The value of a Sarah Palin endorsement

The Christian Science Monitor ^ | November 2, 2009 | Peter Grier

[2ndDivisionVet]

So Sarah Palin has started endorsing candidates, by boosting conservative Doug Hoffman for an upstate New York congressional seat in tomorrow’s elections. Maybe she should make that a regular practice. Endorsements matter, despite what the chattering heads say on cable news. And multiple Palin stamps of approval could be good for the recipients, the Republican Party, and ex-Governor Palin herself.

Plus, the ads would be fantastic. Decoder can see one now: “Hi, I’m Sarah Palin, Brander of MavericksTM. I’ve taken time from my busy schedule here in Alaska because it’s important you know that [CANDIDATE NAME] is a maverick, just like me and Ronald Reagan. So vote for [HIM/HER] for [OFFICE], and remember the Mavericks‚ MottoTM: ‘Let’s Keep Our Nation Wild and Free.’ ”

First of all, Decoder is aware that in that New York congressional race, Palin picked a third-party conservative, not the official GOP candidate. We’re not here to talk about the past.

That official GOP choice – moderate Dede Scozzafava – has dropped out, and says she’ll back the Democrat in the race. But according to a Siena College poll released Monday, it’s Mr. Hoffman, Palin’s pick, who has a five-point lead in the race.

Decoder is also aware that some pundits say endorsements generally are of little consequence. But many political scientists who actually study endorsements say they can make a difference.

In presidential primaries, endorsements from top officials can channel donations and volunteers to candidates. And a nod from a recognizable figure becomes ever more important the further down the electoral ladder one goes, from national to state and local offices.(continued)

[Bob J]

BTW John, exactly why are you toasting cocks?

[TexasNative2000]

Here's the template - apply as needed:

If McDonnell wins: "Palin was a marginal figure that McDonnell ignored."

If McDonnell loses: "McDonnell was so tied to Palin that her extremism cost him the election."

Rinse and repeat.

[Hiddigeigei]

I voted for Keyes in the primary (back then) and hoped that Fred Thomson would be our nominee in the last election, so I understand your feelings. All politicians have feet of clay, even the pretty females ones. I guess I’m not much for adulation

As for Sarah, to me, she looks like the best thing going so far, and I feel she made a difference in the Hoffmann thing (even though she wasn’t the first). We’ll see tomorrow, I guess. If she is our 2012 candidate, we should whoop up as much enthusiasm about her as possible and not give ammunition to the enemy.

All the other mainline GOP candidates so far turn my stomach. Of course I could never vote for Obama, but I certainly could “sit one out” (in the same sense I’d rather be shot than die a lingering painful death from cancer). If you have an alternative to Sarah, I would like to hear it.

[SmokingJoe]

” But I think her resignation takes her out of the political sphere as a future candidate particularly as president”

Here is an idea: You gotta stop beating that dead horse. That particular anthem of yours has been taken apart over and over again, only for you to turn up in yet another Sarah Palin thread, and beat the same discredited meme yet again. It never worked before, It won't work now either.
Give it a rest.

” and will do everything possible to tear down other potential nominees in the process and splitting conservatives right down the middle.”

Said the guy that has been fighting his darndest to try and derail Sarah Plain’s candidacy for 2012. You are doing today, exactly what you are accusing others of planning to do (even before they do it), in 2012.

“What I would like to see is Sarah to come out now and tell us if she is going to run for the ‘12 nomination”

Are you for real? Why the heck would she do that? Because some guy that thinks her political career is over, says so on the Internet on some posting board?

“I’m getting the same feeling with Palin supporters as I did with with Keyes and his org”

If you think Sarah Plain is Alan Keyes, or Palin supporters are Alan Keyes supporters, you don't see or hear so good.
Perhaps you will show me wheere Alan Keyes has made appearances in a presidential campaign, and managed to energize the crowd over and over again, in presidential campaign stops like Sarah Plain did.
At his best, Alan Keyes was never even close to Sarah Palin in the support she got from the masses.

[johncocktoasten]

i will let you google and discover the origin of johncocktoasten

[SmokingJoe]

“Apparently she’s the smartest conservative woman in America “

There are plenty of super smart conservative woman in America, but Sarah Palin may very well be the smartest conservative politician in America right now. I sure don't consider Juan McInsane, Lindsay Grahamnesty, and the bozos that run the RNC, who handed over close to $1 million of RNC money to Scozzafava, only for her to turn round and back The Democrats, as very smart, nor do I consider Newt Gingrich, who was easily taken in by the ACORN supporting fat woman, as being very smart either.

“and the messiah for everything right wing,”

Conservatives have only one Messiah. We don't have messiahs on this earth like the loony left communists do. You should know that.

” why did she wait until the last week before the election to get involved? “

You still don't get it do you?
With politics, as with many things in life, it's all about timing. Most political endorsements have very little effect on poll numbers. You gotta time your endorsement to get the maximum effect, and as usual, Sarah Palin's timing was impeccable.

[Bob J]

You all keep talking about the value of a Palin endoresement, wouldn’t that endorsement have done more good if she gave it a month sooner? According to you it would have vaulted him into the limelight much sooner and allowed him 4 weeks of campaign donations instead of 1.

IF Sarah was trying to “time” her endorsement for maximum impact and if that impact would have been the same whenever she gave it, it would have done much more good earlier.

[SmokingJoe]

“You all keep talking about the value of a Palin endoresement, wouldn’t that endorsement have done more good if she gave it a month sooner?”

No. The results of Sarah Palin’s timing of her endorsement of Hoffman, speak for themselves. She timed it just right. Not too early, not too late either.

” According to you it would have vaulted him into the limelight much sooner and allowed him 4 weeks of campaign donations instead of 1.”

Not according to me. I never said that. You did.

“IF Sarah was trying to “time” her endorsement for maximum impact and if that impact would have been the same whenever she gave it,”

Again, you said that, not me.
Read my posts. What I said was, it's the timing that counts, not how long the endorsement has been for.

” it would have done much more good earlier.”

Nope.