I’m a tough grader. Palin did not win. But she certainly did not lose.

I’ll be honest; I don’t believe Palin “mopped the floor” with Biden (who I actually think came off rather well) at all. What I do think is that she did good given that she was not as regularly opportuned with the last word as her opponent was. And personally I would fault her for not clearly explaining to the American how the entire crisis came about – with the CRA, the GSEs and leading Democrats shielding them from the enforcement of basic regulations every other financial/mortgage institution had to live under. This debate was a golden opportunity for the destruction of the “deregulation” meme the Democrats and their allies in the media have been pushing on the American people since the subprime mess became the number one headline issue.

I just hope to all that is Holy that John McCain and the rest of the GOP are just waiting for the bill to pass and the markets to stabilize before unleashing holy hell on Obama and the rest of the Democratic Party (Frank, Davis, Waters, Dodd, Raines, Johnson, etc.) for their role in nearly bringing the American economy to its knees. The investigations into the GSE’s practices, the Bush Administration’s 2003 effort as well as McCain and Sununu’s (who is in a tough race in NH) 2005 bill to rein Fannie and Freddie in should be a lot more famous than they are now. For the sake of not just McCain but Republicans all the way down the ballot, this crisis needs to be tied around the Democrats’ necks where it belongs.

All that said though and getting back to the subject of the night, Palin went in and did what she had to do. I think a lot of people having doubts about her being ready to occupy the Naval Observatory have had them allayed.

Either way, the debate’s over and done with – the real question now is what are Schmidt and Co. and the guys at the flush-with-cash RNC going to do with all the material Joe Biden was (and Barack Obama before him) kind enough to provide for them during this debate and over the past few months? With all the money McCain/RNC have to play around with, and it is October, after all, the GOP should be preparing to launch the mother of all air wars right about now. Some of that money should go to educating the American people about Fannie, Freddie and their Democratic friends. Some on letting the American people in on some information the Press does not want them to know, and some (just a miniscule amount really) on the Press itself.

As for Palin, she needs to be on the Sunday morning talk shows, giving interviews, and hosting townhalls and press conferences (with her own cameraman in tow, of course) non-stop for the next few weeks. Leno and {boo! hiss!} Letterman, and even a cameo appearance on Saturday Night Live would go a long way – she apparently has the gift of being able to easily connect with the average American, and these shows present great opportunities to do just that. The McCain campaign’s decision to keep her hidden after the Convention till now was a mistake, but with her very credible performance today, she’s given them an opportunity to rectify it and close some of the gap … but only if they’re smart and aggressive enough.

So thank you Governor Palin – you’ve done your part.

Make sure it’s not in vain …