Quote:
Originally Posted by alphagamzetagam
If they picked her for the female vote they failed miserably.
It's debatable why he picked her. Many think it was an effort to consolidate the conservative republican base, since oftentimes McCain is characterized as too moderate or liberal. I would think this is more likely.
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I think it's a combination of the two. People were operating under the mistaken assumption that McCain wasn't conservative, so the party was trying to fight that popular assumption...Palin was vocal enough on the socially conservative issues that the far-right base would embrace her.
If he was just looking for a woman, as I've said before on the board, I would have rather it had been Kay Hutchison. Her economic policies would have worked with the "base," but she probably would have been considered too liberal socially (as she's spoken out in favor of
Roe, and to some people, the social discussion begins and ends with abortion). Plus, she's in her mid-to-late 60s, and I think McCain wanted someone more youthful on the ticket.
I disagreed with too many of Obama's policies to consider voting for him, but the Palin choice was extremely disappointing to me. I'm hoping that in the next 2 years (before mid-term elections) and next 4 years (before the Presidential election), the party is able to re-group.