Posted on 07/03/2009 10:57:15 PM PDT by pissant
With respect to many of the Palinologists below, I think they're getting way too hepatomantic over the entrails.
As a political move for anything other than the 2010 Senate race, today's announcement is a disaster. And I'm not sure it's a plus for the Senate - and, even if it were, the manner and timing suggest it was not a professionally planned event and therefore is unlikely to have any grand strategy behind it.
So Occam's Razor leaves us with: Who needs this?
In states far from the national spotlight, politics still attracts normal people. You're a mayor or a state senator or even the governor, but you lead a normal life. The local media are tough on you, but they know you, they live where you live, they're tough on the real you, not on some caricature cooked up by a malign alliance of late-night comics who'd never heard of you a week earlier and media grandees supposedly on your own side who pronounce you a "cancer".
Then suddenly you get the call from Washington. You know it'll mean Secret Service, and speechwriters, and minders vetting your wardrobe. But nobody said it would mean a mainstream network comedy host doing statutory rape gags about your 14-year old daughter. You've got a special-needs kid and a son in Iraq and a daughter who's given you your first grandchild in less than ideal circumstances. That would be enough for most of us. But the special-needs kid and the daughter and most everyone else you love are a national joke, and the PC enforcers are entirely cool with it.
Most of those who sneer at Sarah Palin have no desire to live her life. But why not try to - what's the word? - "empathize"? If you like Wasilla and hunting and snowmachining and moose stew and politics, is the last worth giving up everything else in the hopes that one day David Letterman and Maureen Dowd might decide Trig and Bristol and the rest are sufficiently non-risible to enable you to prosper in their world? And, putting aside the odds, would you really like to be the person you'd have to turn into under that scenario?
National office will dwindle down to the unhealthily singleminded (Clinton, Obama), the timeserving emirs of Incumbistan (Biden, McCain) and dynastic heirs (Bush). Our loss.
“Sarah had all the supporters, not McCain.
Just as 0bama had all the supporters, not Biden.
0bama’s supporters outnumbered Sarah’s supporters.
What is so hard about that to understand?
I know it hurts to admit defeat, but this is the way it is.
Sarah doesn’t have as much support in America as 0bama does.”
Palin was just freshly introduced to the nation. Perhaps it was a bit early for her, a bit rushed. 4 years later and you have a lot of name recognition, some more seasoning and, hopefully, initiation into national issues. And you have perhaps a flagging economy to hang around Obama’s neck.
I DO however, have to say that this does not help Palin for 2012. I would have preferred to see her become more seasoned by successfully seeing through the governorship of her state, taking a leadership role in the Republican Governors Association, etc. Still, way too early to write her off, especially if the economy and especially the jobs market does not recover before 2012, upon which all bets are off and it is then conceivable that the winner of the Republican primary also has the inside track to win back the White House.
Then Romney should never again be considered even for dog catcher. Look how much more and more often he has flaked out.
Did you listen to her remarks? Her points were remarkabky cogent. Her decision to allow her Lt. Gov to go ahead and take over the reins so THE PEOPLE OF ALASKA can have an effective government is spot on. Everything in the last six months that has gone on in Alaska has been detrimental to the state and the people. SHe managed to get through the negotiations for a new gas agreement but the dems in the legislature were beginning toa ct like the ones in DC say no say no say no. Wear everyone out and screw the people. She wants the best for her home state. Why can’t people just accept her judgement for what is best. You don’t live there. You don’t know the local politics ( I have friends and family there so I get an ear full).
All I want for the Palins is for them to do what they feel is best. I can live with whatever that looks like. I wish them the best no matter what
Ron is long gone, Nancy is too frail, Maureen is no longer here. Surely you are not suggesting Michael?
Steyn is talking present day for goodness sake
Nuff said to you.
Intra-party primaries don’t always produce the best general election candidates.
But you’re probably right about all those things, except that Romney couldn’t beat Huckabee. He clearly had more support, Huck just stayed in longer to rack up just enough delegates to edge out Mitt so he could falsely claim he was the runner up.
But it’s probably best that we pick a candidate who is far better than any of the weak sauce that was offered up to the GOP in 2007/2008. I’m not interested in going back and refighting those battles. I don’t want to refight 2008 against 0bama. I want to move forward into the future, find a better candidate with a new message. I’m not interested in Romney vs. Huckabee or Palin vs. 0bama. Those are all last year’s battles. I’m looking to the future, and looking for the next leader to step forward.
Unless Jindal learns how to be an effective and vibrant speaker he is deader than yesterday’s tuna salad sandwich. The man was friggin awful in his response to the state of the union address.
I say lets quit trying to campaign right now and stand still for a short time and fight the nitwit in the WH and his cronies in the house and senate
First she has a family to raise, which the "State run" pundits and talking heads have denied her!
She has amazed $$millions for the State and $500+ for herself in legal fees that would have escalated vastly if she had stayed (who of us could afford that???)!!
The democRATS have a very effective oiled attack machine in place to destroy those they feel are a threat and dangerous to their power (among Lott and then Livingston, Gingrich, DeLay and now Palin, and others???) It has nothing to do with the "heat in the kitchen." Inside the beltway is a cesspool of the most evil imaginable that will make you throw up!!!
Palin was just freshly introduced to the nation.So was 0bama. And that didn't stop him from amassing more votes than any other presidential candidate in history.
I DO however, have to say that this does not help Palin for 2012. I would have preferred to see her become more seasoned by successfully seeing through the governorship of her stateYou got that right.
Whatever work Jindal has to do as a public speaker, it’s nothing compared to the work Palin needs.
BLAH,BLAH,BLAH,BLAH.....etc.,etc.
Same crap in every one of your postings. You’re really trying hard to shoot her down but son, it ain’t working.
Perhaps we will have a similar situation occur.
But today may not be that time.
Until this country is willing to sacrifice...and it is not..I do not ask Palin to make a similar sacrifice. Are you willing to offer your family up to an ungrateful nation? Think carefully before you answer.
You are so last year. Palin is the future. Who’s in your future?
“When FDR and Nixon ran for president after losing on a presidential ticket before, both had waited at least 8 years, and for a totally different set of challengers to run against.
Sarah running in 2012 would be the same as Mondale running against Reagan 4 years after losing to him. The only difference is Mondale actually had a record of winning a national election before.”
You forget that the economy is very slow to recover, unemployment is still rising, and that it might be still crummy by late 2011. If that happens, that changes things a bit from when Mondale or Stevenson ran. At that time the economy will be Obama’s and whoever comes out of the Republican primary will have a strong chance to unseat him. Remember when George Bush Sr. looked so strong that no prominent Democrat wanted to face him, but then the economy tanked and out of a collection of unknowns (Tsongas, Simon, Brown, Clinton) the obscure and little-known governor from Arkansas came out winning? We are virtually in unchartered territory with THIS economy, which makes the Bush economy and mild recession from 1991 look like a cake walk, so there is no way you can predict with certainty that the Republican candidate, be it Palin or whoever else comes out of the primary as the winner, has little chance to beat Obama.
Now, today may have hurt her for the Republican primary, as surely Huckabee, Romney, Jindal, Barbour or whoever runs would try to stick the “quitter” label on her, but for the general we simply don’t know yet where the economy will stand by 2012, which is really the main decider of the election, regardless who the Republican primary voters finally decide on.
This country is toast.
Now the left and media, now I repeat myself, will say she can’t even finish a term. Thats a daily message if she runs for Prez.
I keep having to answer the same faulty logic and explain how elections work.
It’s not my fault that people posting to me haven’t read the entire thread.
Kerry did NOT get 60 milliom ion 2004 he got a shade over 59 million votes. Voter turn out this time was pushed hard by the likes of ACORN on the dem side ( that and they hadn’t haad the WH for 8 yrs). The GRepub side was diminished due to lack of enthusiasm for McCain. The most likely reason that McCain got as much as he did was due to the motivation of the bas by Palin.
2012 will not look like 2008 at election time. YOU have NO idea of how many people will be willing to support Palin in 2012 IF she is the candidate. Don’t pretend you have a crystal ball or are some time traveller. The reason no one showed up for her speech today except local press is because SHE arranged it that way.
You certainly are not a policy wonk or expert anything re:politics or campaigns. So cool your jets and your attitude
McCain is the one who imploded.
Less than a week before election day he was bashing oil companies profits
“” Palin was just freshly introduced to the nation.
So was 0bama. And that didn’t stop him from amassing more votes than any other presidential candidate in history.””
Obama was the fortunate recipient of some gifts: People had grown tired and disenchanted with Bush, a bad economy most in the country blamed on Bush and Republicans in Congress, a sympathetic MSM. You make it sound like it was all Obama’s personal appeal, charisma, etc. when indeed the McCain/Palin ticket had very little chance in this one against any Democrat with the headwinds they were facing. Believe that IF the economy is still bad in 2011/2012 more and more people will put the blame on Obama, which evens the playing field. The MSM would still be in Obama’s camp, but if the job market has not recovered by 2012 that will be of less consequence for that election.
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