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| Sarah Palin, right, has been practising ahead of Thusday's debate [AFP] |
Meet me in St. Louis, Louis,
Meet me at the fair
Don't tell me the lights are shining
Anyplace but there - Lyrics to the popular song 'Meet Me In St. Louis' by Andrew Sterling, 1904.
What a difference a month makes.
In early September, Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska, was the brightest rising star in the political firmament.
John McCain's shock decision to choose her as his running mate energised right-wing conservative Republicans who had been lukewarm about the top of the ticket.
She wowed then at the Republican convention, introducing herself to a huge nationwide television audience with a well-delivered primetime speech.
Her mocking of Barack Obama's experience as a community organiser brought down the house.
But now, on the eve of her first and only debate with Democratic opponent Joe Biden in St Louis, Palin has become a figure of controversy and, in some quarters, ridicule.
Away from the teleprompter, Palin's public speaking abilities are less than stellar.
She's had only a handful of encounters with the press, but none of them have gone well.
Policy confusion
In her first sit-down interview with anchor Charlie Gibson of ABC News, Palin couldn't answer a question about the Bush doctrine, indicating she had no clue about this central foreign policy theme of the current administration, which claims the right to pre-emptively attack or invade countries the president deems a threat to US national security.
That launched the late-night comedy shows off with a round of jokes and unflattering impressions of the Alaska governor.
But her second interview, with CBS News anchor Katie Couric, was an unmitigated disaster.
She stumbled and fumbled her way through a series of questions about foreign policy.
Asked why she claimed foreign affairs experience by virtue of her home state being adjacent to Russia across the Bering Strait, Palin responded: "As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border.
"It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there, they are right next to our state."
The late-night TV comedy shows went wild. Actress Tina Fey has developed such a dead-on-accurate impression of Palin that she drives audiences to tears of laughter simply by repeating, verbatim, excerpts from the Couric interview.
Conservative criticism
Politicians are often made fun of by politicians.
But when the impressions and jokes cut too close to home, the result can be serious damage to the politician’s reputation.
The late president Gerald Ford was mercilessly lampooned as a clumsy bumbler by comedian Chevy Chase during Ford's accidental presidency from 1974 to 1976.
The impression stuck, causing many voters to regard Ford, unfairly I think, as unintelligent.
Comedy shows are one thing, but when the commentators in your own party start ganging up on you, that's serious.
"I think she has pretty thoroughly, and probably irretrievably, proven that she is not up to the job of being president of the United States," David Frum, a former speechwriter for George Bush, told the New York Times.
Kathleen Parker, a conservative writer for the right-wing National Review, wrote: "I watch her interviews with the held breath of an anxious parent, my finger poised over the mute button in case it gets too painful. Unfortunately, it often does. My cringe reflex is exhausted."
"If B.S. were a currency,' Parker added, "Palin could bail out Wall Street herself."
Parker concluded by calling on Palin to drop out of the race for the sake of McCain’s candidacy. That seems highly unlikely at this point. McCain has made his bed and will have to lie in it.
To dump Palin would be to infuriate the hard-core Republican right and add further to the already-growing impression of McCain's campaign as a grotesque scene of careening, howling chaos worthy of a Hieronymous Bosch landscape.
'Foot-in-mouth'
So, what to look for in the St Louis debate?
First let me say that Joe Biden has proved more than capable of making foolish gaffes. His tendency is to talk and talk, ad nauseum, and to offer flashes of 'wit' that frequently fall flat — such as when he insultingly described Palin as "good looking".
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Joe Biden had been criticised for some
unwise remarks [EPA] |
Biden's habit of keeping his mouth open for too long frequently allows him to insert his foot into it.
To avoid that unfortunate predicament, Biden has spent the past several days at 'debate camp' at his home in Delaware, poring over briefing books and practicing with proxy Palins including Michigan Governor Jennifer Graholm.
His focus will be on McCain, not Palin.
He is likely to be extremely polite and respectful of her without a hint of sexist treatment.
He will want to avoid at all costs giving the impression of an older male bullying or condescending towards a younger woman, an especially bad move as far as female voters are concerned.
His body language will be important, too. He needs to show that he's comfortable and in command of the event.
If he's smart, he will keep his comments as brief as he can while showing off his foreign and domestic policy expertise.
His strategy should be to hammer away at McCain and allow Palin to dig herself into her own hole.
Low expectations
But it would be a mistake to assume Palin will flutter helplessly like a moth in a flame, suffering verbal pratfalls and making all sorts of mistakes.
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Palin has been given a crash course
in US foreign policy [AFP]
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She has been sequestered at McCain’s country estate in Arizona, undergoing extensive debate preparations. Her past interview performances have proved Palin isn't a quick study. But maybe some extra cramming will help.
Even better, Palin should skim lightly over detailed factual questions and drive for a more fundamental and understandable point.
Her body language needs to show that she's not intimidated and can demonstrate a sense of presidential-ness.
She has a winning public persona and her cheerful smile has even her detractors admitting that she’s probably a very nice person.
Thanks to the lampooning and the critiques in the mainstream media, expectation levels for Palin's debate performance are very low.
If she simply avoids obvious, factual errors and lack of knowledge about key issues, she could be all right.
Her strategy should not be to spew out facts and policy positions, or to hold forth about the intricacies of handling default credit swaps or the situation in South Waziristan, that's proved unsuccessful already, and besides, most Americans haven't got a clue about those issues either.
Instead, she should show herself to be that person people who like her say they see in her, an ordinary, down-to-earth woman, a multi-tasking mom who knows better than any self-important senator how tough it is for ordinary middle and lower class Americans to make their way in the world.
Palin proved to be a very effective debater when she ran against, and beat more-experienced politicians back home in Alaska. She could surprise a lot of people on Thursday.
Both candidates have not only been practicing speaking styles and boning up on facts, but also working on pithy one-liners or barbed put-downs.
Those are the things that give journalists (like me) our stories, and viewers (like you) a memorable impression.
One way or the other, its likely to be an interesting evening. Meet me in St Louis.
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