St. Louis News Blog

​If you haven't heard, former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin is out today with her new book Going Rogue.

The 432-page tome is already getting some critical reviews from those who say Palin doesn't always get her facts straight in the book.

Honestly, though, who cares?! Palin was never about authenticity. She was about spontaneity!

Like that time in St. Louis during the VP debate when she casually asked Joe Biden, "Hey, can I call you Joe?" and then used the informality to belittle him. "Say it ain't so, Joe, there you go again pointing backwards again."

Or that time that time that she -- or her handlers -- came to St. Louis and dropped tens of thousands of dollars on clothes and accoutrements at the Saks Fifth Avenue.

Given Palin's ties to St. Louis and her affinity for our stores, we here at Daily RFT figured Palin would give our fair city a visit during her book tour.

Think again.

A Washington University graduate student was struck with inspiration following last week's vice presidential debate here in St. Louis.

What kind of inspiration, you ask? See after the jump.

To go along with our media credential to last week's vice-presidential debate at Washington University, Unreal scored us a Flip video camera, the most neat-o invention since the Spaloo portable bidet.

Let's just say looking back on the debate and attendant campus hoopla put us in a nostalgic mood:

-Unreal

It should come as little surprise to those of us living here, but last night's vice presidential debate at Washington University drew huge television ratings in St. Louis, which was second only to Baltimore for viewership.

According to the the Nielsen Company, roughly 58 percent of St. Louis households watched the debate. St. Louis is the 21st largest television market in the country.

Here are the stats:

-Nick Lucchesi

Among the numerous debate watch parties going on in St. Louis for Thursday night's vice-presidential debate, the Pageant filled with mostly Barack Obama-Joe Biden supporters.

Photographer Brent Holzapfel was there and brought back photos of costumed political junkies, average Joe's and even the BBC.

Slide Show

-Nick Lucchesi

After Alaska Governor and GOP VP candidate Sarah Palin oozed folksy charm for a straight 90 minutes, she headed over to the Chaifetz Arena on the campus of Saint Louis University for a post-debate rally.

There were plenty of hockey moms, the increasingly popular Palin Look-Alikes and more than a few "I Heart Sarah" T-shirts. Plus former St. Louis Cardinal Andy Benes and Palin's husband, who goes simply by "Todd."

We've posted a slide show of the night, with photos by Lyle Whitworth.

Slide Show

-Nick Lucchesi

Jesse Houston, Apocaplyptic

What does that sign mean, 'The end is near'?
[Houston points to his ass.]

Ah. I see. So I see you're a McCain supporter. They treating you right here?
I'm an endangered species. Generally it's been pretty good. But people assume everybody is [an Obama supporter].

What book are you carrying?

The Mill on the Floss. I have to read 100 pages tonight. Let's see if that happens.

[Houston was later observed sitting on a bench dutifully reading his George Eliot.]

Name: Audrey Morrow
Party: Black republican

You are a black republican – wait, you’re holding an Obama sign. Explain, please.
I'm affiliated with the Democrats. It's republican with a little 'r,' for the republic. It's not about being partisan. It's about issues, honestly. I'm not so far against McCain, but if he dies, Sarah Palin would be president and she would not make a good president at all. If anything happens to Obama, God forbid -- and there are threats against him now -- he has Joe Biden. Sarah Palin is stupid.

I'm a member of the republic. One hundred years ago, I never would have had this opportunity [to vote]. People died so I could have this opportunity. I have to exercise my rights and responsibilities.

Go behind the scenes at Washington University for the Vice Presidential Debate, held on October 2, 2008.

Open video in a pop-up window.

-Nick Lucchesi

Here's a look inside Washington University, which was closed off the the public for the VP Debate. Check out the hyped-up college kids, talking heads, Daily Show guy and America's favorite cross-dressing mayor.

Slide Show

-Nick Lucchesi

Bill Streeter did some man-on-the-street reporting and asked St. Louisians their take on the debate. Here are some videos he shot. Incidentally, these are embedded on a site called qik.com that seems very cool. Go here for nationwide reaction to the debates, in the form of citizen-shot videos for theuptake.org, a political video blog.

People dressed as The Flintstones outside the Pageant:

7:55: Older journalist to impressionable younger journalist: When we hear bullshit, It is our job to call attention that it is bullshit.

8:03: An analysis of Sarah Palin's suit: Black, which signifies deep seriousness. But the cinched waist and peplum jacket say she is a Woman. And the sash says she is vulnerable. And the stiletto heels say she's going to stomp Biden's eyeballs out.

8:06: Oooh, sparkly American flag pin. What, soccer game? Not hockey?

8:08: John McCain is out of touch. Palin says when McCain said the economy is strong, he meant the work force. I'm so glad I finally understand.

8:09: Maverick! Drink!

8:10: Maverick again. Gulp.

8:11: Two-for-one! Hockey moms and Joe Six Pack! Urp!

8:05 p.m.: Was "Main Street" part of the VP debate drinking game? How 'bout "betcha"?

8:09 p.m.: When is Sarah gonna pause to breathe?

8:09.30 p.m.: She said "darn"! Drink a shot! She said Joe Six Pack! Hit it again!

8:12 p.m.: Darn right! Unreal's beginning to feel a little woozy. On the plus side, although Anheuser-Busch wasn't a first-tier debate sponsor like they were in '04, the American outpost of InBev is once again manning the hospitality tent. Unreal thought for a moment about sticking to O'Doul's. It was a quick moment.

If you're looking for a source of free condoms on the Wash. U. campus today, look no further than the MSNBC stage in front of Graham Chapel where volunteers from Planned Parenthood are passing off condoms in special wrappers: "Protect Yourself from McCain."

"Can I snag a few?" a student asks Jill Hansen, a graduate student in social work and one of the organizers.

"One," she says firmly.

Earlier today I interviewed St. Louis native Sean Quinn, who is blogging about the presidential election at the increasingly popular and influential FiveThirtyEight.com.

The Web site, founded by Baseball Prospectus guru Nate Silver and named after the total number of electoral votes at stake in the election, provides a rolling projection of the election based on a meta-analysis of state and national polls.

(The site's FAQ explains the process in much greater detail. As of this writing, Obama is projected to defeat McCain 336-202; Obama also wins over 85% of 10,000 simulations of the election.)

The 37-year-old Quinn, a graduate of Clayton High School, is currently in St. Louis for tonight's vice-presidential debate between Senator Joe Biden and Governor Sarah Palin. I'll have a longer profile of Quinn and his work for FiveThirtyEight in next week's issue. After the jump, check out Quinn's take on tonight's highly anticipated showdown.

It may be only 9:45 a.m. on the day of the debate, but if you're clamoring for some entertainment during the debate tonight, this drinking game may help.

Click the image for a high-resolution .pdf file.

Several Washington University students had the opportunity to serve their country this afternoon by standing in for candidates Sarah Palin and Joe Biden and moderator Gwen Ifill while technical crews worked out the sound, lighting and podium height for Thursday night's debate.

Danny "Joe Biden" Gaynor, a junior majoring in political science, gave Unreal a call to talk about standing in for a Senator.

Unreal: How did you get into character as Joe Biden?
Danny Gaynor: I can't say I did much more than read interviews. I'm politically aware. I've watched some of his other debates. I'm wearing nice shoes, tie and shirt and I ironed everything. I haven't had a chance to go on yet, but with the last Joe Biden, questions about his favorite cereal, favorite TV show, favorite subject and favorite teacher were on the docket.

PBS newshound Gwen Ifill, who is slated to moderate tomorrow night’s vice-presidential debate at Washington University, has broken her ankle.

The injury reportedly occurred when the public-TV correspondent tripped over a stack of bio books about veep candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin. But Ifill will suck it up and moderate the debate anyway.

UPDATE: According to Washington University student volunteers, the underside of Ifill’s desk will be lined with foam so the cast won’t bang at inconvenient junctures. (Ifill has not yet arrived in St. Louis, so the students have not had the opportunity to sign said cast.)

Ifill’s injury has nothing to do with the recent controversy surrounding her new book, The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama, a study of black politicians in the post-Civil Rights Era. The book is scheduled for publication on Inauguration Day. Conservative websites, including World Net Daily and the Drudge Report, claim the book is a screed in support of Barack Obama. Ifill says she started writing the book when it was still unlikely that Obama would be the Democratic Presidential nominee.

John McCain, for one, believes that Ifill will be unbiased. “I think that Gwen Ifill is a professional, and I think she will do a totally objective job because she is a highly respected professional,” he told Fox News's Carl Cameron.

-Aimee Levitt

1968. Vietnam. The assassinations of RFK and MLK.

Richard Nixon, the Republican nominee, was battling Lyndon Johnson's Vice President Hubert Humphrey for the Oval Office. The conventional wisdom said Nixon had narrowly lost 1960 contest to John F. Kennedy due, in part, to his appearance during that election's first-ever televised debates. Where JFK was handsome and telegenic, Nixon had a five-o'clock shadow and was sweaty.

So leading into the '68 debates, George Lois, legendary art director at Esquire magazine, concocted an image of multiple hands giving "Tricky Dick" a cosmetic once-over, tagged with the cover line "Nixon's last chance. (This time he'd better look right!)" Nixon won that election and the next one in '72 only to resign the presidency in disgrace as a result of the Watergate scandal.

40 years later. The waning days of another disastrous Republican administration.

GOP VP nominee Sarah Palin referred to herself as a "pit bull in lipstick" during her acceptance speech at the Republican convention. What could be more appropriate on the eve of the Vice Presidential debate in St. Louis than to update the image for our times as well as pay homage to Lois' groundbreaking work?

View the '68 Esquire cover and the '08 RFT cover after the jump.

During presidential and vice presidential debates, you always find yourself yelling at the television. Well that's most of the time you watch TV, but that's not the point.

Want to find a place to watch, yell, gasp and sigh at the television during Thursday night's vice presidential debate, along with dozens or hundreds more of your fellow St. Louisans? From one-room bars to athletic arenas to theaters to concert venues, there are watch parties being held all over the city.

Here's a list, and if you have any other places (besides your buddy's studio apartment), email more watch party info and we'll add it to this directory.

Right now there's a fleet of AT&T vans parked on the tennis courts in front of the Wash. U. Athletic Complex -- and a lot of pen clicking and shuffling inside the building.

"I think I heard from every radio station in the state of Alaska," says Joani Wardwell, media director for the Commission on Presidential Debates. Wardwell led a press conference Monday afternoon for members of the media who -- 3,100 of them -- will descend on Wash. U. on Thursday from 60 countries. There were 3,200 credentials distributed for the presidential debate last Friday in Mississippi.

With such a large audience likely to watch the vice presidential debate Thursday, it's understandable if organizers are a little more nervous than usual about hosting another debate at the university (the school has hosted presidential debates in 1992, 2000, and 2004.) But on Monday afternoon, organizers appeared just that -- organized -- during a meeting with the press.

Did you notice that the McCain campaign has insisted that question-and-answer segments for the vice-presidential debate October 2 in St. Louis be a lot shorter than they'll be for the three Obama-McCain clashes that commence in Oxford, Mississippi, this Friday evening.