And these sources are still more important than cable.

Run against McCain, say I. Obama Co. Clearly agrees:

Mr. Obama's campaign manager, David Plouffe, said that his team was not concerned that independent voters and undecided women might be drawn to Ms. Palin, and that the Obama camp did not plan to run hard against her.

"As the post-convention dust settles, we believe a lot of the battleground states will be close, and that this will remain a race between John McCain and Barack Obama," Mr. Plouffe said. "She'll be out there promoting John McCain's economic message, which is fine by us because it is so bad for middle-class voters."

When Biden was added to the ticket the talk was how he could go out and be a loud voice and an attack dog leaving Obama to fly under the 'static' radar and stay above the fray.

Now Palin appears to be doing the same thing, something that traditionally all VP candidates do, and it is bad for McCain - but the same strategy is good for Obama. Mama Mia!!!

The Dems should be so lucky that Biden would be as dynamic as Palin and a unifying force instead of them being afraid when he is going to next stick his foot in his mouth.

In the end such a strategy still involves endless disection of Palin. Palin this Palin that, Palin, Palin, Palin, Palin.

The Palin cantip is so strong, however, that it is hard for me to see how this particular singularity can be escaped. The media (including blogs) seem to have passed beyond the Palin event horizon and now cannot get out of the pull.

I have no good advice here, as I said previously, I agree with the dangers of Palin obsession, I agree the focus should be on McCain but you can't move 5 feet in the information flow without tripping over a Palin story.

Gergen said last night something like "Obama needs to keep this on the issues." (P.S. Our JOURNALISTS should keep us on the issues. That's their damn job. Except it isn't of course.) But I don't see how Obama or anyone else can de-rail Palin frenzy. It seems to have trancended, at least for the moment, any kind of rationality.  

Also, the more sexist crap the A list blogger boyz deal out, the happier he is.

Remember - he needs some of the Hillary voters to win-not all of them, just some of them.

Some of these blue-collar types seemed quite taken with the speech, his serious albeit boring manner reassured them, one even said, "He seems less risky."

Bad bad Muslims, powerful republicans.  Or are they waiting for John Stewarts team to do all the leg work.

Palin upstaged McCain in a speech and has since been muzzled.  Several repubs have said she is ready, if she is ready why the silence?  Why the escort?  Why the "leave her alone" messaging?

Old tired strategy and I for one would like to see the blogs attack hard and heavy, they seem to have become the feeders of the MSM and when there is enough traction in blogs they start to cover something.  

Hell the enquirer has scooped more than the MSM lately.  

Let me guess this straight.  We are afraid to question her because she might actually be good on issues?  Or are we afraid because middle america might feel like the left is full of bullies.

They simply don't have a leg to stand on and I don't think this strategy BTD is suggesting will work because it makes her more powerful, not only for now but for 2012.

McCain is not threatened by a woman, he seems to thrive in the attention she's getting. I don't get the sense he's as egotistical as his opponent. This puts him in a great position with voters who are fed up with the attacks on Senator Clinton.

You attack Palin, it reminds voters the nastiness towards Clinton in the primary. You say she's upstaging McCain, it reminds voters the reason Hillary is NOT on the Dem ticket with Obama. Lose/Lose situation.

What it tells me about the Republican "base": at heart, they were never that ga-ga over McCain.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin will appear at around 30 fund-raising events in the next two months leading up to Election Day - about one every two days on average, officials with Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign said today.

The funds will go to the RNC to finance ads and GOTV for down-ticket races. McCain by contrast has only four fundraisers scheduled.

She obviously is a draw for fundraising that McCain isn't. She was picked precisely because she will upstage him in that way with a certain part of their base. So pointing it out may end up being counter-productive because anyone it will affect in a way helpful to Dems already sees her flaws.

Meanwhile, someone else has to attack Palin. She is charismatic, poised, and an excellent VP, attack-dog type -- what with the "pit-bull with lipstick", hockey-mom shtick and the ties to the radical right and the money and enthusiasm that delivers to McCain.

But in order to attack her and the GOP ticket successfully, Obama/Biden cannot risk alienating working-class voters by attacking her on a cultural level.

So, what's left? The scandals, the lies, and the fact that the McCain-Palin agenda is basically what Obama articulated in the acceptance speech -- people you are on your own in the Republican "ownership" society. Change means dealing with health care, the mortgage problems that are leaving working and middle class neighborhoods in places like Ohio swamped with abandoned houses, lowering taxes on the middle class and letting millionaires like McCain pay their fair share....

1. On the fence voters who read the left blogs because they lean left politically need to have that case made specifically and repeatedly. The positive reaction to the DNC speeches proved that it's a case that left-leaning undecideds are sympathetic to, as long as specifics are the foundation.   It's not about getting these voters to support Obama; it's about getting them to the polls in November.

2. Independent voters who read the left blogs because they want to hear the case for Obama from his own side are getting fed nothing but Palin attacks.  Since her speech was well-received and the attacks feed into the storyline she promoted in it, it's counter-productive.  

1.  Sarah Palin is smarter than all of us put together?
   
2.  All the "scandals" turn out to be duds?
   
3.  She makes the perfect public statement i.e.:   "While I hold strong personal beliefs regarding religion, family values, and the role of government, when I take the oath of office, I will be representing YOU, the people. I understand that not everyone holds the same beliefs as I do, and rest assured there is no one in the United States of America that understands where the line is that separates Government duties from personal beliefs." (Think John Kennedy, Elliot Spitzer, Mitt Romney, et al)
   
4.  When asked about foreign affairs, she appears at the podium, slightly disheveled, hair a little amiss, hint of perspiration, arm full of briefing books, and a #2 pencil behind her ear.....then with a smile says, "Look fellas and ladies, three weeks ago I was Governor of Alaska, I had never done THAT before either, but I'm pretty smart, a fast learner, and if I didn't think I'd be ready for the challenges ahead, I wouldn't have agreed to accept this position. Barack Obama, has less executive experience than a rookie 7-11 manager, and thinks he can fool the people with his focus group phony motto, `Change.' We have a motto too, "AMERICA FIRST", the difference is, WE MEAN it!"
   
5.  She finishes with: "Look people, I know I've been on a fast track since Senator, and soon to be President, John McCain asked me to be his running mate. We don't always get to pick and choose when duty calls, but I think the American people would rather have a person who actually wants TO Do the job than someone who's been lusting for it since he's been old enough to hear his own voice."

The only thing that comes to mind is the attacks on Bill Clinton over Monica. The media and the nutwing right attacked, and Bill's numbers went up.

So it is with Palin -- except, of course, it's the moonbat left (yes, Virginia, we have our moonbats -- they are often colored Orange) and the media teaming up to do their mass psychosis.  

I just don't get how the self declared "reality-based" left can look at the poll numbers regarding how the public viewed her being attacked, and how well she was perceived to have done in her speech, and how much McCain's numbers have recovered, and not conclude that their strategy of attack could not have been more counterproductive.

The ticket is McCain/Palin now whether we like it or not. Ignoring Palin means ignoring a highly popular part of the ticket and letting her run free as the half of the good cop/bad cop ticket. Attacking Palin means a whole other set of challenges, including rallying her supporters and generating sympathy.

But the problem is with the way the quesiton is asked. I don't think it should be about responding and about Palin.

They fit each other on multiple levels, and they are very organic because they share the same basic narrative. Because that narrative is based on a shred of truth, it will still be credible to a lot of people once the Republicans market the hell out of it. This underscores and exploits the mistake Obama made by nominating Biden, because Biden doesn't reinforce his message and his image.

I think we are asking the wrong question.

It should be about dealing with the McCain/Palin ticket as a whole and the way they are driving the narrative.

Let's appoint judges with 2 years experience to Supreme Court with virtually no stances on positions other than they appeal to the christian right.

Let's eliminate miranda rights for all citizens accused of violent crimes as violent crime is a form of terrorism.

Extreme, taking things out of context?  How would I know, she hasn't declared her positions.  I can assume as much because I can.  

I think that the economic sell might be hard coming from 2 senators. Now, that's not to say that McCain has any great ecnomic sell either hence the polls continually being tied.

(Obama agrees with me, do not focus on
Palin)

He has gone after Palin today  

I don't think he should be going down this road for he invites comparison to Joe Biden on the subject of earmarks and greater scrutiny of Biden and his lobbyist ties.