Thanks, McCain

So McCain has taken Sarah Palin as his VP, and I think I could only be happier if he had chosen George Bush. "But JT, why is that?" the NSA is probably recording you saying.

For a lot of reasons. First, McCain's economic policy is embarrassing, and his voting record on taxing the middle class is...troubling. I was worried that to correct this he would have taken Mitt Romney, himself a brilliant economist (and one of few Republicans I wouldn't mind seeing in office). Instead, he chose somebody with virtually no economic expertise from one of the weakest states economically. w00t!

He likely chose her for her appeal to the religious right, given her history of overtly religious rhetoric and her bawding to creationist idiocy - the very things that got her elected governor, and also to appeal to the moderate Republicans who have shunned McCain, since she admittedly has done a couple progressive things (and she's a girl *gasp*). More power to him - he already had the religious right, and Palin will only alienate McCain from the moderate Christians. While it may be an attempt to pander to progressives by choosing a female, I really doubt that Palin will net him many new voters (maybe some upset Hillary fans, who still think it was a matter of sexism). I do wonder how this will sit with all the conservatives who said they'd never vote for a female president. Do you go with the godless liberals or the female you professed you couldn't vote for? Being a bigot can be pretty hard work sometimes...

There are a few cons to her being selected though (for those of us who think Obama is far and away the better choice).

On energy, she has done some good things like raising taxes on oil companies in Alaska, showing a very unMcCain-like ability to depart from her party. However, she departs from the experts (both economically and environmentally) on offshore drilling. She's not as gung-ho as McCain to do it, but she has taken a very "drill-in-the-margins" approach. However, she has also praised portions of Obama's energy plan. Ok, so she can be skeptical about energy. Go her. Sadly, she has shown an aversion to seeking new sources of energy, and has worked to get the oil companies new leases in her home state of Alaska, even when she said she would not do so during her ascent to governor.

Perhaps the biggest con, in our shallow society, is the fact that she's kind of a MILF.

I mean...just look at her.
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Let's face it, a lot of times how much we want to boink something overrides our judgment here in America (*cough* Brittany Spears *cough*).

Hopefully, the female thing and her omg hawtness won't be too problematic in comparison to her affinity for the oil companies, creationist stupidity, and lack of any real economic ability/credentials. However, as my father always said, nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American people. Hopefully our integrity, both intellectual and ethical, will remain intact.

PS Gov. Palin - I will happily sell my vote to you and Sen. McCain in exchange for one erotic night in the governor's mansion (you cover my air fair and meals). Oh, and you have to call me "Richard Carrier's Rotweiller"...it's how I get off.