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)
She should have finished out her term and not handed the office over to Mr. Parnell if he was that duplicitous.