Letter to Senator McCain's aides

I was not excited by your selection of Governor Palin to be Senator McCain's vice president. My personal view, all joking aside and no animosity intended, was that she was not qualified to assume the role of commander-in-chief in the event her octogenarian running mate didn't survive the stress of leading the free world which, as a thought, wasn't exactly outside the realm of possibility. That is not meant as a commentary on any other aspect of her life, abilities, or personality.

Now, having said that...

I find it interesting that you are now attempting to pin the loss of the election on Governor Palin. You, who were responsible for crafting and running the McCain campaign. Despite not agreeing with some of her political views, this bothers me.

Governor Palin is who she is. She did not become more intelligent, or less so, during her nine week involvement with the campaign. During this time she did not become more qualified, or less so, to set the tone for the nation's domestic policy or to guide our country through an economic crisis, a health care crisis, an educational crisis, and a moral crisis. She also did not become more or less experienced in foreign policy, in bringing two long-running wars to an end, and in repairing our relationships with everyone we've upset over the past eight years (which, if you're keeping count, includes just about everyone outside the state of Texas and a couple counties in northern Idaho).

Yet, now, this same woman, pulled from relative obscurity and introduced to the nation as the next great vice president, is being maligned as an incompetent diva by you, the very people responsible for elevating her to the national spotlight. Whether or not grounds exist for such accusations is a point open to argument, but it is not the point in question, which is that you picked her. You. She didn't get the RNC drunk and surprise everyone the next morning. Nine weeks ago you put your arm around her, looked the country in the eye, and said there was no one in the country more qualified to serve as Vice President of the United States. She hasn't changed in the past two months. Only your story has.

For you to imply Governor Palin was responsible for Senator McCain losing the election 364 -163 (Missouri is still outstanding) suggests you are out of touch with reality, demonstrates an unwillingness to accept responsibility, assumes most people are ignorant enough to believe whatever they are told, and is characterized by a lack of integrity. Interestingly, those are the same criticisms made of the White House specifically for the past eight years, and of the Republican party generally for the past two.

Senator McCain's concession speech was pure class. That was the man I would have voted for in 2000 had he won the Republican nomination. That is who I hope would have been president had he won the general election this week. And that is who I hope he becomes again in the wake of his defeat, as opposed to the stranger you turned him into for the past eleven months. It is a pity you were able to change him more than he was able to change you.

mw