The Palin-Reagan connection

Red State ^ | Thursday, November 20, 2008 | Josh Painter

[redk]

I'm one of those who refuses to proclaim Sarah Palin as "the next Reagan." To do so would be to open myself to all sorts of attacks from Reagan admirers and detractors alike, but that's not why I refrain from equating the two. I truly believe that Ronald Reagan was a rare and unique leader, a giant of the conservative movement who pushed it ahead as much as did Barry Goldwater and William F. Buckley. I do admire and support Gov. Palin, and I think she has her own brand of uniqueness.

[FoxInSocks]

Ronald Reagan was in the public spotlight for almost 70 years. For most of that time Reagan was a conservative Republican.

He didn't start speaking on conservative issues until the fifties, notably on his tours for GE.

[AFreeBird]

And if Reagan were still alive, to many FReepers Reagan would be a RINO (he allowed illegal immigrant amnesty, remember?)...

As our dear departed Ron used to say: "There ya go again".

Reagan expected it [the amnesty] to be a one time deal with full tough enforcement of immigration laws to take over after that.

That didn't happen. Not his fault, and even if it was one of his mistakes, I wouldn't call him a RINO over it.

Not ever!!

As for your visceral hatred of Gov. Palin: "There ya go again".

[GloriaJane]

"I want her to get reelected and become our President but I’m nervous about what will be thrown at her the next 2 years."

Maybe so. But posting negatives about Gov Palin is not the means to that end.

[thesetruths]

Remember when they called Reagan a “bumpkin” or “grade-b actors”

It rolled off, didn't stick electorally.

[redk]

So we should shut out and never address negative things being said about her?

[Reagan Man]

My point was, Reagan’s life was an open book. The American people knew who Reagan was and they were comfortable with him. He was a Democrat from 1932 to 1962. (30 years) A Democrat who voted for Eisenhower twice and Nixon over JFK in 1960. Reagan was a conservative Republican from 1962 until his death. (42 years)

And your point was?

[Balding_Eagle]

The entrance of Sarah Palin on the national ticket energized and excited the conservative base more than any other candidate did this year. Not Thompson, not Romney, not Hunter, none of them galvanized the Republican base to the extent Sarah did. It will take a Sarah Palin or a Bobby Jindal to get conservatives as excited as Democrats were with Obama.

And the real irony of all this is that it took the MOST liberal Republican, RINO really, to bring her to the nationals spotlight. No one else would have.

[lonestar]

I don't understand why people have to be compared to other people. It's only OPINION!

Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle?

[exist]

Willie Mays or Mickey Mantle?

Pshhhhhhh Willie Mays by a mile.

[SoConPubbie]

And if Reagan were still alive, to many FReepers Reagan would be a RINO (he allowed illegal immigrant amnesty, remember?)...

I am afraid your assessment is incorrect as your grasp of Reagan's actions and positions on Amnesty are incomplete.

Reagan's Amnesty bill included strict enforcement provisions that were never enacted, furthermore, his son Michael has stated publicly that Reagan felt this Amnesty bill and the resultant lack of enforcement was one of his biggest mistakes, if not his biggest.

And that my friend, is the rest of the story.

Also, I sincerely doubt your premise that anyone on this site would call Reagan a RINO.

[GloriaJane]

You are beginning to sound to me like you are talking out of both sides of your mouth. As many libs often do. Not that you are mind you. But on one side of your mouth you say you are for Palin. While on the other, you seem to want to talk against her.

And then there’s the old lib standby. The question made in such innocence like: “So we should shut out and never address negative things being said about her?”

A person who is really for someone or something, is for them. They don’t try to lead the conversation against them while acting like little miss or mr innocent. Not that you are a lib mind you.

[Reagan Man]

Well stated.

There is one long time FReeper who has called Reagan a RINO in several debates I've had with him over the years. He's been sick lately, so I'll cut him some slack. A commentator of the absurd. ;^)

[Josh Painter]

Guess again, Jughead.

Yeah, I thought McCain should pick Romney back when there seemed to be not a snowball’s chance in hell that he would pick Palin. Better Mitt than Lieberman, Ridge or that snooze in Minnesota, I thought at the time.

Many FReepers who know me well also know that I slammed Romney pretty hard back in the primaries. But one by one, as my first choices kept getting eliminated - first Allen, then Thompson - I figured I’d rather have Romney than Rudy, McCain or the Huckster. Simple process of elimination.

And after McCain got the nomination, I did indeed write a couple of posts saying that he should choose Romney. But when I heard that he was considering Palin, she went right to the top of my list, and she’s stayed there ever since:

http://mainstreamconservative.blogspot.com/2008/08/beauty-of-sarah-palin.html

http://mainstreamconservative.blogspot.com/2008/08/biden-check-palin-checkmate.html

http://mainstreamconservative.blogspot.com/2008/08/accomplished-sarah-palin.html

http://mainstreamconservative.blogspot.com/2008/09/watchdog-group-lifts-fog-from-alaskan.html

http://mainstreamconservative.blogspot.com/2008/09/quaified-to-be-vp.html

http://mainstreamconservative.blogspot.com/2008/09/media-campaign-to-destroy-sarah-palin.html

And numerous other posts in defense of Sarah Palin...

Oh, and just for the record, I also have a blog which supports Sarah Palin - not Mitt Romney - for president:

http://govpalin4prez.blogspot.com/

Do your homework next time, sonny. People who make rash decisions and/or claims based on one freakin’ blog post without looking at all the evidence are either clueless or have some agenda of their own.

What’s your excuse?

- JP

[Josh Painter]

Here's the entire article. Decide for yourself if the author (me) is a "Romneybot" - or if a Mitt-obsessed poster is blowing smoke out of his hind end:

The Palin-Reagan Connection

I'm one of those who refuses to proclaim Sarah Palin as "the next Reagan." To do so would be to open myself to all sorts of attacks from Reagan admirers and detractors alike, but that's not why refrain from equating the two. I truly believe that Ronald Reagan was a rare and unique leader, a giant of the conservative movement who pushed it ahead as much as did Barry Goldwater and William F. Buckley. I do admire and support Gov. Palin, and I think she has her own brand of uniqueness. Rather than cast her as "another" Reagan, I see Palin as one of Reagan's disciples, as is Fred Thompson. Sarah and Fred both preach the Gipper gospel of fiscal restraint, national security, smaller government and traditional values.

Ronald Reagan's son Michael, however, has a different opinion. He shows no such restraint in comparing Palin to his late father. He actually sees her as his dad's reincarnation, at least in spirit. As someone who knew Ronald Reagan better than anyone, with the singular exception of Nancy Reagan, his opinion cannot be dismissed out of hand. After Governor Palin delivered her acceptance speech to the RNC convention last summer, he wrote this:

Wednesday night I watched the Republican National Convention on television and there, before my very eyes, I saw my Dad reborn; only this time he's a she.

And what a she!

In one blockbuster of a speech, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin resurrected my Dad's indomitable spirit and sent it soaring above the convention center, shooting shock waves through the cynical media's assigned spaces and electrifying the huge audience with the kind of inspiring rhetoric we haven't heard since my Dad left the scene.

This was Ronald Reagan at his best -- the same Ronald Reagan who made the address known now solely as "The Speech," which during the Goldwater campaign set the tone and the agenda for the rebirth of the traditional conservative movement that later sent him to the White House for eight years and revived the moribund GOP.

That was from Michael's column dated September 4.

A lot of water has gone under the bridge in the relatively short period of time since that convention speech. A young governor who was scooped up out of Alaska and thrust onto the national stage has taken much more than her fair share of abuse from both ends of the political spectrum, and the middle to boot. She has had her shining moments and some awkward ones. She has been blamed for John McCain's loss by some and credited with preventing that loss from being a blowout of epic proportions by others. Proponents on both sides of the argument can cite poll numbers to support their claims.

Actually, John McCain's loss can be directly attributed to the three factors: an unpopular president from McCain's own political party, a financial crisis finding its flash point just weeks before the election and being outspent by a factor of seven to one. Sarah Palin made no difference between winning or losing for the GOP presidential ticket. She couldn't have pulled McCain's chestnuts out of the fire, and neither did she cast them into the flames.

Where Palin made a major difference was with the conservative base. She energized and motivated a core group which has never trusted McCain and was lukewarm to his candidacy at best. She was poorly served by his campaign staff. They put her into situations without properly preparing her for them, and they denied her access for too long to local media and conservative talk show venues. When she pulled larger and more enthusiastic crowds than her running mate, McCain, to his credit, seemed amused by that outcome and quite happy with it. His campaign aides, on the other hand, were outraged. Fearing that it reflected poorly on them, they made sure Sarah Palin paid dearly. they began whispering sweet nothings into the ears of a media so smitten by McCain's opponent that it was only too happy to spread these rumors and outright lies far and wide. It is to McCain's discredit that he did nothing to put a stop to it and roll some heads.

Having made new political enemies, Gov. Palin is now back home in Alaska, where she has to deal with the same old ones. The difference is that the national media, which wasn't that much interested in the political tug of war between Gov. Palin and those in her own state who wanted to take her down before her ridse to fame, will now process every little smear and false accusation through its giant megaphone. And those old Palin enemies now have new allies - powerful ones. But don't count out Sarah Palin. She's smart, a quick learner and connects with common people. Yet she has uncommon political talent and instincts. She will be back in the national political arena, better prepared and well-versed on national and world issues.

In Michael Reagan's words:

Like Ronald Reagan, Sarah Palin is one of us. She knows how most of us live because that's the way she lives. She shares our homespun values and our beliefs, and she glories in her status as a small-town woman who put her shoulder to the wheel and made life better for her neighbors.

Her astonishing rise up from the grass-roots, her total lack of self-importance, and her ordinary American values and modest lifestyle reveal her to be the kind of hard-working, optimistic, ordinary American who made this country the greatest, most powerful nation on the face of the earth.

And with that, I have no disagreement.

- JP

[redk]

Fine whatever I give up, I’m a lib.

You have one less young Conservative asking questions to worry about.

This really helps the movement.

[Diogenesis]

"Actually, John McCain's loss can be directly attributed to the three factors:
an unpopular president from McCain's own political party,
a financial crisis finding its flash point just weeks before the election
and being outspent by a factor of seven to one."

Sen. McCain's (and America's loss) is directly attributed to Mitt Romney and his traitors
who spent every minute before the Election 2008 helping Obama and attacking Gov. Palin.

[Diogenesis]

"Decide for yourself if the author (me) is a "Romneybot"

Listen Betty, in addition to behavior consistent with a RomneyBOT,
let's have a look at the article:

Painter: Having made new political enemies, Gov. Palin is now back home in Alaska,
where she has to deal with the same old ones.
.... And those old Palin enemies now have new allies - powerful ones.

Betty, the author does not spell it out. This majority of "new enemies" are friends of threatened Mitt Romney.
The author instead piles on Gov. Palin. (two signs of a RomneyBOT)

---

Painter: A young governor who was scooped up out of Alaska
.... She has had her shining moments and some awkward ones.
She has been blamed for John McCain's loss by some and credited with preventing that loss from being a blowout of epic proportions by others.
Proponents on both sides of the argument can cite poll numbers to support their claims."

The governor had more experience than every other candidate involved,
yet the writer minimizes it and pretends to be objective (but is not).
The poll numbers and attendances shows the writer is wildly wrong.
Then, Gov. Palin is blamed "by some" for the GOP loss but the
writer conveniently ignores that it was by Romney, his BOTs, their wives and TV friends.
The author does not spell it out -- instead piles on Gov. Palin by minimizing her background. (two signs of a RomneyBOT)

---

Painter: When she pulled larger and more enthusiastic crowds than her running mate,
McCain, to his credit, seemed amused by that outcome and quite happy with it.
His campaign aides, on the other hand, were outraged."

More protective words by ignoring which aides.

Peeking Out From the McCain Wreckage: Mitt Romney

Someone's got to say it: IS MITT ROMNEY RESPONSIBLE FOR OBAMA'S VICTORY?

Vanity: Team Romney Sabotaged Palin and Continuing to Do So?

Romney Supporters Trashing Palin

Romney advisors sniping at Palin?

Novak: Fred Thompson drop-out rumors traced to Romney campaign

Said Novak: The rumors were "traced in part to Mitt Romney's campaign,
trying to stir up strife between McCain and Thompson."

Betty, the author does not spell it out -- instead piles on Sen. McCain who is painted as a dunce. (two signs of a RomneyBOT)

---

Painter: "Actually, John McCain's loss can be directly attributed to the three factors:
an unpopular president from McCain's own political party,
a financial crisis finding its flash point just weeks before the election
and being outspent by a factor of seven to one."

In addition to the above, Sen. McCain's (and America's loss) has a component
attributed to Mitt Romney and his band of traitors
who spent every minute before the Election 2008 with the press,
fabricating stories against Gov. Palin and her children
while feigning ignorance, and thus helping Obama while attacking Gov. Palin.

Nice article though.
Well written in style, but it could have been more informative and objective.

(Also, Gov. Palin is more like Truman.)

[Josh Painter]

WTF would you know about “objective”?

Sure, some former Romney aides who went over to the McCain campaign went after Palin. They went after Fred Thompson back in the primaries when they were still working for Mitt. And I called ‘em on it and that lowdown “Phoney Fred” website they put up.

But they’re not the only ones. Some former Bush people with the McCain campaign trashed Palin, and so did some McCain aides who with McCain from the start.

You’re obsessed with Mitt Romney. He’s become the root of all evil in your world, and those demons appear to have driven you to the point of being certifiabile.

You really shouldn’t let him have that much power over you. Do try to get your life back.

- JP

[yongin]

The GOP base and many on FR have fallen in love with Palin because of her life choices. She choose life for her dow syndrome baby and she is a hunter. Palin’s life story champions small town America.

Unfortunately, Palin’s small town American values are a turn off to suburbia. With problems in Iraq, housing market, and the stock market, suburbanites now perceive the GOP as a country club for Southern Baptists who care only about banning gay marriage. The media’s focus on Palin’s social conservativism reinforce that sterotype.

In the future, conservatives need to reconnect with surburban voters by proving to them that they can be trusted with solving problems. The coming budget problems facing several states will provide opportunities for our rising stars like Palin, Jindal, Crist, and Sanford to show to the world that being a Republican does not equal dumb hick.

[Diogenesis]

Know enough about real objectivity to have posted #57.

The proof is that since you now admit,
"Sure, some former Romney aides who went over to the McCain campaign went after Palin.
They went after Fred Thompson back in the primaries when they were still working for Mitt.
And I called ‘em on it and that lowdown “Phoney Fred” website they put up.
But they’re not the only ones.
Some former Bush people with the McCain campaign trashed Palin,
and so did some McCain aides who with McCain from the start."
it can be seen that #57 shows the systematic absence of objectivity in cited column.

BTW, if you really spoke to non-Romney people as you claim, then -if real-
they would have real names, would they not?