Posted by
m0t0r1zed on Thursday, September 11, 2008 7:28:50 PM
Just watched the interview.
Well, she appears to have mastered the political art of not answering a question directly. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, such as the question of military incursions into Pakistan. It is better to tactfully and diplomatically say, as she did, to leave all options on the table. Obama botched that question when he was asked something similar to it. Still, it is a pity watching her begin to sound like every other politician. Of course, the important thing is whether she behaves like every other politician.
Also, I think she answered the foreign policy experience question correctly, but it would have been stronger if she had reversed her two main responses. She should have started her answer by saying that her foreign policy experience is of a comparable level to many vice-presidential candidates, state governors, and even presidential candidates, then she should have transitioned into talking about how one of the important national security / foreign policy issues is energy independence.
Some of the questions asked were a bit inane - such as how many foreign heads of state she had met. She should have just thrown it back in Gibson's face along the lines of - "It's not really part of my official duties as governor of Alaska to jaunt around the world or hobnob with the President of Kazakhstan, although I would embrace the opportunity as Vice-President. If I had been doing so, I would have been neglecting my job at home to serve the people of Alaska." etc. etc.
The 'Bush doctrine' question was interesting - the doctrine of preemption. However, she avoided it by answering that we would respond to all imminent threats. That's probably the best answer, since preemption is a really, really sticky issue. I think preemption has to be looked at on a case-by-case basis. Generally, you should respond only to imminent threats, but preemption might be valid if the potential threat is too dangerous to wait until it is deemed to be 'imminent.' Ex. nuclear Iraq or Iran (also, you have to distinguish between preemptive strikes and preemptive invasions).
I really liked Gibson's direct grilling, and most of the questions were good. It would be nice if ALL candidates went through this basic level of scrutiny, but we all know about the selective bias in the media. Overall, Palin didn't make any mistakes, although she needs to look a bit more relaxed, blah blah blah.