Posted on 03/17/2009 4:29:23 PM PDT by redk
There is no brand in Republican politics as powerful -- or as tenuous -- as that of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
She is simultaneously the hottest commodity on the Republican fundraising circuit and a figure of ridicule among Democrats (and even many Independents) who believe that her status as a national figure is entirely undeserved.
Even Palin and her political team seem to be struggling somewhat with how much or little to expose her at the national level.
(Excerpt) Read more at voices.washingtonpost.com ...
Tales of interest ping
Sarah get your gun.
Unlike Obama, who mailed it in after being elected to the Senate and spent his whole time running for President, Palin has a job to do. Running the largest state of the union is not a part time operation.
I’m sure she will find the right balance between Governor and Conservative leader.
Notice I use Conservative instead of Republican. I’m not sure what a Republican is anymore.
“..... struggling somewhat with how much or little to expose her at the national level.”
Go for it Sarah! You can do it. Your country needs you. Win or lose, you will look fantastic in the fight.
Palin would have to run as an independent, for the Republicans are too liberal to let her run.
“Running the largest state of the union is not a part time operation.”
The Alaska State legislature only convenes 90 days a year. I’ve never heard of a full-time job where you only had to show up from mid-January to mid-April.
Stay home, Sarah, and practice governor
You had a fantastic convention speech, excellent debate against clueless Joe Biden, and fired up the base along the campaign trail.
Reagan ran for president in 1968, after only two years as governor of California. He didn’t win, either.
Your time will come.
Jeez. These are the people pulling off their panties and throwing them at Obama. And the writer supposes that we really care what they think, as if it has any legitimacy in the face of that?
"... [T]he State Constitution concentrates power in the governor?s office more thoroughly than in almost any other state ? a legacy of the late 1950s, historians say, when statehood and a simultaneous trend all over the country toward elevating executive authority coincided."
Given its source, today's article in the NYT entitled The Unusual Challenges Palin Faced in Alaska is remarkably balanced and informative. As PrestoPundit Greg Ransom notes, though, in his post linking the article,
Remember when the Democrat press wouldn't stop telling us about how Texas has a "weak Governor" system, when Bush was running for President? Well, don't expect them to talk much about the fact that Alaska has the most powerful governor in the country.
From the article itself:
That said, by other measures [than budgetary, given its current budget surpluses], Alaska is harder to govern than a smaller, more settled realm in the Lower 48. With vast distances, large numbers of indigenous peoples and a narrowly based extraction economy ? with a handful of giant multinational oil corporations dominating the game ? some economists say a country like Nigeria might be an apter comparison.
"Alaska really is a colonial place," said Stephen Haycox, a professor of history at the University of Alaska, Anchorage. "One third of the economic base is oil; another third is federal spending. The economy is extremely narrow and highly dependent. It?s not to say that Alaska is a beggar state, but it certainly is true that Alaska is dependent on decisions made outside it, and over which Alaskans don?t have great control."
Overlaid across all of that is a distinctly informal Alaskan style. At the annual governor?s picnic, usually held in July, the governor is expected to turn the brats and burgers on the grill ? something Ms. Palin has done with gusto ? with cabinet members in aprons rounding out the kitchen staff.
... [T]he State Constitution concentrates power in the governor?s office more thoroughly than in almost any other state ? a legacy of the late 1950s, historians say, when statehood and a simultaneous trend all over the country toward elevating executive authority coincided.
The NYT misses an important point, though: When exploding revenues lead to budget surpluses, that's when it's toughest to sustain vetoes that have stripped pork-barrel projects from the state budget ? yet that's exactly what Gov. Palin has done.
Governors generally don’t keep the same hours and work the same ways that the no-load legislators do.
But you might want to google "Alaska Governor" so you can be sure.
How wonderful it would be if our crappy Congress only “worked” for 90 days.
Think of the tax money saved.
Think of the freedoms we might still have.
Maybe Alaskans are on to something. Good thing they have a fiscally responsible Governor managing the ship the other 9 months.
Not only is Governor Palin far and away smarter than any Democrat I can think of, she is also a good person. It’s no wonder liberals can’t stand her. She is everything they aren’t.
“The Alaska State legislature only convenes 90 days a year. Ive never heard of a full-time job where you only had to show up from mid-January to mid-April.”
Sarah is not in the Alaska State legislature.
Anyone on or off the Palin ping, write me.
Please put me on Palin Ping List.
Thank You.
Selling things on FR?
Sort of, but not directly. You have to click on the image links and go to cafepress.com. I’m trying to use my creative glands to make strong points, and if I can make a couple of bucks doing it, so much the better. And seeing how Obamanomics has already cost me one part-time job and badly needed hours at another, it seems poetically appropriate that I should get a little back at his political expense. And so far, “a little” is all it’s been, though it’s gratifying to see how far and wide my efforts are being dispersed around the country, if only a handful of items to date.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.