5:53PM
So with all of the chaos, I never received the go-ahead for liveblogging at the Huffington Post, so I guess I'll get started here. Bill Bennett just went off on Wolf Blitzer about a report on the Bristol Palin matter. I'm sure there will be video of that one soon. And Laura Bush was just on stage saying that this isn't a time for partisan politics -- after all, we're all Americans, she said. Then she went on to underscore that all of the Gulf Coast governors are Republicans. Yay!
5:55PM
Cindy McCain coming up. No word as to whether Steve Doocy wrote her speech.
5:57PM
Here comes Cindy McCain. She looks kinda like a banana.
6PM
Laura Bush: "Americans are known for coming to aide of our fellow citizens." Except in the case of George Bush and John McCain during Katrina, and only when it's politically advantageous.
6:02PM
It sounds like that's all for tonight from St. Paul. I'll continue to liveblog the coverage anyway.
Liveblogging continued after the jump...
6:12PMPat Boone on the convention floor. McBush fever! Catch it!6:16PM
6:17PMThe Republican Chairman Mike Duncan looks exactly like every Republican ever. So manly with their spray-on tans, eh?6:22PMNew poll numbers coming in from all around... As we know by now CNN has Obama 49, McCain 48. However, check this:
USAToday/Gallup: Obama 50%, McCain 43%
CBS: Obama 48%, McCain 40%
The USA Today/Gallup poll has some other interesting numbers.
"Strong and decisive leader" -- Obama 46%, McCain 44%
And... "Obama has a 19-point lead in managing the economy."
6:34PMCNN is really hitting the Bristol story. Carville said that the Republicans need to get some sandbags on the levees. Wolf Blitzer seems obsessed with both the Bristol story and the Troopergate scandal.6:37PMMcCain spokesman Nancy Pfotenhauer on the CNN panel between Castellanos and Borger. "In fact she's a hero," she just said about Governor Palin. Cable news hasn't even tapped into the fact that Palin ran Ted Stevens' 527.6:58PMI mostly agree with Hilzoy:
As far as I'm concerned, it's fair game to consider Sarah Palin's statements about her daughter's decision, and to compare them to her own views about abortion. That's a story about whether or not Sarah Palin sticks to her beliefs when they affect her own family, not about her daughter. But it is not fair game to use her daughter, or any of her kids, as pawns in a political argument.
McCain and Palin will stack the Supreme Court with far-right judges who want to overturn Roe. I can't fathom how a politician -- any politician -- can ballyhoo their daughter's "decision" while attempting to deny that right to other daughters.7:01PMIt's alternate reality Keith. Weird hurricane music and graphics.7:04PMWolf vs. Bennett! Fight!h/t 'The Air America Blog of the Week'7:17PMThe McCain campaign praises the right to choose:
Bristol Palin made the decision on her own to keep the baby, McCain aides said.
Yeah, Palin's right to choose. Not your right to choose. And now FOX News Channel is suggesting that Governor Palin is... PRO-CHOICE!
7:27PMMeanwhile, on TV it's all hurricane all the time on MSNBC.7:28PMJake Tapper asks:
What would the response be if Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, and his wife Michelle had a pregnant unmarried teenage daughter?
A pregnant black unmarried teenager? Game over.7:29PMFred Gwynne's judge character from My Cousin Vinny is talking about a map of New Orleans on CNN. "Did you say 'yoot'?"7:36PMThe best TPM front page graphic ever:
7:37PMReports from all around... Palin was a member of a fringe political party that advocated Alaskan secession -- secession, of course, is treasonous. Meltdown.7:44PMThis is becoming a Palin Meltdown Liveblog, so I want to reiterate and underscore... This is more about McCain's lack of judgment and incompetence than Governor Palin. Unfortunately for her, she was unwise to accept the job and now becomes an on-going illustration of McCain's inability to be president. I seriously can't see her continuing forward. At some point, she's going to have to step down for the sake of her family.7:48PMCNN is spending more time reporting on Palin than the hurricane now.7:49PMWould someone inform CNN that Senator Obama has very successful executive experience?! Please?7:50PMCampbell Brown is seriously hammering McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds on CNN right now. Wow. No barbecue here.7:54PMGloria Borger giving Joe Biden debate tips? Seriously?8:03PMBooMan sets the record straight:
Let me repeat: the rumors that Trig Palin was actually the son of Bristol Palin were started last spring by Republicans in Alaska that don't like Sarah Palin.
8:10PMIt's worth noting that Bill Kristol publicly advised Senator McCain to choose Palin. Bill Kristol -- who's Best Of Album includes advising George Bush to invade Iraq. Wrong on everything.8:28PMRoe v. Wade addresses and clarifies our constitutional right to privacy. The McCain-Palin ticket seeks to overturn that right. Odd since this is their latest statement regarding this teen pregnancy issue:
“This is a very personal matter for the family. We should all respect the love they have for the child and the desire all parents would have for their children’s privacy.”“The media should respect Bristol’s privacy. That’s always been the tradition and practice when it comes to the children of candidates.”
And of course I agree that Bristol Palin deserves privacy. So do we all -- especially our daughters when it comes to their medical decisions.8:33PMCNN has started to simply replay earlier segments and MSNBC is all hurricanish. So I'm going to wrap up. I'll be online for the rest of the night, blogging as usual. Feel free to use this as a Meltdown Open Thread. Meanwhile, I'm making my 8:29 entry into its own post. Cheers! Melty!