Tim Pawlenty on Meet the Press

I don't think Tom Brokaw did a lot of preparation for his interview with Tim Pawlenty on Meet the Press yesterday.

Brokaw simply parroted the Democrats' talking points.

Transcript excerpt:

MR. BROKAW: Let's share with our viewers and with you as well an editorial in the Fairbanks Alaska Daily News-Miner. "[Palin] has never publicly demonstrated the kind of interest, much less expertise, in federal issues and foreign affairs that should mark a candidate for the second-highest office in the land. Republicans rightfully have criticized the Democratic nominee, Senator Barack Obama, for his lack of experience, but Palin is a neophyte in comparison; how will Republicans reconcile the criticism of Obama with the obligatory cheering for Palin?

"Most people would acknowledge that, regardless of her charm and good intentions, Palin is not ready for the top job. McCain seems to have put his political interests ahead of the nation's when he created the possibility that she might fill it. It's clear that McCain picked Palin for reasons of image, not substance."

Same question raised by your hometown newspaper, The Minneapolis Tribune. "McCain surprises, but is Palin ready?" Fay Palin, her mother-in-law, in Alaska, said, "She enjoys hearing Barack Obama's speech. She still has not decided which way she'll vote." Then she went on to say, "I'm not sure what she brings to the ticket other than that she's a woman and a conservative." So there are substantial questions that remain out there.

GOV. PAWLENTY: Well, in fairness to Governor Palin, let's do the same analysis as to Senator Obama. He's basically graduated from law school, went on to be a community organizer and a law professor, went to the U.S. Senate and began running for president, essentially, the day he arrived. So he didn't even stick around in the Senate very long before he began running for governor. So what it is in his background, Tom, that would give him that same type of requisite wisdom and judgment and insight on national security matters or foreign affairs matter or anything else? But importantly, Senator--or Governor Palin is an executive. She has--during that time that he's been running for president, she's been running a large enterprise of the state of Alaska successfully as an executive, as commander in chief of the Alaska National Guard, and by all accounts, somebody who's formidable on policy, who's smart, and basically has guts and grit because of her background, and can relate to people.

MR. BROKAW: And people who have looked Alaska--at Alaska and her executive experience have pointed out, it's a small state and gets most of its money from oil revenue.

GOV. PAWLENTY: Well, it's...

MR. BROKAW: It doesn't have the same kind of tough choices that you have to make here in Minnesota, even.

GOV. PAWLENTY: It's bigger than the enterprise that Barack Obama worked for as a staffer in Chicago.

That mother-in-law line is priceless.

Palin's mother-in-law says that she's "not sure what she brings to the ticket other than that she's a woman and a conservative."

I'm not sure what qualifications Palin's mother-in-law brings to the discussion other than that she's Palin's mother-in-law.

So what?

I don't put a lot of credence in a mother-in-law's endorsement.

I think Pawlenty handled Brokaw's slam on Palin's office in Alaska very well.

Libs all over keep spewing that same talking point -- being governor of Alaska isn't very challegning. In terms of population it's a small state.

Pawlenty's response that "It's bigger than the enterprise that Barack Obama worked for as a staffer in Chicago" was excellent. It's true.

People should think twice before they go after Palin's experience. It opens the door to reveal presidential candidate Obama's incredible inadequacies.

And aren't people from states with smaller populations getting a bit fed up with all this Alaska bashing? I'm getting sick of it.

If a politician should be judged by the population of the state he or she represents, then Hillary Clinton of New York was definitely more qualified to be president than Barack Obama of Illinois.

The populations of Delaware (0.28% of the total U.S population) and Alaska (0.22%)aren't significantly different.