President-Elect Obama is busy putting together a smooth transition.  John McCain reports he is ready to get back to work in the Senate.  And Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has gone home to Alaska – some say to prepare for 2012.  Like everyone else, this writer was shocked at Palin’s seeming lack of knowledge and lack of intellectual curiosity.  But even FOX News is reporting more detail to affirm that shock.

One of the rednecks down the road from where we live was seething mad about the Katie Couric interview.  His take was that Couric was unfair and demeaning to a Vice-Presidential candidate.  Again, even Fox News reports the Couric interview was not out of bounds.  It seems that Governor Palin owned the result of that interview, refusing coaching by the McCain Camp.

Some of the more astounding post election revelations are that Palin did not know which courtries were in the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).  For others who do not know the countries are Mexico, the United States, and Canada.  And this revelation seems to top them all – Governor Palin did not know that Africa is a continent.  She did not understand that there are numerous countries located on that continent.

This disecting of the vetting process by the McCain Camp is useful only as a reminderof what is at stake.  John McCain, according to FOX News, made his choice based solely on political expediency.  He risked the country to get elected.

We are now in a time of healing.  And perhaps some of this analysis should be left for later – but Governor Palin is already preparing for 2012, and she has some hard core supporters.  For the sake of the Republican Party and for the country we have a duty to look ahead and make sure well vetted, competent candidates are on the ballot.

Check out Shephard Smith on FOX News: