October 1, 2008

Question: Can Biden Query Palin Tomorrow Night?

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Here’s a question. Will it appear condescending if Joe Biden asks Sarah Palin for specifics at tomorrow night’s debate in St. Louis? For example, here are two scenarios that I image would lead to trouble for Palin:

Palin: Senator McCain and I are understand that force is the last option. We believe in exercising soft power in order to win the hearts and minds of the Muslim world.

Biden: With respect Governor, can you tell me, specifically, how you would do that?

Or another:

Palin: Senator McCain had the foresight to see the crisis on Wall Street coming.

Biden: Again, with respect. Name one way in which he did.

If you saw my blog post from two days ago, you know I believe Joe Biden will win the debate by shutting up and letting Palin stumble. Asking questions fits perfectly in that strategy. And it’s not like Biden needs to make the case for himself. All the Obama campaign really needs out of this debate is one bad moment from Palin that will be played over and over in post-debate coverage, lampooned on SNL, etc. That will go a long way in solidifying the emerging consensus that Palin is not ready for the vice-presidency.

But the tactic can easily appear patronizing and disrespectful, especially if Biden does it too many times. I’m interested in your thoughts.

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WE'LL BE BLUNT

It is astonishingly hard keeping a newsroom afloat these days, and we need to raise $253,000 in online donations quickly, by October 7.

The short of it: Last year, we had to cut $1 million from our budget so we could have any chance of breaking even by the time our fiscal year ended in June. And despite a huge rally from so many of you leading up to the deadline, we still came up a bit short on the whole. We can’t let that happen again. We have no wiggle room to begin with, and now we have a hole to dig out of.

Readers also told us to just give it to you straight when we need to ask for your support, and seeing how matter-of-factly explaining our inner workings, our challenges and finances, can bring more of you in has been a real silver lining. So our online membership lead, Brian, lays it all out for you in his personal, insider account (that literally puts his skin in the game!) of how urgent things are right now.

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