Flopping Aces has more information on the Palin-Monegan-Wooten hubbub than anybody else, and from what they’ve noted, it doesn’t sound like very much. It’s a good read with a lot of transcripts and links.
Jonah Goldberg says that Palin should go after left-wing feminist leaders in an attempt to create a wedge between the average female voter and the average self-appointed determiner of the female voter. He also notes that the McCain campaign really should drop the “Alaska National Guard” schtick. On point #1, there’s a little bit of identity politics there that I don’t like. On the one hand, it’s probably smart politics to do something like this. On the other hand, it’s discouraging that identity politics is so strong that “I’m a woman” means more to women than “I’m a good candidate.” But again, candidates are reacting to the external world and there is only so much they can do… I completely agree on point #2, though Jimbo at BlackFive notes that Alaska is a first-line defense state and so being commander of the Alaska National Guard means something more than, say, the Ohio or Tennessee National Guard. Jonah’s right, though: yeah, that’s not chopped liver, but it does sound defensive and rather weak.
David Harsanyi says that Palin is about as small-l libertarian as a major candidate’s going to get. Given that Jess isn’t too giddy about Palin, she probably wouldn’t buy Harsanyi’s argument.
Finally, John Hawkins (via IMAO) displays a proposed McCain-Palin bumper sticker for conservatives. Get rid of the “McCain” part and it might be even better…
