# The RNC Sarah Palin Speech Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [September 4, 2008, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931 "2008-09-04T02:23:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/141 "2008-09-04T15:33:44Z")
> [@ArizonaTeach](#): > > Interestingly, [her telemprompter went out](http://www.redstate.com/diaries/redstate/2008/sep/04/breaking-sarah-palin-winged-her-speech-bec/) and she had to wing it. Yes, she knew the speech from memory, but she went off speech and still nailed it. > > Compare to when [Obama loses his teleprompter.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDJSVPAx8xc&feature=related) > > Empty suit. This is purely bullshit. If you watched the speech, you could clearly see the text of her speech in the little plastic teleprompter windows next to her. I don’t have any idea what your link is about, since it’s busted, but that may be because it was withdrawn out of sheer embarrassment. You may want to consider that source suspect in the future. ETA: By the way, I was interested to take note that during the Governor of Hawaii’s speech, the text on the teleprompter said “Democrat party” but she said “Democratic party.” I don’t know if she was following her own moral guidelines or the recent statement from a party official about not playing bullshit name games, but it was a very slight plus for her in my book. ETA again: Also, I noticed that her comment about hockey moms was not on the teleprompter. Maybe that’s the “winging” it part? ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/142 "2008-09-04T15:36:33Z")
> [@Huerta88](#): > > Rhetorical, as it were, I hope. The answer is of course never. GWB has certainly gone eight years without an ex tempore or self-scripted delivery. I doubt anyone since Reagan has really written much or anything of what they delivered. Absolutely true…it’ll be interesting when Palin has to work off the cuff, like answering questions from reporters or in a town hall (a real one, that’s not filled with party plants). When Bush goes off-script he can usually be counted on to insert his foot firmly in his mouth. I also noticed the Marge Gunderson thing, which really grated (shallow, I know…). Is she a native Alaskan? Do they share an accent with the upper midwest? The proper comparison is with Biden’s speech – the one that was full of “that’s not change…that’s more of the same.” So we shouldn’t expect lofty vision from Palin, and didn’t get any. That should come from McCain tonight. If the Republicans have any, of course… Two lines really bugged me: that small town mayors have actual responsibilities. There’s all those books to ban, librarians to fire, lobbyists to hire, pork to gather… And the cheap shot about reading bin Laden his rights. I’m racking my brain, and cannot think of anything Obama has said that can remotely be stretched to come up with anything close to this. As a matter of fact, I think Obama is more hawkish on al Qaeda than McCain – Obama wants to chase him into Pakistan without getting permission first. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/143 "2008-09-04T15:41:43Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > “Long ago, a young farmer and habber-dasher from Missouri followed an unlikely path to the vice presidency.” > > "in a McCain-Palin administration, we’re going to lay more pipelines … build more new-clear plants … " > > Habber-dasher and new-clear. I love it. ([Link to text](http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/51691.html).) I saw the “habber-dasher” thing in an excerpt on another site. Are you saying that it was written in the text that way? What kind of a moron can’t correctly pronounce “haberdasher”? Furthermore, what the hell was the reference to Truman about anyway? It sure seemed to come from left field, and to disappear back into left field almost immediately. I wondered if she even knew that Truman was a Democrat. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingCowOfDoom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyingcowofdoom/32/21776_2.png) [@FlyingCowOfDoom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingCowOfDoom)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/144 "2008-09-04T15:43:50Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > This is purely bullshit. If you watched the speech, you could clearly see the text of her speech in the little plastic teleprompter windows next to her. I don’t have any idea what your link is about, since it’s busted, but that may be because it was withdrawn out of sheer embarrassment. You may want to consider that source suspect in the future. I realize that you couldn’t see his source, but you should probably wait until you can before you decide to call it bullshit. Since for some reason I have no problems visiting the site, here is the entire content of the article: > [@http://www.redstate.com/diaries/redstate/2008/sep/04/breaking-sarah-palin-winged-her-speech-bec/](#): > > Halfway through Sarah Palin’s speech tonight at the RNC, people following the speech noticed she was deviating from the prepared text. > > According to sources close to the McCain campaign, the teleprompter continued scrolling during applause breaks. As a result, half way through the speech, the speech had scrolled significantly from where Governor Palin was in the speech. The malfunction also occurred during Rudy Giuliani’s speech, explaining his significant deviations from his speech. > > Unfazed, Governor Palin continued, from memory, to deliver her speech without the teleprompter cued to the appropriate point in her speech. > > Contrast this to Barack Obama who, when last his teleprompter malfunctioned, was left stuttering before a crowd unable to advance his speech until the problem was resolved. > > Sarah Palin. Winner. So, yes, you would have seen the text of her speech throughout the entire broadcast, but apparently it was not showing the correct section. –FCOD ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/145 "2008-09-04T15:46:49Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > Good grief… > > Minority delegates volunteered and made their way to the Democratic convention just fine. Lots of them. > > No one is saying the Reps hired the KKK as door guards. The point is the Reps are so thoroughly pandering to white, wealthy, old folks that no minorities of any stripe want to be a part of them. > > Like it or not this is a diverse country and our government should be responsive to all its people. Not just white people. The Reps are clearly becoming a disturbingly homogeneous group in a melting pot country. Or, proof that Dems are pandering so thoroughly to minorities, or that minorities are more prone to being pandered to (an interesting and plausible proposition, given that affluent whites are split evenly between Republicans and Dems, but minorities are not – who’s more open-minded, I wonder?). White, wealthy, old folks are people too. Seventy percent of America is white. Two percent of the population pays for fifty percent of the government. That two percent disproportionately looks white and wealthy. So they’re not allowed a seat at the table? ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/146 "2008-09-04T15:49:05Z")
> [@FlyingCowOfDoom](#): > > I realize that you couldn’t see his source, but you should probably wait until you can before you decide to call it bullshit. Since for some reason I have no problems visiting the site, here is the entire content of the article: > > So, yes, you would have seen the text of her speech throughout the entire broadcast, but apparently it was not showing the correct section. > > –FCOD I actually watched the speech, and I could see the text. It matched what she was saying. ETA I know that it paused for applause, because, like I said, I could see where she inserted the line about lipstick and bulldogs. It waited for her. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/147 "2008-09-04T15:49:33Z")
I was very unlikely to vote for McCain in the first place, and his selection of Palin - and her mean-spirited, defiantly Cro-Magnon speech last night - have done nothing to change my mind. ---
**Author:** ![Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troy_mcclure_sf/32/4150_2.png) [@Troy\_McClure\_SF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Troy_McClure_SF)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/148 "2008-09-04T15:57:32Z")
Gah. Pretty terrifying. Though I will say she came off as personable, as long as you switched your brain off and didn’t listen to anything she said. “Community organizer,” “Obama wants to read them their rights” said with a sneer. It’s was very Grinch-like. I wasn’t in danger of voting Republican this year, but Palin and the weirdo cowboys at the end (“One nation, _UNDER GOD, YOU FUCKING COMMIES_”) were creepy as shit, and I’m talking about their content. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/149 "2008-09-04T15:57:49Z")
I think that the speech was very successful in some ways, not as successful in others. The successes? She’s an attractive woman who came off as put-together and with a distinct personality. The personality she displayed might work. It was aggressive and very sarcastic. Some people love that sort of caustic speech-giving. I’m not sure if that’s true of the majority of independents in this country. The speech wasn’t hugely cohesive, but I’m not sure that matters in this case. The failures? When I went up to bed, I commented to my husband that I don’t think the speech was the right speech for someone unknown to give. If I know you and you badmouth someone else, I have a context in which to put your comments. That can be a good context (“Well, if Tammy says this, it has to be true!”) or it can be a bad context (“Well, Marcia and I don’t like the same things anyway”) but it has a context. If it’s someone I don’t know, the comments turn into a meaningless sales job. It feels like a commercial with hired actors, not a political position held by a known quantity. If that speech had been given by Romney, I think it would have been more successful. Romney has a context; Palin doesn’t. (Alternately, if it had been given by Huckabee, it would have been a disaster. It doesn’t fit his delivery and the sense I have of him as a politician.) So, the end effect of the speech on me (I’m admittedly biased) was “But who are _you_ that your sneers should matter to me?” ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/150 "2008-09-04T16:01:58Z")
I’m calling bullshit on tht redstate claim. That’s a site that specializes in Obama Muslim and “whitey” tape memes. The Obama teleprompter mishap is overcooked as well. He gets caught off guard for moment, makes a joke and then rolls on. Big deal. At least he actually writes the words on his teleprompter. He also writes his own books without using a ghost. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/151 "2008-09-04T16:06:50Z")
> [@Huerta88](#): > > Seventy percent of America is white. Two percent of the population pays for fifty percent of the government. That two percent disproportionately looks white and wealthy. So they’re not allowed a seat at the table? So over 20% of the country’s wealth being in the hands of 0.5% of the population is your idea of a good thing? Of course rich white people get a seat at the table. EVERYONE is supposed to get a seat at the table. In the republican party though only white people get a seat at the table (by and large) judging by their supporters at the convention. The Dems “pander” to minorities? Representing them when Reps won’t is pandering? If that is the case so be it. Then everyone is by definition pandering to anyone who supports them. Point is the Dems are clearly more inclusive in a country that is distinctly diverse. Reps clearly are not. Even if we go with your 70% white figure (looks more like 50% to me on a quick Google but not seeing an easy answer) the floor of the Rep’s convention still in no way comes remotely close to reflecting that balance. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/152 "2008-09-04T16:07:52Z")
> [@Huerta88](#): > > Or, proof that Dems are pandering so thoroughly to minorities, or that minorities are more prone to being pandered to (an interesting and plausible proposition, given that affluent whites are split evenly between Republicans and Dems, but minorities are not – who’s more open-minded, I wonder?). That’s easy. It’s the ones who don’t make the demonization of minorities a cornerstone of their rhetoric. > [@](#): > > Two percent of the population pays for fifty percent of the government. That top 2% has over 90% of the wealth. Sounds like they’re undertaxed to me. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/153 "2008-09-04T16:08:03Z")
Here’s the video of her speech: [CollegeOTR.com – College On The Record](http://www.collegeotr.com/college_otr/the_sarah_palin_speech_video_is_here_rejoice_11212) Go to 15:42 of the speech. The teleprompter, sitting still, reads “This is the spirit that brought me to the governor’s office…” Palin then says “This is the spirit that brought me to the governor’s office…” Go to 23:13. The teleprompter says “but listening to him speak” as Palin reads along “but listening to him speak…” It’s all right there. What a bizarre and embarrassing lie to tell, and to spread. Why bother? She read along fine. Very few fault her verbalization of the words. Why make such a stupid, bullshit, easily contradicted claim? Really, you ought to reconsider the validity, veracity and reliability of your sources. It should be embarrasing to be caught with your pants around your ankles. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/154 "2008-09-04T16:09:48Z")
I forgot to mention a couple of things that struck me about the speech: 1. Palin has a couple of speech mannerisms that I find extremely annoying. She clicks her tongue between lines and she hisses her esses. That coupled with a less-than-mellifluous accent and voice made listening to her less than pleasant. 2. Until last night, I had never seen her husband holding Trig. It’s usually the oldest girl, but last night he held Trig for a while, then passed him off to the youngest girl. It’s not important in the larger scheme of things, but it strikes me as just a little weird. ---
**Author:** ![emarkp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3be4f8/32.png) [@emarkp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emarkp)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/155 "2008-09-04T16:13:59Z")
> [@C3](#): > > Huh? Obama writes his own speeches. Palin delivered a speech that was written for her. Bully for her for memorizing other people’s words. Is that the standard we want? From [Time Magazine](http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1837368,00.html): > [@](#): > > Obama takes an unusually hands-on approach to his speech writing, more so than most politicians. His best writing time comes late at night when he’s all alone, scribbling on yellow legal pads. He then logs these thoughts into his laptop, editing as he goes along. This is how he wrote both of his two best selling books—Dreams from My Father and The Audacity of Hope—staying up after Michelle and his two young daughters had long gone to bed, reveling in the late night quiet. For this speech Obama removed himself from the distractions at home and spent many nights in a room in the Park Hyatt Hotel in Chicago. **These late-night sessions produced long, meandering texts that were then circulated to a close group of advisers** , including Axelrod and Obama’s speechwriter Jon Favreau—a 27-year-old wunderkind wordsmith. “When you’re working with Senator Obama the main player on a speech is Senator Obama,” Axelrod said. “He is the best speechwriter in the group and he knows what he wants to say and he generally says it better than anybody else would.” (Emphasis mine) So Obama has a process for developing his speeches with speechwriters. Sounds a lot like other speakers. Do you have any evidence that Palin had less to do with her speech than Obama has with his? ---
**Author:** ![Slacker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@Slacker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slacker)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/156 "2008-09-04T16:16:35Z")
> [@jsgoddess](#): > > 1. Until last night, I had never seen her husband holding Trig. It’s usually the oldest girl, but last night he held Trig for a while, then passed him off to the youngest girl. It’s not important in the larger scheme of things, but it strikes me as just a little weird. As a parent of a wiggly 6 month old, I can assure you that we pass that sucker around every chance we get. Holding him for long periods of time is tiring. Especially when he’s sleeping, when supporting his limp frame is like holding a sack of potatoes. I don’t find this odd at all. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/157 "2008-09-04T16:20:15Z")
> [@emarkp](#): > > From [Time Magazine](http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1837368,00.html): > > (Emphasis mine) > So Obama has a process for developing his speeches with speechwriters. Sounds a lot like other speakers. Do you have any evidence that Palin had less to do with her speech than Obama has with his? We know she didn’t have anything to do with THIS speech. It was mostly written before she was even chosen as the VP nominee. The only thing she added was the stupid-ass “poodles have lipstick” line or whatever the fuck it was. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/158 "2008-09-04T16:26:22Z")
> [@Slacker](#): > > As a parent of a wiggly 6 month old, I can assure you that we pass that sucker around every chance we get. Holding him for long periods of time is tiring. Especially when he’s sleeping, when supporting his limp frame is like holding a sack of potatoes. I don’t find this odd at all. Yes, it’s entirely possible that they are moving him around from person to person and I just always manage to catch them when the older girl is holding him. I wonder if it was this that spawned the weird rumors initially. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/159 "2008-09-04T16:27:11Z")
> [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](#): > > Here’s the video of her speech: [CollegeOTR.com – College On The Record](http://www.collegeotr.com/college_otr/the_sarah_palin_speech_video_is_here_rejoice_11212) > > Go to 15:42 of the speech. The teleprompter, sitting still, reads “This is the spirit that brought me to the governor’s office…” Palin then says “This is the spirit that brought me to the governor’s office…” > > Go to 23:13. The teleprompter says “but listening to him speak” as Palin reads along “but listening to him speak…” > > It’s all right there. What a bizarre and embarrassing lie to tell, and to spread. Why bother? She read along fine. Very few fault her verbalization of the words. Why make such a stupid, bullshit, easily contradicted claim? > > Really, you ought to reconsider the validity, veracity and reliability of your sources. It should be embarrasing to be caught with your pants around your ankles. The teleprompter problem was mentioned on air on CNN. It wasn’t nearly as big a deal as the Republicans are trying to claim. Basically, what happened is that on occasion the teleprompter operator didn’t pause for the applause lines, so it got a bit out of sync. Then he sync’ed it up again as she continued. This happened a couple of times, and I think you could even tell at least one of them where she sort of halted in her delivery then continued. But by no means did she ‘continue the speech from memory’. What she did was stay cool and not get visibly flustered when a line or two was off screen at a couple of points. I’m not sure if she ad-libbed, or just let the audience react a bit more while the teleprompter sync’ed up again, or what. I am sure that a politician with Obama’s skill would have had no problem with it either. Someone like George Bush, on the other hand, would probably have just stopped speaking for a second, grinned foolishly, then continued when the teleprompter unwound back to where it was supposed to be. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2008, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931/160 "2008-09-04T16:27:48Z")
> [@emarkp](#): > > (Emphasis mine) > So Obama has a process for developing his speeches with speechwriters. Sounds a lot like other speakers. Probably because most speakers do not have speechwriters working for them. Those that can afford or merit it generally use them. Your quote basically states that Obama actually writes his own speeches (doubtless his speechwriter spins off minor speeches for him) and then has others help with the editing and this somehow lessens the fact that he is probably one of the few politicians that do this? :dubious: I suppose it is possible that Palin is a brilliant writer and pens her own speeches but unless she was truly remarkable at it my money is on McCain’s campaign wanting to keep things so tightly scripted that they will force their speechwriters on her. Doubtless she will get some input on fiddly details but I doubt she will have substantial leeway to write whatever she sees fit to deliver. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-rnc-sarah-palin-speech-thread/461931.md?page=9)