Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Peter Robinson ·
Sep 7, 2011 at 2:32pm
Because she's done.
Or so argues Paul Gigot in the Wall Street Journal. An excerpt:
Ms. Palin might have been a contender. Had she finished her job as governor, devoted a year or two to learning what she didn't know about the world and economics, built a network of support around the country, and developed a thicker skin about the media, she might now be a formidable candidate. Instead, she chose to be a media celebrity and to play hard-to-get as a candidate. The best thing she could do for her reputation at this point would be to declare once and for all that she isn't running, and then work to support whoever is the GOP nominee.
One or two members of the Ricochetoise, something tells me, may have views about this of their own.
Say on.
- Comment (59)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (3)
Comments :
May '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I, for one, am not yet counting her out.
Part of her appeal is her flat refusal to fall in line with establishment expectations.
I thought her decision to step down as governor was entirely defensible, even admirable, given the circumstances.
I don't think she's been coy and teasing. I think she's been discerning--sincerely weighing the myriad factors involved in running.
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
All of the reasons Gigot gave are valid, but first among them is walking out on her job as governor. I can forgive her being somewhat thin skinned about endlessly poor treatment by the media, as well as her making a few naive-sounding comments regarding foreign policy (I can forgive those things but I think they detract from her credibility as a candidate). But, I cannot get past her resigning, even if for the reasons stated (saving the people of Alaska the pain and cost of an inquisition). People criticized Fred Thompson for wanting the White House after being in Hollywood instead of staying in DC to fight the fight, why is Palin different? More importantly, we have a president who, since January 21, 2009, has been totally absent from the job we (well, not us, but...) gave him. Why would we on the right turn around and hand the nomination to someone who has already done the same thing? Maybe it was for the reasons she gave, maybe (I think this more likely) it was to cash in on her celebrity, but either way, she quit.
Edited on Sep 7, 2011 at 2:49pmDec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
What I find amusing is that the same people who assure us that Sarah Palin is completely unelectable seem to be infuriated that she won't agree with them and declare that she is not going to run.
If their premise is correct -- that Palin is unelectable and can't possibly garner enough support to win the nomination, much less the general election -- then what purpose does it serve for her to declare her non-candidacy at this point? If she decides to run, according to the premise of Gigot, Coulter, et al, she'll fail spectacularly and be forced to withdraw: isn't that what those critics expect and want?
Palin faces a hard deadline on Nov. 1, the last day to file candidacy papers in South Carolina for the GOP primary. She's under no obligation to anyone to make any announcement of a decision before then.
May '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
It's different because her circumstances were different. Her run for VP and the anti-Palin national frenzy that it gave rise to, coupled with the legal structure in Alaska, meant that it had become practically impossible for her to enact the agenda for which she had been elected. She realized that she could no longer be effective, so she handed the job to her capable lieutenant.
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I am of two minds about Sarah Barracuda. On the one hand, she has fabulous political instincts and a sense for the jugular. Remember her "death panels" remark? On the other hand, the quest for celebrity is off-putting.
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Except it wasn't to save the people of Alaska the cost of an inquisition: Alaskan state law forced all of those costs onto Palin personally, and even prohibited her from accepting donations from private citizens to offset her legal fees. Would you be able to afford to pay a half-million dollars out of your pocket to stay in office?
Rather than continue in office with that distraction, it was far more prudent to resign and let Alaska have a Governor who shared her values and who was not subject to a legal jihad.
Besides, do we truly prize most highly in a politician his or her dogged determination to hang onto the perks of office, come hell or high water? If so, we should all hold up Robert Byrd as our biggest political hero.
Jun '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I agree with Katievs that stepping down as gov was completely defensible.
I do, however, think the media celebrity role she has played, including her daughter's reality show & dance appearance, points toward her not running. She's very effective in raising conservative, tea party issues. She can do a great deal to help other GOP candidates, picking and choosing what races in which she chooses to be involved.
Jul '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
To be blunt, when I see the constant soap opera revolving around her, fair or not, I get a headache imagining four years of that.
Jun '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
For me, the best thing about Palin is, all of America's craziest nastiest most-tyrannical lefties hate her guts. I envy her her enemies.
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Paul, what has her quest for celebrity consisted of?
- She wrote two books. Is writing books unacceptable behavior for a Presidential candidate?
- She appeared on Saturday Night Live and on The Tonight Show. Of course, SNL had her doppelganger on every week, and talk shows host both candidates and sitting Presidents.
- She appeared as the host of a travelogue series on cable, on which she was seen doing pretty much the same things as, say, Teddy Roosevelt did.
- Now, whenever she goes anywhere, she's mobbed and chased by the media. And sometimes she doesn't even have to show up -- unless you think scores of reporters flying to Juneau to pore over her Administration's e-mails was some nefarious scheme orchestrated by her.
When she endorses a line of Sarah's Tresses hair-care products or appears on Big Brother, I'll admit the charge of celebrity-hounding. Not nearly yet.
May '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Even if we think her way of doing it was ill-advised and badly executed, I think even her reality show can be interpreted as an honest attempt to connect with ordinary Americans--to let people get to know the real her, in place of the caricature they'd been force-fed by the lefty media.
Jul '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I like Sarah, but she has a deference to celebrity that works against her. Her interview with Geraldine Ferraro where she gushed while Ferraro took cheap shots was painful. And she let two know nothing news readers get the better of her during the last presidential campaign. Can you imagine Gibson and Couric walking all over Dick Cheney that way?
I can't just chalk it up to turning the other cheek. I remember how He responded to the money changers in the Temple.
Edited on Sep 7, 2011 at 11:12pmAug '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Ann Coulter has certainly had enough, and made no bones about it.
Quoting Ann Coulter:
"Fish or cut bait here, ... we used to all love Sarah Palin for her enemies... I'm starting to dislike her because of her fans... Her good points do not seem to be in the direction of running for President".
I have expressed my deep gratitude and new found love for Ann here.
Sep '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I said basically the same thing here 5 months ago.
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Stuart Creque
Paul, what has her quest for celebrity consisted of?
- She wrote two books. Is writing books unacceptable behavior for a Presidential candidate?
- She appeared on Saturday Night Live and on The Tonight Show. Of course, SNL had her doppelganger on every week, and talk shows host both candidates and sitting Presidents.
- She appeared as the host of a travelogue series on cable, on which she was seen doing pretty much the same things as, say, Teddy Roosevelt did.
- Now, whenever she goes anywhere, she's mobbed and chased by the media. And sometimes she doesn't even have to show up -- unless you think scores of reporters flying to Juneau to pore over her Administration's e-mails was some nefarious scheme orchestrated by her.
When she endorses a line of Sarah's Tresses hair-care products or appears on Big Brother, I'll admit the charge of celebrity-hounding. Not nearly yet. · Sep 7 at 3:06pm
You left off her position as an analyst/pundit on Fox News. As well as the movie about herself. And as far as her "travelogue series," do you think Teddy Roosevelt would have invited Kate Gosselin onto his show?
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I don't disagree that Sarah Palin the caricature was created by Tina Fey and the media. And, I agree with etoiledunord that the insanity she causes in the left is brilliant; I find myself passionately defending her when lefties attack her.
I think Stuart is missing the point on her "quest for celebrity." No, she's not appearing on Big Brother. What she is doing is intentionally drawing attention to herself and away from declared candidates (maybe there's nothing wrong with that, but that is what she's doing). She went on a bus tour (which, of course, the media went crazy over) at the same time the GOP field was debating and working Iowa, and, while she may not be obligated to make a declaration one way or the other, she is dragging out the decision which serves to take away from the declared field. Maybe it's good, maybe it's deflecting the inevitable media mudslinging away from Perry/Bachmann/Romney for a bit longer.
As to walking out, I'm not suggesting she stay around forever ala Byrd. But is more than 1.5 years too much to ask?
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Gotta side with Motorhead on this one. Several have said that her resignation was defensible. I really don't care whether it was defensible or not - it demonstrated to me that she does not have the fortitude it takes to be president. Period. The end.
I like Palin in pretty much all other ways - even the celebrity seeking I find kind of endearing. But the moment she walked away from her office as governor, she lost any vote I'd ever give her.
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
I am a big fan of Palin and I hope that she does run, and competes against the other candidates, instead of against armchair politicians. If she then loses, that's fine. This whole rigamarole is like listening to people prognasticate about the upcoming NFL season, when no game has been played. Competition is good and we seem to leap-frog it, trying to anticipate.
That really is the issue, isn't it?
By the way, My World Champion Jacksonville Jaguars don't look great, just now, but then, we haven't beaten the tar out of Tennessee this coming Sunday, yet.
You know what? I'm looking forward to that game and invited my sweetie out for a date afternoon, this Sunday. She saw right through me and said, "The Jags are playing, aren't they?" I still look forward to the game and my sweetie will probably go watch with me, as well.
Then she will proudly march off and vote for Obama, next year.
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Diane Ellis, Ed.
You left off her position as an analyst/pundit on Fox News. As well as the movie about herself. And as far as her "travelogue series," do you think Teddy Roosevelt would have invited Kate Gosselin onto his show? · Sep 7 at 3:19pm
Gee, how many prominent GOP politicians are or were Fox analysts? Gingrich, Huckabee, Santorum, to name but a few. Is that an illegitimate activity for serious politicians?
The movie about herself follows in a grand tradition of profiles of candidates. One that sticks out is "The Man From Hope," the film the Bloodworth-Thomases made for Bill Clinton's DNC appearance. As with that film, the politician in question didn't pay for the movie - the producers made it as a pet project.
And as for TR inviting Kate onto the show: you might consider that the cable network TLC was desperate to reinviograte the Kate Plus Eight franchise, and the crossover episode was probably a condition Mark Burnett had to accept as part of the deal to get the series made. Again, Burnett, not Palin, was the driving force behind the show - Palin didn't hire him to make her a star.
Dec '10
Re: Sarah Palin's Prospects? Stick a Fork In 'Em
Diane Ellis, Ed.
You left off her position as an analyst/pundit on Fox News. As well as the movie about herself. And as far as her "travelogue series," do you think Teddy Roosevelt would have invited Kate Gosselin onto his show? · Sep 7 at 3:19pm
Agreed, Diane, well said.
Again, to the walkout: if she left for all the right reasons, why the circus since she resigned? Why not take a year or two, make some trips and try to fill in gaps in knowledge or experience? Come on Fox occasionally, write some op-eds to maintain name recognition, maybe show up at one or two fundraisers. I guess what it comes down to is that I don't see her trajectory since resigning as being consistent with trying to become a rock-solid candidate, but rather a celebrity. She bailed on Alaska and then ran around hyping herself, that doesn't look good.
Edited on Sep 7, 2011 at 3:34pm