Perky, Populist Palin Saves McCain Again

Proving herself hampered her ability to attack Obama

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin acquitted herself at last night's debate with her charm and a show of basic coherency, writes Adam Nagourney in the New York Times. Her face-off with Joe Biden didn't prove to be a point of no return for the faltering McCain campaign, but neither was it the decisive blow against Barack Obama that McCain needed. More»

Here's how to dump Bush in Nov., not Jan.

(NEWSER) - In the current economic morass, the US cannot afford to wait 9 weeks to install the new president after he is elected in November, Richard Tedlow and David Ruben write in the Boston Globe. But wait—doesn’t the Constitution dictate the date of the inauguration? “Changing that would take years, not days,” write the two Harvard profs. “But there is a way out…” More»

Palin didn't lose, didn't win

(NEWSER) - Think Sarah Palin's performance was folksy and colorful last night? Pundits reached to do it justice:

• "I always wondered what a wolverine would sound like chewing through plywood," writes Howard Fineman of Newsweek. "Now I know: like Sarah Palin 'debating' Joe Biden."
• “Somewhere in heaven, Norman Rockwell is smiling,” writes David Brooks in the New York Times.

Ready to lead with 'unnerving mix of cutesy platitudes'

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin worked her perky just-plain-folks act to the nauseating end in yesterday's debate, Dana Milbank grumbles in the Washington Post. It promised to be "long night" when Palin, "wearing a glittery flag pin, blew a kiss to the audience." But Palin "had no problem meeting exceptionally low expectations" at her "public IQ test," notes Milbank. More»

Exuberant speaking style, experience could turn into liabilities at debate

(NEWSER) - Joe Biden is a skilled and captivating speaker but his inability to stop speaking at the right time could turn debate victory into defeat, Katherine Q. Seelye warns in the New York Times. Biden's "gusto and exuberance" could make him seem to be bullying Sarah Palin if he's not careful, and his bluntness could spawn a headline-making gaffe, Seelye writes. More»