From Yahoo News: Palin tells kids the vice president ‘runs’ Senate
The subject of the vice president’s duties came up as Palin sat for an interview with KUSA-TV in Denver, which has a feature called “Question from the Third Grade.” The interviewer asked, “Brandon Garcia wants to know, ‘What does the vice president do?'”
“That’s a great question, Brandon, and a vice president has a really great job, because not only are they there to support the president’s agenda, they’re like the team member, the team mate to that president,” Palin said.
“But also, they’re in charge of the United States Senate, so if they want to they can really get in there with the senators and make a lot of good policy changes that will make life better for Brandon and his family and his classroom. And it’s a great job and I look forward to having that job,” she said.
The Vice President only votes in the senate in case of a tie vote, but is not involved in making policy in the legislature.
From Wikipedia.com:
The Vice President of the United States[1] is the first person in the presidential line of succession, becoming the new President of the United States upon the death, resignation, or removal of the president, should he or she accept the position. Every presidential term ends on January 20 of the year immediately after a presidential election. As designated by the Constitution of the United States, the vice president also serves as the President of the Senate, and may break tie votes in that chamber.[2] He or she may be assigned additional duties by the president but, as the Constitution assigns no executive powers to the vice president, in performing such duties he or she acts only as an agent of the president.
Thanks to Janice for sending me the link.
UPDATE: Why is this important?
Since Palin doesn’t take questions from the media, it’s hard to ascertain what she does and does not know. Even something as simple as this. This is her fourth time that she has mentioned the job of the VP and she has never answered it correctly. It’s just another example of her stunning lack of knowlege and how she tries to BS her way through answers.
8 Comments
So you would have an adult respond to a 3rd grader with adult language and technical constitutional answers to the question? Are you really serious on your criticism of her on this one? When I read it I thought surely you couldn’t be. I think she responded in an age appropriate manner. And if you think otherwise then I question your ability to be reasonable in your criticism. There are plenty of things to question about all of the candidates in this race. And I like a good debate and healthy disagreement and discussion as much as the next guy. But you simply have lost all credibility with me if you are unable to distinguish between valid and invalid criticism.
Thank you for your comment. I think it’s possible to answer the question in an age appropriate manner that’s actually correct.
This is how I would answer the question.
The main job of the Vice President is to take over for the President if the President is hurt and unable to continue being President. In the Senate, there are 100 Senators, if there is ever a tie, the Vice President has the important job of breaking the tie.
The teamwork with the President part is fine.
The reason it’s brought up is that she’s so inaccurate with nearly all her statements. It’s not clear if she doesn’t know the answer or just winging it.
I understand that you think she is inaccurate. I feel the same way about a lot of what Obama and Biden say. But do you really think she is stupid? Have you embraced what is an obvious stereotype from Tina Fey on SNL as fact? She is an articulate, intelligent woman with whom you clearly disagree. That’s cool – your right. Do you want to take an honest look at some of the things Joe Biden has saying lately through the same lens? If we do that I would argue that his level of intelligence is questionable too. I choose not to draw that conclusion but there are plenty of things they all say that could be seen through that lens if we choose to. Your proposed answer to the child is spot on. Do you really think that there is only one way to answer the question to a third grader, though? Really? I believe that part of your objective is likely to persuade others to your point of view. But I think it is hard to take you seriously when you fall prey to criticizing absolutely everything she does. It shows an inability to distinguish between real issues and nitpicking.
I actually don’t have an agenda for what I write. I don’t profit from my blog and my viewpoints are clearly my own. I just write what I believe. Sometimes I vent. Sometimes I write to amuse myself. Today it’s politics, tomorrow it’ll probably be about Star Trek or something like that. I leave persuasion to others.
I do believe that there is a right answer and a wrong answer. Palin gave a wrong answer. The fact is that, this is the 4th time she’s been asked the question and she’s never answered it correctly, even to adults. As you can see from my answer, it’s really not that hard.
Do I think she’s stupid? No, I don’t. I do believe she is a skillful politician that can give a heck of a stump speech. She clearly energizes a crowd and the base. I definitely disagree with her on many issues. But, the biggest problem I have with her is that I do not believe she is very knowledgeable about the issues that our country is facing at this time. She lacks a basic curiosity for knowledge or current events. And believe me, my impressions of her are not from Tina Fey’s portrayal on SNL. I am not alone in my belief that she’s in way over her head. There are plenty of Republicans that share my same feeling.
As to Joe Biden, I do think he’s a liability on the campaign trail, but probably an asset in helping the job of running the country. But, overall he is the half of the ticket I’m ambivalent towards.
But, what bothers me the most about the Republican campaign is the divisiveness. The insinuation that being a Muslim is wrong. That there are areas of the country that are Pro-America than others. This about fear vs. hope and I choose hope.
First of all — thank you for the ability to have a healthy dialogue. I appreciate that this has not gotten ugly which so many of these kinds of disagreements become.
You will never hear me say that I believe that Sarah Palin is as experienced as others. You are right there. I feel the same way about Obama’s level of experience, though. That scares me that the Commander In Chief could enter that job with as little to show for himself as he has in terms of experience. And what I DO know about him and his assocations certainly does not give me hope (an empty word to me). It scares me. So I guess there is plenty of concern to go around for all of us.
I can’t and don’t speak for all Republicans. But my concern about this muslim issue isn’t so much that he may be a muslim. It’s that time after time I believe he denies who he really is. It’s the smoke and mirrors and hiding of his true agenda and self. He says in his own book about his “muslim faith” yet denies that he has ever been a muslim. I have trouble reconciling those two things. So it’s the lying. All politicians lie but I see this as over the top when it affects our ability to see who he really is and what he belives.
Sorry you’re wrong (as is Chris Matthews who riddiculed Palin the other night on the Ferguson show for not knowing that the “VP is not President of the Senate.”) Palin is right. The Constitution says that the VP is “President of the Senate.” How energetically the VP wants to exercise that function is entirely up to him/her. Schedule permitting, the VP could preside over the Senate every day it is in session. The VP can be on the floor of the Senate and lobby for Administration policies. While the VP can only vote, of course, in the case of a tie he/she can do a lot of other things sort of voting.
In Obama’s case, I believe that his intelligence and calmness will serve him well in a crisis situation. Already, I feel like he’s shown far more capability to handle himself in stressful crisis situations than John McCain. It’s not enough to do something to solve the problem, but the right thing. I believe that Obama has the better ability to make that correct judgement.
Obama says that he’s Christian. John McCain says Obama is Christian. That’s one thing they both agree upon. What more do you need?
I think the election process has gone on too long and has become pretty bitter. I don’t think this is a good thing for the country. Both candidates are patriotic and clearly love this country.
From Wikipedia.com
Except for this tie-breaking role, the Standing Rules of the Senate do not vest any significant responsibilities in the Vice President. Rule XIX, which governs debate, does not authorize the Vice President to participate in debate, and grants only to members of the Senate (and, upon appropriate notice, former presidents of the United States) the privilege of addressing the Senate, without granting a similar privilege to the sitting Vice President. Thus, as Time Magazine wrote during the controversial tenure of Vice-President Charles G. Dawes, “once in four years the Vice President can make a little speech, and then he is done. For four years he then has to sit in the seat of the silent, attending to speeches ponderous or otherwise, of deliberation or humor.”[9]