Posted on 03/23/2011 7:50:38 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
The question on everyone’s mind loomed throughout Sarah Palin’s hour-long appearance in North Naples on Wednesday: Will Floridians see more of the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate in 2012?
The answer was simple: You betcha.
“I’m thinking about it and praying about it,” Palin said when asked whether she’d run for president in 2012. “(But) whether I’m a candidate or not … I’m going to stay engaged.”
Palin spoke to a sold-out audience Wednesday as part of the Naples Town Hall Distinguished Speakers Series at the Ritz Carlton Naples Beach Resort. Her speech focused on issues facing the United States as the country enters what is expected to be a heated election season.
“America faces real threats, and to face these threats we need unapologetic leadership,” she said. “(People say) there’s a lack of leadership, but that’s nothing another election can’t turn around. My faith is not in big government. It’s in the people. And the people will turn it around.”
Palin’s appearance was her first U.S. appearance after a whirlwind trip to India – where she was the keynote speaker for the India Today Conclave – and Israel last week. While in Israel, Palin said she met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and spoke to him about her commitment to the country.
“So many Americans stand with them,” Palin said of Israel. “It is in the interest of freedom, peace and security that I say we must stand with them.”
While Palin spoke briefly about her trip abroad, she focused primarily on domestic affairs and the current state of the economy. She promised to keep things real as she spoke about the issues that faced Americans.
“I call it like I see it,” she said. “If the press is here, we’ll deal with the press later. But I’ll be blunt and candid with you.”
The country, Palin said, is in the midst of “a dangerous and unsustainable federal debt” crisis that needs to be corrected before any change can occur. Palin said the country would be in serious trouble if it loses its AAA bond rating, and as debt grows she said she was concerned the country wouldn’t be able to dig itself out.
“Politicians are patting themselves on the back for cutting $6 billion when borrowing $400 billion to keep the country afloat,” she said. “We’re not heading toward the iceberg, we’ve hit the iceberg.”
Palin criticized President Barack Obama for his position on the federal debt, said he “just doesn’t care” and called his proposed 2012 budget—themed ‘winning the future’—a “political document.” She went on to say that after submitting a budget to Congress, the president “went AWOL on spending.”
“Under the guise of winning the future, which I call WTF, we’re spending more money,” she said. “We’re not getting the economic truth out of the White House. ...If this is winning the future, then what is the future?”
Palin praised Florida Gov. Rick Scott for saying “no thanks on excess” when he turned down federal dollars for high speed rail in Florida.
Palin’s concerns weren’t just about the economy. She spoke out against the president’s energy plan, particularly the fact that the “president and (his party) continue to lock up offshore drilling” in the United States. Instead, she said, the administration is supporting drilling overseas.
“The ‘Drill, baby, drill’ mantra has turned into ‘Drill, Brazil, drill,’” she said. “In Alaska, Louisiana, Wyoming, the Dakotas — there are so many other places I’d like to see the president rooting for than another country.”
Policy and a potential presidential run weren’t the only matters on Palin’s agenda Tuesday. She also gave those in attendance a peek into her personal life with stories about her husband, Todd, and oldest daughter, Bristol.
Bonita Springs resident Terry Major said she thought the event was interesting, particularly as a way to compare Palin to her portrayal in the media. Major said she enjoyed the lecture and was pleased to see the real Palin.
“I was impressed,” she said.
Kev, now you know what life in the Soviet Union was like. Happy Pravda, everyone.
Nice work. What’s that saying about pictures and a thousand words?
I was thinking more along the lines of what I've seen recently: The book 1984 is supposed to be a warning, but the left is using it as an instruction manual.
That, in my view, is the only thing that matters. Harvard grad, high school grad, Wall St or Main St - is all irrelevant.
The vision and the guts (as you say) to bring us back to the glory days is what's needed.
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