Sarah Palin delivered this memorable quote during her acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention:

“You know the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick.”

Then, just a few days later, Barack Obama said “You can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig.”

Of course the McCain camp immediately accused him of insinuating that Palin is a pig. After listening to the line in the context of the rest of the speech however, I’m convinced that he didn’t mean it in that way at all. I truly believe he was simply referring to his assertion that four years of a McCain Presidency would simply be an extension of the Bush Presidency (an assertion that I disagree with completely).

Like him or hate him, Obama is a pretty smart guy, and it’s hard to believe that he would be dumb enough to think he could call his opponent a pig and not get drawn and quartered by a huge block of his potential voters as a result. He was simply using an old adage that has been used countless times at countless campaign stops over the years. In fact, John McCain himself has used it on more than one occasion. But…

Those other politicians didn’t use the line almost immediately after Palin used it. Obama should have realized that in the context of this most unusual of election cycles, after Palin used the “lipstick on a pig” line it would have to be considered off-limits for him or anyone speaking on his behalf for the rest of the campaign. After all, no one really knows the way he truly feels about Palin as a person – perhaps he really does think she is a pig. And as far as that goes, perhaps she thinks he is one as well. But a wise political candidate won’t say such a thing aloud, and I don’t think Obama did. But by using the line at all so soon after Palin’s speech he left himself open to the accusation that that’s what he indeed meant. Which brings us to the real problem with Obama…

Throughout his lifetime Barack Obama has demonstrated a serious lack of judgment in a number of important areas, and the use of the “lipstick on a pig” line at such an inopportune time is simply the latest. In my opinion, his decision to even seek the office of President of the United States with so little and such undistinguished experience was in itself a serious lack of judgment. Had he waited until he had completed at least one full term in the Senate and demonstrated at least a little success at introducing and passing legislation he would have been considered a legitimate candidate even by those who would never vote for him.

It all boils down to this: Do we really want a person with such poor judgment in the White House when our nation and the world are faced with airliners literally coming from out of the blue and knocking down skyscrapers? Or when rogue nations like North Korea possess nuclear weapons and the terrorists who are bent on destroying us will almost surely have them as well at some point in the future? When a life or death decision must be made within minutes – or even seconds – without the use of a teleprompter, do we really want Barack Obama making that decision?

The Democratic Party establishment absolutely despises Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, in part because of the obvious boost her presence on the Republican ticket gives John McCain in his bid to win the White House come November. But there is actually another, even stronger reason why they hate her so much: If she succeeds in her quest to become the nation’s first female Vice President the Democrats will almost surely lose a huge chunk of one of their most solid voting blocks - female voters.

The problem for the Democrats is that Palin is the polar opposite of the type of woman they want to see attain power in our government. From their point of view, as a pro-choice, “gun toting”, highly successful female Christian conservative, Palin’s election to the second highest office in the land will send a signal to millions of other women that they can indeed succeed in America without the help of “big brother” government.

In the few short days since McCain selected her to be his running mate, Governor Palin has already transformed the political landscape in ways that nobody would have predicted even a month ago. She has become a new kind of role model for girls and women who have been quietly longing for an alternative to Hillary Clinton and all the others who are constantly preaching the “benefits” of big government and a quasi-Socialist agenda. Virtually overnight, countless female voters have come to realize that a woman candidate for high office need not toe the Democratic party line – and neither do they.

While the election of McCain and Palin would certainly be a bitter pill for the Bush-haters to swallow, they would get over it soon enough were it not for the fact that it will also entice legions of women to switch political parties and “grow” in ways that could damage the Democratic party’s chances for electoral success for generations to come. Yes, they would certainly hate to see John McCain become the next President of the United States, but the prospect of Sarah Palin becoming the first American Vice President simply scares them to death.

John McCain’s selection of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his Vice Presidential running mate was the single best move he has made in this entire Presidential election cycle. His choice of Palin over several better-known candidates not only reinforced his reputation as a political maverick, it also shored up the rickety platform of support that the Republican party’s conservative base had demonstrated for him in the months since he locked in the nomination.

Governor Palin’s hard-line conservative rhetoric is strongly backed up by her “performance” both in office and in her private life. Her critics on the left say she doesn’t have the experience required to be a good President should the responsibilities of that office suddenly be hoisted upon her, but a logical examination of the facts tells a different story. In fact, her executive experience, first as a mayor and then Governor, actually exceeds that of Barack Obama himself.

Obama’s experience is limited to a lackluster performance as a state senator from Illinois followed by not even an entire term in the U.S. Senate (where he has been absent from the Senate floor almost as much as he has been on it). Governor Palin on the other hand has served with distinction in two executive positions, taking on and besting some of the most powerful special interests in the entire nation as well as her own Republican party establishment in the state of Alaska.

Obama chose Washington insider and long-time Senator Joseph Biden to be his running mate primarily as a means to make up for his own obvious lack of political and executive experience, yet his supporters have made the mistake of trying to paint Palin as not ready for the job which she is seeking. But close examination of their respective records clearly shows that she is already better prepared to step into the role of President than Obama.

Obama is seeking the most powerful position on the planet while Palin is at the bottom of the ticket running with Senator John McCain, a man who was not my first choice for the Republican nomination, but is nonetheless far and away the most experienced overall of the four candidates we will have to choose from come November.

In a nutshell we have McCain, a distinguished veteran Navy pilot and long-term prisoner of war who has served most of his adult life in the U.S. Senate paired with a proven conservative with an equally proven track record of exceptional performance in two executive positions. In contrast, at the top of the Democratic ticket we have a man whose only real accomplishments have been the ability to give fiery speeches and instill a rock-star like sense of awe and admiration in the hearts and minds of folks who favor style over substance and are eager for “change” whatever the costs.

To paraphrase Hillary Clinton (Obama’s principle opponent in the primaries), McCain is ready to lead this country on day one while Obama will likely need a hefty dose of on-the-job training while attempting to lead the world’s greatest superpower in the midst of billions of people in several countries who would love nothing better than to eradicate us Americans and our way of life from the face of the planet.

As for me, I’ll be voting for McCain, secure in the knowledge that should he fail to complete his term for whatever reason we have a staunch conservative with rock-solid credentials and a proven record of success ready and waiting to take over without skipping a beat.