Pro-, anti-Palin forces turn out in Alaska

Two rallies were held in Anchorage on Saturday: one featuring Sarah Palin and another protesting her nomination as vice president. The Anchorage Daily News reported about 1,500 people at each event, including about 100 pro-Palin people at the protest, many egged on by a hate radio  show host who called the organizers "socialist baby-killing maggots." Who knew that Zeb Bell has a twin in the far North?

Here's a photo of the Palin protest from Mudflats, the go-to source for progressive Alaskan coverage of the Sarah Palin saga. Read a report on both events and see more photos here. In addition, here's the Anchorage Daily News' coverage of the anti-Palin rally and the VP nominee's appearance.

It's certainly interesting that in Alaska, where Palin is supposedly wildly popular, a rally protesting her position on the VP ticket drew at least as many people as a rally featuring Palin herself. But then, as one Alaskan told the Anchorage newspaper, "This election is too important be left to the smears, trivial issues and lies McCain and Palin are trying to make it into. The myth (that) either McCain or Palin are mavericks, bringing reform and fresh air into Washington, it's nonsense."

Comments

[Sisyphus]

Popular or polarizing? She is Bush in a dress. Now that McCain's campaign seems to be driving the trad med narrative its interesting to see the rest of the story. Now they're co-opting further by playing bad cop good cop with the next interview going to Hannity so they can claim that Fox News is the only one fair and balanced. Good work on this Julie.

[Julie in Boise]

"Bush in a dress" - or maybe Cheney? (Now that's a disturbing image!) But that's right on; the NYT story today makes it clear that Palin would be a polarizing figure in DC, just as she has been in Alaska - only more so.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/us/politics/14palin.html

On one hand, I'd just like to ignore Sarah Palin and focus on the issues, on which McCain-Palin would be beaten soundly. On the other hand, it's hard to ignore news like this, though the trad media seems to be doing just that. So we'll soldier on in the role of trying to get the media to pay attention to those who don't consider Gov. Palin the latest American Idol.

Speaking of which, what a fair and balanced job Dan Popkey did with his Palin story today, eh? No one remembers her, and one of the people most excited about her is ... an Obama supporter?

http://www.idahostatesman.com/newsupdates/story/502630.html

I'm sure there are folks out there who could paint a slightly different picture (at least!), but they're either afraid to talk or - since she really spent quite little time at the U of I - people really don't remember her.