>>...If her message is sound and her principles true, why must she game?<<
Two words... Fred Thompson. His message was sound and his principles were true. He played by the rules. Got in early. A true conservative and beyond that a statesman in his manner and speech of a type we have not seen since the early days of the republic.
The media, and the Republican establishment destroyed him.
You can’t have a conservative who articulates his views exceptionally well make it to the end of the process. He might win.
Enter Palin...
What the heck is in it for her, a real conservative, to put in one minute before the legal deadline? Nothing but withstanding endless attacks from the Dems, media and Mittwit Republican establishment.
Really, there is not one single advantage to her declaring any earlier than she absolutely has to... other than people simply SAYING she should.
Why should she? To make a few of you FEEL better about her? We are conservatives here. Do we FEEL or do we THINK? Do we think she has our moral convictions? Do we think she holds our worldview? Yes? Then what difference does it make how or when she decides to run?
I’ll vote for the most conservative candidate that is sitting in front of us on the ballot and if Palin in on it, great.
I would strongly suggest developing thicker skin. The country needs it right now from all of us.
Given that small donors only have so much disposable income to donate to campaigns, every dollar that a potential Palin supporter has donated or will donate to another candidate - is a dollar she won’t get. Every potential supporter that has already become invested emotionally and/or financially in another candidate will be that much tougher to get back. Every point she drops in the polls b/c she’s not running, is another point she’ll have to make up.
>> Do we FEEL or do we THINK? <<
The rest of your post is excellent, but I need to address this critical question.
It isn’t about FEEL or THINK, per se. The issue is where do we invest our energy and treasure? The important decisions are being made NOW! Not 2 days from now, not 10 days from now, not a month from now.
We have RINOmney’ers gathering steam, getting money, using their energy to get things going for McCain light. What is a Conservative to do? Wait and HOPE that Gov. Palin runs — AND can overcome her huge steamer trunk? And if she doesn’t run and romeny gets things started and has a huge, DNC-financed war chest? Oh well, she was playing “war.”
And if she doesn’t run? All that potential momentum — LOST FOREVER!
Gov. Palin is not HELPING anything — she is causing true Conservatives to pause, hesitate, and allow the enemy to move forward — IN OUR OWN CAMP.
Think again about your question.
AMEN. I see folks on here who claim (though I don't believe them) that they were for Palin but aren't now because they feel like she's leading them on, playing games, being indecisive. It's all about THEM -- they never stop to ask your simple, smart question: What tactical advantage would it be to her to announce now?
The answer: ZERO tactical advantage, while waiting to announce keeps the opposition off balance and OBVIOUSLY frustrates the opposition's attempts to set the time and terms of battle. Folks who don't acknowledge that, don't acknowledge it because they don't want to -- it's that simple.
Frankly, these "I used to like her but ..." FReepers should be asking: Who do they think they're kidding? Themselves? Or folks who are already predisposed against Palin who can point to these so-called used-to-like-her-but folks to bolster their flimsy pretense for objecting to her?