Now that I'm over outrage (well, not quite), Sarah Palin ultimately doesn't matter.
McCain chose her to help him win an election. He's counting on women being foolish enough to vote for a woman just because she's a woman, and there are women (PUMAs) who will do just that. Palin is not breaking the glass ceiling. She's being used. The republicans are also hoping that the pundits will play into their hands and write the: Obama should've picked Hillary story. Divide. Divide. Divide.
He'll also get the person who votes solely on abortion and if McCain makes it to office, the vice presidency will become the most overpaid office in the country. It will be the office of public relations. Palin, who was Miss Congeniality, will attend funerals and eat moose burgers with foreign leaders. Republicans don't believe in government anyway.
Meanwhile, McCain's cabinet will be there for starting wars and staring down Putin and such.
So Palin is insignificant. She's a token, a tool. McCain is using a woman for political gain. How sad.
That's not to say that she doesn't do a good job running Alaska, where they have problems like shooting moose without a permit. But Alaska to vice president is a giant leap, an obvious pander.
Joe Biden, however, adds heft to the Obama ticket. The democratic ticket now has more experience than the republican ticket.
In an Obama administration, the vice presidency would be an important position. Biden will help Obama govern and his talents would be used. Obama's greatest strength is leadership-- underestimated in this election-- and as far as I can tell, he's surrounded himself with talented and brilliant people.
But you really have to give republicans credit. They are masterful campaigners. We'll see if that beats Obama's ground campaign.