10 million votes is a lot.
It is more votes than separated Carter and Reagan.
It is more votes than separated Dukakis and Bush, Sr.
Bob Dole was running against a sitting president. Bob Dole was also a former losing VP candidate. So Sarah Palin would be like Bob Dole if she ran against 0bama. Or like Walter Mondale.
She already has a history of losing to 0bama, just like Mondale already had a history of losing to Reagan in 1984.
Everything lines up to indicate an historic landslide defeat for the Republicans if they try a Palin-0bama rematch.
Whatever unpopularity 0bama may have going into the 2012 election will be swpt away in the campaign against the wrong Republican candidate. Just as was the case for Bill Clinton in 1996, or Nixon in 1972.
An unpopular president will become popular again when campaigning against a poorly chosen opponent. 0bama will be able to define and dominate a race against Palin as he runs circles around her. Someone like Newt Gingrich, on the other hand, would be able to hold 0bama’s feet to the fire, and keep him there.
Palin can’t campaign effectively. Perhaps there are enough Republicans out there who don’t care to give her the nomination, but they would be leaving the Republican party flailing helplessly in the general election against 0bama, just as Palin and her mentor John McCain did once already.
2012 is not ‘72 or ‘96. Comparing Palin to Dole is laughable in my humble opinion. I think she will be a very effective campaigner and we haven’t seen anything yet.
The reason my support has continued for Sarah is that I have seen a definite growth already in her articulation and it hasn’t even been a year. I have gotten flamed before for saying she is not ready yet but I say that as someone who strongly believes she will be. I have my criticisms of her, she needs to get more creative and expand her rhetoric and she needs to stop responding to idiots like Letterman. But she has a huge built in following, has solid accomplishements and has integrity. No other (as of yet) republican has a chance against Obama the way it looks now. 10 million votes is a lot, but electorally it wasn’t as big a disaster as it should have been. I mean, leaving the campaign trail to rush back to DC to just bend over on tarp? That was a Muskie moment.