On Monday's Inside Edition, distributed by CBS, host Deborah Norville cited Sunday's 60 Minutes interview [1] with McCain campaign adviser Steve Schmidt and proclaimed: "'A debacle of historic and epic proportions.' That's how a former McCain campaign strategist is describing Sarah Palin's performance as the Governor prepared for the vice presidential debate."
Norville conveniently left out Schmidt's later remark in the interview that Palin "did a good job in the debate against Senator Biden" and that he thought the Governor "more than held her own." Instead, Norville only highlighted the adviser's pre-debate concerns: "Schmidt reveals Palin was 'overwhelmed' and 'ill prepared' for the debate."
Norville later mentioned: "Schmidt also claims Palin was so flustered during the prep for debate, she kept referring to Joe Biden as 'O'Biden.'" She noted how Palin "did slip up once during the nationally televised debate."
Also left out of the Inside Edition story was Schmidt's concluding comment in the interview that: "I believe, had she [Palin] not been on the ticket, our margin of defeat would've been greater than it would've been otherwise."
Here is a full transcript of the Inside Edition segment:
9:30AM TEASE:
ANNOUNCER: Plus, Sarah Palin bombshell. The former campaign advisor breaks his silence about the famous debate.
STEVE SCHMIDT: A debacle of historic and epic proportions.
9:37AM SEGMENT:
DEBORAH NORVILLE: 'A debacle of historic and epic proportions.' That's how a former McCain campaign strategist is describing Sarah Palin's performance as the Governor prepared for the vice presidential debate. A new book reveals intense behind-the-scenes drama during the McCain-Palin campaign. We're learning what really was going on behind the scenes as Sarah Palin prepared for her now famous Vice Presidential debate.
STEVE SCHMIDT: She was not focused, she was not engaged, she was really not participating in the prep.
NORVILLE: In an interview airing Sunday on 60 minutes, John McCain's former chief campaign strategist Steve Schmidt reveals Palin was 'overwhelmed' and 'ill prepared' for the debate. The campaign honcho in charge of prepping Palin called him in a panic.
SCHMIDT: He told us that the debate was going to be a debacle of historic and epic proportions.
NORVILLE: That's when Schmidt says he stepped in.
SCHMIDT: We had a conversation with her. I said to her, I said 'Governor, this doesn't seem to be going very well to me,' and she assented, she agreed. She said 'you know, I think that's right.'
NORVILLE: The startling revelations are detailed in the new book 'Game Change.' Schmidt cooperated with the book's authors. Schmidt also claims Palin was so flustered during the prep for debate, she kept referring to Joe Biden as 'O'Biden.' Schmidt says Palin was advised to just call him Joe, which she did in what became the memorable greeting from the debate.
SARAH PALIN: 'Hey, can I call you Joe?'
JOE BIDEN: You can me Joe.
PALIN: Okay, thanks.
NORVILLE: The moment led to the classic Tina Fey send-up on Saturday Night Live.
TINA FEY: Hey, can I call you Joe?
JASON SUDEIKIS: Of course.
FEY: Okay, cause' I practiced a couple zingers where I call you Joe.
SUDEIKIS: Okay, great.
NORVILLE: But Palin did slip up once during the nationally televised debate.
PALIN: Barack Obama and Senator O'Biden you've said no-
NORVILLE: Biden's reaction, a broad smile. And Sarah Palin's response, she would only say that she addressed some of the same allegations in her own book, 'Going Rogue.'
-Kyle Drennen is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.