Sarah Palin Is Back (Mild Barf Alert)

FITS News ^ | May 18, 2011

[2ndDivisionVet]

A week ago, we’d have told you that former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s presidential aspirations were kaput … and we’d have been correct.

Since then, however, four events have conspired to dramatically reshape the 2012 presidential race in her favor – although it remains to be seen whether Palin possesses the gravitas (or the political acumen) to exploit the opening.

The question is a simple one: Can Palin redefine herself as a credible candidate? Or will she continue down the pandering path of folksy non-specifics and sanctimonious indignation? Before we attempt to answer that question, let’s revisit the four seismic events of the past week that have vaunted Palin back into the forefront of the presidential conversation.

First, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney – the current front-runner for the GOP nomination – tried unsuccessfully last week to draw a distinction between his failed socialized medicine plan and the one pushed through Congress last year by U.S. President Barack Obama. The only problem? There’s not much of a distinction to be drawn …

Next, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee withdrew his name from 2012 consideration … leaving a huge swath of the GOP electorate (particularly social conservatives) without a candidate.

Then, billionaire real estate mogul and reality TV star Donald Trump said he wasn’t going to seek the Republican presidential nomination next year, either … creating another opening for Palin to exploit.

Finally, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich‘s campaign has flat out imploded after he called a middle-of-the-road Republican budget-cutting plan “radical change” and an example of “right-wing social engineering.”

Obviously, we took a dim view of Palin in our initial assessment of the 2012 field, saying that she was “prone to excessive hyperventilation over all sorts of perceived indignities.”

“Our hope is that Palin will be able to transition from a whiny drama queen into a credible candidate,” we wrote at the time.

With Romney’s baggage, Huckabee and Trump’s exits and Gingrich’s implosion – it’s looking like she may get a chance to do just that. In fact, a new Gallup poll shows Palin trailing Romney by just two percentage points – not bad for a candidate who had recently seen her support plummet into single digits.

Obviously we come from the Kathleen Parker school of thought as it relates to Palin’s viability as a presidential candidate – which means we doubt she will be able to resist the whinier angels of her frequently atonal nature.

If she can do that, though … and accompany such a reinvention with specific pro-free market policy positions, we believe Palin could make one helluva candidate yet.

[William Tell]

Two words: “DEATH PANELS”!