The longer the McCain camp has to defend and hide Palin, the better it is for Obama.  All their energy is being channeled into dealing with their self made disaster.  Silly, silly rethugs.  That's what you get when you don't vet your VP!  :)

Here is the RNC convention and she is really loved there.  She should be out and about meeting folks and rallying her troops.

I think it is a calculated move in order to keep her away from the press until after her big speech on Wednesday.

I am sure her speech will be great for her.  As oppose to Obama who wrote his own speech, I am sure that TPTB are writing her speech for her.

Palin actually has a terrible speaking voice.

I wonder if the GOP convention can get more than 20 million people to watch it as oppose to the Dem convention which was the most watched convention ever.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0 908/Palin_Good_for_the_Jews.html?showall

It could be one half the staff suddenly trying to turn Palin into a national figure - after all it's doubtful any of them had time (or knowledge) to prepare for her.

It could also be the expectations game - keep all eyes off so she blows them away with her acceptance speech.

I watched part of one her gubernatorial debates & she was pretty solid.  That was not a performance that makes me think she'll whither against anyone.  Whether they can take her ability to hold her own in a debate & infuse it with substantive knowledge of national & international issues is another story.

Palin isn't hiding, she's preparing for her speech. These little events don't mean much compared to a speech that will likely be viewed by 20, if not 30 million just for the curiousity factor. The event she cancelled was for only 800. let's not get over-confident.

Way to "maverick" this one, John!

This is worse than Harriet Myers, worse than Clarence Thomas, Robert Bork, New Coke, Crystal Pepsi, Steven Tyler's blues album, The Bacon Brothers, Ishtar, last year's Mets, Friends spin-off Joey, Fox Business, Rush Limbaugh's TV show, Chevy Chase's TV show, Pat Sajack's TV show, Any of Britney Spear's marriages, the 90's Buffalo Bills, Ms South Carolina, Sanjaya, Star Jones' marriage, pre-war Iraq intelligence, and on and on and on.....

Soooo...

Last night on CNN - Barack Obama compared Palin running a town with 50 employees and a small budget compared to a huge campaign staff.

Looks like he was just agreeing with Sarah Palin herself

I'm reading an article from October, 1996, in which a reporter named Laura Mitchell Harris asks Palin about her intentions for a shake up. How would she effectively run a city without experienced leaders? ""It's not rocket science," Palin said, "It's $6 million and 53 employees.

Palin's pastor, Larry Kroon, introduced Brickner on Aug. 17, according to a transcript of the sermon on the church's website.

"He's a leader of Jews for Jesus, a ministry that is out on the leading edge in a pressing, demanding area of witnessing and evangelism," Kroon said.

Brickner then explained that Jesus and his disciples were themselves Jewish.

"The Jewish community, in particular, has a difficult time understanding this reality," he said.

Brickner's mission has drawn wide criticism from the organized Jewish community, and the Anti-Defamation League accused them in a report of "targeting Jews for conversion with subterfuge and deception."

From the Politico article posted above.

As a Jew, this is about as bad as it gets.  

You don't see how this is going to go? She's going to hide and hide and hide, then come out and give a passable speech that hits every single one of the talking points everybody's been handing over and everyone will go ga-ga. This was never not going to happen.

Would you please relay thsi information to the people who write front pages for the MSN and Yahoo news pages.

Alaskan Gov. Debates are not the same thing as a major speech at the convention with God-alone-knows how many people watching and waiting to pounce on any mistake she may make.  She may hold up, but it takes a SERIOUSLY strong person to pull it off considering the climate she is in.

She NEEDS the time to prepare and psych up because tomorrow night is definately make-or-break.  I just do not see how she is going to solidify the base of the party, her "hired" job, and yet still reach out to moderates/independants without looking like a joke.

ANd does anyone find that the GOP convention floor looks creepy?  All blood red...looks like some neo-nazi rally.

Isn't McCain also in retreat?  I heard that he canceled a CNN interview after his surrogate got roughed up yesterday.

Well, they say she was never scheduled to speak -- even though it was on the website in numerous spaces. Including one from before she was announced saying the GOP VP nominee would visit New Mexico.

Maybe they think she can go until November 4 without talking to people.

Titanic..train wreck.  Titanic...train wreck.  Train wreck...Titanic?

test of her life.  What a trainwreck!

Wow.  Who would have thought that McCain's VP pick might be the torpedo that sinks his campaign?  I mean, isn't the VP supposed to first do no harm?  I have to say, a Romney or Jindal choice would have made me much much more nervous.  Even Huckabee.

I think the McCain campaign is making a HUGE mistake by keeping Sarah Palin in isolation over the past few days. They are basically ensuring that the first impression of her will be shaped by media reports... I'm surprised more national media figures aren't demanding that she start doing interviews!

But I agree, the longer she remains hidden, the better for the Obama campaign. Did anyone see the Palin cover for the new US Weekly issue? I can't even wrap my mind around what a bad decision the Palin pick was...

It might be the last time you see her till the VP debate.

She will do fine in the speech.

The convention thinks she is the second coming of Ronnie Rayguns.

Some very good speech writer is crafting it for her, started it the day they decided to throw the hail mary with her. She is reading from a teleprompter for goodness sake.

The bar is set SO LOW as long as she can pronounce Nuclear, the press will fawn over her.

BUT, after that, you will NOT see her anyplace where a reporter can get an unqualified question in.

She will be shuttle from Church to Evangelical event, she will bring in huge amounts of cash.

She will NOT do Meet the Press, Charlie Rose....

Hannity yes, not anyplace where she won't have the ball set on the tee, not even slow pitch on CNN...

Well, it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense for Gov. Palin to be out campaigning today, would it? I mean, tomorrow night is HER night. Some pundits are suggesting that because of all the media attacks, more people will be watching her tomorrow night than watched Obama last Thursday.

On top of that, the media barrage against her has set the bar extremely low. If she performs half-way decently in her speech, she'll go from being "a stewardess", as Bill Maher suggested last Friday (brilliant remark), to being a super-star.

Hopefully, Dems will someday understand that the media is a mixed blessing for liberals. If Dan Rather hadn't gone and fucked up the 2004 race with a poorly sourced feature on Bush's National Guard charade, Kerry may have been elected. Right now, the media is setting the stage for a huge backlash and sympathy vote for Sarah Palin. Bob Wexler is doing his part as well.

Get ready for the next Forest Gump.

So, McCain's strategy is to hide Palin except for her speech on Wednesday and for the debate?

Isn't the whole point of a VP to be out there campaigning for the main guy on the ticket?  You're supposed to EXPOSE the VP to the media, not hide her.  

What a joke.  

She will likely do well enough in her speech. She has the "sportscaster" experience, as well as whatever campaigning was done for AK governor. I guess her "journalism" major as well as beauty queen bits somehow prepared her for public appearances.

The media distraction will be her family, which one assumes will be in attendance, this time with father-to-be Levi along, unless he's in disguise.
There will be many shots of the proud family, with all appearing onstage at the end.

There will be focus on her family, just as the media made much of Obama's daughters' appearance following Michelle's speech.

She's getting the same media makeover Michelle Obama got but at the speed of light.  That's politics.  We'll see if it works.

Or what I said  was an option when she was appointed for the slot; she is a placeholder to get the base riled up.

I afraid the Democrats are falling into the same trap as 2000 and 2004, underestimating the Republicans.

What you call a "retreat" is a regrouping for the final push.  By pushing media away (a trick used by Obama several times during this campaign), it actually helps you control the message.

It makes the MSM look stupid when the story from the campaign comes out and for the Republicans, it gives strength to their argument that the media is a left-wing controlled machine that has no concern for "real" Americans.  Palin, for better or worse, has  knocked Obama and Biden off the front page.  And when she gives the speech of her life tonight, it will be Palin who controls the message, not the MSM or the DNC/Obama.

McCain knew exactly what he's doing and so to the Republicans... This is a set-up if I ever saw one.  And as usually, the near-sighted left-wing bloggers get it wrong.

She's not in retreat for heaven sake! She has never used multiple teleprompters before and has never spoken before such a large crown - she's practicing her speech. I am also sure she is having to spend a bit of time convincing her daughter that her personal issues are not going to cause a downfall for her  mom. I am so very very tired of the liberal crap. How about we let these people speak (both sides) and then make up our minds based on, as Liberman said, what is right for the country not what is right for the party.

Just saw a picture of McCain greeting Bristol Palin's "fiance" as he arrived in St. Paul.

There's no retreat here.  The wagons are circling.