Friday, March 27, 2009

McCain Staff Corrupt, Palin Shines

"People who don't Think probably don't have Brains; rather, they have gray fluff that's blown into their heads by mistake." Winnie the Pooh. obviously speaking about Obama and his supporters.

Sarah Palin was a great vice-presidential candidate whose efforts were undermined by a disloyal and incompetent campaign staff, one extremely unhelpful either to Sarah or to John McCain.

[Scroll down to read about new book on Sarah Palin being "poised for the presidency."]

Karen Allen (http://www.annieoakley.org/) , who'd be a great staffer in a future Palin campaign, mentioned the story below (in smaller print) supposedly citing former members of the McCain campaign staff who worked with Gov. Palin for two months-plus in September/October. Read the story carefully please. Gov. Palin is criticized (as is her Alaska staff) for her "extreme candor." I guess extreme candor is not in this year.

Also, the people supposedly criticizing Sarah Palin are those characterized as ones "who showed extreme loyalty to Palin, continually getting thrown under the bus or slapped in the face . . ."

Somehow, I don't see these people as exactly showing "extreme loyalty" to anyone but themselves. Their post-campaign actions don't exactly mirror those of, say, John Ziegler or Bill Kristol. In general, the McCain Campaign staff was awful, serving as punching bag for Obama's far superior stafff.

On Sarah's staff, where in "H" was Adam Brickley, the political whiz who almost single-handedly got Sarah the v-p nomination? Adam's site (http://palinforvp.blogspot.com) has been recognized by the Library of Congress, which made it part of the permanent collection. He should have had a top position on the Palin staff. (Adam now blogs at: http://thebrickyard.blogspot.com/)

Where was the first-rate speechwriter? I've written speeches for CEOs of ten of the world's largest companies, and I would have worked for her for free. The BBC in London is asking me to speak on Obama and the G-20 summit in London -- the tenth time I will have spoken on the BBC. They know I exist, which is more than I can say for the McCain Staff.

Where was the take-no-prisoners media person? She needed Dana Perino, and she got The Invisible Man (Tucker Bounds).

My guess is that Sarah looked at the people around her as one she needed more to pray FOR than pray WITH. Here's the story:below:



Palin's prayer remark angers former staffers

Some of Sarah Palin's former campaign aides are frustrated with the Alaska governor for remarking in a lengthy, freewheeling speech that she had refused to pray with them before last October's vice presidential debate.Palin told the story in a speech to a GOP dinner in Alaska last Friday."So I'm looking around for somebody to pray with, I just need maybe a little help, maybe a little extra," she said of the moments before the debate. "And the McCain campaign, love 'em, you know, they're a lot of people around me, but nobody I could find that I wanted to hold hands with and pray." In this Feb. 11, 2009 file photo, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin listens to a question during a news conference, in Juneau, Alaska. Palin reinforced her conservative credentials when she announced she would not accept nearly one-third of the federal stimulus money offered to the state, but a day later, was fending off critics who said it will hurt Alaskans. - AP Photo As the audience laughed, Palin noted that she meant no disrespect to the McCain campaign and that ended up saying a prayer with her daughter Piper.A handful of the McCain campaign staffers who traveled with the former vice presidential nominee nearly every day for two months caught wind of Palin's remarks on Thursday morning — and they aren't thrilled with her quip."We all talked this A.M.," said one former Palin aide in an e-mail. "This set off a nerve for sure with a lot of people.""It's yet another example of the few staff still loyal to Palin questioning their loyalty and ardent defense of her over the several months since the campaign," said the aide, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly about campaign colleagues.Since election day, Palin has publicly griped about the way she was handled by the McCain team and pushed back against some of the campaign advisers who attacked her anonymously in the press.But another former staffer said that in doing so, Palin is failing to distinguish between the strategists at McCain headquarters and the people who were at her side every day from late August through election day."It's about us people who were on the plane, who showed extreme loyalty to Palin, continually getting thrown under the bus or slapped in the face by her comments, whether she means it or not," the staffer said, adding that Palin's remarks "cause you to question not only your loyalty but her judgment as a leader."The former aides said they place part of the blame for Palin's post-campaign candor on the governor's staff in Alaska. Several have reached out individually to offer advice or assistance to the governor, but "have gotten only pleasantries in response," said one aide."Who is the one making the decision that she needs to be out there saying these things?," the second staffer asked. "Someone needs to be telling her, 'Listen, let's not talk the campaign any more.' We need to talk about what's relevant and thinking about her influence as a voice in the Republican Party.""The people that she has, either working at her PAC or advisers in Alaska, aren't exactly making the best decisions for her," the staffer said.Palin's office in Alaska did not respond to a request for comment.

http://www.bnd.com/news/state/story/706665.html



SARAH PALIN POISED TO BECOME AMERICA'S FIRST FEMALE PRESIDENT

Sarah Palin became the Republican vice presidential nominee, few Americans knew much about this young governor of Alaska. During the campaign, the media attacked her, as did her detractors from within and outside of the Republican Party. But Americans saw a tenacious political warrior who would not acquiesce in a male-dominated political battle. The purpose of this work is to introduce Americans to a young woman who has the character, the qualifications, and the unprecedented historical opportunity to become the leader of the greatest nation on earth. So, who is Sarah Palin? What was her journey like from a concerned hockey-mom to becoming governor of Alaska? How and why was she chosen to become the Republican vice presidential nominee? What is her future in the Republican Party and her opportunity for national, political office? You are likely to find some answers within the covers of this book.

Available at Amazon.com

4 comments:

Greg said...

It's interesting to note that the media has seized upon the prayer story to drown out McCain's admission that over 50 million people voted mainly for Sarah Palin.

TKD Momma said...

Just FYI... the link to Adam's new blog is wrong. He's at www.the-brickyard.blogspot.com . The hyphen is very important. Just thought you might want to fix that.
Thanks

ChromeLightning said...

check my blog for the new Palin defense fund!

SJ Reidhead said...

You've started me thinking about something. I'm thinking it is not McCain's fault and it isn't Palin's fault. The problem is the "System" where "staffers" are professional political hacks who are hitching themselves to a campaign hoping for a job when the election is over. They're basically looking after themselves and not much else.

I think you have something wondering why Adam was not used as a 'staffer'. There's a very good reason. The staffers who are swarming around a candidate like vultures, don't want the competition. Until the system changes, people like you, Adam, or I will never get a chance at this.

It isn't the the candidate's fault. They don't know what's going on everywhere. How could they? A good candidate and a good elected official must rely upon the information given to him/her by a devoted staff. If it's garbage in then it's garbage out.

Unfortunately I think McCain ended up inheriting a number of Romney staffers who had a completely agenda. They still do. The reason McCain won the nomination was by being McCain. The moment he became insulated by "staffers" he began loosing. If he could have been allowed to be "McCain" I think we would have won.

I don't see things changing, for either party.

SJR
The Pink Flamingo