From the Mercury News:¹

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David Springer, an Intel program manager and a San Jose team leader for the McCain campaign, focused on Palin's credentials as a natural leader and a passionate reformer as Alaska's governor. He plays down the suggestion that McCain is using Palin to skim Clinton votes away from Obama.

"I suspect there's a part of that in there, but the choice for vice president is a lot more important than just picking a characteristic that'll swing a few voters," he said. "John is picking her as a natural successor. I don't think gender matters one way or another in how he made his choice."

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Perhaps Mr. Springer missed the recent attempt by Karl Rove to pre-marginalize Obama's Vice Presidential pick for a running mate. Mr. Rove tried to set the stage and dialogue for the Obama choice by using Governor Tim Kaine as an example, stating that he felt Obama would make a political choice and not a choice based on what would make a good Vice President or a potential President in the event the Veep was called upon to fill a vacancy.

Unfortunately for the McCain campaign, for Ms. Palin, for Mr. Springer and for Karl Rove, the video of that criticism is available online -- and applies perfectly to McCain's selection of Palin.

Back a few years ago I went Absolutely Livid, have many many.................... times from the first beat of the War Drums, this time while watching the CBS 'Face the Nation' sunday show. While the blood had rushed to my head I waited, impatiently, for the transcript to come up on their site. When it finally did, I quickly copied and pasted it to an e-mail and sent it out, but that didn't quell the Absolute Rage.

Back in a day not too long ago, Bob Schieffer was one of two remaining television journalists with a hint of spine (the other being Keith Olberman). Every other TV news head in America was afraid of making Condoleezza Rice cry on camera and was just plain afraid of Donald Rumsfeld, but not Schieffer. Schieffer once snapped "let me just ask you to answer the question" at Condi and growled at Rummy, "Well, you really have not directly answered that question, if I may say so, Mr. Secretary."

I don't know what ever happened to that Bob Schieffer, but he was nowhere to be found on last Sunday's Face the Nation McCain campaign ad featuring Joe Lieberman. Last Sunday's Bob Schieffer was Tim Russert reincarnate.