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David Frum Gets It
The Daily Dish | By Andrew Sullivan — Not every Republican is in denial about what happened today. A must-read.

Quote of the day
Hot Air » Top Picks — ... “Here’s I fear the worst harm that may be done by this selection. The McCain campaign’s slogan is ‘country first.’ It’s a good slogan, and it aptly describes John McCain, one of the most self-sacrificing, gallant, and honorable men ever to seek the presidency. But question: If it were your decision, and you were putting your country first, would you put an untested small-town mayor a heartbeat away from the presidency?”

Echoes of Harriet
Talking Points Memo — ... David Frum: "It's a wild gamble, undertaken by our oldest ever first-time candidate for president in hopes of changing the board of this election campaign. Maybe it will work. But maybe (and at least as likely) it will reinforce a theme that I'd be pounding home if I were the Obama campaign: that it's John McCain for all his white hair who represents the risky choice, while it is Barack Obama who offers cautious, steady, predictable governance." ...

Quote of the Day
Taegan Goddard's Political Wire — "It's a wild gamble, undertaken by our oldest ever first-time candidate for president in hopes of changing the board of this election campaign. Maybe it will work. But maybe (and at least as likely) it will reinforce a theme that I'd be pounding home if I were the Obama campaign: that it's John McCain for all his white hair who represents the risky choice, while it is Barack Obama who offers cautious, steady, predictable governance." -- Former Bush speechwriter David Frum

The GOP is Just Waking Up from Their Alaskan Pale Ale Party
Hoffmania! — ... And they don't like what they've done. Frum...yes, FRUM needs someone to tell him why it's all right. We get the feeling there's going to be a lot of this today. ...

What Kind Of Vetting Process Did McCain Use?
Crooks and Liars — As far as I can tell, the only people excited about McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin for the Vice Presidency are the Religious Rights and those paid to cheerlead anything Republicans do, like Sean Hannity.  Mitt Romney and Tim Pawlenty feel used and abused.  Conservatives like Kathryn Lopez and David Frum think it’s a mistake.  Rove openly pushed Romney and discouraged McCain from considering Lieberman.  James Dobson, in stark contrast, is dancing in the aisles.  So was it the Religious Right ...

Gunslinger
Swampland — ... much about Palin, either. He met her once in February. He interviewed her as part of the vetting process...and that's it. He never worked with her. (It should be noted that when Walter Mondale picked Geraldine Ferraro in 1984, House Speaker Tip O'Neill, who had worked with Ferraro, was not only vouching for her, but raving about her.) All this raises again--yet again--the question of whether McCain is temperamentally suited for the presidency. As the conservative David Frum writes: ...

The right offers some reviews
Political Animal — ... called it "tokenism," adding, "Can anyone say with a straight face that Palin would have gotten picked if she were a man?" * David Frum : "The longer I think about it, the less well this selection sits with me. And I increasingly doubt that it will prove good politics. The Palin choice looks cynical.... It's a wild gamble, undertaken by our oldest ever first-time candidate for president in hopes of changing the board of this election campaign. Maybe it will work. But maybe (and at least as likely) it will reinforce a theme that I'd be pounding home if I were the Obama ...

David Frum and Joe Klein Agree: McCain is the Risky Choice
Angry Bear — ... she may turn out to be a invigorating public presence, with the ability to learn fast (she's going to have to do the latter). The problem is, there is absolutely no way on earth that John McCain can know what sort of person she really is, which is why this choice--his first major presidential decision--should be a matter of real concern for all Americans. He has proven himself, yet again, ready on day one--to shoot from the hip. Klein notes us that conservative David Frum had a similar reaction: The longer I think about it, the less well ...

Your Abbreviated Pundit Round-up
Daily Kos — ... to imagine Palin playing the same sort of role that modern Vice Presidents like Gore, Bush, Cheney, or Mondale played.  Rather, the Office would seem poised to return to the "proverbial warm bucket of p***" category.  McCain has thus made a purely political play without regard for the governance concerns.  And how could he really have a good idea of how she would govern?  My understanding is that he only met with her once before choosing her. David Frum: If it were your decision, and you were putting your country ...

alicublog — ... pages --have decided to defend their own long-term prospects as such by complaining about the decision to nominate Palin. ...

The readiness question
Betsy's Page — Sunday, August 31, 2008 The readiness question Having been out of it for the past day and a half with a reaction to a new medicine I haven't had much energy for doing anything more than cruising around the web and reading reactions to McCain's pick of Governor Palin to be his running mate. Several conservatives from David Frum to ...

Frum Gets Email.
Blah3 Feed — In case you haven't heard, renowned conservative speechwriter David Frum came out early and vociferously against McCain's choice of Sarah Palin. I decided to check in on his blog, and it looks like he's got some conservatives who ...

Country First
Political Animal — ... country first or Obama first." I'm certainly not in the habit of giving the McCain campaign advice, but I feel compelled to point out how truly vacuous this is as a slogan. The problem isn't just that the motto is cheap and misleading -- though it is cheap and misleading -- it's that the motto isn't even persuasive. Truth be told, McCain pretty much forfeited the whole "country first" line on Aug. 29, in Ohio, when he introduced Sarah Palin as his running mate. Conservative writer David Frum wrote at the National Review that "country first" is a "good slogan," but added, ...

Camille Paglia's losing her mind
Nitpicker — ... for months, has a record indistinguishable from Palin's. Whatever knowledge deficit Palin has about the federal bureaucracy or international affairs (outside the normal purview of governors) will hopefully be remedied during the next eight years of the Obama presidencies.First, if "worn-out partisan dogma" is responsible for people suggesting Sarah Palin isn't qualified to be president, then how does that explain the views of the many, many, many, many, many conservative Republicans who expressed a similar belief? In the days ...

When Conservatives Go Bad: Bashing Limbaugh to Sell Books
Politics Daily — ... We've seen this before. A neo-conservative luminary says something critical about conservatism, is showered by adulation by the liberal press, finds that he likes it and tries to springboard the criticism to launch a bigger career. In David Frum's case, this was started with his criticism of Sarah Palin, but ...