Sarah Palin's Latest Interview Mistakes and Gaffs

In a recent interview with journalist John Ziegler, Sarah Palin questioned how the media is treating Caroline Kennedy. She stated that she wondered if they will treat Caroline Kennedy differently than they treated her while she was John McCain's running mate. My opinion is, yes and no. Both women have been under intense scrutiny and experienced their share of criticism, it's true, but perhaps the press did examine Sarah Palin more closely.

The reason for that is not a bias against Sarah Palin, but rather because she was going to be one heart beat away from the presidency. John McCain has survived cancer multiple times and is 72 years old. There was a possibility that Sarah Palin would become President of the United States. As a junior senator, Caroline Kennedy would not be in a position to take control of the white house and be commander in chief of the most powerful army on earth. Kennedy, however, has not fared well with the press, either.

There is another good reason that Sarah Palin may have attracted more attention, we didn't know her. Caroline Kennedy grew up in front of us and we know the Kennedy clan well. What did any of us know of Sarah Palin? She was applying for the most important job in the country so the interviewing process was going to be tough, even grueling.

Her shucks, golly, what's all the fuss attitude, is just an indication that she is either a. disingenuous or b. really naive. Either of those two choices is not a good one for the person who would be our leader.

To make matters worse, she is now blaming the McCain campaign for her disastrous interviews with Katie Couric, stating that she knew the first interview didn't go well so she didn't want to go back, but that they made her do more interviews and that was a mistake.

Here is why they wanted you to go back, Mrs. Palin, they wanted you to redeem yourself in front of the voters. They wanted you to salvage what you could of your image. That's big time, big league politics. You can't just go hide under a rock when an interview on national television doesn't go well. You blew the first interview, but seeing as how it was your first we could have forgiven you for that. But you needed to prepare yourself and get back in front of the cameras and show us that you had what it takes.

John McCain is a fighter and doesn't give up. It is one of his admirable traits that has earned him respect. We wanted to see the same thing in you. There are still people in this country that think a woman can't be strong enough to be president. It is unfortunate, but true. We wanted to see the same toughness and tenacity we saw in him shining through in you. That is why they wanted you to get back in front of the camera.

I can guarantee that the campaign strategists weren't happy about that choice, either, but they had no choice. The fact that you are now whining about it and also blaming Katie Couric and the media is proof that the voters made the right choice.

The media isn't picking on you. There have been times in the past when the vice presidential candidate got a lot of scrutiny because he was inexperienced and unknown. Dan Quayle and Richard Nixon are two notable examples.

You stated that if you had been running as a Democrat the situation would have been different. Do you have any idea of what the Republican party would have done with you and to you?

The more you whine and try to shift the blame on other people, the more you ruin any chances you had for a career in national politics. If you had just sucked it up and had been gracious in defeat, admitting you made some mistakes and vowing to do a better job the next time, the country would have embraced you, but you are just alienating people.

Many of us have been in a situation when we got a new job or tried something that was more than we were ready for and made mistakes or perhaps even failed. That's life and we understand it. When that happens you have choices.

Most of us have had no choice but to get back on our feet, admit our mistakes and then get back in there and try again. If we are smart enough to learn from our mistakes then we usually do a better job and people respect us for our tenacity and determination. Dare I say, that is the American Way? Whining and blaming other's is just going to alienate people. It smacks of Richard Nixon's famous line, "You won't have Richard Nixon to kick around anymore."

As much as we don't like quitters, we also don't like people who won't take responsibility for their own actions and mistakes. No one expected you to be perfect. You're human and it was your first shot at national politics. Many people were routing for you and forgave you your missteps. What you have shown us since then has brought a sigh of relief from many who realize that the country made the right choice in November, 2008.

Caroline Kennedy will reveal a lot about her true character after her interviews and her attempt to become a senator, just as Sarah Palin has revealed her own true character after her attempt to be Vice President of the United States.