provide the credit necessary to run the economy.
But she really has no idea about any of that. So she spouts platitudes about economic policy that have nothing to do with the current crisis.
September 26th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
You know, lots of people are saying things along the lines of , “Hey, these are basic questions, the fact that Sarah Palin can’t come up with decent answers to them shows she’s unfit for office.” But it occurs to me that this might say even more about McCain’s campaign. After all, you don’t really need to be particularly bright, informed, or eloquent to do better than this. What you need to be is *prepared*. It’s hard to imagine that she could do this badly if she had been given the kind of preparation that you’d expect any VP candidate to be given by their campaign staff. What’s going on there?
September 26th, 2008 at 1:22 pm
Oh. My. God.
Bailout in what respect, Charlie?
September 26th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
These statements do sound at least more knowledgable than Bidens response about Hoover/FDR and television appearances, during Katie’s interview with him.
Does Biden know who our FIRST US PRESIDENT IS? or is he proud of the fact that he doesn’t have to brag about knowing that bit of history either????
The fact that politicians don’t say exactly coherent statements ALL THE TIME doesn’t make them UNFIT TO LEAD. Remember Obama’s “57 State Strategy”? Then we should really be AFRAID TO ELECT HIM AS LEADER !
Sorry…..you will have to make a better case about PALIN….right now she sounds a lot more credible than many of her opponents!
September 26th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
Couric shoul get an Oscar for keeping a straight face while talking to this imbecile moron.
September 26th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Look into Palin’s eyes, and see the back of her head.
September 26th, 2008 at 2:12 pm
Train wreck, absolute complete disaster.
You can say what you want about Obama, he SOUNDS SUBSTANTIAL when he answers questions. Disagree with his answers but he sounds coherent like he knows what he’s talking about.
She’s in way over her head, and was obviously chosen to appeal to all the HS dropouts in the country who dont care about foreign affairs or economic affairs for that matter. She’s one of them, a clueless lightweight who knows nothing.
Her being a governor is a bad look for Alaska.
September 26th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Why do people keep describing her as smart?
September 26th, 2008 at 3:04 pm
Couric’s facial expression at 0:53 is priceless.
September 26th, 2008 at 3:12 pm
McCain should be punished for his cruel act. Obviously she isn’t even fit to be Governor of a small town. Get her out and tell her to take care of her kids. We can’t afford to be the laughing stock of the entire world!
September 26th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Thank you for making me laugh today! It’s like someone dumped a bunch of big words in her head, and they’re leaking out of her mouth!
September 26th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
I used to sound like that when I was in my teens and high.
September 26th, 2008 at 5:55 pm
Good grief you guys, can’t you see that she’s doing an on the fly translation from her notes in Japanese ?
More coherent that John McCain; fewer pauses than Barack Obama.
That is one smart lady.
September 27th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
After Sarah’s interview with Katie Couric, Sarah has to get out of the upcoming vice presidential debate. The only way I see how she can accomplish that is to lose an appendix. Sarah’s going to have to give up an appendix for the good of the Republican party.
September 27th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
The Umbrella of Job Creation? $700 billion to Wall Street wont create jobs for those who need it!
NBT.. Couric looks puzzled and ready to yawn during this interview! YIKES> this is the best McCain could come up with for his VP.. Kay Bailey Hutchison would have been 10x better.
$700 Billion would give EACH American $3500 to spend and ignite the economy. Thats real relief for America!!
September 28th, 2008 at 12:00 pm
McCain has a gambling jones and embarrasses himself and his party when he gambles his health vs. the future of our country with this TWT’s (tundra white trash) empty head.
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