JOHN McCain's aides unceremoniously tipped the bucket on Sarah Palin yesterday, portraying her and her family as Alaskan "hillbillies" while it was revealed that the controversial vice-presidential candidate thought Africa was a country.
The Australian wrote:
Recriminations are inevitable after an electoral failure this grand, but even so, Senator McCain's senior staff -- looking to deflect blame -- went for the jugular, telling journalists in off-the-record briefings that Ms Palin, whom they had already characterised as a rogue diva, spent more than the reported $US150,000 ($216,000) on clothes, shoes and jewellery for herself and her family.
The Australian wrote:
Fox News reporter Carl Cameron disclosed yesterday that McCain insiders told him during the campaign that Ms Palin could not name any of the three countries that form the North American Free Trade Agreement -- the US, Mexico and Canada -- and did not know that Africa was a continent and not a country.
Looks like the Blame Game has started, and despite John McCains best efforts to be gracious and take the blame for the election loss onto himself, his Senior Staff have other ideas. This will completely kill off any chance of Palin 2012 happening.The Australian wrote:
The merciless attack on Ms Palin -- who aides said was also given to frequent "temper tantrums" -- comes in retaliation for what McCain's staff considered a treasonous act by Ms Palin's team in the final weeks of the campaign.
McCain aides believe Ms Palin decided to look after her own political image -- she has her eyes set on the 2012 presidential campaign -- by leaking to the media that she had been "mishandled" by McCain's campaign -- particularly Ms Wallace and chief strategist Steve Schmidt -- in the disastrous interview she did with newsreader Katie Couric. The media in turn lapped up the story of a campaign unravelling, distracting Senator McCain's campaign.
