Free Republic

If you're wondering what Sarah Palin will do after leaving the Alaska governor's office, look no further than her op-ed in the this morning's Washington Post. She writes, "at risk of disappointing the chattering class, let me make clear what is foremost on my mind and where my focus will be: I am deeply concerned about President Obama's cap-and-trade energy plan, and I believe it is an enormous threat to our economy." As a card-carrying member of the chattering class, let me say that I am in indeed disappointed by this development. Not because Palin is showing a greater interest...

There are a million times we intuitively know what we should be doing in our careers, but the chatter around us makes us question ourselves. Too much. If I have one regret in my career it’s that I didn’t trust myself more, earlier. Watching Sarah Palin resign from her governor post in Alaska inspires me to be more brave in my own career. She’s running her career in ways I intuitively think we should all be running our careers. And she’s reflecting my own experience back to me in a positive way: That breaking new ground is difficult but it...

Gov. Sarah Palin is the political train wreck that keeps on giving. First, she was an awful choice last year as John McCain's running mate. I came to this conclusion with regret - I am one of McCain's biggest admirers. But facts are facts. An inexperienced governor of a small state, she lacked the experience to be President and brought nothing to the ticket except a surefire knack for exciting voters who were already reliably Republican. It was a strategically awful choice, and I said so - both on and off microphone - at the time. Most pundits thought I...

Americans adore irresponsible, flashy celebrities. But they do not vote for them. Michael Jackson’s funeral crashed the Internet. Had he ever tried to run for dog-catcher, it would have been a very different story. Sarah Palin is about to experience the weight of this rule. Between her speeches and her book deal, she can reasonably hope to earn $10 million over the next two years. She’ll fly in private jets, sleep in sumptuous hotel suites, receive rhapsodic applause. Yet there will be no escaping another story line. Faced with exasperating criticism and the accumulating cares of public office—she quit to...

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is second only to Mitt Romney as the presidential candidate Republican voters say they’ll vote for in 2012 state GOP primaries, but she’s also one of two candidates they least hope wins the party’s nomination.

CNN and other major news outlets have reported that Sarah Palin has abruptly resigned as governor of Alaska. The suddenness of her announcement raises the question about whether Palin resigned to avert a major scandal. One logical place to start looking is the affair that has Alaska political circles buzzing: an alleged scandal centered around a building contractor, Spenard Building Supplies, with close ties to Palin and her husband, Todd. Many political observers in Alaska are fixated on rumors that federal investigators have been seizing paperwork from SBS in recent months, searching for evidence that Palin and her husband Todd...

Another day, another leak from the wreckage of the McCain campaign. First Todd Purdum publishes a harsh piece in Vanity Fair on the Palin nomination, filled with harsh quotations from anonymous senior campaign sources. Politico follows with an even more revealing exchange of charges and counter-charges. Now at NRO, Mark Hemingway reproduces a series of leaked internal emails. The issue in all cases: Who was revealing to the world these damaging insider descriptions of Gov. Palin? I'm as fascinated as the next person by the insider details. But let's pause for a sobriety check. The 2008 campaign is over. The...

....But there are a bevy of reasons that Romney would stand to perform well- and perhaps even win- in the race for the Republican nomination. Here are just five:Republicans Tend to Nominate People Who’ve Run for President Before. With the exception of George W. Bush, Republicans tend to favor candidates who’ve sought the nomination at least once before: John McCain (won in ‘08, lost in ‘00), Bob Dole (won in ‘96, lost in ‘80), George H.W. Bush ........

At a time when Republicans desperately are searching for a unifying leader and message, and Democrats add to their ranks in Congress, the former Massachusetts governor and 2008 presidential candidate is taking a no-excuses attitude toward his party. Former presidential candidate Mitt Romney called on Republicans to "stand up" to President Obama and his policies on the economy, health care and energy, in a wide-ranging interview with FOX News. At a time when Republicans desperately are searching for a unifying leader and message, and Democrats add to their ranks in Congress, the former Massachusetts governor and 2008 presidential candidate took...