The New York Times supports Gov. Sarah Palin for VP?

The Ticket knows it's hard to believe. We had to read it twice to believe it ourselves.

But there it is for all to see, an editorial from the New York Times that calls for fairness in selection of vice presidential candidates, that it's a wonderfully practical idea for the major parties to pick political unknowns and test them in high office and allow them to become statesmen. And especially so if they are women.

And it was the day's lead editorial too, right at the top of the very gray page for all to wade through.

Here's part of that editorial to see for yourself:

"Presidential candidates have always chosen their running mates for reasons of practical demography, not idealized democracy.

"One might even say demography is destiny; this candidate is chosen because he could deliver Texas, that one because he personified rectitude, that one because he appealed to the other wing of the party.

"On occasion, Americans find it necessary to rationalize this rough-and-ready process. What a splendid system, we say to ourselves, that takes little-known men, tests them in high office and permits them to grow into statesmen. This rationale may even be right, but then let it also be fair. Why shouldn't a little-known woman have the same opportunity to grow?

"We may even be gradually elevating our standards for choosing Vice Presidential candidates. But that should be done fairly, also. Meanwhile, the indispensable credential for a Woman Who is the same as for a Man Who -- someone who helps the ticket."

Well, there you have it. The New York Times obviously endorsing Alaska's Gov. Sarah Palin, who, judging by recent polls and all the media attention, certainly has helped John McCain's Republican ticket.

This New York Times editorial, by the way, was just published on July 3.

Oh, wait. It says July 3, 1984.

Oh, and it was talking about someone named Walter Mondale plucking a New York nobody with no executive experience from the oblivion of the House of Representatives, Geraldine Ferraro.

Well, sure, he and she were Democrats. But what difference should party possibly make if we're truly talking about advancing American democracy by making it more fair?

Especially if we're talking about the gender area where the other party's candidate, Barack Obama, so ostentatiously passed over a qualified woman as his vice presidential running mate? (And another New Yorker at that!) Not to mention skipping over the female governor of Kansas and the female senator from Missouri.

Instead, he picked a male 36-year senator from the same old boys' club. How is that change we can believe in needing? Or whatever this week's motto is.

--Andrew Malcolm

Photo credit: Associated Press

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Comments

[Sylvia]

Having the same rules for male and female Veep candidates is fair.

In light of McCain's age, it is also fair that the depth of Palin's knowledge and expertise be used to determine if she is capable of acting as POTUS immediately if required.

Personally, I believe you need to be blind and deaf not to have serious doubts about Palin's ability to be Veep or POTUS.

[Vic Arpeggio]

This is the worst kind of bull-posing-as-innocent-opinion that tries to obfuscate the reality of the situation-- that you've got a no-experience, no-understanding, no-nothing ideologue a hair's breadth away from the Oval Office as opposed to, in Joe Biden's case, a widely-respected foreign affairs expert who, if necessary, could lead America through the next world crisis. The headline is horribly misleading and comes from the "Weekly World News" school of attention getting. Andrew Malcolm, you are an idiot. And as such, the perfect Palin mouthpiece.

[Kevin]

Brilliant post. You really got me there. I was shocked by the beginning of your article since most major news outlets have abandoned any pretense of fairness and are essentially campaigning for Obama. Then I read the rest of the article. Yep, the bias really is as bad as I thought. This is why Fox News is so popular. People want to hear the conservative view also, and with Fox, at least the bias is out in the open.

[hermano]

what you also missed to mention is how mccain's age and her lack of interest in foreign affairs in this time of war affects the candidacy moreso than ever. election is about winning but at the same time it's more than just winning,

and that nytimes endorsement was stupid. no wonder mondale lost.

[AaronJV]

>>But what difference should party possibly make if we're truly talking about advancing American democracy by making it more fair?

There's a difference between electing someone like you and electing someone who would allow more people like you to be elected.

Just because Sarah Palin is female does not guarantee that she will advance the rights of women.

But then, I'm only 37, and vote based on issues and the candidate's policies, not their gender, color, or creed. I will admit that age does play a large factor in my voting choices, because I am sick of Baby Boomers ruining everything and refusing to open the door to let Generation X, my generation, come in to clean up the mess.

America must stop voting for someone who is like them and instead learn to select a candidate who would be good for them.

[Jen Thalmann]

Thanks for this Andrew Malcolm. It's about time someone called out the illustrious NY Times for its blatant hypocrisy. And its sexism.

It's perfectly okay for an inexperienced male legislator from Illinois to become President, but an experienced female executive is apparently not fit for even the job of second banana.

Do they really think no one notices? Thanks again for shining the light on them.

Jen Thalmann

[Thomas Kelley]

Okay Malcolm, you really are twisted. This is the same moronic reasoning that got us W. Bush in the White House. And many people have died and lost limb and faces for no decent reason. This New York Times editorial was written in a far different time.

[Sally]

Malcolm- It is a good thing you did not cite Karl Rove as your source this time.

Since you are such a fan of the New York Times, here's an interesting article on Mrs. Palin:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/us/politics/14palin.html

[M. Kyle Owens]

Your headline is gimmicky and distorts the position of the NY Times. If the NY Times supported Ferraro but fails to support Palin, other factors may be at play including Palin's obvious lack of qualifications. Besides its possible for institutions to grow and change over the years even as countries and the problems that face them change. Whereas incompetence and lack of ability may have been permissible in the past, the problems facing us today ( many exacerbated by a president perceived to be not up to the job), do not now allow us that same luxury.

[Almost Angeleno]

"Or whatever this week's motto is."

If McCain would stop hijacking Obama's campaign themes, there wouldn't be a need to change his mottos.

[Enough Already]

By 1984 Ferraro was in her 6th year in Congress, and had served on both the Steering and Policy Committee and the House Budget Committee. She had taken part in a Congressional fact-finding mission to Central America to investigate the Reagan Administration's military interventions, and had twice been elected Secretary of the House Democratic Caucus. This after having been a lawyer for 17 years, 4 of them as a Assistant District Attorney in Queens, including time as head of the Special Victims Unit. In other words, she had been working with the law (making it, enforcing it, or practicing it) for over two decades.

[Enough Already]

Oh, and the population of the district of this "New York nobody with no executive experience" wasn't too much smaller than that of present day Alaska.

[V.eyepete]

Many don't seem to realize how awful the present administration is and what a mess they have put the country in. Many seem to be in the dark about the influence the USA holds over the rest of the world and how seriously that influence has eroded since Mr. Bush has been in office. That influence and the idea that our government was ABOVE the rest protected us and brought us business as a nation.

Our country was attacked while the present administration was in office. That hadn't happened in a long time. No one sees the correlation. This present administration eroded the American image to such a degree, some guy who lives in a cave felt able to strike us. This was not a random act of violence. They saw a weakness and they went for it. For this reason good statesmanship is important. Arrogance and stupidity are no substitute. The USA can not just throw up its hands and say “to hell with the rest of the world.” The world is too small for that now. If the American people can not see that our forces are now stretched way too thin at this moment, the bad people in the world can. We must now put our best foot forward with the most intelligent people we have for the job. That would mean people who speak well in public, and who have a more than normal sense of diplomacy. Being strong is not being a bully.

I became frightened when I watched the entire Palin interview with Charlie Gibson, who looked so much more vice-presidential than the person he was interviewing. Wassila is an even smaller back water town than I grew up in. I read that as governor she has been running the State from Wasilla instead of the governor's office. She was absent 322 days of her first year, preferring to phone it all in. The staff started wearing pins that said. "Where is Sarah Palin." When she got in office she threw out all the people with experience and hired all her high school friends and church members for their jobs. These people had no resume for any of the jobs. They do exactly what she says. One article mentioned that her high school year book reads like a who's who of Alaskan public officials.

Ms Palin had no idea what the Bush doctrine was. That is not unusual because I am sure the under-educated Mr. Bush never read it either. This woman is not educated. If she were, she would know the difference between using "gonna" for 'going to'. She has no form of formal speech! Really folks, when applying for a job, don't we use our more formal brand of speaking? She seems to be unaware there is a formal way of speaking. I saw one interview she did as governor of Alaska where she repeatedly used the term "it's cool" to express 'don't worry, or 'things are going to be fine'. This is not cool.

If you look at the way Ms Palin tells a lie, you can see that she is an expert. She barely lets her eyes in on the lie, but she really can't hide the fact that her education is piss-poor. You need an education for that! The White House needs an educated person this time. McCain looks white and pasty. This does not tell me he will live through his term in office at age 72. Ms Plain will take the helm of a very complex ship sailing in dangerous waters. She already has the wide eyed look of a dear caught in the headlights. She says her nomination is a “humbling experience”. If she had one shred of humility and really cared about her country she would have admitted what she knows better than us all, she is not the right person for the job. Most Americans would do this! Why didn't she? Was it blind brunette ambition perhaps?

It is my opinion the Republicans have ruined American politics with their bashing and lies all these years, so much so that there is not one person of quality in their own ranks stepping foreword to run for president. McCain does not look healthy to me. The job makes even a younger man old, what will it do to him? He is too old. I do not say this easily. None of us want to be too old. Some of us know how awful it is to see that our ship has passed us by and our dream gone along with it. McCain seems desperate for this job and has made many concessions to the Republican machine to get his nomination. He is a man grasping at straws. If you can't believe this just consider his completely scatological choice of a running mate! It is absurd. This man will continue to make choices that will put this country in more danger. This is the writing on the wall that says, please don't elect this man. There were many better qualified and better educated Republican woman who would have been so much better as a running mate. This is no secret.

It is only the Republican who can not admit that their choice for the past two terms has failed miserably in the job, who refuses to see the present deficiencies with the GOP ticket. As a country we are the walking wounded and no one seems to want to face that fact. This is why I worry. Face it, Fix it, and Move on!

I have worked in show business. I have seen many runaway egos destroy themselves. That is OK for a small group of actors, but when so many individual Americans seems to be suffering from the same condition, I worry. Please, in the name of all that is holy in the Universe, Face it, Fix it, and permit this country to Move on in prosperity and once again be respected as we have always been.

[Angeleno]

Palin being elected means war with Russia. Does that mean a draft coming soon all my young brothers (and sisters)? Can you even imagine this inexperienced person as VP or President (if McCain dies the day after being elected) in a room with a foreign dignitary like Vladimir Putin? He would seriously tear her apart (or die laughing, take your pick).

[michael amitin]

As an American living abroad it continually surprises how the people of my native country set the bar lower and lower when electing people to occupy the White House. Sarah Palin is by far the bottom of the barrel. a gun-toting, animal slaughtering, Bible-thumping oil syncophant.
Can only look up from there.

[abc]

Palin readily flaunts her knowledge of energy issues and Alaska's role in providing a small percentage of America's oil, but look at today's headline in the Anchorage Daily News: a six month long energy crisis is culminating in the abandonment of Adak, the Westernmost town in Alaska. What has Palin done about this energy issue? I live in Alaska, and as far as I can see she has done nothing, and the people of Adak are now suffering. They are losing their homes and livelihoods because they no longer have power, and Palin's administration has made no efforts in the past two years to avert this crisis.

[Steve]

Ferraro was a wek choice, so one shouldn't criticize Palin??? Do conservatives support Palin more because they are in favor of a woman as VP or because they hope it means a McCain Administration would be more conservative than they had thought it might be? One thing that would help Palin would be if people supporting her didn't come up with non-reasons she should be VP (e.g., the fact that Russia can be seen from Alaska is meaningless, as Palin did not deal with Russian officials). The Times just ran an article saying Palin's administration in Alaska put a premium on secrecy and loyalty. Sounds like Cheney.

[Joel]

Mr. Malcolm...Was it a slow news day or couldn't you come up with anything to write other than this bogus ill-conceived waste of cyber space? If you're going to slam someone, then slam them outright. Don't sully your reputation, and the reputation of The LA Times, by indulging in "gotcha" journalism. I would expect that from lesser publications but not The LA Times. I mean really.

[Michael Del Muro]

Sex has nothing to do with why I don't think Sarah Palin is qualified for the VP job. I don't think she's qualified because she's an absolute lunatic. We've had one in The White House for eight years and we've all seen where that's gotten us.

And sex doesn't change the fact that McCain is a 72-year-old cancer survivor and Palin is a 2-year governor with a penchant for lying (see troopergate - or whatever we're calling it these days - and basically every other word that comes out of her mouth).

[Maggie Knowles]

Andrew Malcom - to understand what the change you can believe in is, you have to read up on the candidates policies. Obama's new book "Change We Can Believe In, Barack Obama's Plan To Renew America's Promise" would be a good starting point. As for McCain's policies, well, he doesn't have any books, I suppose you can check his web site.

Of course, as a jounalist, you should have already done your research.

[eugene]

Is there a reason why the LA Times has given its blogs over to Republican communications hacks? Why isn't this in a separate opinion section? Why isn't there disclosure with every single one of Malcolm's posts that he used to be Laura Bush's press secretary?

The Times is allowing itself to be used by the McCain press operation. It's a sad decline from its former standards of objectivity and independence.

[USA1]

Why does the LA TIMES have you as a reporter? Your comments or the MOST dis connected, smarmy, ignorant right winged propaganda on earth.

As loathsome as Ferarro was, she had decades MORE experience than this backwater hick "Hamlet" mayor. So it is clear, you will go to ANY lengths to support your bizarre extremist views.

God save us from this continued misery and put the LA TIMES OUT OF BUSINESS.

[bill]

Hey Syvia, I personally think you need to be blind and deaf not to have serious doubts about Obama 's ability to be POTUS.

So there.

[merrilee]

McCain / Palin

is anti-choice

will privatize Social Security -
your retirement will be managed by the wreckless folks who brought you Bear-Stearns, AIG, Lehman Bros, etc

will tax your employer's contribution on benefits - roughly $2,000 more a year in taxes

and will continue the murderous folly that is Iraq . . .at $10 Billion a month

[Ann]

Sarah Palin is just George W. Bush with lipstick. She still believes that Iraq was responsible for 9/11. Apparently, she never read a newspaper or magazine or watched a TV news program where that theory was debunked AT THE BEGINNING OF THE WAR

Like W, she thinks that living next to a foreign country means you automatically understand it. Her lies about saying not thanks to the Bridge to Nowhere are repeated at every stop, as if saying them over and over again will change the fact that Alaska kept the money. In the meantime, there is a bridge near my house that 2000 cars passed over every day. My state can't afford to fix it until 2012. Ambulances and fire trucks have to go miles out of their way to reach us. Ms. Palin, can we just borrow a little of your money from the bridge to nowhere to fix my bridge to everywhere?