the job of vice president , let alone president . Watch Zakaria slam Sarah Palin '' CNN : You do n't think she is qualified ? Zakaria : No . Gov. Palin has been given a set of talking points by campaign advisers , simple ideological mantras that she repeats and repeats as long as she can . But if forced off those rehearsed lines , what she has to say is often , quite frankly -- nonsense . Just listen to her response to Katie Couric 's question about the bailout . It 's gibberish -- an emptying out of catchphrases about economics that have nothing to do with the question or the topic . It 's scary to think that this person could be running the country . Here is their exchange : Katie Couric : Why is n't it better , Gov. Palin , to spend $ 700 billion helping middle-class families who are struggling with health care , housing , gas and groceries ; allow them to spend more and put more money into the economy instead of helping these big financial institutions that played a role in creating this mess ? Gov. Sarah Palin :
NEW YORK -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- In a column appearing in Newsweek , world affairs expert and author Fareed Zakaria said he thinks it would be best for Republican presidential hopeful John McCain if Gov. Sarah Palin bowed out as his vice presidential running mate . `` For him to choose Sarah Palin to be his running mate is fundamentally irresponsible , '' says Zakaria . Zakaria says McCain did not put the country first in making his V.P. choice , and he says Palin is not qualified to lead the United States . CNN spoke to him about his commentary titled , `` Palin is ready ? Please . '' CNN : What did you initially think when Sarah Palin was announced as the Republican vice presidential nominee ? Zakaria : I was a bit surprised -- as I think most people were . But I was willing to give her a chance . And I thought her speech at the convention was clever and funny . But once she began answering questions about economics and foreign policy , it became clear that she has simply never thought about these subjects before and is dangerously ignorant and unprepared for