Sunday, September 07, 2008
Joe Biden on Meet the Press
I had a couple of thoughts while watching Joe Biden & Tom Brokaw double-team Governor Sarah Palin yesterday.
1. Biden's very first comment referred to his position as Co-chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Just in case we forgot that debating foreign policy legislation allegedly gives him much more experience than actually governing a town and a state.
1. Biden complained about Palin not answering any questions or giving any interviews yet. He has been the nominee for VP one week longer than her, and yesterday was his first Sunday morning news appearance since.
2. Biden thinks he's ready to debate Gov. Palin because he lives with "smart women" (his wife & daughter) and because he works with "many smart, tough women" in the Senate.
3. Biden repeatedly referred to Gov Palin as a "smart, tough politician." I assume he wants to plant that word in our minds, since most of us know politicians are what's wrong with this country. He has been a career politician for 38 years, since 1970. Gov. Palin was first elected 12 years ago. So, who's the real "politician"? Maybe he just doesn't consider himself "smart" or "tough".
4. Biden used Obama's cliche "above my pay grade" in response to a question. Can't these guys form an independent thought or make a decision? (At least it wasn't on the same "when does life begin" question as his boss.)
5. Rather than acknowledge the contribution of "the surge" to improving conditions in Iraq, Biden tried to take the credit by saying the changes were the result of implementing HIS suggestions.
6. Biden didn't see anything inappropriate in getting hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions from, and his son getting a job with, a credit card company while he lobbied for a bankruptcy bill that was very good for them and very bad for consumers.
7. He spun and spun and spun (very unconvincingly) trying to squirm away from the question of his support for abortion, when he admits he believes that life begins at conception.
Overall, Brokaw was much more objective and balanced than I expected, while managing to toss Biden plenty of softball questions and very little tough follow-up. ¶ Sunday, September 07, 2008
1. Biden's very first comment referred to his position as Co-chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Just in case we forgot that debating foreign policy legislation allegedly gives him much more experience than actually governing a town and a state.
1. Biden complained about Palin not answering any questions or giving any interviews yet. He has been the nominee for VP one week longer than her, and yesterday was his first Sunday morning news appearance since.
2. Biden thinks he's ready to debate Gov. Palin because he lives with "smart women" (his wife & daughter) and because he works with "many smart, tough women" in the Senate.
3. Biden repeatedly referred to Gov Palin as a "smart, tough politician." I assume he wants to plant that word in our minds, since most of us know politicians are what's wrong with this country. He has been a career politician for 38 years, since 1970. Gov. Palin was first elected 12 years ago. So, who's the real "politician"? Maybe he just doesn't consider himself "smart" or "tough".
4. Biden used Obama's cliche "above my pay grade" in response to a question. Can't these guys form an independent thought or make a decision? (At least it wasn't on the same "when does life begin" question as his boss.)
5. Rather than acknowledge the contribution of "the surge" to improving conditions in Iraq, Biden tried to take the credit by saying the changes were the result of implementing HIS suggestions.
6. Biden didn't see anything inappropriate in getting hundreds of thousands of dollars in contributions from, and his son getting a job with, a credit card company while he lobbied for a bankruptcy bill that was very good for them and very bad for consumers.
7. He spun and spun and spun (very unconvincingly) trying to squirm away from the question of his support for abortion, when he admits he believes that life begins at conception.
Overall, Brokaw was much more objective and balanced than I expected, while managing to toss Biden plenty of softball questions and very little tough follow-up. ¶ Sunday, September 07, 2008
