Palin by comparison

Well, I’m two for two in picking VPs …

Of course, I never actually predicted Gov. Sarah Palin would be McCain’s pick, just said I wondered if he would go that direction.

Ah, what the heck, close enough. I rule!!!

To use a tired cliché, what we have here is two candidates swinging for the fences. The reviews suggest that Obama hit a home run Thursday night, and judging from the conservative blogs, the Palin pick seems like a solid hit at least. But I wonder about the long-term effect.

As I noted before, Palin has some upside. And she might be a better matchup than some others in a VP debate with Biden. Despite her being inexperienced in foreign policy, Biden will have to tread carefully in the debate. It won’t be a repeat of the Bentsen-Quayle debate.

However, over time, I can’t help but believe that people are going to start thinking about that big “what if?” What if Sarah Palin becomes President of the United States due to something unfortunate happening to McCain? He’s not a young guy, he’s had health problems. People should and will ask that question. How will that prospect sit with people?

Obviously, McCain’s camp has decided to double down on “maverick” and double-fault on “inexperienced” as campaign themes. It’s a risky and bold move. Or desperate. Probably depends on your point of view.

There's a lot of discussion on how the Obama campaign should "attack" the pick. My thought is that they shouldn't spend too much time on it at all. People aren't voting for the VPs. They're voting for the top of the ticket. And this pick is significant not for what it says about Palin's experience, but for what it says about McCain's judgment and decision-making.

Other random thoughts:
Funny that the Republican candidates for president and vice president can’t stop talking about how great Hillary Clinton is.

Gotta feel for Tim Pawlenty. He worked very, very hard for McCain. Not much of a payoff.