The Annoyed Professor

This description of Charlie Gibson in his interview with Sarah Palin is the best I've seen:

Gibson, who sat back in his chair and wriggled his foot impatiently, had the skeptical, annoyed tone of a university president who agrees to interview the daughter of a trustee, but doesn't believe she merits admission.

The press demands that Palin prove she is ready to VP, but has never demanded that Obama prove he is ready to be President. And, in terms of being ready for something important Charlie or his producer decided to take an AP version of a Palin quote and use it as the basis for an inquisition. However, the AP quote had been truncated and effectively took Palin out of context. Here's what Gibson said:

GIBSON: You said recently, in your old church, “Our national leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God.” Are we fighting a holy war?

PALIN: You know, I don’t know if that was my exact quote.

GIBSON: Exact words.

PALIN: But the reference there is a repeat of Abraham Lincoln’s words when he said — first, he suggested never presume to know what God’s will is, and I would never presume to know God’s will or to speak God’s words.

But what Abraham Lincoln had said, and that’s a repeat in my comments, was let us not pray that God is on our side in a war or any other time, but let us pray that we are on God’s side.

That’s what that comment was all about, Charlie.

GIBSON: I take your point about Lincoln’s words, but you went on and said, “There is a plan and it is God’s plan.”

Yes, those were her exact words - if you leave out a whole section of the original quote. Here's what Palin actually said during a service at her church:

"Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God," she exhorted the congregants. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

This is either dishonest on the part of ABC, or incredibly careless. The left wants to make Palin into a religious wacko, and taking her out of context is apparently considered fair game.

This experience demonstrates that Palin will have to be very, very careful in her dealings with the press. She not only has to be ready to answer legitimate questions, but has to be on guard for this kind of nonsense.

UPDATE: The Corner suggests a line of questioning for the next time Charlie Gibson meets Barack Obama:

Charlie Gibson: “Senator Obama, you have referred in the past to ‘my Muslim faith.’ How strong is your Muslim faith?”

Barack Obama: “You know, I don’t know if that was my exact quote.”

Charlie Gibson: “Exact words.”