Governor Jon Huntsman of Utah said Sarah Palin was "going through a little challenge right now."

That's an understatement! The scandals keep piling up for Palin, with Republicans reaching for the panic button in the week when they were supposed to be turning things around.

There's even a rumor that Palin has a "Jewish problem," so Huffington Post's Sam Stein and I headed over to a "Salute to GOP Governors" sponsored by the Republican Jewish Coalition this afternoon at the swanky Walker Art Center.

Palin's record on Israel seems to consist of a tiny Israeli flag hung in her office. She's never visited the country, or even had a passport until last year. Ben Smith of the Politico reported that "her Alaska Jewish allies I spoke to had no recollection of discussing the issue with her in detail. Meanwhile, two Jewish Obama fundraisers have told me since the Palin pick that they've seen Jewish donors moving to Obama." Her issues page lists nothing on foreign policy, nor Israel.

Yet the flag story seems to have taken on almost mythical significance among Jewish Republicans, in the same way that right-wing operatives spread emails that Obama didn't recite the pledge of allegiance or wear an American flag lapel pin. "In her office you know what flag she had in addition to the flags of Alaska and the United States of America?" right-wing talk show host Dennis Prager asked rhetorically.

"Israel!" members of the RJC crowd yelled out.

"That's right," Prager responded. "It was the flag of Israel!"

Despite her scant foreign policy experience, family drama and bubbling scandals, GOP governors at the RJC reception did their best to put a positive spin on McCain's VP pick. "She will be a great soulmate for John McCain in the stand against all evil in this world," said Governor Sonny Purdue of Georgia, a self-described Southern Baptist evangelical. Purdue called Obama "an appeaser of terrorist leaders around the world. John McCain is not an appeaser!" And neither, presumably, is Sarah Palin.

Governor Huntsman, who informed the crowd that he had dinner last night with Joe Lieberman (the RJC's adopted patron saint), also gave Palin a rousing endorsement. "She's tough!" Huntsman proclaimed. "I hope everybody underestimates her...because when they see her in the debates, they'll see the Sarah Palin that I know."

McCain barely knew Palin before he picked her as a running mate, so it's reassuring to know that somebody does.

UPDATE: To reassure skeptics, Palin, accompanied by Joe Lieberman, met with the board of directors of AIPAC today. Said AIPAC spokesman Josh Block: "We had a good productive discussion on the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship, and we were pleased that Gov. Palin expressed her deep, personal, and lifelong commitment to the safety and well-being of Israel."

Comments (43)

1. Yeah...all the foreign policy experience one needs in the United States of America is support for right-wing Zionists and their efforts to steal land from any inhabitant of the Biblical land of Judah.

   What a joke!

   Posted by Metteyya at 09/02/2008 @ 7:04pm

2. Given her ties to the Alaskan separatists....

   surprised she has the AMERICAN flag!

   Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 7:38pm

3. With Palin ready to convert Israel to Christianity, perhaps Mitt Romney can be persuaded to attend to the spiritual needs of the deceased.

   Posted by Sorelish at 09/02/2008 @ 7:49pm

4. "her Alaska Jewish allies I spoke to had no recollection of discussing the issue with her in detail."

   Guarenteed, new spin from the Repubs will be "Sarah has ALWAYS been a strong supporter of Israel (though we can't prove it)....Does OBAMA have an Israeli flag in HIS office, hmmm?, hmmm????"

   Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 7:54pm

5. Well, Sara Palin has made up for her "Jewish problem" today. According to CNN, she has spent part of today meeting with the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). I am sure that she was sent there by her boss; the "straight talker".

   We ought to congratulate America; so far all members of the presidential entourage have pledge allegiance to AIPAC and Israel. Just in case you are still wondering who was, is and will be running the show in Washington.

   Posted by zziadeh at 09/02/2008 @ 7:57pm

6. >>>Well, Sara Palin has made up for her "Jewish problem" today. According to CNN, she has spent part of today meeting with the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).

   Posted by zziadeh at 09/02/2008 @ 7:57pm<<<

   I'm sure the hope is that AIPAC will lean on their operatives in the mainstream media to IGNORE Palin's abuse of power as Mayor and as Governor, ignore her extreme views on banning abortion in cases of rape and incest, ignore her banning of books from the public library that she didn't like, and ignore her hypocrisy for supporting abstinence-only sex education in schools so that we can "increase" the already epidemic teen pregnancy problem that we see in lower middle class and poor communities all across America.

   AIPAC only cares about itself and its power and increasing the power of Israel. They don't give a damn about America or Americans, especially the poor. For that reason alone they should be given the hard boot from the political and media scene permanently. EVERY SINGLE ONE of their operatives, whether they are financial bundlers, news editors or "journalists", should be exposed and rooted out, so we can have an honest dialogue about how we spend our taxdollars and what our budget priorities should be, and what direction our foreign policy should take in terms of securing real peace in the world and a final end to this prolonged conflict in the Middle East.

   Posted by Metteyya at 09/02/2008 @ 8:16pm

7. Palin meets with AIPAC Posted: Tuesday, September 02, 2008 5:08 PM by Mark Murray Filed Under: 2008, Palin

   From NBC/NJ's Matthew E. Berger MINNEAPOLIS -- Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin today met with the board of directors of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, NBC/NJ has confirmed.

   The meeting took place inside Palin's hotel, sources said.

   A campaign official would not say who asked for the meeting, but said it was geared towards putting the American Jewish community at ease over her understanding of US-Middle East relations.

   "That's obviously going to be an issue," the aide said. "It's not like being the senator from New York, obviously. But these aren't issues that are off her radar."

   Palin, joined by Sen. Joe Lieberman, expressed her "heartfelt support for Israel" and spoke of the threats it faces from Iran and others, the campaign official said.

   "We had a good productive discussion on the importance of the U.S.-Israel relationship, and we were pleased that Gov. Palin expressed her deep, personal, and lifelong commitment to the safety and well-being of Israel," AIPAC spokesman Josh Block said. "Like Sen. McCain, the vice presidential nominee understands and believes in the special friendship between the two democracies and would work to expand and deepen the strategic partnership in a McCain/Palin Administration."

   Posted by Metteyya at 09/02/2008 @ 8:18pm

8. Exactly what we need, more leader who have never left this country.

   Posted by Cccomfo1 at 09/02/2008 @ 8:42pm

9. ""an appeaser of terrorist leaders around the world. John McCain is not an appeaser!"

   Yeah that's right John McCain isn't an appeaser. He isn't the kind of person who would choose a VP just to appease his base. No he is the type of person who stand up to people and choose the person he think is best for the job.

   Posted by Cccomfo1 at 09/02/2008 @ 8:51pm

10. >>>A campaign official would not say who asked for the meeting, but said it was geared towards putting the "American Jewish community" at ease over her understanding of US-Middle East relations.<<<

    The American Jewish Community at ease?

    How about the RIGHT-WING EXTREME of the American Jewish community?

    Talk about spin!

    American Jews are only 2% of the population, and the right-wing AIPAC element is only one half of 1%, a CLEAR MINORITY among American Jews.

    Now seriously, what fool would believe that a group representing one half of 1% of the population was so important that you had to meet with and assure them on the eve of the VP nomination? How could such a small group be THAT important?

    Think about it.

    Posted by Metteyya at 09/02/2008 @ 8:51pm

11. Her only Jewish problem was not having sworn allegiance to Likud.

    Now that she's done so, via Likud's US wing, AIPAC, she may continue with its blessing & promise of no harassment as long as she tows the line.

    That's patriotism?

    Posted by sloper at 09/02/2008 @ 8:56pm

12. They could only be THAT important if their operatives control the purse-strings of political campaigns through their high-roller donor base and the mainstream media through their news editors and "journalists".

    Otherwise, ANY politician would tell them on the eve of their nomination in very polite terms: I HAVE GOT MORE IMPORTANT THINGS ON MY MIND RIGHT NOW - WE'LL GET BACK TO YOU LATER.

    Posted by Metteyya at 09/02/2008 @ 8:58pm

13. Why does anyone need foreign policy experience??

    We're moving toward protectionism baby!!

    The GOP has spent to much time involving themselves with the affairs of other countries for eight years.

    It's all about this country now. Jobs here now.

    Infrastructure dude. Can't you just hear Jessie Jackson saying:

    I-N-F-R-A-S-T-R-U-C-T-U-R-E !!

    Foreign policy .... foreign smallicy..

    Buchanan-Obama-Palin !!

    Protectionism is the new black!!

    Leave Putin the FU&$^# alone!

    Dat ain't none a our bizzness.

    Domestic programs!! That's what we're talkin' about now. Program for this, program for that.

    Housing bailout, billions for (worthless) public education, rebuilding cites that are ten feet below sea level.

    Who need's foreign policy experience??

    WE HAVE DOMESTIC PROBLEMS!!!!!!

    Posted by bleedingheart at 09/02/2008 @ 9:24pm

14. "She will be a great soulmate for John McCain in the stand against all evil in this world,"

    please, please, america.

    not again.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/02/2008 @ 9:36pm

15. Does OBAMA have an Israeli flag in HIS office, hmmm?, hmmm????"

    Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 7:54pm

    to the tattoo parlour, quick!

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/02/2008 @ 9:39pm

16. So, let me get today's kool-aid flavor straight, oh inhabitants of the left-wing fever swamp....

    Sarah Palin has little or no foreign policy experience - therefore she is not qualified to be VP candidate...

    BUT...

    B. Hussein Obama has little or no foreign policy experience, but he is perfectly qualified to be President?

    [scratches head]

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:40pm

17. Posted by frosty zoom at 09/02/2008 @ 9:39pm

    The STRETCHS needed to "build up" Sarah Palin are so ridiculous, only Rush and Sean can try to pull them off to their ditto-head audiences...

    anybody else would laugh Fatman and the Boy Blunder off the air!

    Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 9:42pm

18. "They could only be THAT important if their operatives control the purse-strings of political campaigns through their high-roller donor base and the mainstream media through their news editors and "journalists"."

    Read the Protocols much Mett?

    Posted by brunowe at 09/02/2008 @ 9:49pm

19. jews?

    alaska?

    <<<<>>>>

    In November 1938, two weeks after Kristallnacht, Ickes proposed the use of Alaska as a "haven for Jewish refugees from Germany and other areas in Europe where the Jews are subjected to oppressive restrictions." Resettlement in Alaska would allow the refugees to bypass normal immigration quotas, because Alaska was a territory and not a state. That summer Ickes had toured Alaska and met with local officials to discuss improving the local economy and bolstering security in a territory viewed as vulnerable to Japanese attack. Ickes thought European Jews might be the solution.[1][2]

    <<<<>>>>

    EUREKA!

    ms. palin is going to make alaska the new israel!

    imagine the controversies:

    LOX SUPPLIES THREATENED BY DRILLING

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/02/2008 @ 9:50pm

20. Do I even want to bother to point out to Ponti that Obama has been privy to national security information as part of his work in the Senate? Or should I let him flail about like a good right-wing fish?

    Posted by yutsano at 09/02/2008 @ 9:50pm

21. The STRETCHS needed to "build up" Sarah Palin are so ridiculous

    Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 9:42pm

    that matters not.

    it's all about the imagery.

    she will be protected by the father figure.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/02/2008 @ 9:52pm

22. Posted by yutsano at 09/02/2008 @ 9:50pm

    "Do I even want to bother to point out to Ponti that Obama has been privy to national security information as part of his work in the Senate?"

    Oooh, pardon me. That's a heck of a resume.

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:52pm

23. Posted by yutsano at 09/02/2008 @ 9:50pm

    Hey, did I tell you I've been privy to national security information as part of my reading of the New York Times!

    Hey look at me! I've got enough national security experience to be President!

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:54pm

24. Posted by yutsano at 09/02/2008 @ 9:50pm

    PONTI--"Well, so....Sarah met some guys from another country at a moose shoot once!"

    Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 9:55pm

25. Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 9:55pm

    Yeah, and there may be, somewhere, some actual evidence that Obama actually read a single word of the stuff he was privy to! Perhaps he'll let us know in his upcoming tour of 'all 57 states'?

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:59pm

26. Here's Obama's explanation of why his own executive experience, as Presidential candidate, is so much greater than that of McCain's VP candidate running mate:

    "Well, my understanding is that Governor Palin's town of Wasilla has, I think, 50 employees. We've got 2,500 in this campaign. I think their budget is maybe $12 million a year. You know, we have a budget of about three times that just for the month. So I think that our ability to manage large systems and to execute I think has been made clear over the last couple of years."

    Apparently Obama hadn't heard about Palin being Governor of the State of Alaska, which has a budget in excess of $11 billion annually and more than 24,000 employees. Also, on Obama's theory, the act of running for President gives you the experience you need to qualify to be President. That's convenient for a guy who has accomplished so little in his career in public life.

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 10:07pm

27. A) Do I even want to bother to point out to Ponti that Obama has been privy to national security information as part of his work in the Senate? Or...

    B) should I let him flail about like a good right-wing fish?

    Posted by yutsano at 09/02/2008 @ 9:50pm | ignore this person | warn this person

    B

    Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/02/2008 @ 10:18pm

28. ooooooh! looks like obama is spurting up in the polls again.

    where is that operation chaos jackhole, frankgrits? probably at the repugnant convention...

    Posted by ibbleblibble at 09/02/2008 @ 10:21pm

29. Hey look at me! I've got enough national security experience to be President!

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:54pm

    and you lack intelligence, too.

    yep. you're perfect for president.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/02/2008 @ 10:21pm

30. Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:59pm

    So he "got briefings but 'there's no proof' he read them"...

    but Sarah NEVER got any briefings, and she's imminently qualified?

    LOL....you guys may love her politics, but can't turn an Alaskan gov into Maggie Thatcher!

    BTW, PONTI, do you believe in abstinence-only sex ed?

    Posted by Maskdelta at 09/02/2008 @ 10:35pm

31. *Hey, did I tell you I've been privy to national security information as part of my reading of the New York Times!

    Hey look at me! I've got enough national security experience to be President!

    Posted by pontificus at 09/02/2008 @ 9:54pm*

    I doubt the veracity of your claim sirrah. If you had actually read said publication, you might show a modicum of intelligence and maturity. SO far I see evidence of neither. To bed with thee young'un!

    Posted by yutsano at 09/02/2008 @ 11:32pm

32. These guys are still trying to compare Palin with Obama?

    HA!

    Obama chose this path... and created this outcome.

    Palin?... not so much.

    Like comparing the engineer of a new car... with the test driver that takes it out for a spin.

    Posted by ttr at 09/02/2008 @ 11:46pm

33. Happy-What two reformers are running?

    Posted by i'm nobody at 09/03/2008 @ 12:08am

34. Happy-You can't mean the guy who just pandered to evangelicals.Pandering is hardly a reformer thing to do.What has Palin reformed?

    Posted by i'm nobody at 09/03/2008 @ 12:10am

35. Of course she "supports Israel," for cripes sake--she's a Christian Zionist, and having the Jews back in their ancestral land is part of the plot outline. It's got nothing to do with actual Jewish (or Palestinian) people and their actual needs. It's prophecy, man! The anti-Christ will beguile Israel and bam, end of time!

    Posted by EvelynU at 09/03/2008 @ 12:29am

36. Or ex-Gov. Moonbeam?

    Posted by 2HAPPY at 09/03/2008 @ 12:18am

    hey,

    reagan's dead.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 09/03/2008 @ 01:00am

37. Lord, a couple of hacks cross the Hudson river on a witch hunt of sorts and this is all they can come up with?? What not examine Palin's 7th grade speech in English class and break down the sentence stucture and deem her grammatically unqualified.

    If a group of writer's who portend to try to change public opinion based on their ideologies is allowed to spout/write this kind of BS, the question is WHY AREN'T THEY VETTED??? By us???? I can deal with differing viewpoints, in fact welcome it. But the admittedly Pro Obama NYTimes/The Nation are all drooling over the opportunity to slam someone where there is really nothing to slam. Very sophmoric. Palin has opinions, Obama has minions. Get over yourselves NYTimes.

    Posted by blackshoes at 09/03/2008 @ 03:34am

38. Thanks to attack ads & sound bites & an uninformed or apathetic public, it's almost better to NOT have experience -- especially if it's legislative, where you could get banged for some obscure omnibus bill vote 12 years ago.... Part of the reason why the Right is always droning on about how much better "Executive" experience is.

    Let's take a peek at prior elected-office experience:

    Spiro Agnew (R), VP Total: 6 years National: No experience. State: 2 years as governor of Maryland Other: 4 years as a county administrator. Sounds like Palin's level pretty much...

    Ronald Reagan (R), P : Total: 8 years National: No experience. State: 8 years as Gov California (huge state) Other: President of the Screen Actors Guild

    Richard Nixon (R), (as VP only): Total: 6 years National: 6 years State: None. Other: None. No cherished "Executive Experience"

    Bill Clinton (D), P: Total: 14 years National: No experience. State: 12 years as Gov, 2 as A.G. Other: None. Note that Clinton supposedly wasn't qualified because Arkanas was too small a state.

    Barack Obama (D), Running for P: Total: 11/12 years National: roughly 3-4 years as Senator State: 8 years Illinois state senate Other: Harvard Law Review president

    Sarah Palin (R), Running for VP: Total: 12 years National: No experience State: 2 years as Governor of Alaska Other: 8 years as Mayor & 4 years as Councilwoman, Wassilla, AK

    Biden or McCain have experience that dwarf most of the folks up there. Of course, there are numerous other examples of weak & strong experience in the VP & Pres. positions, throughout history.

    All that said, I think the key primary factor is to vote based on how much flair a candidate wears. # of flag-pins is all that matters. ha

    Dylan

    Posted by dtynan at 09/03/2008 @ 05:50am

39. couple of slight corrections:

    Palin should have Total: 14 years, not 12 years. Also, under "Other" I forgot to include her PTA experience.

    Nixon should have had "as a US Senator & Representative from California" next to his 6 years.

    Dylan

    Posted by dtynan at 09/03/2008 @ 05:58am

40. Posted by dtynan at 09/03/2008 @ 05:58am

    The other correction is that Agnew was governor of Maryland, which is a MUCH LARGER state than Alaska in terms of population. In fact, Agnew's county administrator role probably had more responsibility than Palin's role as governor of Alaska.

    Posted by Metteyya at 09/03/2008 @ 11:06am

41. The flag isn't going to help her much. If her hometown Church gets an iota of the coverage that Obama's did, there will be a REAL Jewish problem with her soaking in the "homily" presented a couple of weeks ago there by the Jews for Jesus speaker who declared that terrorism on Israel was the expression of GOd's judgment on Jews for their unbelief in Jesus. See Atlantic Online, Andrew Sullivan's report

    Posted by seano at 09/03/2008 @ 1:41pm

42. Posted by dtynan at 09/03/2008 @ 05:58am

    The other correction is that Agnew was governor of Maryland, which is a MUCH LARGER state than Alaska in terms of population. In fact, Agnew's county administrator role probably had more responsibility than Palin's role as governor of Alaska.

    Posted by Metteyya at 09/03/2008 @ 11:44pm

43. Also, it's dangerously close to Canada, so Agnew had significant national security experience from that, similar to Palin.

    Dylan

    Posted by dtynan at 09/06/2008 @ 11:44pm