72?? Or 73?? :D heh

Michale

I bet people in San Bernardino and Paris ALSO support screen muslims before they enter the country..

I also bet that if anyone here had lost loved ones to muslim terrorism, you would ALSO support screening muslims before they enter the country...

Am I wrong??

Of course I am not wrong...

Michale

Trumps PLAN is to have our military act as terrorists,

For example??

Please include with your answer your definition of 'terrorism'...

! No one has a working plan on what we should do to stop terrorism....

I completely agree.. Obama's plan is NOT WORKING...

We are in complete agreement..

The fact is that there will never be a way to end extremists from committing these acts that will come from any military body. It will only come when people feel that they are a part of their society.

Ahhhh.. So we should HUG them and welcome them with open arms.. THAT is your way to stop terrorism??? REALLY???

Republicans' call to bar Muslims from entering our country and to patrol Muslim neighborhoods only serves to fuel people's disdain for their community.

There is no Republican call to bar muslims from entering our country..

But why let FACTS intrude on a good hysterical rant...

Their reaction to these acts won't protect us from terrorism, it only serves to cause more acts of terrorism.

So, you think their terrorism is justified because some people are mean to muslims...

Gotcha.... :^/

Michale

Trumps PLAN is to have our military act as terrorists, which doesn't stop terrorism! No one has a working plan on what we should do to stop terrorism....if they did we would not still be dealing with ISIS. The fact is that there will never be a way to end extremists from committing these acts that will come from any military body. It will only come when people feel that they are a part of their society. Republicans' call to bar Muslims from entering our country and to patrol Muslim neighborhoods only serves to fuel people's disdain for their community. Their reaction to these acts won't protect us from terrorism, it only serves to cause more acts of terrorism.

Trumps PLAN is to have our military act as terrorists, which doesn't stop terrorism! No one has a working plan on what we should do to stop terrorism....if they did we would not still be dealing with ISIS. The fact is that there will never be a way to end extremists from committing these acts that will come from any military body. It will only come when people feel that they are a part of their society. Republicans' call to bar Muslims from entering our country and to patrol Muslim neighborhoods only serves to fuel people's disdain for their community. Their reaction to these acts won't protect us from terrorism, it only serves to cause more acts of terrorism.

How many more?
That’s all I could think this morning as news broke of yet another ISIS terror attack, this time in Brussels.
How many more innocent men, women and children are going to be blown to pieces by these murderous bastards?
How many more airports, train stations, sports stadiums, restaurants or concert halls will be obliterated in a hail of suicide bombs and bullets?
How many more world leaders will wring their hands on national television afterwards and spout pointless platitudes about the ‘poor brave victims’ and ‘heroic emergency services’?
How many taunting, gleeful claims of responsibility will the despicable perpetrators of these evil crimes be able to issue?
I’m sick of this, aren’t you?
Sick of feeling sick about such endless, senseless barbarism.
And the worst thing about it is that I see no end.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3504893/PIERS-MORGAN-comes-terror-isn-t-time-started-listening-seriously-Trump.html

He may be a moron on Gun Control but he sure gets responding to terrorism..

Newsflash for the Left Wingery... TALKING to terrorists NEVER works and invites more terrorism...

Trump is the ONLY candidate with an actual PLAN for dealing with ISIS.. Hillary's "plan" is nothing more than a continuation of Obama's so-called plan...

A plan that has REALLY worked so far.. :^/ As San Bernardino, Paris and Brussels how well.. :^/

Michale

It's funny... :D

Wow.. I musta been tired last night..

Let me try again...

=================
I just love watching ya'all go batshit hysterical crazy over Trump...

Ya'all remind me of those batshit hysterical crazy RIGHT Wingers who pounced on ANYTHING about Obama that was even slightly detrimental, no matter HOW far-fetched and crazy it is..

I get it. Ya'all WANT to believe that Trump is Hitler reincarnated.... :D

It's funny... :D
=============

There.. Makes much more sense now..

Michale

I just love watching ya'all go batshit hysterical crazy over Trump...

Ya'all remind me of those batshit hysterical crazy LEFT Wingers who pounced on ANYTHING that was detrimental, no matter HOW far-fetched and crazy it is..

I get it. Ya'all WANT to believe.. :D

It's funny... :D

"That's real funny to me... Heh But ya'all ain't laughin'.."
-James Edwards, MEN IN BLACK

:D

Michale

http://www.vox.com/2016/3/1/11127424/trump-authoritarianism

Let's do a deal - we'll get rid of the 2nd and 4th amendments, then see which we actually miss.

"Officer-level thinking, Lieutenant."
-Captain James T. Kirk

Good luck.. Let me know how that works out for you.. :D

Michale

Drumpf is all about his brand. I think he knows that his groupies are size queens.

Want a good laugh?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/03/21/the-most-baffling-moments-from-donald-trumps-washington-post-ed-board-interview/?tid=hybrid_collaborative_3_na

Talk about a delicate ego? Trump just can't let the 'hands' thing go. You start to wonder, doth the small handed vulgarian protest too much?

I used to have one...but then i switched to using the calendar on my smart phone...

"I don't use teleprompters," he said in January, criticizing Hillary Clinton for using one.

Actually, I think he criticized her for that just yesterday. I can't be sure because I'm really not fluent in Palinese and when cancervatives say teleprompter it seems a lot like they're saying Benghazi!™, utterly meaningless and hypocritical gibberish that signifies membership in the poorly-educated, low-info tribe.

Here's what he said:

here's a woman that's talk she's just reading it of a teleprompter all she does believe me they write that for her look at the job she probably in history although I think that John Kerry may be even worse I'm not sure after the Iran deal but look at what she's done

Then get rid of the 2nd Amendment and you can have your gun ban in the US... :D

The comparison falls short however... Letting people in on my Aunt Matilda's Cookie Recipe doesn't threaten my life..

Me going about unarmed does...

Michale

How valuable are your gun rights? Australia has proven that strong gun laws eliminate multi-death shootings and has a positive effect on suicides as well.

How hard is that??

Apparently it was hard to be grammatically correct.. :)

MY personal privacy is not worth a thousand innocent lives, a hundred innocent lives or even ONE SINGLE INNOCENT LIFE..

Michale

But less than 10,000 of those deaths are actual gun violence.. The bulk of your quote are suicides that have little to do with guns....

I am all for sensible gun control laws that ACTUALLY address the issue of gun violence..

The problem is that ANYTHING the Democrats have come up with, short of a gun ban, are nothing but WOULDN'T IT BE NICE laws that have absolutely NOTHING to do with combating the problem..

The ONLY thing ya'all have that will actually have an impact is a gun ban...

Good luck with that...

Michale

Considering we are in an election year... I would say the answer is self-evident... :D

Michale

Perhaps.. For those that want to push an agenda..

For a knuckle-dragging ground pounder like me, the argument is simple..

Is MY personal privacy is not worth a thousand innocent lives, a hundred innocent lives or even ONE SINGLE INNOCENT LIFE..

How hard is that??

This will seem like left wing whining to Michale, so let's balance it up. We also have seen a spectacular cultural change in gay rights and acceptance, and it is a lot easier to smoke weed not that 15 years ago.

Shows the difference in our outlook.. You think the fact that it's easier to do drugs is a GOOD thing.. :^/

I don't...

So Michale, the next time you insist that I put myself in the place of the family of people killed in a terrorist attack, tell me how you feel after you have put yourself in the place of 1,000 families killed by firearms. Otherwise let's agree to stop the convenient guilt argument.

You are comparing apples and oranguatans...

In the case of terrorist attacks, MY suggestions WILL save lives..

In the case of gun control, the laws suggested by the Left Wingery in response will have absolutely NO EFFECT on gun violence and amount to nothing but WOULDN'T IT BE NICE laws..

Michale

Forget how to read? Quite a few facts in there if you put on your reading cap...

Your arguments consist of "Oh My GODS, think of the privacy!!!" and "Oh my gods, think of the corporate profits!!!!"...

And yet the only time the words: privacy, corporate or profits appear in my posts are when I have quoted you.

Where my arguments are a calm and rational assessment of the very real threats that this country faces...

Doublethink?

Completely clueless and totally devoid of any reality..

Yawn...

We need to empower law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighborhoods before they become radicalized. - Ted Cruz 3/22/16

Ted is determined to build barriers between the Muslim community so he can pretend he is doing something, even though it is the exact opposite of what we know works best. Why is this fool running second in the Republican presidential race?

Heaven only knows what Trump's suggestion will be - nuke Dearborn, MI?

Actually, that is EXACTLY what is being argued.. You are only looking at the ONE aspect of the argument that supports your agenda..

Does everyone here have an "agenda"?

We have been subject to a fifteen years of weaker gun control so gun manufacturers can sell more weapons (to fewer and fewer people), and at the same time our privacy rights have been weakened by e.g. the Patriot Act.

This will seem like left wing whining to Michale, so let's balance it up. We also have seen a spectacular cultural change in gay rights and acceptance, and it is a lot easier to smoke weed not that 15 years ago.

You win some, you lose some. Personally, given that guns are involved in 30,000 U.S. deaths per year, and terrorism is involved in less than 30, I think the urgency to stop nuts from killing school kids is more important than letting the FBI look at my phone.

So Michale, the next time you insist that I put myself in the place of the family of people killed in a terrorist attack, tell me how you feel after you have put yourself in the place of 1,000 families killed by firearms. Otherwise let's agree to stop the convenient guilt argument.

Who said I don't want to do anything about gun control???

The problem is, what the Democrats propose is NOT "gun control"... NONE of the proposals would have ANY affect on the crimes that prompted the proposals...

They are nothing but "WOULDN'T IT BE NICE" laws that, once again, have nothing to do with the reality on the ground..

You want to do something about dead kids at elementary schools??? Put people in there that can stop it... Duh...

Michale

Says the guy who has NOTHING but emotional and hysterical arguments with NO facts whatsoever..

Your arguments consist of "Oh My GODS, think of the privacy!!!" and "Oh my gods, think of the corporate profits!!!!"...

Where my arguments are a calm and rational assessment of the very real threats that this country faces...

Your arguments are Sept 10th 2001 arguments...

Your arguments are March 21 2016 arguments..

Completely clueless and totally devoid of any reality..

Well, I'll be dipped in sheet!! That IS what I have come to expect from ya!!! :D I stand corrected... heh

Michale

Mind-boggling...

Yet you look at kids lying dead in elementary schools and still don't want to do anything about gun control?

With ad hominems, appeals to emotion and hysteria, but no actual arguments...

Actually I addressed all your points..

But you seem to be yawning so much, you probably missed them because you were so tired.. :D

Michale

The Brussels terrorists used a long trail of burner phones...

When it comes to saving the lives of innocent men, women and children, I place my personal privacy way WAY lower..

But not your gun rights... Interesting that...

Yawn. Reread your comments and see if any of my arguments were addressed...

I dunno why, but I actually expected something better from you... :D

Yet it was exactly what I expected from you...

How would you feel about your argument then??

Of course, you won't even CONSIDER that because it proves how wrong ya'all are...

When it comes to saving the lives of innocent men, women and children, I place my personal privacy way WAY lower..

Apparently, ya'all place ya'all's personal privacy HIGHER...

As I said.. It's mind-boggling...

Michale

Michale

NOT really Michale. Since no one, in reality, is actually arguing in favor of protecting THEM.

Actually, that EXACTLY what is being argued.. You are only looking at the ONE aspect of the argument that supports your agenda..

But when you say that PERSONAL PRIVACY is the SOLE consideration, you ARE arguing for the personal privacy of terrorists and child molesters...

I am not going to let ya'all hide behind semantics and misdirection..

When you argue against the FBI in this case you are arguing FOR the privacy protections of terrorists.. You are saying that dead innocent men, women and children are LESS important than the privacy of a dead terrorist..

Or you are arguing that dead innocent men, women and children are LESS important that a corporation's Marketing or bottom line..

Either way.. It's a heinous and perverse argument..

Bashi,

Really?? The I know you are but what am I!?? rebuttal???

I dunno why, but I actually expected something better from you... :D

Michale

Yup, that describes posts [34] through [37] pretty accurately...

"The idea that someone could actually advocate PROTECTING the privacy of those who commit such barbarity??

Mind-boggling...

Simply mind-boggling..."

NOT really Michale. Since no one, in reality, is actually arguing in favor of protecting THEM. What the point is, really, is not giving the government, sweeping, blanket, power which can be used against US. ALL civil liberties protections are not there to protect the guilty. They are there to protect the innocent from abuse of government power. The fact that they also sometimes protect the most heinous criminals, is only incidental to their true purpose of being. The power you give the government to violate the privacy of a terrorist, for example, can also be used by an unsavory politician to go on a witch hunt against a political opponent, or carry out a vendetta against someone you don't like because they are Jewish, or whatever. Very law and order types, like you included Michale, I think tend to forget that. Like when people condemn the ACLU. Defending a principle, that protects US, does not mean they are supporting THEM, though it may confusingly seem that way to some people. The same thing applies when you defend all true free speech. Like defending the right of the KKK to hold a march, and also the right of people to hold a counter demonstration against them. I think this is also what Trump is forgetting about his rallies too. Not only does he have a right to hold them and be heard, but people also have a right to protest against him and be heard also. Notice I did not say shut down, but be heard, by BOTH sides.

TRANSLATION: I have no logical or rational response and must, therefore resort to childish personal attacks...

Figures..

But I have always found such an attitude totally perplexing.. That someone would be SOO self-centered and egotistical that they would prefer that someone DIE rather than give up their personal privacy...

It USED to be that the Hysterical Left Wingery was SOMEWHAT (barely) reasonable about it..

"Get a warrant and you can have access.."

But NOW, not even a WARRANT is good enough..

NOW there is nothing reasonable or logical about the attitude.. It's PURE selfishness..

"What??? Hundreds of people may die!?? Eh, so what.. My Aunt Matilda's Cookie Recipe is staying away from prying eyes!! I don't care if THOUSANDS of innocent men women and children die!!"

"What!?? There is a child molester preying on children and you need to tap the line block of my apartment?? Got a warrant? Doesn't matter! You can't do it!! My personal privacy is sacrosanct.. I don't care if a DOZEN kids are brutally murdered.. NOTHING supercedes my personal privacy!!

As I said.. The attitude is MIND-BOGGLING..

Sickening and perverse to be sure. But mind-boggling...

Michale

Why don't we ask the families of those killed in Brussels or Paris or San Bernardino if we should PROTECT the privacy rights of terrorists...

Let's see what THEY have to say about the issue..

I have seen first hand the kind of carnage and death wrought in San Bernardino and Paris and Brussels...

The idea that someone could actually advocate PROTECTING the privacy of those who commit such barbarity??

Mind-boggling...

Simply mind-boggling...

Michale

So you can't point to one innocent person killed because the FBI didn't have access to the contents of the phone. This sort of fear mongering is going to be rife for the next few days because of Belgium, the nervous 'feelies', and Trump et al playing his fear act for them. This is exactly how we ended up with the Patriot Act and its assault on the fourth amendment.

Yer absolutely right, Neil.. We SHOULD wait until AFTER dozens or even hundreds of people are killed before considering the possibilities..

That's SOOO much more logical and rational..

Let's just hope that someone you know is not amongst the dead, eh?? :^/

Michale

So you can't point to one innocent person killed because the FBI didn't have access to the contents of the phone.

And you can't point to ONE problem that was caused by President Trump..

Of course that doesn't stop you from fear-mongering to hell and back about what *MIGHT* happen if Trump were elected President..

Don't tell me. Let me guess.. "That's different"...

It always is with you Left Wingers... :D

Michale

Ahhhh So you are protecting corporate profits.. :D

BASHI.... CORPORATIST PROTECTOR OF THE BOTTOM LINE

Well, it's nice to have you out of the closet.. :D

Michale

And Obama was awarded CW's LIE OF THE YEAR for 2012, I think..

So that makes Obama a liar too...

Right?? :D

Michale

The NSA almost certainly has had that method already. An ex-NSA director has pretty much admitted that.

Which proves that it has ALWAYS been about just this one phone and not the GOVERNMENT STORMTROOPERS that ya'all have been fear-mongering about for months..

Adding "proves" to your list of misused words? Ya, one phone and a couple of hundred others that either Comey knew about or is totally incompetent.

Even if they be terrorists or child molesters..

Just how much freedom must we give up before you feel safe?

Considering the kinds of business that Cook does with China and the slave labor that Apple uses in his factories, I am guessing that helping terrorists and child molesters is no big deal to him at all..

And probably just about every device you sell or work on in your shop. Oh, wait, Apple does more extensive checks on it's factories to try and root out slave labor and other problems than most other companies. How about the companies of the electronics you sell? How do you sleep at night?

You don't get it, do you??

Actually I do get it. You are the one that seems to missing a good chunk of the story.

Your argument and Apple's argument has just be PROVEN to be total and complete BS...

Not by you.

Ya'all's argument has been to keep technology out of the hands of the government that would allow the government to break the encryption of any iPhone w/o having to worry about the phone self-destructing...

Ah, no. Not even Apple is arguing that. They don't want to be forced to custom build GovtOS then have to keep an office open 24/7 unlocking every phone that any lawyer can convince a judge to issue an order for.

Apple's actions have BROUGHT ABOUT the *VERY* thing that they claimed they wanted to prevent. Government ownership of technology to safely crack iPhone encryption!! :D

Unless you actually know what you are talking about. All phones after the 5C have a secure enclave on the cpu die that prevents this method...

You can't see me now, but I am laughing my ass off!! :D

The laugh of ignorance, ya we get that...

So you can't point to one innocent person killed because the FBI didn't have access to the contents of the phone. This sort of fear mongering is going to be rife for the next few days because of Belgium, the nervous 'feelies', and Trump et al playing his fear act for them. This is exactly how we ended up with the Patriot Act and its assault on the fourth amendment.

He is 69 years old and he doesn't have a clue about anything so I can't wait that long to come home.

1. Did Trump say he never uses teleprompters? Yes
"I don't use teleprompters," he said in January, criticizing Hillary Clinton for using one. "Wouldn't that be easy, teleprompters? I watched Hillary the other day and she has the biggest teleprompters I've ever seen.

2. Has Trump ever used a teleprompter? Yes. Yesterday in fact.
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/273830-trump-uses-teleprompter-in-foreign-policy-speech

3. Is Trump a liar?
Does anybody need to fact check that? I mean, apart from the teleprompter incident above, Trump's statements were awarded PolitiFact's 2015 Lie of the Year.

Ahhhhh Only Left Wingery are allowed to extrapolate likely events from actions that THEY deem are dangerous...

Gotcha.. Forgive me..

Also, it was clear from the start that there are fairly simple ways to get around the self-destruct switch (I posted how to do it last week).

I must have missed that. Care to elaborate?? If you could do it, you should have brought it to the FBI and made millions.. :D

Regardless of all that, my point is this. Despite all the posturing and fear-mongering this entire issue was nothing more than a corporate entity protecting it's marketing...

That's all it was about...

Michale

And it doesn't matter HOW many innocent men women and children have to pay for that with their lives...

A bit hysterical, n'est pas?* Can you point to one innocent person killed because of this situation?

* only slightly poor taste, or very?

Also, it was clear from the start that there are fairly simple ways to get around the self-destruct switch (I posted how to do it last week). Then it is a sophisticated number crunching game.

My biggest concern is that the FBI didn't know this from the start and now have broadcast to the world that they can break iPhones - anybody wanting to encrypt data will now use some of the more difficult to break services (mostly because of access to the data rather than the encryption strength).

And it doesn't matter HOW many innocent men women and children have to pay for that with their lives...

Michale

You don't get it, do you??

Your argument and Apple's argument has just be PROVEN to be total and complete BS...

How do we know this??

Simple..

Ya'all's argument has been to keep technology out of the hands of the government that would allow the government to break the encryption of any iPhone w/o having to worry about the phone self-destructing...

The HILARIOUS thing is, if Apple would have acquiesced to the court order, then they would have ACCOMPLISHED that...

But, because Apple fought the LEGAL and LEGITIMATE court order, the FBI was able to develop the capability ALL ON THEIR OWN...

Apple's actions have BROUGHT ABOUT the *VERY* thing that they claimed they wanted to prevent. Government ownership of technology to safely crack iPhone encryption!! :D

HOISTED BY THEIR OWN PICARD!!!

You can't see me now, but I am laughing my ass off!! :D

Face reality... This was NEVER about protecting the privacy of the consumer or preventing technology to get into the government's hands..

This is, and ALWAYS has been, about protecting the Marketable reputation of Apple...

Michale

Credit where credit is due.

THAT was funny!!! :D

Michale

Credit where credit is due.

THAT was funny!!! :D

Michale

Neil?? Fact check?? :D heh

Michale

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2016/mar/20/charles-hurt-donald-trump-may-be-flawed-but-washin/

But he is a shining beacon of propriety compare to what the government is now...

Michale

OR.... The FBI has a method that will gain them access to the phone and don't need Apple's help..

Which proves that it has ALWAYS been about just this one phone and not the GOVERNMENT STORMTROOPERS that ya'all have been fear-mongering about for months..

Earlier Monday, however, Apple CEO Tim Cook affirmed his company’s intent to fight this and other cases where the government seeks greater access to digital data. As he unveiled his company’s latest iPhone, Cook pledged on stage in San Francisco that Apple would not “shirk from [its] responsibility” to protect its users.

Even if they be terrorists or child molesters..

One has to wonder how Tim Cook sleeps at night...

Considering the kinds of business that Cook does with China and the slave labor that Apple uses in his factories, I am guessing that helping terrorists and child molesters is no big deal to him at all..

What scum...

Michale

But Patreaus has been punished and paid his debt to society... He will be cleansed..

But it's nice to see you admit that you want Hillary to skate for the "basically same crimes" that Patreaus committed...

Michale

More seriously, McCain's choice of Palin was not quite the "hail Mary" everyone describes it as.

She was very popular as a governor (according to polls at the time, she was the most popular GOP governor on the country). She is a she. And, in April 2008, a large group of Republican bigwigs attended an Alaskan cruise where she was one of the headliners. According to reports, she knocked it out of the park. She really had an "on" week.

THANK YOU, Speak2!!

I have been saying the exact same thing since Palin was nominated... But the political bigotry against Palin was just too strong...

Michale

% Non-Trump voters who would vote for Trump = 49% (historically very low)

Source: 538 podcast, 3/21/16

Time to start letting the air out of the Trumpeppilin.

Sorry. I know you guys are really angry, but Trump is just like a faith healer to a desperate cancer patient. Better that you get real science-based medicine sooner rather than later.

Demand real answers from your politicians - you have proved that you can make them listen to you, now find one who is really on your side.

JL

The main quality that you want, is somebody that could be a great president if something happens to you, that's gotta be number one.

And then I would want somebody that could help me with government, so most likely that would be a political person, because I'm business and I'm very good at what I do, and all of that... But the most important thing is you have to have someone who can be a great president, but after that, you want somebody that can help you with legislation, getting it through, and all that. I would say, and it's too early, I'm not thinking about it a lot, I'm thinking about getting the ball over the line, get this thing done... But I do want somebody who is political, because I want to get lots of great legislation that we all want passed, just sitting there for years and years and years, we have things sitting there that would be so good. Including proper health care and other things, so we're going to choose somebody who is somewhat political.

I would look for a well thought of deal maker insider from the House or Senate that is not too conservative...

I can't imagine a former heavyweight military type taking Trump seriously although a loony military crank might.

He's already picked 4 or 5 loons/crumbs for his foreign-policy team. I'm thinking people who value their career-longevity would stay far, far away from him, so he probably had to scrape the barrel to get names of people for advisors. I would think he'll go shopping in the wingnut welfare bazaar.

I really see only two options. One, a 35 yo + sack of white potatoes that does what it's tolld, a butler sort, and Trump has one of those. If the Trump butler can't be spared, a general would do. Preferably an old one from a popular war. Stormin' Norm?

The only other viable approach is fawning acolyte. But for her own considerable celebrity, Palin would be ideal, if she stayed scripted and focused her light on Trump. Risky, go for Haley and a parabolic mirror.

* Sorry.

Ventura is a fun thought, but Trump probably doesn't want competition for attention anywhere near the podium.

Kasich is the smart choice, as you say, but there are two problems: (i) Trump isn't very clever, and (ii) Kasich isn't very stupid.

Darrell Issa would be a good choice, but he has been having some fun at Trump's expense (four more all gold glass stories on the White House plus 'hundreds of room for rent' - 'it's going to be huge!')

I think you might be missing one name from the list, Boris Johnson. He is basically Trump's stunt double, and was born in the U.S. (check it out).

It's not a general rule (which have exceptions that prove the rule or something), let's go further: No Republican has ever been elected President without winning Ohio. Ohio is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition for a GOP President to happen according to history (there are Dems who were elected, despite losing Ohio).

She was very popular as a governor (according to polls at the time, she was the most popular GOP governor on the country). She is a she. And, in April 2008, a large group of Republican bigwigs attended an Alaskan cruise where she was one of the headliners. According to reports, she knocked it out of the park. She really had an "on" week.

Because it's Alaska, the vetting process was not as thorough as it should have been (duh), but she shone when she needed to; such is life. McCain is a gambler and many other things, but he isn't stupid, after all.