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Palin's Katie Couric Myths
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Sarah Palin’s account of her infamous interview with “the perky one” is not the whole story. Shushannah Walshe on what Going Rogue gets wrong about the TV showdown that doomed her.
In Sarah Palin’s new memoir, Going Rogue, the former vice-presidential candidate spends considerable time revisiting her infamous series of interviews with Katie Couric.
• Tina Brown: Sarah Drops the Act
• Mark McKinnon: How Palin Helps Bloomberg Palin does not, however, spend much time taking responsibility for her own mistakes. Instead, she accuses the CBS Evening News anchor (“the perky one,” as she referred to Couric on Oprah) of bias and holds the McCain campaign to the fire for setting up the seven interviews, which were held over the course of two days. Accounts of inaccuracies and embellishments in Going Rogue have already been widely reported, but Palin’s retelling of the Couric story is particularly ridden with questionable claims and glaring omissions.
• Benjamin Sarlin: 10 Palin Hits the Leakers Missed
• More Daily Beast contributors on Palin’s book tour. For Sarah from Alaska: The Sudden Rise and Brutal Education of a New Conservative Superstar, my co-author and I conducted 190 interviews over eight months and spoke to most of the aides who were with Palin during her disastrous conversations with Couric. In the space below, I will attempt to sort fact from fiction and justifiable grievances from unsubstantiated claims. (In the interest of full disclosure, my co-author, Scott Conroy, works for CBS News, and I have been a “special contributor” on a few CBSNews.com articles. I covered Palin’s campaign as an embedded reporter for Fox News.)
- That Conversation With Nicolle Wallace: Palin alludes to deep suspicions she harbored over the motivations and loyalty of her former communications adviser, Nicolle Wallace. Throughout her book, Palin blames Wallace for pushing the Couric interviews because of Wallace’s previous relationship as a CBS News contributor. Palin describes a conversation she says she had with Wallace that made her begin to “feel sorry” for Couric, writing: “Nicolle went on to explain that Katie really needed a career boost. ‘She just has such low self-esteem,’ Nicolle said. She added that Katie was going through a tough time. ‘She just feels she can’t trust anybody.’
When Couric mentioned that she would ask Palin what she read, everyone agreed it would be a great way to get a better sense of how Palin—a politician who was still brand new to the national scene—obtained her information.
“‘Katie wants people to like her,’ Nicolle said. ‘She wants you to like her.’”
In an on-the-record email Tuesday, Wallace disputed that the conversation Palin describes ever occurred. “It is pure fiction,” Wallace wrote. “No such discussion took place.”
- On the Expensive Stylist Connection: Palin states twice in Going Rogue that the New York stylist whom the campaign hired to buy the pricey wardrobe for her and her family was also Couric’s stylist. If Palin’s claim were true, it would offer an interesting connection between the Couric fiasco and high-priced wardrobe saga. But according to the stylist herself, Palin’s assertion is false.
In reporting for Sarah from Alaska, I sat down with the stylist, Lisa A. Kline, for an exclusive interview. It was the first time that Kline had spoken out publicly since the purchases turned into an embarrassing flap for the McCain campaign. The “team of stylists” around her in Minneapolis that Palin describes consisted of Kline, her assistant, and a seamstress. Senior adviser Nicolle Wallace reached out to Kline because of their shared history at CBS, but during my interview, I asked Kline if she had done any work for Couric. Her response was definitive: “No, no, I did not. Katie has her own stylist, and no, definitely not.” - The Question of Bias: In Palin’s book, she describes Couric as “badgering” and having a “partisan agenda.” Yet through our reporting in Sarah from Alaska, we disclose that campaign staffers, many of whom Palin praises in her book and remain loyal to the former governor, thought that Couric’s questions were fair. Some of them did take issue with the way the interviews were edited, as Palin did, but none of them said the interviewer herself was out of line. Yes, Couric did press Palin on the Alaska governor’s abortion views, but she spent the majority of the interviews focused on issues unrelated to social policy, particularly the financial crisis and international affairs.
“Prepping her for the interview on the financial crisis was the No. 1 subject of her interview preparation. She should have known that she was getting that question. It wasn’t a gotcha question because we told her she was going to get it,” said a former McCain staffer who helped Palin prepare for the interview. He explained that Palin was very upset by Couric’s questioning on social issues such as the morning-after pill and homosexuality, but that she could have handled it better. “Those questions in and of themselves were not difficult questions, but they understandably angered her. A more experienced candidate would have known how to deal with the situation rather than refusing to answer questions that were otherwise easy.”
- Preparation: Palin was confronted by an avalanche of information and events at the time of the Couric interviews, including meetings with world leaders during the United Nations General Assembly, preparing for her debate with Joe Biden, and sliding approval ratings at home in Alaska, coupled with the Troopergate investigation, which threatened her reputation as an ethical stalwart. But preparing for the Couric interview seemed to fall to the bottom of Palin’s list. After all, she had gotten out of the Charlie Gibson interview relatively unscathed. In Sarah from Alaska, we describe a scene that reveals how relatively unconcerned Palin was about her upcoming interview with Couric. The morning of the first sitdown, Palin gathered with close aides for a final cram session, but instead of going over questions she might be asked, the candidate was preoccupied with a questionnaire from her local newspaper, the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. Palin was upset that her staff had not answered the questions sooner and given her more time to review them. “This is not how I do things,” she said. “I told you guys this week that this was a priority and it took you four days to turn it around. This is my priority.”
- The Supreme Court Question: In Going Rogue, Palin mentions the Exxon Valdez Supreme Court case and how the 20-year litigation process “compounded the suffering” for Alaskans. In June 2008, when the Supreme Court cut Exxon’s payment to Alaskans from $5 billion to $500 million, Palin spoke out passionately against the payout slash. Yet when Couric asked her what Supreme Court cases she disagreed with besides Roe v. Wade, the Alaska governor couldn’t come up with anything. In Sarah from Alaska, we document how Palin later commiserated with staffers about how she wished she had brought up the Exxon Valdez example or any of the other Supreme Court decisions with which she disagreed.
“‘I wish I had just used one of those,’ Palin lamented privately after the interview. The unexpressed thought swirling through more than one aide’s mind was, ‘Well, why didn’t you?’ Her aides later discussed with her a couple of court cases that she could bring up with Couric in one of the next week’s interview installments, but Palin failed to do so.”
- Palin’s Reading Material: Palin writes in her book about how offended she was when Couric asked her what books and magazines she regularly read to establish her worldview.
“It wasn’t that I didn’t want to—or as some have ludicrously suggested, couldn’t—answer her question; it was that her condescension irritated me. It was as though she had suddenly stumbled on a primitive newcomer from an undiscovered tribe.”
In Sarah from Alaska, we describe how astonished staffers were that Palin chose not to answer the simple question and write that campaign aides had actually prepared her to answer a similar question.
“It wasn’t the exact question Palin’s aides had anticipated, but it was close. They had guessed that Couric, or a future interviewer, might ask the governor what nonfiction books she had read recently,” we write in Sarah from Alaska, “From his vantage point behind the cameras, Chris Edwards looked on in horror at Palin’s refusal to answer the question. He was the one who brought press clippings to her room each morning, and he knew that she got her news from a variety of sources. Why didn’t she just answer the question?”
- Gotcha Questions: Palin blames Couric for focusing on “gotcha questions.” Palin writes, “But Katie’s purpose—shared by most media types—seemed to be to frame a ‘gotcha’ moment. And it worked.” She then takes some accountability, writing: “Instead of my scoring points for John McCain, I knew that I had let the team down.”
Yet inside the white, 12-passenger van in Columbus, Ohio, where Couric sat with executive producer Rick Kaplan, her researcher, and my co-author, as they discussed potential questions before one of the interviews, the conversation was quite different. When my co-author suggested a complex foreign-policy question, Kaplan immediately shot down the idea, insisting that it was important to avoid any semblance of “gotcha questions.” When Couric mentioned that she would ask Palin what she read, everyone in the van agreed it would be a great way to get a better sense of how Palin—a politician who was still brand new to the national scene—obtained her information.
- Campaign Reaction: Palin writes about how surprised she was when McCain senior adviser Nicolle Wallace addressed her after the first installment of Couric interviews to offer encouragement on her performance. According to Palin, Wallace said, “‘That was great! Now, for tomorrow what we’re going to—’
‘There’s going to be a ‘tomorrow’?’ I asked.
‘Yeah there’s another segment—you were really good today.’
I thought, Dear Lord if that’s what you call a good interview, then I don’t know what a bad one is.”
We report a similar exchange with Wallace in our book, but Palin neglects to mention a later conversation with two top aides on the McCain campaign, which we report in Sarah from Alaska.
“Steve Schmidt and Rick Davis pulled her aside and told her in no uncertain terms that the first round of Couric interviews had been a disaster, and the repercussions had been severe. Still, she was not the first politician to have bombed an interview, and the solution was to buckle down and make sure she was prepared the next time.”
Plus: Check out Book Beast for more news on hot titles and authors and excerpts from the latest books.
Shushannah Walshe was a reporter and producer at the Fox News Channel from August 2001 until the end of the 2008 presidential campaign.
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Shushannah Walshe is the co-author of Sarah From Alaska: The Sudden Rise and Brutal Education of a New Conservative Superstar. She was a reporter and producer at the Fox News Channel from August 2001 until the end of the 2008 presidential campaign.
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Shushannah Walshe is the co-author of Sarah From Alaska: The Sudden Rise and Brutal Education of a New Conservative Superstar. She was a reporter and producer at the Fox News Channel from August 2001 until the end of the 2008 presidential campaign.
Scott Conroy has worked as a campaign reporter and is currently a digital journalist for CBS News.
glenndale
This is why I love Sarah Palin. She is in way over her head and she doesn't even realize it. She gets flustered even though people have prepared her. Can you imagine if she became vice president or even president? Imagine she was in the situation room: "Madame President, what do you want to do?" "Uh, golly, gee, um, uh, well, don'tcha know, I, uh, um..." *wink* "Madame President, we need an answer." "Well, gee, you know, we should just do the normal things." *wink*
The room is silent in shock.
jaydeekay
And those would be considered 'gotcha' questions by her.
sophia5
All this analyzing over the Couric interview is ridiculous.
There were no nuances.
Unlike Charles Gibson's question when he used
the rather obscure term "Bush Doctrine,"
where he could have simply asked Palin
if she agreed with "Preemptive Strike,"
Couric wasn't playing "gotcha."
Couric asked Palin a simple question,
and she couldn't answer it.
That's it.
There's nothing complicated here.
Monk66
I'm sorry sophia i usually agree with you but I have to diagree that Gibson was trying to catch her.
it is widely known OUTSIDE of the political arena that the term Bush Doctrine refers to a preemptive war on nations that fund and/or harbor terrorist organizations.
And the Bush Doctine is the lame term for the National Security Strategy for the United States.
I would have loved to see the look on Palin's face if she Gibson used that term instead of the Bush Doctrine.
RRDRRD
Monk66 - that is a completely inaccurate statement. Gibson's own definition of the term - 'anticipatory self-defense.' is a concept grounded in the Tyler administration (circa 1840) certainly not a Bush doctrine. Moreover, her response ("in what regard") is an extremely wise answer to as broad and obscure question as Charlie's.
She did botch theCouric interview but as to the readin question - she should have just walked out. Think about the bias inherent in that question and imagine asking it of candidate Obama.
escomments
Monk66-
The term, "The Bush Doctrine" is known NOW!
Back during the Gibson interview, it was obscure "Inside the Beltway" dogma and could have been a reference to any Bush policy.
diamondgirl
Sop,esc,monk, Look at all of you disagreeing with each other, you are a bunch of hypocrites, and you are on here complaining that Palin didn't get it right...None of you can agree but Palin has the problem? Look in the mirror people...LOL
Monk66
escomments
the interview was not even 2 years ago. You're trying to tell me that the bush doctrine, made in 2001, wasn't known?
ignorance
varmint
If Palin didn't know the definition of the Bush Doctrine she should have had the guts to ask Gibson to define it. Then answered it. She didn't, her eyes got a little bigger for a second and she tried to slide around the question.
jaydeekay
This post is to escomments:
The arrogance of the Bush Doctrine - Sep 25, 2002
http://dir.salon.com/story/news/col/scheer/2002/09/25/doctrine/index.htm l
THE BUSH DOCTRINE - Sep 21, 2002
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/nypost/access/190817811.html?dids=190817811: 190817811&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Sep 21, 2002&author=&pub=New York Post&desc=THE BUSH DOCTRINE&pqatl=google
Bush doctrine - Sept 21, 2002
http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2hISAAAAIBAJ&sjid=svIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5 494,34910&dq=bush doctrine&hl=en
Aftermath: The Bush Doctrine - April 13, 2003
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/13/opinion/13SUN1.html
`BUSH DOCTRINE' REDEFINES AMERICA'S ROLE - Mar 18, 2003
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/timesdispatch/access/1320056451.html?dids=13 20056451:1320056451&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar 18, 2003&author=MARSHA MERCER&pub=Richmond Times - Dispatch&desc=`BUSH DOCTRINE' REDEFINES AMERICA'S ROLE&pqatl=google
The dangerous Bush Doctrine - February 23, 2003
http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20030223/focus/focus1.html
Iraq Occupation Erodes Bush Doctrine - June 28, 2004
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A10539-2004Jun27?language=print er
Has the Bush doctrine failed? - August 29, 2006
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0829/dailyUpdate.html?s=t5
I just grabbed some stories from over the years. The Bush Doctrine was very much well known to any politician who cared, not just inside the Beltway, from nearly the beginning of the shrub's reign.
RRDRRD
jaydeekay
read your own links - they don't agree with each other. They use multiple contradictory definitions. Palin responded "in what regard" - a sensible reply to a stupid question and Gibson's answer was as stupid as his question. His answer was a doctrine defined by a previous administration 160 before Bush took office (probably better called the Webster doctrine after the Sec of St who defined it).
There was - and is - no single Bush Doctrine a la the Truman Doctrine (you could get a document labeled as the Truman Doctrine from the Truman administration) there are only Bush doctrines (emphasis on the lower case d and the plural). Gibson did not know what he was talking about then and you still don't now.
jaydeekay
She has no idea what the 'Bush doctrine' was. She made no attempt AT ALL to answer the question.
You betcha.
stopper22
@RRDRRD- asking what a person reads is a biased question? really?
seems rather elementary. what exactly is the inherent bias in that question?
i would honestly think that question is a lay-up to ask of anyone, more like small talk than a real hard nosed interview.
seriously, i'm just asking, not trying to make a point here. what exactly is the bias?
RRDRRD
jaydeekay
"She has no idea what the 'Bush doctrine' was.She made no attempt AT ALL to answer the question."
Sorry but your own links prove there is no "Bush Doctrine", which proves Gibson was a fool and the transcripts prove you wrong about trying to answer his nonsensical question. Its all there in black and white - just too much for you too untangle.
RRDRRD
Stopper22
Actually I think that is a fair question. I'll start by asking if you have ever heard any candidate for high office asked that question - did they ask Obama that question, McCain, Biden, Clinton???? No.
Why ask Palin that question? Are governors less informed than senators? Did they ask that question of any of the 6 previous presidents who were elected President (including the governor of tiny, backward Arkansas)? I sure don't remember.
It is fraught with implications that Palin - as successful and experienced a governor as Obama was a senator, perhaps more so - was inherently inferior. Its a grade school question (I am sort picturing the winner of a national spelling bee getting to "interview" the governor) in a national forum.
Furthermore, (and, by the way, I do agree that Palin bungled the response - I still would have counseled for an indignant kind of challenge but not any specific list) had she responded with the logical list for a governor, it would have been primarily local and regional papers. Immediately the east coast leftists would seize on this as further proof of her philistine status, Couric would follow up with further sideways patronization along the lines of "those aren't papers the rest of America hears very much about....', and Palin is still on the defensive about a level of competence and awareness that her record as governor demonstrated (to that point)
Its partly a bias against her location (its not even a fly over state), partly against her middle class background and earthy pass-times, probably against her faith as well - its an assumption that someone who is not of the elite colleges, the urban centers, and of urbane tastes could possibly have basic knowledge. And to the leftist MSM, all the proof you need is that she has conservative beliefs.
ThisThatTheOther
This is for RRDRRD -- maybe this is the first election you ever paid attention to, but what someone reads is a very common question for politicians. For instance, Gore and Bush were asked their favorite books, and it became a minor (probably inside the beltway) issue in their campaign:
http://thephoenix.com/Blogs/phlog/archive/2008/04/24/flashbacks-how-al-g ore-s-favorite-book-hurt-his-campaign-chances-animal-testing-controversy-an d-the-mad-mad-world-of-miss-baby-america-pageants.aspx
Obama never really had to be asked what he read because he was frequently seen carrying a variety of books on and off airplanes. I remember reading articles about this. Also, although it was not in an interview, David Brooks of the New York Times said he asked Obama about a particular author and said Obama discussed his works for 5 minutes straight very intelligently and perceptively, and Brooks was astonished (I think he said something like he got goosebumps).
I think Clinton used to regularly discuss his favorite authors.
So the idea that what do you read is a gotcha question, or that it was biased is just absurd. It wasn't biased to ask Gore or Dubya, and it wasn't biased to ask Palin. It was supposed to be helpfully illuminating, and she blew it and it was illuminating in only the worst way for her.
Sundiszno
Asking any one (politician or not) what they read is not a biased question. I've been involved in local campaigns and I've seen candidates for city council asked that questions. I've neer seen anyone flub that one. Just name any book, newspaper or magazine. It's a complete softball question anyone of any intelligence can turn into an open ended one allowing any politician to spew whatever s/he wants. That's why I, for one, don't believe Ms. Palin has what it takes on the national scene.
xm-s-mx
People defending her confusion over the Bush Doctrine are just trying to make excuses.
Watch the video. She obviously has no idea what he's talking, and the "in what regard" question is a desperate attempt for clarification that may trigger a lightbulb.
This was the source of controversy.
RRDRRD
ThisThat/etc
If Couric had asked about authors, I would concede it was a valid, if rather insipid, question. However, that was not the question - it was ""When it comes to establishing your worldview, I was curious, what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this to stay informed and to understand the world?"
You know full well that no one in the MSM would ever ask The One that question. Moreover, if asked, he would probably brush it off with a "all the usuals" kind of comment (which, of course, his fans would find impressive).
On the other hand, I would like to know if he ever actually read the books he carried around with him. If you don't actually write anything for the law review you edited, maybe you just carry books for the same reason - looks good on the resume.
RRDRRD
By the way, you should be embarrassed by mentioning the whole goosebumps thing (unless it was one that childrens' series they were discussing - that would be about Brooks' speed)
xlntcat
The Bush doctrine was obscure outside the Beltway??? I know of no educated individual who didn't know the answer and I live in Mississippi and travel throughout the U S. Who couldn't name a Supreme Court decision other than Roe vs Wade with which they might have disagreed? If you are John McCain running mate you should be able to identify some legislation that he sponsered in his 26 years. The average person on the street could do that. Who couldn't figure out what a precondition was simply from the definition of the term? (B. Wms interview) Palin has yet to answer a substantive question with anything other than her own set of widely repeated talking points. Her cognitive deficits are apparent. There is a reason why it took her 6 year to get an undergraduate communications degree. There is a reason that she was the only person on either ticket that didn't release their medical records. A letter from a doctor saying that you are OK, isn't the release of your medical records. The first time she was asked about them she looked like a deer caught in the headlights and wanted to know why she would be expected to release them. Medical records contain mental health diagnosis and treatment. Given the concerns about post partum depression and her incoherent resignation accompanied by heavy panting added to reports of inability to sustain attentiveness, one could reasonably be concerned about a mental health diagnosis.
newswoman
Palin is a wonderful speaker...from a prepared script...but terrible when speaking off the cuff. She rambles and doesn't really address the question.
Yet, she is totally confident. I wonder where that comes from. She would be terrible as a president, because she doesn't understand perception, for one, and she just doesn't know what she should know.
peppermint
If you substitute Obama for Palin in your first sentence it all makes sense. Somehow it's OK for the One to make dumb statements but Sarah gets hammered for the slightest misspeak.
I'd almost forgotten the other Katie interview with Biden inwhich he stated that FDR went on TV(?) after the market crash(1929) to reassure the country that everything would be all right. I guess we know the two idiotic things he said in that one sentence but somehow the media glossed over that.
PigFarmer
I respectfully agree/disagree with you. Most pols are wonderful speakers with a speech in front of them. And Palin is a charmer who was was trained in the beauty pagent ranks to be endearing. However, it is the extremely rare politician who truly answers any question put to them. Ask a politician what their favorite flavor of ice cream is and they'll wander all over the map because they want the vote of every person who likes ice cream and they don't want to alienate anyone who doesn't like his/her favorite flavor. These people don't have the guts to answer a question for fear that it will hurt their negative ratings in the polls even though we all know they NEVER look at the polls even when they are paying to have the polls conducted.
piktor
There was this Alaska cabinet or legislative meeting where serious stuff was being discussed. Palin was all concerned and distracted with her two Blackberries and after a short while simply got up left the room and never came back. She was governor at the time.
ynot4tony2
"...cabinet or legislative meeting where serious stuff was being discussed."
Well, when you put it that way...
But seriously, you proved you have NO CLUE WHATSOEVER what was being discussed at the meeting. Furthermore, you have NO CLUE WHATSOEVER what was coming to her on her Blackberries. For all you know (which is somewhere between "jack" and "squat"), what come through the blackberries might have been far, far more important.
I don't know. You don't know. I admit the limits of my knowledge and don't try to work outside those bounds. If only you were so restrained.
xlntcat
Legislators and staff reported that it wasn't unusual for Palin to fail to pay attention in meetings. Before she resigned, she just quit showing up for meeting that she, herself, had scheduled. Trying to deny that this woman has serious cognitive deficits, is poorly educated, and lacks the fund of knowledge of the average eleventh grade C student is absurd.
diamondgirl
Palin is doing an outstanding job will EVERY interview she has so far. You losers hate her so it doesn't matter what you think anyway because of your bias. She is not speaking to you or for you, you are not her target audience, but those who she is peaking to are listening more and more and the response has been overwhelming positive. So Bash away America is not listening to you!
Downriver
She has articulated NO vision for America EXCEPT division.
Monk66
There's no vision like division
hasbro
Christ you people are stupid. Idiots like you will destroy this country.
slpnm7
no wonder you're a Palin fan, you're about equally inarticulate
Granite
And you have a bias as well.
Palin stands for the same conservative principles you do, so you admire her. But you should look deeper into her conniving ways, her lying, her vengefulness, and lack of intellectual depth.
If you really value your conservative values, you should throw your support behind a candidate who is worthy.
Even if Palin was worthy (LOL)--the fact that so many find her to be a laughingstock, disqualifies her from further consideration.
MajorRevisions
I don't hate her but I would also never vote for her. Maybe it is my definition of conservative. The fact that she signed a windfall tax bill on the oil companies while governor and than gave everyone in Alaska a $1,500 "rebate, while I paid $4/gal for gas, just doesn't sound like a conservative but more socialist. The fact that Alaska had a budget surplus when she took office and a deficit when she stepped down also concerns me.
foodmike
I think your view of America's opinion of Palin is wrong. Fewer than 1 in 4 view her favorably:
http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/11/16/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry 5674379.shtml?tag=contentMain;contentBody
Snertly
Oh, go on! Tell another!
PigFarmer
diamondgirl, you are an absolute tool. Of course the interviews have gone well--She's had a year to prepare to be questioned by softball pitchers. Notice that your heroine isn't going to be interviewed by anyone she considers hostile.
RockyMissouri
She is listening to AND addressing the voices in her head!
oldpunk
I would not want her answering the phone at 3 in the morning.
She needs to be briefed on what newspapers she reads?
amapola101
oldpunk,most of them have to be briefed. Everytime they get out there and speak their mind, they are in trouble.That does not excuse, her. But in all fairness, she was sold out by her party,once she started to overshadow McC,then I have only witnessed one similar mutilation by the media, and that is Hillary.Anyway, the true, leader does not have to be the smartest, but surround themselves, with the samrtest and the best in each field..
trueconserv
What scares me more is that Obama gets that 3 am morning call.
I'd rather have Palin be in charge than the dummy we NOW have.
johnwr3
Dear Glen,
I think the reason Sarah Palin is so popular is that 40% of the country is conservative and predisposed to like her. The recent Gallup poll says 38% of Americans would support her for president. That number looks pretty good 3 years from the next election. WTF have you ever done anyway? Liberals are good at ridicule but not much else these days.
Matt572
I believe your talking abot this poll - http://www.gallup.com/poll/124097/Huckabee-Romney-Palin-See-Most-Republican -Support-12.aspx
and your comprehension needs a little work. It's a poll of Republicans only, and they were obviously able to say yes or no to each (or not answer, as none of their totals add up to 100%.) So the answers don't really tell us anything since no one was required to pick one potential candidate over all others (you know, like in an actual election.) And conservative is not automatically Republican.
Positivetrends
...the scenerio above occurs as we speak in the office of the President of the United States....minus the excess verbiage...
...the caricature is not consistent with the facts...even the Couric interview didn't demonstrate a loss for words as you describe as much as it did a naivete...
ILoveLexi
It is amusing how the left is so consumed with Sarah Palin. It's because middle America shares her ideals and outlook, where the left is so disconnected. They just don't get it.
ThisThatTheOther
I just don't think most of middle america (where I live) shares her negativity, mean spiritness, lack of curiosity and divisiveness. People want politicians who promote ideas, rather than just rail against others'.
trueconserv
One could say the same for our current President ......WAY OVER HIS HEAD!
We now see that Obama cannot handle the economy and foreign affairs.
If we knew it would take him several months to decide on a strategy in Afgahnistan, we should have asked him a year ago what he plans to do.
And Now, after one year of declining jobs, and a "pork"package that has given us nothing, he is going to have a "jobs" seminar.
We now see that speaking well through a teleprompter is NOT a prerequisite for being President of the U.S.
When one answers a question about what to do about the economy and says that he wants to "spread the wealth around", The American public should do an about face and give him or her NO respect or following.
But, instead, a candidate should know Economics 101.
I think the reason why Obama didn't want his grades to be known could be because either he flunked economics in college or he didn't take any business courses!
ExiledintheUSA
I just couldn't bring myself to attend one of her book signings, nonetheless wait in line overnight. I'd be too afraid she would waste my time and quit half way through.
The thing me and my wife like most about her is that we know someone else has a life that is even worse than ours.
xlntcat
According to people who actually like Palin in Alaska, she cannot remained focused and on topic for over 10 minutes even on issues she really cares about. Pretending that the world didn't see that interview is Palin creating her own reality. Any interview regarding substance was the same throughout the campaign. She obviously had limited the Oprah interview to what was in the book only and still got caught in her own lies. Unless, her primary candidates are terrified of confronting her, she would never hold up to the rigors of a primary much less a national campaign.
marticampbell
My take on why Ms. Palin did not answer the, "What do you read?" question was that because the right wing has so dissed the media, including print, as having a liberal bias, that she was afraid to cite a particular publication for fear of getting flak from the right. But maybe I'm wrong.
socialworklady
Right. As if reading anything is somehow ... elitist.
And the dumbing down of America continues.
analogb
I seem to remember Mrs Palin did answer that question and the answer was "All of them".
crypto
I have stated before that I am not a good democrat nor republican. I vote for whomever I believe will work for us. But folks I gotta tella ya I am baffeled as to why so much time is being spent on an attempt to destroy Sarah Palin. She's not running for anything, her party was smashed last election, and I don't understand all the " let's kill Palin conversation". Go to the other side for a minute. The President himself has rolled in dirt, Joe Biden almost got kicked out of the senate a few years ago, A/G Holder has been crooked all his life. But these people are in office controlling your lives. Palin is out there selling a book. She means nothing to anyone politically now. So WHY???
diamondgirl
crypto,The reason is the liberals know she is nothing like them. They have for years created their own agenda of if it feels good it's ok to do it. Well Palin has the exact opposite agenda, she morals, ethics, conservativism, pro life, (the libs really hate that one) religion,etc. all the thing Libs want to have wiped off the face of the map. They think if they bash her enough she will go away, but it doesn't seem to be working so far. The bashing seems to be pushing more people towards her....LOL
Monk66
let's all take advice from someone who uses the term LOL.
i remember when I was in 6th grade.
amapola101
Hi crypto, I would not vote for her, and I am not from her following. But you said it all. i like you,do not concider one party the answer. We need great leaders, from all sides.Caring, concious, concerned,decent human beings.But it is incredible, what she stirs. Just like Hillary.which I respect.In spanish, there is a song, that says, odiame porfavor yo te lo pido......on and on. It means, hate me please, But the worst thing that you can do is show me indiferencia.!!!!That means you are free from feelings about her.once you feel indifference. So she is a moving force out there when she causes such commotion, everywhere.!!!Pro and Con...........And add to your list Charly Rangle, Chris Dodd, and many othere from both sides that should not be in power. Or representing us, or anywhere near our policies. But like always,nothing we can do.PS,.....I do not have an opinion on Eric Holder, and I think the VP, Biden has a beautiful life story, But G-d help us if he ever became President.We would have to have a mutiny on land.How I wish my story, my book, would sell like hers. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!I do find that women are very envious of each other.I still have friends, who still hate Hillary,for not having left, her man, Bill. They felt betrayed.So women are fickel and cats.
oaklynne
zirc, your responses are both unintelligible and childish, but then again, what can one expect from a troll who apparently sees no need to actually write an intelligent response. pathetic troll.
Mercy1981
Those were my thoughts as well. What ever she answered would have been criticized by both sides. There was no right answer.
Snertly
How much would a maverick, or otherwise independent individual, worry about what others think of their reading choices?
If I had to guess at the true answer, it would be along the lines of "I'm supposed to read the clips they shovel at me each day, but I don't know where they come from."
However, the answer she gave, regarding what newspapers or magazines she read on a regular basis to inform her opinion, was, indeed, "All of them."
And that just seemed to be a rather pathetically desperate lie. Really. Mad Magazine would have been a better answer.
Dreamer4Ever
Katie Couric said it best: the interview speaks for itself. There isn't much Palin or anyone else can add at this point.
As long as Sarah Palin has public aspirations, the Katie Couric interview will continue to haunt her. Like Levi Johnston.
jaydeekay
And her witch hunter church invite. And her very questionable parenting.
RockyMissouri
Jaydeekay-I totally agree--like, where do her kids go to school?
What kind of life does Bristol have? Is she employed? Where ARE her children?
tolatetocry
RockyMissouri
Have you ever asked any of these questions of Joe Biden? Where is his coke-head daughter, otherwise it's none of your business so stfu!
diamondgirl
Katie, is in the past, Palin gets to respond to everyone who has already spoken. Thats what this is a response, we heard them now its Palin's turn, and people are listening with open ears and eyes
Monk66
yeah. that's why Katie is responding to no other than O'Reilly BEFORE palin.. good work DG
diamondgirl
Monk I knew that already
Snertly
Ms Palin is trying to rewrite history, but the people she's picked to hold responsibility for her own shortcomings don't seem to be the sort of folks to just accept it.
oaklynne
And people like you are also listening with closed minds. pathetic troll.
RockyMissouri
10-4. !!!!
Biddut
GOP is a party where less you know, more popular you are. Sarah Palin and GWB will have to face stiff competition to prove who is dumber. Yet, one was President and another is on her way to get nomination. Einstein will never get a membership of this party.
newswoman
the Reps must be so demoralized to even consider Palin as a presidential candidate. They may as well run Carrie PreJean as their next candidate. We know she is against gay marriage, for one. Who knows what else she is against.
diamondgirl
Bid My vote is your are dumber than both of them
sanagelosia
sweety, perhaps this link helps:
http://www.elearnenglishlanguage.com/difficulties/youryoure.html
"if you're able to replace the word with "you are," you're saying you're. Otherwise, your only choice is your."
good luck.
ynot4tony2
sanagelosia, feel free to take your selective Grammar Nazi tactics and shove them. You give a pass to the mouth-breathing neo-comm libbies you agree with on Biddut's posting (e.g., lack of a question mark after a question, and "less you know, more popular you are").
Furthermore, your lack of capitalization shows that you, too, aren't above your own pointless scrutiny. It also tells any rational person that you aren't the person to go around correcting the grammar of others.
Monk66
ynot4tony2,
i don't believe sanagelosia is correcting everyone's grammar. it is just when DG has that "i'm extremely more superior than you attitude" all the time, all the while spelling words wrong constantly and thus proving her lack of education and intelligence, it gets a little annoying.
oaklynne
My vote is that zircgirl is dumber than a bag of rocks, like her idol Sarah.
Southpaw
We still don't know what Palin reads even after Oprah gave her an opening to put on record the answer to Couric's question. Press clippings delivered during the campaign hardly count. Levi says he never saw Palin open a book. I believe him.
diamondgirl
She said she has reads the NYT, which I would choke on and never admit in million years.
sanagelosia
why wouldn't you admit to having read the NYT?
Sundiszno
She lied!
RRDRRD
I think your belief in Levi says more about you (and the tabloid mentality of the left) than anything about Palin.
ynot4tony2
Southpaw, you would believe Levi because he says something you already agree with? Isn't that both small-minded and arrogant of you?
Levi is a nobody. Palin has written more books than he's read. Believe you who want, neo-comm. Common sense won't change your mind.
oaklynne
What has Sarah written? Her book was entirely ghost-written by some neocon and Sarah doesn't even read newspapers.
keepakeeper43
Sarah's rightwing has no use for Couric. For the neocons, Katie is a liberal b*tch. Reading? Ha. Get a tabloid. Crap on Obama and the leftwing media. Who reads anyway? Not Dubya!
Sarah is the head-on collision that brings grimaces and horror, but we gotta slow down and gawk.
We watch as she grooms her deluded self for the oval office.
Who wouldn't be curious and delighted to see the fool put on their whiteface and rubber nose! What a treat!
What a amusing, dissembling, pathetic clown.
The Desperate Housewife of Wasilla!
AlexHamilton
God all this Palin stuff is petty.... the fact that none of this dissection would happen to a non-conservative personality is faintly embarrassing.
Southpaw
Oh yeah, Bill & Hillary Clinton had a free ride.
jaydeekay
Perhaps wake up before posting? Open eyes make for better posts.
delonix
What the heck does "none of this dissection would happen to a non-conservative personality" mean? AlexHamilton, thou spinnest!
aaronsirbaihu
Yes, all this dissection *would* happen to a non-conservative if she were as politically popular and as idiotic as Sarah Palin. I praise the proactive press exposing idiocy for once, as they should've done before the Irag war, for example.
jpelhamtn
This would be the same IRAQ war supported by Hillary Clinton, John Kerrey, John Edwards, Joe Biden...and Barack Obama when it came to funding. This is the war you are referring?
Hmmm ... funny how I've seen no reporting on the dunces like Clinton, Kerrey, Edwards , Biden & Obama who voted to support this war. Wow, do you think we have uncovered a liberal media double standard here?
The silly part of all this stuff about Couric, a woman who has virtually destroyed the CBS news TV audience...is that most Americans don't care what she thinks or asks. Palin is 'adored' by millions of Americans because she is not perfect, does not pretend to have all the answer...but does understand American values and common sense.
My God thee woman stood toe-to-toe with Joe Biden the 35 year 'veteran' of the Senate...and did just fine. If any public figure was covered in the way Palin is being covered...few could get up off the mat and keep fighting. Obama certainly could not...he cowers and whines whenever questioned like he did on NBC this morning. What's worse...he just lies.
Palin is original...not perfect...but unlike most in the media and in Washington...she knows it...they don't...and that's why they will never drive her from the public scene.
keepakeeper43
Alex, Alex, Alex,
Com'on.
Everybody "dissects" everybody in politics.
Look at all the Repugs on this blog who crap on Obama!
Sundiszno
Ah, the victim card comes out.
Erock1
This site continues to disappoint. Not sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't the Palin Forums.
Bulldoglover100
Disappoint?? Really? and your voting for Palin in 2012 I take it? Under that auspice I am shocked you could even read this article to be disappointed.......
crypto
Erock1: Thank you, thank you very much.
diamondgirl
Maybe we should be talking about Obama and what a disappointment he has turned out to be...Unemployment is above 10% and he is dithering about everything in sight...Has Communist Czars in the white house, bail outs, take over's, porkulus bill that gave to unions and buddies, need I go on. Palin is breath of fresh air compared to that Socialist POTUS
SFGiants
"Communist Czars"? And the FOX word-of-the-year "dithering"? Zirconchick, your lack of any discernible thought-process is cute.
As I've said elsewhere, you guys can't really defend Palin, so you turn to Obama-bashing.
bgeasyas123
Diamondgirl is the Palin of TDB, she keeps spouting off interpretations of half-truths at best and yet people keep giving her attention.....so keeps right on digging!
diamondgirl
SF,I will defend Palin, she has you left leaning libs beat hands down. She was awesome on every interview I have seen so far. She answered every question with firm conviction and sound thought, and correctly. Her conservative views were what I wanted to hear and felt she made her points about Obama be a #4 out of ten way to high in my opinion.
I could say the same about you bashing Palin in hopes she will go away, but last time I looked she is getting closer...LOL
Communist Czars, what you don't pay attention to what's going on in your government? Snap out of it and pay attention.
carouzer
You people are unbelievable! Did you expect that Obama could just wave a magic wand at 12:01 on Inauguration Day and all of the complex problems it took the the previous administration to create would just go away?
Whiney, superficial people like you and your beloved Sarah are exactly why our country is in the shape that it is in. Ignorance truly is bliss, isn't it?
ynot4tony2
SFGiants said: "As I've said elsewhere, you guys can't really defend Palin, so you turn to Obama-bashing."
Or, more importantly...the mainstream media can't really defend Obama, so they turn to Palin-bashing.
One is our President, and one is a private citizen. You neo-comms are scrutinizing the wrong person.
ynot4tony2
carouzer, please re-take basic civics. You obviously failed it, or retained nothing.
Unemployment was around 4.5% when Republicans controlled The White House AND Congress. In 2007, Democrats took control of Congress (and this is were rudimentary civics comes into play), and therefore all legislation and spending bills that came out of Congress. It was in 2007 when the unemployment rate started to climb and the stock market started to tank.
Furthermore, these indicators GOT WORSE, and the deficit TRIPLED, AFTER Obama took office. You blame Bush because you are either ignorant, dishonest, or too lazy to think for yourself.
oaklynne
Maybe you should learn to write and think and give up all those stale right-wing extremist talking points you so obviously cut and paste into your posts. troll.
floridabob
I'm sure the GOP would like her to just go away, but she's like the dinner party guest that refuses to leave. As a Democrat, I love it!
jpelhamtn
YES, I'm sure you do...rather the way we conservatives like Obama, Bill Clinton & John Edwards & Dick Durbin & Nancy Pelosi to show on TV...it gives us a reminder of what we will attempt to defeat to better our country...and how awful these taxpayer supported politicos on the left have done to ruin our nation.
RockyMissouri
Did you protest two wars ?
diamondgirl
We love it to, the longer she is in the lime light, and it makes Dems squirm the better
Bulldoglover100
Sarah Palin is a liar. It really is that simple and it is not to say other politicians are not because I know they all are at one time or the other but Palin lies when she does not have to and when it, in her mind, elevates herself. Her lying is the sort that usually causes people to seek help....once her looks are gone? and they are already on the way out the door, she will not longer be the darling of the sex starved right.
Cashmoney
Bingo.
Remember the famous line about Henry Kissinger? "Henry doesn't lie because it's in his interest. He lies because it's in his nature."
That's Sarah Palin. She lies when there's nothing in it for her, when telling the truth would do as well.
An awful woman.
And who says she's not running for anything? Another of her lies. If polls give her a shot at getting the Repub nomination, she'll run.
But most Repubs know she'll destroy the party for a generation.
jpelhamtn
Or...she may sweep Obama and his inept Administration from the face of history...and the nation will cheer!
Monk66
hooray for fairytales
RockyMissouri
So very true!!!
Ozone69
I wonder why Katie Couric never asked Joe Biden what his sources were for his corker of a statement: "When the stock market crashed, Franklin Roosevelt got on the television and didn't just talk about the princes of greed," Biden told Couric. "He said, 'Look, here's what happened.'"
Except that FDR was not President in 1929 and the only TV's were experimental ones that very few people had.
I won't get inot all the Biden gaffes but he apparently gets a pass even with his 4 decades in Congress and two failed runs for POTUS. But a newcomer to the national spotlight can't have a bad interview. Very fair.
newswoman
We know Biden meant 'the radio' instead of TV. An easy mistake and not terribly important, but the Reps have run with it, as a serious gaffe. Get a life, Reps.
Ozone69
OK, he meant the radio. But, FDR wasn't president until four year later in 1933. Hoover was president in 1929 when the market crashed. That's not an easy mistake. It's Joe Biden putting his foot in it like he has for most of his lack luster career.
diamondgirl
Biden is the Flub master, there is no excuse for him!
winston1
newswoman FDR was not President.
winston1
newswoman A 3 letter word JOBS!
SFGiants
Whiny: I'm not certain I get your last putdown of newswoman.
But aren't you supposed to be in school right now? Learning how to express coherent thoughts.
ynot4tony2
SFGiants, typical liberal...blame your own ignorance on someone else, particularly a Republican.
winston1 was referring to a Joe Biden gaffe (that probably wasn't posted at Daily Kos, so you may have missed it). Just go to youtube and search "biden jobs" and look at the first match. Or, just type in "Biden gaffes" for many, many more.
itisok
Ozone69, I will now ask what you read. Biden does not get a pass, ever heard of the Bidenisms? Similar to what Pres GW Bush had, it is devoted to tracking and recording Biden's gaffes. Please note that your example came from the news, they were all over Biden for that. With that being said, I do believe some of the Palin stuff is petty, but don't try to pretend she's the only that gets it
aaronsirbaihu
The reason you are telling us about Joe Biden's "corker" is that one of those liberal media types interviewed him and put the interview on national TV, thus enabling you to lament the unfairness of the media. Broadcasting his wrong answer on national TV (and to you who now quote it) was not enough? You are dismayed that the interviewer did not follow up with "What book did you get that wrong answer from?"
jpelhamtn
Why does anyone even care what Ms. Couric asks? She is known as a mean spirited, inept news reader...as all who worked with her at NBC will attest.
amanda07070
One example of Joe B. There are way too many to count when it comes to your darling Sarah.
Point the finger, don't address the issue of her constant lies, mistakes and gaffes.
Snertly
Yes, Republican Herbert Hoover was president when the stock market crashed in 1929, and how much is he remembered in connection with fixing the economy?
It was the Democrat guy elected four years later who's remembered as the hero of that disaster.
smartwoman
This author is promoting her book. This whole article is nothing more than an attempt to make some money off Sarah Palin----pretty tacky!!
As long as the male establishment can divide us, we women will never advance any further than where we are today. In fact we are going backwards. We had fewer women representing us in government after the 2008 elections than before.
Walshe needs to stop being a Pavlov's dog in regard to Palin and start thinking about how to help women become more powerful. Promoting divisions among us is harming future generations.....
Bulldoglover100
A vagina voter...how sad that you do not vote using any other method. Your support of Palin simply because she is a woman hinders us all. Please go away and never reproduce.
smartwoman
what's your problem with voting for women? Women are awesome!!!
btw--I have two beautiful sons....
RockyMissouri
Bulldoglover--Vagina voter!!!!- That is priceless and so true I'm afraid. Some of my gender have left their brains in the garage-sad to say!!
Monk66
MY problem with voting for women is that gender shouldn't have any weight in the voting decision.
haha... vagina voter.. i might steal that phrase if you don't mind.
newswoman
And did you defend Hillary, Smartwoman? We want to support women and women's issues but not be 'knee jerk' about either one.
itisok
smartwoman, the reason men still rule us is we put our weight behind women such as Palin who are undeserving. she can't hold her own and that is completely evident. why you continue to support her, i'm not sure. if as a mom, support her there, but don't pretend that this woman has what it takes at this time to rule the free world.
aaronsirbaihu
Correction: "As long as we keep saying 'the male establishment can divide us'" . . .
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
winston1
I read Katie Couric went to George Mitchel where he gave her the questions to ask Sarah. Little perky is not being honest.
cbeenthere
Winston is a troll who must write information that he/she knows is incorrect to seek attention.
winston1
Cheen I read this. What makes you think it's not true? You seem to know everything, want to share your wisdom?
cbeenthere
Gee, I don't know maybe she had someone on her staff named George Mitchel, in which case she probably would have consulted a Geo. Mitchel, a really interesting tidbit, thanks for sharing, I was wrong.
I was thinking of another Geo. Mitchell, a politician, I assume you are not referring to him, as both he and Couric would have been busy during the campaign doing their own thing.
diamondgirl
Win, I dont find her perky, i find Couric boaring, I never watched her before and will never watch her, not unlike most Americans
Monk66
*boring.
You continue to amaze me.
let's do launch sometime. I'd love to take you out to diner.
diamondgirl
thanks for the spell check lesson
*launch
*diner
While you continue to disappoint me
Monk66
that was was we like to call mocking.
for some strange reason i didnt think youd get the joke.
Matt572
Maybe Palin fans buy keyboards with no backspace button... Nah, more likely they don't know/care how to use it, because then they'd be 'elitists'.
Could you stop being half-assed about it and go live in the woods with no communication to the outside world? Pleeeeeeeease? You'll be seen as heroic patiots and 'Real Americans,' I promise. But only if you don't come back to check.
P.S. Conservatives and Republicans who realize that good, intelligent politicians don't get talked about on Insider (and damn sure don't get almost a whole show dedicated to them,) you're cool, or at least useful, so stick around and enjoy the 21st century.
ynot4tony2
Monk66 said: "that was was we like to call mocking."
Was was? No capitalization? And you sneer at the grammatical shortcomings of others?
There's some adage about what you're supposed to stop doing when you find yourself in a hole...look into that, would you?
Snertly
If "you've never watched her before and will never watch her", how do you find her to be anything?
Monk66
again..
tony
it.. was.. a.. joke..
it.. was.. intentional
if you want DG's number, ask her for it. she's too dumb (if you haven't been able to tell from her postings) to see that is why you are sticking up for her.
oaklynne
Monk66, zircgirl is dissappointed in you! How can you find the strength to carry on in light of her acerbic comment?
Monk66
Oakland,
she gives me the ideology i've been looking for all my life.
Inside, i really really want to be a conservative. but somehow i haven't been able to figure out exactly what that means.
jpelhamtn
She has done that kind of thing before in her career...truth be known...not many consider 'perky Katie' to be overly bright...except the elitist dim bulbs at this website.
Downriver
and yet..............Palin could not handle her.
Downriver
The questions were SOFTBALLS. If she can't handle Katie Couric do you think she could handle Putin?
Thank you.
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