Posted on 05/16/2011 4:16:44 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Yesterday, when writing about the fallout from Mike Huckabee’s decision not to run for president, I picked Michelle Bachmann as the candidate who might benefit the most from this turn of events. But I also noted that this was predicated on Sarah Palin’s not running. The deathly quiet from her camp about a 2012 campaign is encouraging presidential hopefuls and pundits alike to think that she is staying out of the race. But it is also frustrating her fans.
A visit to Conservatives4palin, one of her leading fan websites, shows that the former Alaska governor’s followers are still hoping that she will swoop down from the north and once again become the star of the conservative movement. To that end they have been busy writing letters-to-the-editor of every publication that disses their lady and even creating graphic logos where she is depicted as a latter-day Joan of Arc.
More seriously, the Des Moines Register reports that some Palin fans in Iowa have created a group that will try and build a grass roots campaign for her in that caucus state. But in the absence of a declared candidate and in the face of the formidable machines being built for the Republicans who actually are in the race, it looks like a forlorn cause. That should be especially daunting for her supporters when you consider that Palin hasn’t stepped foot in the state since last December during her book tour.
Unlike most other writers, New York Times political blogger Nate Silver considered Palin when he broke down the post-Huckabee situation. He rightly noted that Iowa ought to be fertile ground for a populist social conservative like Palin. Moreover, Huckabee’s exit and the collapse of the Donald Trump boomlet theoretically should help Palin, since she would be competing for some of the same voters as those two outliers. But, as Silver wrote, expectations for Palin are now very low. Although her stock is higher today than it has been for some time, Silver believes the clock is rapidly running out of time for her to gather her forces and make an attempt at the nomination. That might be an exaggeration; it is feasible for a well-known candidate with ready access to campaign funds to announce late in the game and still be competitive.
But the immediate problem for the Palinites is neither organizational nor financial. It is the fact that, as John wrote last week, her political career imploded and she appears to have gone to ground and abandoned the field to others, such as Michelle Bachmann, who is well placed to garner the affection of her core constituency. Sarah Palin’s moment looks to have come and gone.
The deathly quiet from her camp about a 2012 campaign is encouraging presidential hopefuls and pundits alike to think that she is staying out of the race.”
He’s never heard the expression “calm before the storm” eh?
- They ignore the interviews where Sarah has repeatedly said it's way too early to make a decision and that she's surveying the field (Hint: Letting the RINOs fight among themselves and get overexposed).
- They ignore the fact that Sarah already has people on the ground for her.
- They ignore the fact that Sarah still receives daily briefings from advisers, and that she just came out with a detailed five-point plan on foreign policy and defense. But of course, her critics don't focus on that, they're more concerned about whether or not Bristol had plastic surgery.
Palin has had a great spring where she visited India and Israel, and gave a kick-@ss speech in Madison WI that basically declared her running. Palin has said she is an unconventional politician and she will run an unconventional campaign.
As for Mr. Herman Cain, I’m sure he’s a great guy. However, we’ve NEVER elected someone to the presidency who hasn’t held a federal elected or flag officer position. EVER. In 235 years. Do you see that changing this year against an incumbent with 98.6% of the media on his side? With academia, the nutroots, Hollywood, cable TV, liberal talk radio, Broadway, the beltway and leftist churches in his pocket?
Some people have no tactical talent whatever.
Gov. Palin is not one of them.
Keep your ass down and your powder dry.
Let them ditty-bop right smack into the middle of the kill zone and then destroy them!
If Sarah Palin snags Congressman West as a VP on her ticket, I’ll vote for her. I’m not saying I won’t vote for her otherwise, I’ll just have to think about it a bit more. Maybe over a peanut butter sammich. I like those. I bet Sarah Palin does, too.
It will be interesting to see how all this plays out.
Is coy still as cute as it was? I just don’t think so. Sorry.
Rep. Bachmann is a straw man in that article, a foil against Gov. Palin and nothing more. If they were writing something against Gov. Romney, they’d probably use Ambassador Huntsman in the same way.
Doesn't the fact that she has "fans" seem a bit off-putting?
So the top seed has given herself a bye. Big deal.
"Sarah Palin isn't running...at least I hope she isn't running because if she does, she can win...oh Dear, what will we do then?"
Simply a non-starter for the Presidency.
Trite.,,, it isn’t being coy. It’s called not being stampeded by the crowd until it’s the right time. It’s way too early,,,
Please take 30 minutes or so and watch the linked video...it will come down to Romney, Newt and this man Herman Cain......
It's a slow day for blogpimps.
So many have been either cleared out or reformed.
It's both gratifying and sad.. we've worked ourselves out of a job.
,,,do you prefer the term “supporters”?
cain is duller than melba toast.
boring = Obama2
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