McCain as nominee, Palin as long ball

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, Sen. John McCain's feisty selection for vice president, gave a pointed and powerful speech the other night and demonstrated she will campaign vigorously for the Republican ticket in every corner of the county.

Beyond her brassy oratory, however, Palin remains a problem pick because of her thin public-service résumé compared to Sen. Barack Obama's veep. Sen. Joseph Biden knows Washington and foreign policy as well as anyone in the capital.

This is not an idle concern. It matters if Palin is versed in Iraq, Iran, Russia and the Middle East — and she is not. McCain is 72. She really is one heartbeat away.

The rule for vice presidents is much like a phrase often attributed to Hippocrates. First, do no harm. Palin's selection speaks volumes about McCain's erratic judgment and his campaign's ineffective vetting of an unknown governor of a small state.

McCain's acceptance of his party nomination Thursday night is part of a long journey for him, but it is painfully the first national journey for his running mate.

Palin's selection was a calculated move to lure Hillary Rodham Clinton voters. Palin all but said so herself. But those who were excited about Clinton shattering the glass ceiling will move away from Palin as they learn she opposes abortion in nearly every instance, including cases of rape and incest. She supports abortion only to save the life of the mother. That's a dramatic position for a lot of voters accustomed to decades of legalized, and safe, abortions.

Once the chatter fades about her skills hunting, fishing and field-dressing a moose, she will not bolster McCain's standing because her more relevant credentials are weak. She was for the overpriced Bridge to Nowhere, then later opposed it. She opposes congressional earmarks in the abstract. As mayor of tiny Wasilla and later as governor, she was a fan of earmarks.

Palin energizes the GOP base. But the truth is, she remains an unknown. Daily revelations about her do not help. Palin told ministry students at her former church that the U.S. sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a "task that is from God."

In her speech Wednesday, Palin ripped Obama in great fashion. She did not, however, tell a struggling middle class what specific relief the GOP would offer in health care and job creation.

McCain should not have thrown the long ball. He will need help as president. The GOP needs someone truly ready to step in and assume the presidency from day one. Palin is the wrong pick.