Rove: Americans fear Palin lacks the gravitas to be their president (There he goes again!)

The Vancouver Sun ^ | October 27, 2010 | Alex Spillius

[2ndDivisionVet]

Karl Rove, the former senior adviser to George W Bush, has cast serious doubt on Sarah Palin's viability as a White House candidate, questioning if the American people thought she had the "gravitas" for the "most demanding job in the world".

Expressing the strongest public reservations about the conservative star made by any senior Republican figure, Mr Rove said it was unlikely that voters would regard someone starring in a reality show as presidential material.

In two weeks, the former governor of Alaska launches a cable television series exploring her home state's wilderness.

"With all due candour, appearing on your own reality show on the Discovery Channel, I am not certain how that fits in the American calculus of 'that helps me see you in the Oval Office'," said Mr Rove, who remains a considerable force on the U.S. political scene.

He added that the promotional clip for Sarah Palin's Alaska could be especially detrimental to any political campaign. It features the mother of five in the great outdoors saying: "I would rather be doing this than in some stuffy old political office."

Mr Rove also implied that Mrs Palin lacked the stomach for the rigours of a presidential primary campaign, which will begin early next year before the first polls in 2012.

Mr Rove was asked if 46-year-old Mrs Palin, who is among the front-runners for the next Republican nomination, would be a wise choice if the party wanted to seize the White House from President Barack Obama. He replied: "You can make a plausible case for any of them on paper, but it is not going to be paper in 2011. It's going to be blood, it's going to be sweat and tears and it's going to be hard effort."

He said Mrs Palin had done a "terrific job" in 2008 when Senator John McCain took her from near obscurity to the vice-presidential nomination, but added: "Being the vice-presidential nominee on the ticket is different from saying 'I want to be the person at the top of the ticket'.

"There are high standards that the American people have for it [the presidency] and they require a certain level of gravitas, and they want to look at the candidate and say 'that candidate is doing things that gives me confidence that they are up to the most demanding job in the world'."

After losing with Mr McCain in 2008, Mrs Palin resigned as governor to write books, become a television pundit - on the same Fox News network where Mr Rove is an analyst - and an influential supporter of Tea Party-backed Republican candidates in next week's mid-term elections.

Thanks to her staunch conservative views, Mrs Palin remains a highly divisive figure with high negative ratings. Many Republican strategists think her selection as nominee would almost guarantee Mr Obama a second term.

But such is her popularity among the grassroots of the party, few in Washington are prepared to stick their head above the parapet.

No major figure in the party has yet to come out in support of Mrs Palin, including Mr McCain, who refused to endorse her yesterday.

Mr Rove's forceful comments signalled his confidence in his own standing and track record as the architect of Mr Bush's two election victories. She could face further attacks from within the party's hierarchy in the coming months as the competition for the nomination heats up.

All the indications are that Mrs Palin will run for office. She has delivered a speech in Iowa, where the first caucuses are held, quietly accumulated members of staff and has a sizeable pot of money.

But Mr Rove suggested that "outside of the true believers", most Republican primary voters were still watching the race and would choose the candidate most suitable for the role. "They are going to be saying 'the person who can win is the person who proves to me that they are up to the job'," he said.

[moodyskeptic]

Hey Rove, anyone who helped put WBush in office has no right to weigh in on which CONSERVATIVES are qualified to run. You are the architect of the New Tone, an abject failure if ever there was one. Your old boy Yale-club GOP is headed out and the tea party you deride so effortlessly is replacing them.

So long Karl, take a bow and go away with some class.

[tennmountainman]

The ruling class, does indeed fear her. That includes the Washington lobbyist as well.

[andy58-in-nh]

What, exactly, is Barack Obama's "gravitas"?

Right.

I suspect I know what sort of "gravitas" currently informs Karl Rove's motivation: a check signed by Mitt Romney.

[Ol' Dan Tucker]

"There are high standards that the American people have for it [the presidency] and they require a certain level of gravitas, and they want to look at the candidate and say 'that candidate is doing things that gives me confidence that they are up to the most demanding job in the world'."

It can't be all that demanding if both Duh!bya and Oh!Brother have done it.

[Walts Ice Pick]

Did Rove really leave his wife for Ken Mehlman?

[marron]

First, Rove disgraced himself over the ODonnell episode. I think he’s finished.

Secondly, I often asked the same question about Palin. I have always liked her, the main reason I voted for McCain was for her sake.

But I’ve questioned if she had the “gravitas” to be president. But here’s the deal. In the aftermath of O’s election, the GOP was so demoralized I think they were ready to throw in the towel; they were jumping through hoops trying to prove to Obama that they could be good partners in government. I said then that the field was wide open; anyone who wanted to be president, even if they had a spotty past, even if their conservative credentials were a bit weak in the past, whatever the baggage, they could easily put it behind them if they were willing to fight, to get into O’s face, and fight.

I kept waiting for the heavy-weights to step forward. Romney? AWOL. Gingrich? Made a good show, but then blew it over Scozzafava. Huck? Please. The one who has consistently fought from day one to stop the O, the one who has been most bold about confronting him, the one who has been all around the country supporting GOP candidates, has been Palin.

The one who has never been embarrassed of the Tea Party Repubs is Palin. There are a couple of others, and they are all on my short list; DeMint, Bachmann, Ryan, Pence, and thats pretty much it. She has reshaped the battle-space and if she stays on the offensive these next two years I have no doubt she will be in the White House.

Gravitas? Whatever. She fights. Find me someone with gravitas who fights, and I’ll support them too. The heavies all instinctively see her as their enemy while she has always seen O as the one she had to beat. Different mentality. This is why she will be president and they won’t.

[GoldenPup]

Karl Rove, the former senior adviser to George W Bush, has cast serious doubt on Sarah Palin's viability as a White House candidate

In order to retain some relevance in the today's media, and continue to sell books/columns, Rove has to continually "stir the pot". He is just another "talking head" making a buck on you and me. Not much he says carries much weight...any more.

[Marathoner]

Somehow, moderating whatever show he did way back when didn’t seem to hurt Reagan.

[3niner]

There are high standards that the American people have for it [the presidency] and they require a certain level of gravitas,...

Come on, Rove. Do you even know who's in the Oval Office right now?

[arasina]

Let’s see, hmmm...Karl Rove. He’s the same guy who advised George W. Bush to support Arlen Specter instead of Pat Toomey, right? We all know how that turned out.

[aruanan]

Rove: Americans fear Palin lacks the gravitas to be their president (There he goes again!)

Karl, you poor demented boob, after Barack Hussein Obama, a gerbil has enough gravitas to be president. Palin will look like a no-nonsense, though cheerful, head of state who, if need be and with a smile, will put a political round through any head of state who needs convincing after Barry's imitation of a used sock.

[Pollster1]

Our soldiers respectfully disagree with Mr. Rove.

Does Rove really think that Obama has more "gravitas"?

[TNdandelion]

With all due respect, Mr. Rove, if Bush can handle the rigors of the Presidency, I have no doubt Mrs. Palin can do it. rofl

With that said, there's still a lot of time between now and the next Pres. election so who knows what will happen, but I think his criticism is silly.

[kbennkc]

I have always liked her, the main reason I voted for McCain was for her sake.

Yeah, me too. I almost voted for Obama./sarc

[Swede Girl]

Mr. Rove, I wish you would just be quiet. You are wrong sometimes, you know!

[EyeGuy]

There is MUCH that is wrong with Rove’s propaganda, but this is, at root, a sexist comment.

[puppypusher]

Americans don’t fear that.Carl Rove fears that.

Why is he so determined to destroy conservative candidates?

[AFreeBird]

Gee Karl, I don’t know. She seems to have bigger ones than all you RINOS put together. She’s taken everything that’s been thrown at her (by the left AND By the likes of you) and she just keeps getting better and stronger, and is still not only standing, but taking the fight directly to the “enemy”.

If that’s not gravitas, I don’t know what is.

And apparently Karl, you don’t know what gravitas is to begin with.

[meadsjn]

But such is her popularity among the grassroots of the party, few in Washington are prepared to stick their head above the parapet.

... No major figure in the party has yet to come out in support of Mrs Palin, including Mr McCain, who refused to endorse her yesterday.

... She could face further attacks from within the party's hierarchy in the coming months as the competition for the nomination heats up.

Well, those "major figures in the party" and "within the party's hierachy" have surely been keeping a low profile for the past two years.

Can't wait to see which ones stick their heads out first to claim credit for getting all these new conservatives elected.

[Cousin Eddie]

As of today, he is absolutely correct. (He was 100% correct about O’Donnell — although he should have shut his mouth — she has been a disaster and will get trounced next Tuesday.)

Palin may be adored by a large block of Republicans, but some Republicans don’t like her, and she does not appeal to enough independents. One can call the disapproving Republicans RINOs, but it doesn’t change the high likelihood that she isn’t electable today. The Republican ticket needs the RINO vote to win the election...it also needs the independent vote.

Those feelings can change...I vividly remember when establishment Republicans scoffed at the idea of a Hollywood actor — B-rated at that — should ever be president...that was even true in 1980...sort of the George H. W. Bush voters in that primary season.

Sarah hurt her standing in the broad middle of the electorate — although not among the conservative/tea party wing of the party — by resigning the governership. I know there were reasons — MoveOn and Soros were on a personal mission to bankrupt her with daily false accusations — but nevertheless it painted a picture of a ‘quiter’ in some people’s minds. It also deprived her of experience on her resume.

I firmly believe that a HUGE (or make that HUGH) issue in the 2012 election will be experience. The country elected a person who’s never done anything or run anything, and we’re paying dearly as a consequence. The country will want to turn things over to an executive with proven leadership abilities, and 2 years as a mayor and an aborted term as governor present a weak resume.

Sarah would be in much better position if she runs for elected office again — too bad she didn’t run for Senate this year — and build up her experience. She’d be much more marketable to the general population. She’s young and she has the time.