Sarah Palin Stumbles in Katie Couric Interview

During one of the most hectic newsdays in recent memory, the Sarah Palin and John McCain interviews on CBS News Wednesday, September 24, seemed to slide under the press' collective radar. Katie Couric's number three ranking among the regular news networks did not help and probably contributed more than it should have to the marginalization of the interviews. But coupled with the high drama of the $700 billion Wall Street bailout, McCain's sudden announcement that he would spend his campaign, and the president's speech about said bailout and the economic crisis facing the nation, it is easy to understand how Couric's interviews were momentarily sidelined.

In another time, this might have saved Sarah Palin and John McCain from some political embarrassment, been relegated to yesterday's news (literally), and faded into the archives of old newspapers and film morgues. But in the age of information, yesterday's news can have the relevancy of breaking news - accompanied with video and sound bites. What only a few saw, read, heard about, or accessed at the time of the event can become the biggest story of any succeeding day.

In essence, in the age of recorded information (and everything is recorded), what may have been missed or considered unimportant yesterday may become a topic of prominence today. What was once the province of investigation is now the province of democratic attention.

Katie Couric's interviews matter today. They have relevance today. And they are being seen and discussed by an ever-growing number of people today.

The McCain campaign undoubtedly would have it otherwise, if given a choice.

The Couric - Palin Interview

For instance, in her interview with Sarah Palin, Katie Couric asked if Rick Davis' involvement with both Freddie Mac and the McCain camp was a conflict of interests. Palin stumbled and fumbled an incoherent answer - twice - that basically said she did not know but did not think so. When asked about the $700 billion bailout, Palin pushed the the idea that there was great urgency, that something had to be done, to avert going down the road to another Great Depression. Palin stated that inaction was not an option. And when Couric asked for specifics on how Senator John McCain would reform Washington (one of the McCain-Palin stump messages) when he has been in Washington for 26 years and voted for deregulation (not regulation) nearly every time legislation to that effect surfaced, Palin convincingly pointed to McCain's reputation as a "maverick." Couric then pressed for specific incidences of McCain-led reform and Palin told her she would find some and bring them to her.

One can see why the McCain camp might want such a glowing and confidence-inspiring interview such as that to remain relegated to obscurity.

Baltimore Sun critic David Zurawik summed up Palin's performance accurately: "If ABC anchorman Charles Gibson showed Palin's limitations, Couric revealed the near-total lack of evidence behind the talking-point bromides and clichés Palin rattles off in TV interviews."

But it was not over. Katie Couric still had an interview with Senator McCain.

The Couric - McCain Interview

Couric asked Senator McCain how optimistic he was that an agreement on the bailout would be reached. McCain said: "I believe the options are so dire, and the consequences of failure to act, are that I believe we'll come to an agreement."

When confronted with the words of his running mate, Senator McCain did a bit of stumbling himself, ""I, I don't know if, if, if it's exactly the depression..." When pressed, McCain said that he did not think it was necessary to "scare people."

The Senator may have wanted to consider that point before he called his press conference and announced he was suspending his campaign to go to Washington and help with the passage of the bailout package. Couric addressed this issue at the beginning of the interview, asking if the step was really necessary. Senator McCain replied that the United States had entered the "most serious crisis since the end of World War II" and, on a follow-up question, stated "... this crisis is of such enormous proportions that it has the possibility, I don't think it's gonna, 'cause I think we're gonna act, but could have the possibility of wrecking the economy in ways that we've never contemplated."

But when confronted with Palin's words of "Great Depression," the Senator found reason to find them too descriptive. But using words like "dire," most serious crisis," and "this crisis is of such enormous proportions...could have the possibility of wrecking the economy in ways that we've never contemplated" is not.

Because there is no need to "scare people."

The McCain - Palin Interviews Promoting Fear, Political Posturing?

But scaring people is exactly what many are charging the McCain-Palin camp of doing - purposely. They are being charged with political posturing and promoting the politics of fear, fanning the flames of a worried nation needlessly. The suspension of the McCain campaign is being seen as mere political theatre, a distraction to curtail Senator McCain's recent slide in the polls.

Senator Obama has called for Friday night's debate to continue, even though Senator McCain asked that it be delayed so that he - and possibly Obama - could return to Washington and help with the bailout measure. Obama countered that he was in contact with Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and other financial and legislative leaders daily and was confident that if his (and implying Senator McCain's) help was needed, he/they would be summoned. He also said that the American people needed to hear what their prospective president has to say about the financial situation he would inherit in January.

Couric asked McCain if the suspension was a political maneuver. He replied: "Well, I don't think, at this time, that we can worry much about politics, Katie. I think the American people expect more of us."

Senator McCain seems to be of the opinion that the American people expect more of their politicians but they do not. American people want more and hope for more. They do not expect more. That is why the approval ratings of the president and the Congress are at record lows.

It must be noted that Katie Couric's skills as an incisive interviewer shone in these interviews. Her questions were fair, topical, and relevant. Senator McCain showed his political savvy, Washington seasoning, and professional poise in a tough interview. His running mate, however, did not.

And on a slower news day, Katie Couric's interviews would have been the news story of the day. Instead, they were passed over.

But in today's YouTube, TiVo world, yesterday's less important news beomes today's relevant news.

Much to the growing chagrin of John McCain and Sarah Palin.

Sources:

Baltimorsun.com
CBSNews.com