So the VP candidates come out last night, and the first thing I realize is that I can hear everything Sarah Palin is saying. But I can't hear Joe Biden, except when he's talking to Palin. As every mic made in the world now has a "turn off" switch, it is obvious that Palin has a "hot mic." Call me a cynic, but I think this was intentional.
Why am I a cynic? Because when she meets Senator Biden and shakes his hand, she asks him in her "golly gee" folksy way, "Can I call ya Joe?"
Admittedly, I may have missed a reference since I watched the debate again on 2x speed, but I didn't hear Palin EVER refer to Biden as "Joe." It was always "Senator Biden." Why ask for permission to use a name you then never actually use?
I think her handlers told her to keep the mic on and what to say to come across as gracious and likeable, and I say, "GREAT tactic." It worked on me. If it wasn't intentional, this should go in some political operative's play book.
10 comments:
That worked on you? It seemed fairly transparent and disingenuous to me. I didn't for a moment believe she was concerned about receiving his blessing to call him Joe.
Don't know about the open mic tactic. Sounds pretty good. By here's my take on "Can I call you Joe?" In the Pres. debate Obama kept referring to McCain as "John," and many considered it disrespectful. Therefore, Palin asked "Can I call you Joe" to avoid the appearance of disrespect. When Biden ALWAYS called her "Governor" and never "Sarah," she appropriately reverted to calling him "Senator." Interestingly enough, Biden ALWAYS referred to McCain as "John" last night. And did you notice, Palin always referred to Obama by name and never by title? What's good for the goose is good for the gander. Show the same level of respect they do to your counterpart, and the same level of disrespect they do to his running mate.
As a certified audio engineer myself, I can assure you that Palin had absolutely nothing to do with that. Blame the guy running the board for not muting the mike, you never EVER allow the person wearing the mic to control when it is on or off.
Pretty sad that a blog dedicated to "objective" analysis stooped to the level of suggesting an ulterior motive.
I'm still waiting on your objective post about Biden not knowing jack about the difference between Articles 1 and 2 of the Constitution.
Mr. Perry:
It's just a thought. I'm not saying vote against Palin because her people are sneaky, for crying out loud, golly gee, gee willikers, darn it!
Also, I haven't written about Biden's comment about Article I & II because, quite frankly, I zoned out when he started talking senatese. What did he say?
IPOPA
Average Joe, the US Senate is very fraternal, especially compared to the House, and Biden and McCain have both stated that they are good friends. I think you're reading into this a bit much.
Oooo. Oooo. I know this one.
Somebody said she used the line "Say it ain't so, Joe". It wouldn't have a) had the correct snark if it had been "Senator" instead of "Joe", and b) MAN! What a rookie move. More like something I would have done, not a polished pro like ole Sare probably had coaching her.
I think the only "tactic" here was someone else leaving her mic open .. just in case she said something juicy. Even an innocuous, "Are you ready for this, Senator?" would've and could've been picked apart by pundits and critics. And, her "folksiness" can cut both ways, so I doubt it was a tactic by her handlers!
If it was a sneaky, disingenuous ploy, it worked.
If it was a genuine, friendly question, it worked.
If it was a set up for the "say it ain't so, Joe" comment, it worked.
Face it, it was a good move. Give the woman a point and move on.
Golly gee, gosh darn it, I betcha that she did it, ask her and she'll git back to ya!!
She didn't do one thing that wasn't scripted all night long. Her handlers had her prepared for everything. That was the plan. Kudos to her for at least being able to stick to the script.
Substantively, she was very weak. Nonresponsive, and not insightful. Luckily, I think most of America is tired of watching some unqualified fool bullshit his or her way through the job.
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