LA Times cited Palin's "reject[ion]" of Biden for "blame game" response without noting Ifill's question eliciting it
SUMMARY: The Los Angeles Times asserted that, during the vice-presidential debate, Sen. Joe Biden called President Bush's policies toward Israel "an abject failure" and that Gov. Sarah Palin "reject[ed] the way Biden depicted Bush's policies with her line about the 'blame game.' " But the Times did not note that Biden was responding to moderator Gwen Ifill's question specifically asking the candidates to assess the Bush administration: "What has this administration done right or wrong -- this is the great, lingering, unresolved issue, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict -- what have they done?"
In an October 3 Los Angeles Times article, staff writers Cathleen Decker and Michael Finnegan asserted that, during the vice-presidential debate, "[a] discussion of Israel sparked one of the night's most spirited exchanges -- even as both candidates pledged their unstinting support for the longtime U.S. ally -- by spinning into a debate over accountability versus finger-pointing." Decker and Finnegan added that Sen. Joe Biden called President Bush's policies "an abject failure" and that Gov. Sarah Palin "reject[ed] the way Biden depicted Bush's policies with her line about the 'blame game.' " However, Decker and Finnegan did not note that Biden's characterization of President Bush's policy regarding Israel came in response to moderator Gwen Ifill's question specifically asking the candidates to assess the Bush administration: "What has this administration done right or wrong -- this is the great, lingering, unresolved issue, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict -- what have they done?"
Decker and Finnegan also quoted Palin disputing Biden's claim that Sen. John McCain opposed "allowing bankruptcy courts to be able to re-adjust not just the interest rate you're paying on your mortgage to be able to stay in your home, but be able to adjust the principal that you owe." While Decker and Finnegan suggested that Palin "got lost in the thickets of rhetoric" when discussing bankruptcy, and noted that she quickly changed the subject to energy, they did not note that, according to an ABCNews.com article posted shortly after midnight ET, the McCain campaign stated that "Palin misstated McCain's position" on bankruptcy reform.
From the ABCNews.com article:
The Alaska governor incorrectly made it sound like McCain supports giving bankruptcy judges the power to rewrite mortgage payment terms on first homes.
He doesn't.
The McCain campaign confirms to ABC News that Palin misstated McCain's position.
"No, that is what is called the cramdowns, which is so objectionable that Obama didn't even want it jammed into the stabilization bill," said McCain spokesman Brian Rogers when asked if McCain supports giving bankruptcy judges the power to re-adjust the interest rate and principal to help people stay in their homes.
Palin's mistake came when the debate's moderator asked her if Biden was right in thinking that she and McCain oppose giving bankruptcy judges this new power.
During the debate, Biden said:
Number two, with regard to bankruptcy now, Gwen, what we should be doing now -- and Barack Obama and I support it -- we should be allowing bankruptcy courts to be able to re-adjust not just the interest rate you're paying on your mortgage to be able to stay in your home, but be able to adjust the principal that you owe, the principal that you owe.
That would keep people in their homes, actually help banks by keeping it from going under. But John McCain, as I understand it -- I'm not sure of this, but I believe John McCain and the governor don't support that. There are ways to help people now. And there -- ways that we're offering are not being supported by -- by the Bush administration nor do I believe by John McCain and Governor Palin.
Ifill then asked "Governor Palin, is that so?" to which Palin responded: "That is not so, but because that's just a quick answer, I want to talk about, again, my record on energy versus your ticket's energy ticket, also."
From the October 3 Los Angeles Times article:
Palin occasionally got lost in the thickets of rhetoric, as she had in a series of high-profile interviews in the last week.
"That is not so," she said of Biden's statement that McCain did not support provisions to help homeowners facing bankruptcy. "But that's just a quick answer. I want to talk about, again, my record on energy versus -- your ticket's energy -- ticket, also, I think that this is important to come back to, with that energy policy plan, again, that was voted for in '05."
[...]
A discussion of Israel sparked one of the night's most spirited exchanges -- even as both candidates pledged their unstinting support for the longtime U.S. ally -- by spinning into a debate over accountability versus finger-pointing.
Biden condemned Bush's policy toward Israel as an "an abject failure," asserting the president had emboldened Israel's enemies and waited too long into his administration to become engaged in peace talks. "We will change this policy with thoughtful, real, live diplomacy," said Biden, who suggested that "no one in the United States Senate has been a better friend to Israel than Joe Biden."
Palin responded by hailing her rival's support for Israel and rejecting the way Biden depicted Bush's policies with her line about the "blame game."
It's a "blame game" when Dems use it against Reps. It's "accountability" when Reps use it against Dems. F.U.Palin.
Exactly, I love how we are just supposed to ignore 7 years plus of lies, criminal activity and outright failure from the current administration. Yet it is ok for Republicans to always blame Clinton.
Oh sure, Doris, play the blame game. "It's republicans, nyah nyah, They started it nyah nyah blaming Clinton nyah nyah..".
It's the fault of you and the libruls pointing fingers that we can't come together and solve the energy crisis...
From Michael Bérubé (here):
"As Governor Palin pointed out tonight, we’ve lived through divisive partisan politics in both the Bush and Clinton eras, and if we’re going to look forward, Americans need to agree that the Democrat party is to blame for divisive partisanship, and Republicans offer a fresh new future of change and reform instead of a finger-pointing obsession with the past."
Thanks for that. I needed a sardonic laugh.
Good catch MMFA, Biden's answer and Palin's "blame game" response are lost without context, which absolutely includes Ifill's question. By the way, Gwen Ifill did a mediocre job, at best.
Tommy- I disagree, Ifill was wonderful, she allowed the debate to occur and did not inject herself in it, she also maintained the rules. Well done Gwen!!!
Doris, Maybe the debate rules stifled her a bit, I just hoped for more from her......she didn't press enough when their responses veered off topic. But that is the inherent problem with this uber structured format, it's too stiff. I would have liked to see them go at it more, challenge each other - not gonna happen.
Far too often in our so-called "debates" the candidates have this, "If I can't decide the entire format before hand, I'm not going to debate" adittude.
Why even have moderators anymore? Just have a tape recorder sitting on a desk and an unpaid intern to switch it on and off.
High school debate teams have better formats. At least they are required to answer the question. My idea of the week: a panel of seven individuals (3 college professors, 2 MMFA posters :) and 2 average citizens) sit at a table watching the debate live. After each question asked, the board votes. If 5 of the panel members decide that the candidate has not answered the question, a trap door opens under the candidate. The candidate must fight the mancore (spelling?) from Return of the Jedi, to continue the debate.
I would agree that she lost some control of the debate letting Palin continually straying off response on several occasions, but I think the questions were very good ones. If she is the one who came up with that list, I give her cudo's for not lobbing softballs.
I noticed that Caribou Barbie repeated this talking point several times, accusing Biden of "looking backward", or something like that. I guess I can't blame them for not wanting to look at the past 8 years with a critical eye, since they've made such a f***ing mess. This is a matter of survival for those who are pulling Barbie's strings, since too much retrospection could result in criminal indictments of people like Rove, Rumsfeld and Cheney. (Bush probably had no more of a clue than Caribou Barbie, so he might be able to plead ignorance.)
There's an additional part to this. Since the McCain/Palin policies are shaping up to be no different than the Bush/Cheney policies, Palin doesn't want us looking "backward". If we do that, we see exactly what the "maverick" team is going to be foisting off on the U.S.
It's hard to play the "opposition" to what has gone on if you admit there was a past...and you're going to do the same as it ever was.
Note to self,invest in WWhhaambulance stock today!
Two points.
1) Palin specifically said that we could learn a lot of good lessons from this economic meltdown. How does she expect to learn anything without looking back to see what went wrong?
2) IF the McCain campaign doesn't want to look back, WHY do they keep pointing to ANYTHING in Obama's records?
Would it be more accurate to say that she doesn't want anyone looking back at the McCain/Bush/Palin records?
Well yes.
But not looking back to what caused the meltdown, while learning from the mistakes made seems to be a common tread in the McCain/Palin ticket. Look at the global warming/man made question during the debate. Palin said she dosn't know if it is man made and that its not important to know what caused it. But we need to correct it.
Huh?