Politico Reports Palin’s a Thud at NRSC Dinner, all Others Say She Was a Hit

Reports on Governor Sarah Palin's appearance at the National Republican Senatorial Committee dinner in D.C. on Monday nearly all mention that she was quite the center of attention with dinner attendees. Well, all agree with that characterization but Politico's Alex Isenstadt, that is. Isenstadt seems to have been the only one to report that her attendance was a dud. This spurred our friend Videmus Omnia to wonder if Isenstadt went to the same dinner as everyone else? After looking it over, I have to ask the same question.

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For Politico, Isenstadt snorted that Palin's appearance at the dinner "went little-noticed." He also stated that, "If she hadn't walked quickly across the stage the outset and if her presence hadn’t been mentioned briefly in the remarks of some of the evening's speakers, it would have been hard to know that she had, in fact, shown up." So there you have it. No one cared a whit that Governor Palin attended the dinner. But wait. A perusal of other media accounts says just the opposite. For CNN, Peter Hamby's piece is headlined "Palin center of attention at big GOP dinner," and just the headline alone seems to argue against Politico's characterization of Palin's dinner flop.

Palin did not speak at the event, but during a break in the program for dinner, Republicans clustered around the former vice presidential nominee's table near the front of the ballroom, eager to meet the governor and pose for pictures. It was the only table in the vast ballroom that had a crowd gathered around it — and despite their distance from Palin's table, multiple television cameras kept their lenses trained on the governor for much of the night.

CNN's report stands in stark contrast with the dour version of events promulgated by Politico, doesn't it? As to another account, even while digging at her, US News reports that she was surrounded by well wishers at the dinner.

Several Washington Republicans contacted by Whispers said that Palin was quick to leave the Senate-House Dinner, apparently ignoring a line of those who wanted to meet her.

Whether she left fans hanging or not, this does not speak to any possibility that she "went little-noticed" as Politico reported. If there were "40 people standing around her" as US News reports, that does not speak to being "little-noticed," for sure. Even Dana Milbank noticed that Palin "stole the spotlight" at the dinner.

The focus, meanwhile, was on a table in the first row, where a certain governor was holding court. During dinner, all the television cameras trained their lenses on Palin, her image grainy across the room. Dozens of well-wishers clustered around her table in the first row, for a chance to have a photo taken with her.

Not only that, but Milbank also mentions that Senator John Cornyn (R, TX) thanked Palin for attending in the opening moments of his own comments. His few words following her name were drowned out by thunderous applause, too. So, even if all that other activity went "little-noticed" then the Senator alerted everyone to her presence. This all seems to say rather the opposite of Palin going "little-noticed" at the event, in any case. So, what is Politico's Isenstadt doing here? Why is he so obviously misreporting what went on concerning Governor Palin's appearance at the NRSC dinner? Your guess is as good as mine, at some point.

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