Sarahcuda scared the republicans because she wasn’t afraid to take them out if they screwed up.
Indeed, she displayed a record of standing up firmly against corruption in her own Party... one of the first clues for me that she wasn’t yet another common, garden-variety political hack. This is a special kind of leader. 95% or more of all politicians tend to be beholden to varied interests, from unions to corporate buddies to Party machines to media adulation to any number of moneyed interests. Palin expressed and demonstrated loathing for all that crap, answering only to the people in her state, guided strictly by the Constitution. A rarity. Practically an “anti-politician.” And exactly what I want in a leader.