Obama/Associated Press: "Palin is Inexperienced"

Obama, reacting to the choice of Palin for McCain's vice presidential nominee:

Today, John McCain put the former mayor of a town of 9,000 with zero foreign policy experience a heartbeat away from the presidency.

The thing that bothers me the most about this quote is that is completely skips the part about her being governor. Yes, it was only for a year and a half, but it is a year and half more than Obama's leadership experience. It seems, if Obama was attempting to be honest, he should have a least said, "Today, John McCain put the first-term governor of a small state with zero..." I would have given him credit for that, at least. But as the quote stands, it is deceptive.

The "heartbeat" part was a nice touch as well.

Apart from that, there has been much buzz about the comparison between the experience of Obama and Palin. Here's my comparison:

Obama's got:
* Being a senator for 3 years (when he started running)
* More time in state government

Palin's got:
* 1 1/2 years as a governor (which the AP sees as equivalent to being a state senator, apparently)
* Being a mayor (which was not mentioned in the final comparison in the AP article)

In short, Obama might have more time in legislative positions, but Palin has more time in executive positions. So at worst for Palin it's a wash. To say that "Palin has scant experience. She makes Barack Obama look like a seasoned veteran" is a stretch.

And, let's not forget that Palin is the #2. Obama is the #1. There is a difference.

Wrong Rating: 2 out of 4 (misrepresentation)