Too screechy. I don’t see it ever happening for her in the GOP. I do think she will be a third party candidate at some point - or simply use her influence to make money ala Huckabee.
Totally agree. I’ve had it with her! I am never ever going to ever vote for her again EVER. Unless she runs for National office or moves to South Carolina where I can vote for her.
You’re right; this Palin political dis-endorsement of the R Governor of Alaska smacks to me as nothing but politically motivated for some political (perhaps personal) reasons.
Sarah Palin has earned the right to endorse whomever she wishes even if it upsets the machine.
This label-lover may be through with her, but I say she’s just getting started!
Palin / Rohrbacher 2016!
Oh, Hell Yes!!!!
She still hasn't said anything..................Curious.
Posted on October 24 2014 - 5:40 PM - Posted by: Steve Flesher
First off, let me say I am grateful to Erick Erickson for his help with some of these conservative candidates throughout the primary this year. Often times, he’s done his best to get out support for some candidates that Governor Palin endorsed like Karen Handel in the Georgia U.S. Senate primary.
That aside, some of the contributors at Red State are behaving like angry frat boys breaking up with their girlfriends. This one dramatically proclaims he’s "through with Sarah Palin."
Apparently he’s angry at Governor Palin’s endorsement of Bill Walker in Alaska because the guy is an independent claiming she’s turned on her party along with her own Lt. Governor, Sean Parnell.
He writes:
If you haven’t already seen, Sarah Palin has endorsed Bill Walker and Byron Mallott’s Independent-Democrat “Unity” ticket in the Alaska gubernatorial race over Republican incumbent Sean Parnell. She endorses the Independent-Democrat ticket over the man who was her own lieutenant governor.
Because of this, as far as Republican politics are concerned, I’m finished with Sarah Palin. I have nothing but respect for her has a wife, mother, and grandmother.
He goes on to say:
I admit it: I was rather enthralled with Palin as Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) Vice Presidential nominee, and I considered myself a huge fan of hers even after the defeat. However, when she resigned as governor of Alaska, I began having qualms about supporting her in a run for President in 2012, which she wisely declined to do.
(I guess Romney "wisely" decided to run in 2012. Such good that did us.)
First of all, conservative candidates don’t need "fans," they need supporters. In order to support a constitutional conservative, you have to support limited government, liberty, and freedom as it pertains to the documents set forth by our founding fathers. Additionally, he apparently knows very little about Alaska politics or policy if he has "qualms" over supporting her due to her resignation. This has been covered by this website as well as many others.
As the brilliant John Hawkins noted:
Most people just note that Sarah Palin “quit” as governor of Alaska without pointing out the “why” behind it. Palin spent more than half a million dollars defending herself from frivolous ethics charges filed against her after she was on the 2008 ticket. Because of a since-fixed quirk in Alaska law, the Palin family had to pay all of these legal bills out of their own pocket. So in other words, it was COSTING Sarah Palin hundreds of thousands of dollars per year to be governor and without the financial resources she has today, it was putting a lot of financial strain on her family.
Additionally, unlike many Republicans who sit around forever (or even campaign like Democrats in states like Mississippi to hang onto seats for decades), Palin’s time in office delivered balanced budgets full of responsible cuts, an overhauling of education, wildly popular energy policies, and she even managed to put money away for the state’s future before going home to live by the laws she created (as the founders intended).
Does this guy really believe she didn’t know that people like him would be sitting back waiting to express "qualms" about that decision? No. Because she, not he, understands that it’s the people who matter and not the process of politics-as-usual dictated by armchair pundits or self-proclaimed political know-it-alls.
He goes on:
In the months following, I became repulsed by her most ardent followers, who interpreted even the mildest criticisms that came from outside their group as personal attacks on them and on Palin herself.
In other words, Don’t challenge me! If you do, you’re an "ardent supporter!" Furthermore, someone of his ilk would be happy to characterize someone like myself or anyone else who supports Governor Palin as a "fan" or "follower" despite the work many of us have done for candidates over the course of the last five years. However he characterized himself as a "fan" earlier in his article when he thought Governor Palin was going to be just another D.C. Republican. This indicates that he’s not focused on the purpose of public service; rather he’s obsessed with the R vs. D political mantra in and of itself and he’s not prepared to hold his own party accountable. That is unless his subject is someone like Governor Palin who has a history of doing just that. Further, notice he doesn’t give examples of the "mildest" criticisms he claims her "ardent" supporters overreact to.
More:
I found her talk of possibly forming a third party disconcerting. I am a dyed-in-the-wool conservative, but I will fight my battles in and through the Republican Party. As RedState’s Labor Union Report put it:
While many conservatives are fed up with the GOP, to think that a third party will do anything more than ensure a permanent majority on the Left is nothing more that wishful thinking.
[...]
So, I suppose Palin’s talk of splitting off from the Republicans should be taken as something of a precursor to her endorsement decision in the Alaska governor’s race. It’s her way of saying that Republicans can’t take her support for granted. I understand that, but by making this announcement, she is also inserting herself into the race as an issue when there were plenty of much more important things to discuss that are much more substantial than an endorsement.
[...]
I understand that Palin has some problems with Parnell. As the National Journal piece I linked to at the beginning explains:
Parnell’s 2013 restructuring of the state’s oil and gas taxes dismantled a prior, Palin-championed program that she considered to be one of the greatest achievements of her tenure.
Even so, she could have opted to stay out of the race and decline to endorse Parnell, or she could have employed the classic tactic of damning with faint praise. I’m sure she must have had plenty of problems with John McCain, both politically and personally, but she still endorsed him when he was up for reelection as a Senator in 2010. However, with Parnell, she broke ranks and endorsed his opponent. She felt she had to inject herself into the race, and she chose the wrong side. That’s why, politically, I am through with her.
Maybe he missed it, but "many conservatives" have united on voting for Republicans for the sole purpose of winning back the Senate so we can get it out of the hands of Harry Reid. Governor Palin stated the same thing when she spoke to Sean Hannity recently.
Governors are different in this regard. The ousting of a rotten Republican like Parnell is not going to determine the balance of power on a federal level.
Like Hollywood cursing Alaskans for hunting their own meat, certain Republicans are proving they know nothing about Alaska or how vital fair energy policy is to the people of the state and what it means to their own bottom lines. The resources are to be developed for the benefit of the people via the state’s Constitution. Governor Palin’s ACE’s legislation (while Parnell was her Lt. Governor) earned true bipartisan support and it honored Alaska’s most sacred document. Republicans can go here to listen to Governor Palin explain the importance of proper law where the state’s resources are concerned.
So as anyone should see, it was Sean Parnell who not only turned on Governor Palin, but also turned on Alaskans as well by reverting the policy back to the days of good old boy politics and their buddies who serve at the heads of these big oil companies.
This is a topic that Governor Palin has always been superior on versus armchair pundits who will sometimes disregard what’s best for voters even if they happen to be a self-proclaimed "dyed-in-the-wool conservative."
Parnell and his cronies turned on the true purpose of public service where Alaska’s energy is concerned; so Governor Palin rightfully turned away from them and came out for Alaska’s future – leading by example as always.
***Update***
Regarding Governor Palin’s thoughts on a third party, Red State Republicans may want to check out Governor Palin’s latest video. (Requires signin)
It’s all about ACES, Sarah’s oil tax initiative while governor.
Sarah Palin, my God how much this woman has endured since that fateful day in 2007.
A woman that embodied the American Spirit back then. An individual who clearly upheld her duties to fight for what is right. In family and in Government.
Since then what has happened to her would be enough to make any person...male or female go off the deep end. She has not...in fact it only served to strengthen her Patriotic resolve.
She is conservative...not GoP not REP not DNC not Dem....she is What we are.
For idiots like Responsibility or this writer or even the other idiot fake conservatives on this sight not to honor her or at the least let her be is beyond my ability to reason honestly.
It is time to tell the truth...response2 go to hell.
I’m reluctant to give any politician the benefit of the doubt but with Palin, I will.
“Hello Jake from Red State. What are you wearing?”
I trust Sarah’s judgement. No-one elses though.
Jake, you are another damn RINO fool.
I never started. She’s really never been nothing more than poster bait. Sure she says nice stuff. But she’s not a serious politician, she’s a talker, not a runner and more importantly not a winner. Talkers are boring, they don’t actually change anything, they just wind up on TV too much.
Sarah’s unflagging support for McCain was/is a deal breaker for me.
Objectively speaking, Sarah Palin figured out that "fame and fortune" lay, not necessarily in winning elections, but in being a professional politico and endorser. That is why she resigned her governorship - because much more money was to be had giving speeches, pontificating on TV, etc.
I lost a lot of respect for her at that time, but would still support her, althoughI think she has probably burned too many bridges.
I can’t listen to you because you would even consider killing a baby with a difference. Too bad - your child might end up with special needs dx’ed at age 2 or older, where you might not “get” to make any decisions.
Walker, "opposes laws that would weaken collective bargaining."
Walker says, "Public employees deserve our respect."
Walker believes, "Alaska is ground zero of climate change."
Walker is "pro-life," but believes that, "In reproductive matters, [the] laws grant a woman’s right to choose. I am not running for governor to pursue a social agenda."
Walker claims to be pro-2A and anti-Fedgov -- but then, so did Manchin.
.
http://www.walkermallottforalaska.com/on-the-issues/
.
This is the guy, the "Independent" who has teamed up with a Democrat, that Sarah Palin has supposedly endorsed. I have no idea what she was thinking when she made this endorsement, if indeed she even made such an endorsement at all. I simply cannot rationalize such an endorsement.
I have been a Republican for 50 years, spending about half of that time in public office. My service included four years in the Alaska House of Representative and 20 in the Senate, during which I served as House majority leader, Senate majority leader, and Senate president. I concluded my time in public office as Republican National Committeeman. As a legislator, I got to know Bill Walker, both as a strong advocate for an LNG project and as a municipal leader.[...]
Political parties change with leaders, times and interests. We all know that Alaska’s Republican Party has had a tumultuous decade. Now Bill Walker has had to step out of his party and join with an articulate, experienced, dedicated long-term Democratic leader, Byron Mallott, in order to bring some sense of balance to years of disjointed leadership.
[...]
Alaska has spent over $1 billion on mega-project dreams in recent years. Some of the projects are mutually exclusive, most of the money is gone and nothing is done. Short-term constituent pressures produce too many yes votes without tough choices. Real leaders will be transparent with the public about the details and make decisions based on objective economic criteria. Alaska needs decisions -- not another decade of plans and another $1 billion in wasted public funds.
Social issues tend to be defining points for single issue voters, but in my decades of political interaction, legislative and gubernatorial campaign promises have had almost no real impact on long-term outcomes. Neither a pro-life governor nor a pro-choice lieutenant governor will trump the federal government and the U.S. Supreme Court on gender, marriage or pregnancy.
I don’t remember Red State being a big fan of Sara’s to start with.
Sarah Palin endorsing a baby killing, pro queer “marriage” democrat over a republican because she despises the man who replaced her as governor. I used to like her, no more. What a fake and fraud. No way a real conservative would let petty politics get in the way and endorse an anti-God democrat. What a damn sell-out Palin has turned out to be. She should have endorsed no one! Lord, what a sell-out!
I had not fully climbed on the Sarah fan bus but Alaska is her state, she knows these people. She probably has a very good reason for what she has done.