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05 Mar 2012 19:48

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Politics: Three conversation-starting moments from HBO’s “Game Change”

  • oneAides realize early on that Sarah Palin, John McCain’s running mate, will have to learn a lot about history and current events to keep up in the public spotlight. When asked if she needed to take a break, she declined, saying “this is flippin’ awesome!”
  • two “I am not your puppet! You have ruined my reputation! I am ruined in Alaska,” Palin said in a meltdown over the phone due to when Nicole Wallace, a campaign press guru, pushed a series of talking points on the vice-presidential candidate.
  • three Near the end of the campaign, when Palin was a “loose cannon” and had a “swelling ego,” she told McCain: “We have to win this thing — I so don’t wanna go back to Alaska!” Despite this, Palin returned to her job for nearly a year after the election. source
  • » Sure to stir presidential emotions: The made-for-TV movie regarding the “rise of Sarah Palin” airs March 10. Though HBO claimed the movie is a “balanced portrayal” of events, Palin’s Super PAC has already labeled the movie “fact change.” Which may be true. “Game Change” may have taken some dramatic liberties from the book, but you’ll be the judge of that.
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Feb 2012 19:05

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Politics: Is Sarah Palin a master of girl-who-cried-wolfing presidential elections?

  • I cannot predict what will happen in the future, but I know that I have got the fire in my belly to try to help, to try to make a difference and if that involves running for public office at some point in the future, I’m game for that.
  • Fox News analyst Sarah Palin • Continuing her long-running game of chicken with the idea of a future run for public office. Palin did not fully deny that she would jump into the presidential race if necessary. Sarah Palin may not be running for president, but she’s not entirely opposed to the idea either. In an interview Wednesday, she noted that she would “do whatever I could to help” in case the Republican party does not have a clear frontrunner by this summer.  source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

10 Jan 2012 13:39

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Politics: Todd Palin gives his opinion, but does anyone actually care?

  • Our guess is: not likely. Ever wanted to know who Todd Palin is giving his political support to? We didn’t think so. Although his wife still hasn’t announced who she’ll endorse in the 2012 election, Todd is banking on Newt Gingrich. Great? Sarah said that she’s “still in that process with probably 70 percent of Americans trying to decide.” Great. source
Posted by samimain • 0 Comments • Permalink

03 Jan 2012 10:53

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Politics: Iowa Caucuses: Michele Bachmann defends herself to voters in long-shot bid

  • I hope that people will go to the polls and forget all the media people that say this one can’t go on or that one doesn’t have the money, because this is the process, and if we don’t let the process happen — I just think it’s so unfair and I hope that people will vote their conscience.
  • Michele Bachmann • Offering a strong defense of letting people make up their own minds in Iowa. Bachmann is banking on such sentiment — she’s far behind her rivals in the polls and even longtime supporters, like Sarah Palin, are suggesting she quit the race. In related good timing, Bachmann dropped this line in reference to Margaret Thatcher, currently the subject of a Meryl Streep biopic: “My goal is to be America’s iron lady.” Would she make a good Iron Lady for the U.S.? Do Americans need one of those? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Nov 2011 15:12

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Politics: “Conservatives4Palin” just can’t let go of their Palin dream

  • Not taking the hint: Regardless of your opinion of Sarah Palin, that she inspires her core supporters cannot be denied (Mitt Romney wishes he were so lucky). After announcing she wouldn’t run for president, following months of touring about on a campaign-style bus and giving fiery speeches in early primary states, one might expect a mass exodus of support. Having left her job as governor of Alaska, then subsequently pocketing millions in donations that people no doubt expected to fuel a presidential run, even an ardent fan would have reason to balk. Not “Conservatives4Palin,” though; they bought time for this ad urging Palin to run, spending more of their passion and money in service of a person who seems to care only about the latter. source
Posted by Chris Tognotti • 0 Comments • Permalink

05 Oct 2011 10:53

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Politics: Three fairly edgy things Roger Ailes said in his AP interview

  • one On networks that criticize Fox News: “Everybody who’s getting their ass beat vilifies the opponent. This is the first rule of fighting.” Boom.
  • two On an anchor he thinks does it wrong: “Wolf Blitzer is an excellent reporter, but he’s not a star.” He says his back is to the camera too much.
  • three And the coup de grace, on one of his most notable hires: “I hired Sarah Palin because she was hot and got ratings.” Whew. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

14 Sep 2011 20:57

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Politics: The three craziest claims from Joe McGinniss’ Sarah Palin book

  • one According to a recap of the book by the National Enquirer, Sarah Palin was a former cocaine user, most notably during a snowmobiling trip.
  • two The book also repeats the claim the Palin had an affair in the mid-90s with one of her husband’s friends. She’s already denied this.
  • three Most shockingly, the book claims that Palin had a one-night stand — prior to her marriage — with former NBA star Glen Rice. WTF?! source
  • » Wait, is this stuff actually true?! Well, that depends on if you believe Joe McGinniss, the best-selling author of “The Selling of the President 1968.” McGinniss is no stranger to controversy, and he certainly wasn’t when writing this book — see, he moved to Alaska, within shouting distance of the former vice-presidential candidate, leading to rebukes from Palin’s staff. It will be interesting to see what happens when people besides Garry Trudeau get the book.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

14 Sep 2011 11:26

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Politics: Chicago Tribune cartoonist torn on paper’s decision to pass on “Doonesbury”

  • As you might guess I am torn. On the one hand I understand their reasoning. They did the same thing to my comic strip Prickly City a few years back in a series on Ted Kennedy. This was before I was on staff here. So this is not a new policy aimed squarely at liberal comic strips as has been suggested. On the other hand, it ticked me off when it happened to me. As a creator you never want your work stiflied. You know that.
  • Chicago Tribune cartoonist Scott Stantis • Discussing his paper’s decision to pass on running a week of Doonesbury strips that openly cite passages from a biography on Sarah Palin — “The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin,” an unauthorized tome written by Joe McGinniss. The Tribune’s reasoning for skipping out on the strip this week is reasonable — the book isn’t on the market yet, so they can’t check it on their own — but nonetheless has ruffled a few feathers. Stantis’ take, of course, is interesting. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 Jul 2011 21:49

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Politics: Box office: Sarah Palin documentary not showing long-term staying power

  • 63% the 2nd week box-office dip for “The Undefeated” source
  • » Not showing staying power: While the Sarah Palin documentary didn’t suffer the steepest dip this weekend (that honor goes to the final “Harry Potter” film, which didn’t even score two consecutive weeks at the top of the box office), it didn’t show the growth that many slow-rollout films often do. For a small release like “The Undefeated,” though (which actually expanded its theater count slightly, but has only made roughly $100,000 during its two-week run), that’s not very good for its long-term prospects — nor was its $1,714 per-screen count. You know what would be? If Sarah Palin announces a presidential run. (h/t ohheybill)
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

17 Jul 2011 19:45

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Politics: Sarah Palin’s “The Undefeated” loses its throne right away

  • $169M the amount Harry Potter’s final film made — the biggest single weekend gross ever, BTW, but one that was very front-loaded
  • $75k the amount Palin’s “The Undefeated” made this weekend in 10 theaters (roughly — see, the distributor didn’t report exact estimates)
  • .04% share of Palin’s box-office take to Harry Potter’s take, which is like comparing an ant to an elephant, but still pretty fun source
  • » A huge amount of spin here: ARC Entertainment threw out a press release today claiming that “The Undefeated” actually did quite well amid adversity.  “We expect word-of-mouth to keep ticket sales strong and we will definitely expand the film to a wider national audience,” said  Trevor Drinkwater, the distributor’s CEO. “With merely three weeks of preparation and a virtually non-existent traditional advertising spend, the film did exceptionally well.” The distributor also noted that the film did the kind of business a film would normally require millions in advertising for. Which, let’s put it simply, isn’t true. Two fairly low-budget films this weekend — Errol Morris’ “Tabloid” and the poorly-reviewed “Snow Flower and the Secret Fan” — still managed to have larger grosses than Palin’s film despite the fact that all three films showed in less than 30 theaters. And on top of that, the movie has gotten plenty of traditional media coverage in part due to its star. A dud is a dud. Sorry.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
 
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