Popular with mothers, Rising Star, Passion and Energy.
These are the comments surrounding Sarah Palin as she accepted the republican VP nomination with John McCain. I do not disagree with any of them, as she has shown herself to be just that. However what I do not see her being is experienced, able to speak to the press without the Bush League of Extraordinary Writers, Commander in Chief (should something happen to McCain), or even a good choice to present herself as VP.
Joe Biden is proven, strong, able to get it done! He compliments his political partner well as Sarah just upstages hers. without Sarah behind him (really in front) his campain ralley numbers would slide dramactically in the wrong direction.
I am looking forward to the debate this thursday in order for the world to confirm that this was just a completely wrong choice for the McCain campain as well as the American People.

"I can see Russia from Alaska"... Help us voters!

In the John McCain and Barack Obama debate we expected a strong McCain against Obama and we saw a strong Obama. Now we expect a strong Joe Biden against Sarah Palin. Could she be strong too ?

Will Palin show up, or will Rudy Guliani be her surrogate, like he was after the first presidential debate?

All you weak Dems and Obama supporters have no clue when it comes to Biden... take it from a long time Delaware resident.... Biden is more of the same, and makes a lair of Obama when he says that he is gonna " change " the way things are doen in Washington.

I can not but wonder how the rep who voted against this so called bail out sleep at night. The apparently agree with the bill before hand and then change their minds because of a few partisan comments made by Pelosi. Do these people not realize that they are adults not 3 year old kids. Peoples livlihood is being ruined and these people sulk.
Shame on the whole lot of you Siamak Immensee Switzerland

This debate promises to be really interesting. Although Biden is vastly experienced and can easily trounce Palin on matters that require in-depth knowledge and understanding, he has been known to have his share of gaffes. He’ll have to curb his tendencies to react instinctively and work instead at giving more thought-out responses.

Palin seems feisty and confident, and has the ability to connect with people. She’ll have to work doubly hard to not appear entirely clueless on important issues. If she succeeds in sounding like she reasonably knows what’s going on, she might be able to pull it off – after all, no one expects her to be as knowledgeable as her opponent. She’ll have to keep in mind, though, that most people will be able to tell the difference if she’s just parroting information that was handed to her or if she truly understands the issues.

I find it fascinating that there are still people out there that are making excuses for Sarah Palin. Saying that she is being "over coached" and that she needs to be able to think for herself. Please folks, this is not a comedy. She obviously has no idea about foreign affairs and with the world in such a mess, Sarah Palin would be the worst possible choice as a potential future President. Come on USA help the rest of the world now and please vote intelligently.

Here in Belgium, all of the people in my surroundings are hoping that Obama will win this presidential election. Not only do we assume he will handle the international affairs wiser and more future-oriented, we also think that he will do a better job in taking care of national issues. Aiming at the middle-class is in our opinon the key to a stabalized economy. Europe is by far more stable than America, and this is largely thanks to our strong middle-class. American citizens will be better off with a president like Obama (who has already clearly explained his intentions multiple times) than with McCain (who has always been vague and dodging most questions.

In my opinion, McCain is also a Pro-War person, and will focus more on "winning" a war than what is happening inside his own country. What does a victory mean when the victor is falling apart? McCain needs to set his priorities. His priority seems to lie with honor and victory, while Obama dares to face a possible defeat in Iraq to help the people in his own country. It seems that McCain finds it more important that the Americans win honor than that his citizens can pay their bills and live happy lives.

Only Americans themselves will be devastated by a lost war in Iraq, us Europeans would actually be cheering, because we would respect your leader for gathering the strength and responsibility of ending a senseless war that is only escalating. I know it will be a very tough decision, and it will seem as if many people have given their lives for nothing, but remember that this is not the fault of Obama (or McCain), only the fault of Bush. He was the one to start it, and letting it escalate on and on just because people lost their lives in it is the same as continuing to gamble after losing so you might win it back. But continuing to gamble doesn't guarantee you will get it back, you might even loose more because of it. The same may happen with the war in Iraq, it may get worse and worse, so better make an end to it now before many more people will loose their lives.

Best would be to pull out as many troops as possible and just send in special forces with key targets. The losses will be dramatically reduced, civilians will suffer less, anti-american thoughts among the civilians will fade and these special forces may get to their targets easier.

An example of the US situation:
A giant gets stung by a bee, and because he cant catch the bee he starts to repeatedly hit a rock.
1) What does the rock have to do with the fact that he gets stung by some bee?
2) What use does it have to keep hitting a rock? The giant's fists will only begin to hurt and break.

And why does the US criticize Russia for invading Georgia if they do exactly the same by invading Iraq? The difference between the two are indeed great, and I will not justify Russia's action there, but how can someone criticize another for doing just the same thing he is doing himself?

From here it seems the US wants to remain the world's leader and appear as if it is invincible, while it has major national and international issues. Just admit that you've made a wrong decision once in a while, our respect for you will not fall any more than it will when you try to justify your mistakes. On the contrary, our respect will rise because you found the courage to do so.

Europe is your friend, and will remain so, we will support you and help you if needed. Just take some advice from someone else once in a while.

One more thing: I also agree with Obama that you should NOT always negotiate with other countries with preconditions. Look at North Korea, do you really think they will change because of this? No, instead they will continue even more! It doesn't mean you have to legitamize their behavior, but you can use a similar tactic like "reversed psychology" on teenagers. Punishing a teenager will often strengthen their intension to do the opposite, while reversed psychology while help them on the right path. Countries like Iran and North Korea should be seen as teenage countries. They are irresponsible and closed-minded, do not sanction them with preconditions or they will only worsen!!

I have heard several times from different news reports that Biden could come off negatively if he "comes on to strong " with Palin during the upcoming debate. I am disgusted that this would be the case. Think about it carefully. If Palin cannot hold her own in a debate with Biden, what would she do if she was faced with an international crisis with a leader from North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Russia, China...etc? Are there people really out there that think that leaders from other countries really give a damn if she is a woman or not? No! Any leader regardless it be man or woman must be strong enough to handle any challenge that is set before them. I am tired of hearing that Palin is being treated unfairly. due to her sex. Heck, what political leader uses sexism as an excuse not to answer questions, make decisions or deal with crisis. Besides being a self proclaimed "bulldog with lipstick" is her way of stating that she can take care of herself. So let her and don't hold back when the debates begin!

I guess CNN is now carring the heavy lifting for Obama since MSNBC is losing viewers...
Campbell Brown has one foot already in MSNBC land....CNN be careful...your left leaning attitude is way beyond (starting to show.)..I actually believed for years that you were equally balanced...I no longer believe this to be true....
I and my Family now discuss your openly displayed bias....

HOW IN THE WORLD CAN DEMS CRITICIZE SARAH PALIN FOR HER "INEXPERIENCE" WITHOUT THINKING OF THEIR OWN BET, BARRACK OBAMA? ALL THE DIRT AND MUD YOU HURL AT THE GOV. SHOULD ALSO BE DIRECTED TOWARDS THE SENATOR FROM ILLINOIS. THE ONLY REAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE TWO IS THAT OBAMA HAD BEEN COACHED LONGER THAN SARAH PALIN; HE HAS PRACTICED HIS LINES MORE CLEVERLY WITHOUT SOUNDING LIKE THEY'RE REHEARSED. AND AS FOR JOE BIDEN, WELL DEMS, YOUR VICE PREZ BET IS LIKE A JOHN MCCAIN THAT YOU FIERCELY NEGATE, EXCEPT THAT BIDEN IS NO WAR HERO, AND HE IS NO MAVERICK.

My 2 yr old son has more foreign policy experience than Palin. He's had a passport twice as long as she has plus we live in Holland, which is bordered by 2 foreign countries!! I'll be waking up at 3 am here to watch the debates. I don't want good ole Sarah to have studied so hard for nuthin!

Here in India there is an all out support for Mr.Obama. I have followed the 00' and 04' campaign and while I was living in USA I even volunteered for Mr. Kerry.

It is fascinating that both the candidates talked more along prepared lines than on Foreign Policy about which the debate was all about.

#1. On one front there is Iraq and Afghanistan on the other. In this part of the world we fear that a Republican President would go charging with all guns blazing into Iran. That would just be catastrophe. I find that Sen. McCain has so little knowledge about this region. He specifically said that he would work with elected leadership in Pakistan and with the support of the Tribals in the north and western border areas, neighboring Afghanistan, they would launch offensive to catch Bin Laden. In that part of the world they hate Americans. Well they just about hate any one who is not from their tribe and not a Muslim.

#2. There was no mention of the rest of the world. The senate would be voting later today on the Nuclear Energy Commerce bill with India for peaceful and civilian use. I would be most interested to know both Senators views on that. The topic was not even mentioned in the passing.

#3. They talked a lot about economy. Which, until three weeks back, according to Sen. McCain had strong fundamentals. If I were him, i would fire the economic advisors.

#4. Clean energy which is the need of the hour, and for which Sen. Obama is passionate about seems to be non-issue as far as Sen. McCain is concerned. That would be a horrendous mistake.

Most important of all Sen.McCain chose Sarah Palin with little or no experience as his running mate. What I fail to understand is this. In the event that something happens to the President (God forbid- I wish good health and long life) she would be in effect running the nation and taking policy decisions which would be critical. They all harped about the relatively inexperienced Democratic nominee. Ms. Palin is not even a Senator. I fail to understand how people can even think of voting Red when the first major decision made by Sen.McCain has been reclusive, dangerous and callous.

She did not know about the Bush doctrine, her interview with Katie Couric was a disaster. And most of all, she made the worst decision about accepting it. If she had an iota of intelligence she would have declined. There are far more experienced and admirable people in the GoP.

Whatever might be the outcome of the debate I wish my American friends and a few relatives would vote Sen. Obama into the office. Good luck Sen. Obama!!!

As a university Professor for many years, it's highly apparent to me that Sarah Palin can be compared to a student who has partied all semester and a week before the final exam is trying to cram everything in! You just cannot fake expertise in brain surgery... nor in foreign affairs. Would you trust Sarah Palin operating on your brain? No? Well the same is true for entrusting her with our country.
I can't wait to see the debate.

I look at Palin as a strong, vocal politician, but I feel she doesn't have the common sense to do the job well. I'm looking forward to seeing what Joe Biden has to say to her at the debate, I'm sure it will be a great evening for dems.

Really look forward to the VP debate. Should be really entertaining !Palin has been a major disaster todate. Even her early supporters are seriously disappointed and turning away. How will she do in the debate ? I am expecting some suprises with the clever Republican machinery in place and pre debate practice being put in. I'm a Obama supporter but I wouldn't count her out just yet.

I think Sarah is a joke. I can not imagine what in the world McCain was thinking. Then again I think it is safe to say that the only reason he chose her is because she is a woman and it was his way of ensuring the undecided Hillary woman would jump on it. The thought alone shows his age. McCain is bordering on senile in the way he talks, his memory and how he carries himself. It is almost certain that if he is elected, he will die in office. The thought brings America to its lowest point in history. We have had so many years of Bush who has lowered the bar for anyone to run for president. Bush is a cowboy with big money and absolutely no ability to understand the average person that has to work for a living.

Why not question that the moderator, Gwen Ifill, of the upcoming Biden-Palin debate is pro-Obama. She wrote a book that praises Obama, obviously she will try her best to make Palin look bad in the debate Why couldn't the moderator be more fair and bi-partisan?

Why not make fun of Joe Biden, who thinks FDR was President in 1929, and thinks paying more taxes is patriotic?

well, it's clear now. mccain/palin are not dumb and dumber. they are angry and dumber.

Sara Palin lost the debate in terms of substance., She reverted to her comfort zone throughout the debate, reverting to rehursed lines and Republican mantras. I found her to be sorely lacking in knowledge of national and international issues. Palin is not knowledgeable enough to be VP, and certainly not President. She actually hurt McCain in this debate because she could not defend his voting record in the Senate. She seriously lacks knowlege. McCain claims that he puts country first , but he put McCain first when he selected Palin as his running mate. How could he have done this to the voters? It is downright scarey to think that Palin could become the President!

Palin is clearly not qualified. Just because she spent an entire week rehearsing her ridiculous answers to the questions she didn't even answer doesn't mean she's all of a sudden "qualified". She is an embarassment to the American People, and everyone needs to step back and see that. If it weren't for her high school history classes, she wouldn't have even been able to answer any of Katie Couric's questions let alone the debate questions. (haha) She's laughable and that's what makes Palin a joke. I don't think our economical stiuation is a joke or anything going on in our country for that matter.