Style over substance

Sarah Palin's handlers, realizing that the VP nominee is very likely to reveal her gross inexperience and utter lack of qualification for office if exposed to close scrutiny, are sequestering her from the public and the media -- a fact which today's Miami Herald finds outrageous:

If any of the Republican or Democratic presidential candidates had refused to talk to voters or media during the recent primary contests the way vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin has done in recent days, they would have been dismissed immediately from serious consideration. Not talk to voters while seeking the second-highest public office in the country? Preposterous!

Yet, amazingly, this is the position that John McCain and Ms. Palin have taken as they campaign together following Ms. Palin's popular acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention. After a rally this week in Lancaster, Pa., some of Ms. Palin's supporters waited outside for her. "Speech! Speech!" they shouted, hoping she would take the podium as Mr. McCain had just done. Ms. Palin smiled, shook a few hands and left. Requests for interviews by radio, television and newspaper journalists have been met with the same cold shoulder.

A McCain campaign spokesman said that Ms. Palin would "agree to an interview when we think it's time and when she feels she's comfortable doing it." Really? If Ms. Palin isn't ready for prime time, ready to talk with people she is asking to vote for her or to discuss the tough issues facing the country, then one has to wonder if she's ready to be vice president.

Meanwhile, what's the latest buzz making the news about the candidate? Is it her position on energy matters, the environment, foreign policy, or any other major issues? No. It's her designer glasses.

In-freaking-credible.