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Arianna Huffington, formerly a Republican, credits her shift in political views to colleagues Al Franken and Robert Scheer. Before her change in ...
Read more about By Arianna Huffington, Tribune Media Services.
Arianna Huffington, formerly a Republican, credits her shift in political views to colleagues Al Franken and Robert Scheer. Before her change in ...
Read more about By Arianna Huffington, Tribune Media Services.
Sarah Palin: A Trojan Moose Concealing Four More Years Of George Bush
By Arianna Huffington, Tribune Media Services
Did Sarah Palin wrongfully push to have her ex-brother-in law fired?
Was she really against the "Bridge to Nowhere?" Did she really sell
Alaska's plane on The correct answer to all these questions is: Who cares? Which isn't to say these aren't valid questions, or that Palin and the McCain camp aren't playing it fast, loose and coy with each of them. The point is that Palin, and the circus she's brought to town, are simply a bountiful collection of small lies deliberately designed to distract the country from one big truth: the havoc that George Bush and the Republican Party have wrought, and that John McCain is committed to continuing.
Every second of this campaign not spent talking about the Republican Party's record, and John McCain's role in that record, is a victory for John McCain.
Her critics like to say that Palin hasn't accomplished anything. I disagree: In the space of 10 days, she's succeeded in distracting the entire country from the horrific Bush record -- and McCain's complicity in it. My friends, that's accomplishment we can believe in.
Just look at the problem John McCain faced. George Bush has a disastrous record, and the country knows it. John McCain -- the current one, not the one who vanished eight years ago -- has no major disagreements with George Bush (and I'm sorry, wanting to fire Donald Rumsfeld a bit sooner doesn't qualify) and wants to continue his incredibly unpopular policies for another four years. The solution? Enter Sarah Palin, a Trojan Moose carrying four more years of disaster.
And the plan has worked beautifully. Just look at what's being discussed just 50-plus days before the election. Is it the highest unemployment rate in five years? The bailout of
No. We're talking about whether Sarah Palin was or was not a good mayor, whether she was or was not a good mother, whether her skirts are too short and her zingers too sarcastic.
Contrary to what we're hearing 24/7 in the media, the next few weeks are not a test of Sarah Palin. The next few weeks are a test of Barack Obama.
He needs to dramatically redirect this election back to a discussion of the issues that really matter -- the issues that will impact the future of this country. A presidential campaign is a battle and this is the time for Obama to show some commander-in-chief skills. I'm not talking about calling Palin out for lying about his record and demeaning community organizing. I'm talking about grabbing the political debate by the throat. The country is already angry about what's happened over the last seven-plus years -- he shouldn't be afraid to give voice to that anger. Obama has spent years adopting a non-threatening persona; but he can't let his fear that appearing like an "angry black man" (a stereotype not-too-subtly fueled by Fox News) will turn off swing voters keep him from channeling the disgust and outrage felt by so many voters --swing and otherwise.
McCain's team, in an effort to distract, is going to keep doing what they're doing -- diverting voters and the media with a tantalizing combination of personal trivia and small lies. It doesn't matter if they're caught in them -- in fact, all the better. Because they know there is no way in hell they can win if this election is about the big truth of the Bush years.
McCain's real running mate is George Bush and the failed policies of the Republican Party. Even if they are dressed up in a skirt, lipstick and Tina Fey glasses.
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Arianna Huffington's e-mail address is arianna@huffingtonpost.com.
(c) 2008 Arianna Huffington. Distributed by Tribune Media Services, Inc.
This news arrived on: 09/11/2008
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Posted Comments:
11-01-2008 04:28
JCE wrote:
She is right on the money. I hope enough people understand those facts, because this country has never been in such a bad mess, and nuclear weapons and modern technology in the hands of the wrong government, ours included, could make these be the good old days real soon.
09-14-2008 12:24
supershy wrote:
commenting on this column
Arianna is pure genius! it's a shame 300 million americans won't read this before november. it sums up everything nicely. i hope she runs for the u.s. house,senate or governor sometime in the next 20 years. i think she would be a smart/compassionate person to deal with.go huffie go! obama/biden is the best way in this election to turn things around for the next generation.go obama go!
09-14-2008 09:03
bfaye53 wrote:
FINALLY!!
Ms. Arianna...Thank You
As a nation we need to focus on the issues.
We need to realize that our future depends on who is elected.
A very good article indeed.
As a nation we need to focus on the issues.
We need to realize that our future depends on who is elected.
A very good article indeed.
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