I'm not "picking at perceived imperfections". I'm stating that the man simply is not ready to take on the job of president. A perceived imperfection would be something on the order of a candidate's failure to strongly support some pet policy of mine. Rand Paul's first disqualification for me, is that he's a freshman Senator, who's only just elected to the Senate. I certainly haven't disqualified him for having the fatal "flaw" of not being my preferred candidate.
I'm not dismissive of Rand Paul. I'm very impressed with him, so far. I think he's going to climb to the very top in the US Senate. He's got the right orientation for America, and will likely be responsible for pushing through some revolutionary legislation during his tenure.
My solitary point in this conversation, is that he isn't ready to be president, for the reasons I first stated. Who's to say that he won't someday work his way up to president by going the executive route? Perhaps he will, but until he's been well-seasoned on the national stage, and gains some experience in running a large city or a state government, I won't be considering supporting him for president.
I'm no less severe when it comes to any other career legislators.
...you’re saying no to Rand Paul, I think it’s reasonable to ask who then.
That's fine, but we weren't talking about my choice for Republican nominee. I initiated this exchange by challenging your support for Rand Paul as a presidential candidate. Now that we're at this point in the conversation, it's more or less a moot point, but you brought it up, so I'm replying.
I would want to be more sure about her foreign policy before I was as convinced as you...
There are only a handful of US presidents you could name who had any depth in foreign policy before they became president. In my view, this is a red herring that's been promoted by the left to cut Palin off at the knees. Note that no one is demanding that ANY other potential candidate meet the same bar.
Reagan was masterful with foreign policy (for the most part), but what experience did he really have dealing with foreign powers before he was president? Precisely none. It's actually hard to gain that sort of experience in any capacity, except as president or Secretary of State. There are also ambassadors, State Dept employees, diplomats, etc., who gain great insight and experience in foreign affairs by way of their jobs, but presidents are rarely drawn from those ranks.
A US president who is going to be successful in his/her foreign policy has to have intangible qualities such as courage, conviction, trustworthiness, savvy, strong core values, and of course, a good general knowledge of geopolitics. Those things, and an absolute first allegiance to the American people, are what makes for successful foreign policy. Not some mythical wonkishness.
I wouldn't worry about Palin in this regard. She knows the difference between an ally and an enemy, and she has all of the above attributes in spades. She'll do just fine.
Oh stop...
These AH's in D.C. who have made life long careers in government are the stinking problem. They have corrupted the machine so bad the wheels are coming off.
Gezzzz.
That's a pretty good summary of a solid candidate for both foreign and domestic policy success. I think Palin has that, and it looks like Paul does too though I don't know him that well. It's nice to know we don't have to settle for the lesser of two evils, or the media selection. I remain undecided at this point but see some good choices.
“I’m not “picking at perceived imperfections”. I’m stating that the man simply is not ready to take on the job of president.”
We’re going to continue to disagree on this.
“That’s fine, but we weren’t talking about my choice for Republican nominee.”
The context of it was important - I had repeatedly asked who you thought would be a better president since you volunteered your view that Rand Paul shouldn’t be drafted or supported, for reasons we’ve already discussed, and you deferred answering until then.
Regarding foreign policy, that seems to be another thing deficient in a system whereby executive experience is the most important factor in determining readiness for presidential office - city, county, state executive office alone doesn’t provide much, if any, of that experience.
Doctors deal with a wide array of people, from all walks of life, with all kinds of views, in all states of being, becoming, and passing on from life. Whether Rand Paul thinks he’s ready to be president is up to him - to me it seems he is and I’d like him to run.
I think we’re going to be going over the same ground again if we continue this conversation. As I see it, you’re not in favor of this now, maybe later, for the reasons you’ve stated, and would like Palin to be the next president. I am in favor of him now.
I’ll leave the last word to you if you’d like to correct or clarify something.