Blue Mass Group

Reality-based commentary on politics.

Executive Experience

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The Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman wondered how difficult it would be to run Wasilla after Palin replaced so many employees:

A reporter named Laura Mitchell Harris asks Palin about her intentions for a shake up. How would she effectively run a city without experienced leaders?

It’s not rocket science. It’s $6 million and 53 employees.

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      • He is a campaign.  His executive experience that qualifies him to run is the fact that he is running.  Maybe we should nominate Axelrod eh?  Obama is like the inverse chicken-egg – both at once.

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        p>At least he isn’t voting “present” anymore.

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        p>

      • Do you really want to diminish the work of so many people around the country who are mayors and/or executives of small town, cities and small businesses? There certainly has been huge amount of disrespect for Alaska from Democrats at all levels. They have attacked Alaska and have somehow forgot where Bill Clinton came from “Arkansas” which is not exactly NEW YORK! But that was a Democrat so I can understand your selective amnesia. Accomplishments remain even if the person who did them is humble about them. Michael Phelps could comment that all he did was swim fast in explaining all his 14 gold medals but that doesn’t make it any less amazing. Makes you like them even more!

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        p>This is politics so NOBODY on either side will be completely honest. Otherwise, we would both admit our nominated candidates (Obama and Palin) have less experience than we want for the office of President and VP.

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        p>I have a bias for Repubs but I have always felt a Governor is far more experienced for President than a Senator, regardless of the party. Sorry Sarah pisses you people off so much, but win or lose I believe she has opened the eyes of many Americans to the Republican party again. Look for a banner year in 2009 when we may take back seats and start to grow the party back.

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        p>Every passing day when the TOTALLY USELESS 110th Congress does NOTHING is a feather in the cap of the challengers for the future. Every time they blame Bush for the mistakes and omissions of their lackluster performance will give ammunition to their replacements.

        • I ask again.

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          p>You cite her accomplishments in the title of your comment, but don’t cite any. How can we diminish something that has yet to be really defined?

  3. I received three times more votes than Palin when running for my town democratic committee than she did when running for mayor of Wasilla.

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    p>Now I learn that in my current corporate job, I manage a budget almost twice the size than the one Palin managed in Wasilla.

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    p>While I don’t have 20 months experience as a state governor, I am female, I have college and graduate degrees from two of the best universities in the country, and I have 13 years of experience in management in the financial services industry, which should give me real insight on the economy.  Plus my spouse has lived overseas, and I’ve travelled to Canada, Mexico and France, so I’m all set on foreign policy.

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    p>The only other experience I could possibly need is to join an evangelical church, and I’m sure I can find one in the area that is happy to take on new members.

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    p>I hope you’ll all be voting for me for VP in the future now that I know how to truly value my experience.

    • Can you give a rousing speech like Jimmy Swaggart or Joel Osteen? Were you the editor of your high school yearbook? Did you ever work at a soup kitchen? Can you write a book? Have you sat in a church and listened to racial remarks and anti-American rancor? If so, then go right for the top and challenge Obama for his position an skip the whole VP thing!!

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      p>Don’t concern yourself with never managing a budget. And if you can’t make a decision, don’t worry about that either since you can just vote “PRESENT” when it comes time for just about anything.

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      p>PS While it sounds like you have some experience with managing a budget, don’t concern yourself as no budget experience required.

      • They’ve given a lot of their lives to public service and fighting for policies that would benefit this country.  It would be hard for me to match Obama’s 12 years in public office with stints at both the state and federal levels, his legal education, and his experience teaching constitutional law.  I don’t think just anyone can write two best-sellers like Obama’s.  And having seen Obama speak in person four times, and numerous times on TV, I’m pretty sure I don’t have his gift for communicating directly and powerfully to an audience.  It’s an important skill for leaders in our media-driven times, so I’m not one to make light of that gift.

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        p>I like our Democratic ticket and having watched the tough-fought primary campaign, I’m pretty sure that a mere token like me wouldn’t have even made it out of Iowa.  

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        p>No, it’s the Republicans who seem to have a place for tokens – and for sellouts who have betrayed every one of their principles for a chance at power.  Just look at McCain: he’s running on lies about his own and his running mate’s record, he’s signed on to Bush’s irresponsible financial policies, he’s repudiated his own immigration bill, and he’s even voted to allow our intelligence services to torture people.  He cannot be trusted with our country’s future, and his pick of a right-wing nut job with no experience as his VP is just one more proof.

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        p>

  4. It’s governance. A completely different discipline.

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    p>This adolescent denigration of Palin because Wassilla isn’t large enough, or cosmopolitan enough, amuses me.

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    p>It is at once arrogantly petty and lazy, and it belies what I sense as a “quick, kill her in the crib” unease with the bona fides of their own candidate.  

    • I would only denigrate Palin because she lies.

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      p>About the bridge to no where.

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      p>About the Wooten issue.

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      p>She lies about the first repeatedly.

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      p>Both deserve ample quantities of denigration.

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      p>Any questions?

      • I’m not anxious about those issues, and I’m quite satisfied with the past week.

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        p>But thanks.

      • Palin lies while the Dems just “change positions”, Didn’t mean that” “voted for it before he was against it”. So… did Joe Biden vote for the going into Iraq (“Oh but we can explain that”). Don’t be disingenuous, not you KB. Sinking LOWER, Lower, lower…

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        p>Was Sarah for the bridge as mayor and against this bridge as a Gov?

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        p>Time will tell. I’m thinking you and others are getting a “little bit nervous” and Batman and Robin losing this race to McCain and Palin. Now we will see the true spirit of the Democratic party… viciousness, hypocrisy, smearing well basically all the things you accuse Republicans of (except you will be hypocrites doing it).

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        p>Lie is such a strong word, be careful Obama.

        • The AUMF vote in 2002 was not a vote to go into Iraq. Even the Bush Administration claimed that they’d be very reluctant to use force. Biden never voted to “go into Iraq”. There was no vote in March 2003 about “going into Iraq”.

          I use “lie” because it meets the two criteria:

          • She made statements on the bridge that are false.
          • She knows her statements on the bridge are false.

    • …just don’t tell me it has any relevance to her qualifications to be Vice President and possibly President, because it doesn’t.

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      p>Being a mayor of a town of 5000 people and getting into office on 600 votes is an honorable thing, but lets keep it in context. A Walmart manager, like the village of Wasilla, might be in charge of 53 employees and a budget of $6M. Good for the manager; there’s dignity in her work. But would I expect her in two years to jump from store manager to CEO of Microsoft? Hell no. Really, I don’t care if Palin was the best mayor of all US towns population 5,000 and smaller in the country. It’s not a fitting analog or proving ground for Vice President or President of the United States. There’s no comparison whatsoever that I can see.

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      p>If I’m wrong, I welcome evidence and arguments to the contrary.  

        • …no one is trying to say that Barack’s community organizer days is somehow a great qualification to be president. I fully admit that Obama’s days as an organizer are just as irrelevant as Palin’s days as mayor.

  5. With standards, we could eliminate or redcue much of this partisan banter.

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    p>To run for President…

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    p>- limit candidates to ONLY US Senators, US Congressmen and Governors.
    – Person must have 8+ years in above office.
    – Person must not be from any state with less than a 5 million population.
    – Candidate (if  a women) must not have any kids under 10 years of age.
    – Candidate (if  a women) must not have any pregnant children.
    – Candidate (if  a women) must not have more than 2 children.
    – Candidate cannot be over 70 years of age.
    – Candidate must produce amniotic fluid of children on request.

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    p>Did I miss any????

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