Can Palin Debate?
By NancyA on September 9, 2008 at 5:55 AM in Barack Obama, Big Oil, Debates, Gas Prices, Joe Biden, McCain/Palin 2008, Women
Earlier today, Byron York, at his National Review blog, The Corner, reported on his assessment of Gov. Sarah Palin’s abilities as a debater, based on her performance during Alaska’s 2006 gubernatorial Republican primary race. York found a two-year-old video at C-Span of Sarah Palin debating the other two GOP primary candidates, Frank Murkowski, the incumbent governor of the state and a veteran of 22 years in the U.S. Senate as well as Republican politician John Binkley.
It became evident, as I watched the video, that Governor Sarah Palin can more than “hold her own” in a debate.
York wrote the following about Palin’s performance:
And all I have to say is that Palin was good — really good. It wasn’t a debate in which the candidates were in each other’s faces or throwing out zingers, but Palin clearly outshone her rivals — especially Murkowski, the longtime senator who played the role of the experienced statesman.
This debate was not lightweight like the recent Saddleback Forum but one that, according to York, was substantive and “heavy”:
As far as substance was concerned, the debate was heavy — I mean heavy — on oil, natural gas, and the money that comes therefrom. To my ears, Palin knew a great deal about the subject and spoke with real authority about it — again outshining her rivals.
You can watch the video of the GOP primary debate at C-Span’s Web site.
As I watched the video, I was more than impressed. She is truly smart and knows her subjects well. The debate also dispels a rumor about Palin and her personally-held stringent beliefs about contraception. Here is the question that Palin was asked:
In a recent survey you said that you would support abstinence-until-marriage education but that you would not support explicit sex-ed programs. What are explicit sex-ed programs, and does that include talking about condoms in school?
Here’s Palin’s answer:
No, I don’t think that it includes something that is relatively benign. Explicit means explicit. No, I am pro-contraception, and I think kids who may not hear about it at home should hear about it in other avenues. So I’m not anti-contraception. But yeah, abstinence is another alternative that should be discussed with kids. I don’t have a problem with that. That doesn’t scare me, so it’s something that I would support also.
I once attended sex education classes for my son when he was in 6th grade. His education began with the birds and bees, which bothered me some. The remainder of the course subject was benign, no more explicit than the books my mother gave me to read when I was young. I was satisfied that the class wasn’t too explicit. The more explicit items are best left to parenting at home.
York learned in his research that Alaska didn’t have a death penalty, something I was not aware of either. I did find out that Palin and I differ on the death penalty. She supports the death penalty when it involves children. My belief is much more broad than hers. Here are her thoughts on the death penalty:
If our lawmakers were to consider such a thing, I think that support should be given for heinous crimes. A murder of a child? I say, my goodness, hang ‘em up. Yeah. A murder of a child, anything to such a degree, I don’t think that there can be anything worse. And if lawmakers were to consider it, that should be the consideration.
In short, this is a debate worth watching. It is my opinion that Biden is going to have a lot on his hands when he debates Governor Sarah Palin. She will certainly do her homework and be well-informed on all questions. Biden has much to worry about in Palin.
OF NOTE: At C-Span, you can also watch the 2006 general election debate between Sarah Palin, the Democratic candidate, former governor Tony Knowles, and the Independent candidate, Andrew Halcro.
by Ronald Scott
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