I’ve kept mostly mum about Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s ongoing claims of being an expert on Russia affairs because 1) so many others out there are doing a pretty good job tearing this narrative to shreds, and 2) because it is simply a patently ridiculous claim that any given Alaska politician automatically gets to put on the Kremlinologist hat whenever necessary (furthermore I wouldn’t say that many governors of Texas are exactly high regarded for their knowledge of Mexican foreign policy issues). I think it’s quite an innocent line for the campaign to push – what candidate for office doesn’t trump up every experience that they can point to? But what’s interesting here is that they are still clinging to the Palin-as-Russia-expert line despite all the open derision, and continuing to push the argument despite clear evidence that nobody is buying it. This one comes from the CBS From the Road blog:

On a clear day, it is, in fact, possible to see the unpopulated Russian island of Big Diomede from the Alaskan island of Little Diomede, which is inhabited by a small native population. Still, Palin’s hometown of Wasilla isn’t much closer to the Russian capital of Moscow (4,318 miles) than New York City is (4,663 miles). But rather than downplaying Palin’s suggestion that she possesses special knowledge of Russia, the McCain/Palin campaign has continued to tout Alaska’s proximity to the world’s largest nation as a feather in her cap, without offering any evidence of actual experience Palin has in Russian affairs.