Posts Tagged → Sarah Palin
Mitch says No to 2012
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, hyped by the White House and the liberal media — never a good sign — as the GOP’s best hope, has decided to bow out of a 2012 bid for the White House. While Daniels has earned a fair amount of credibility as a budget cutter, some question his conservative credentials, especially amid the “strange new respect” Daniels has earned from the Obama White House and the liberal media of late.
While he may come by his reputation unfairly, Daniels bowing out actually increases the chances of a more reliable conservative winning the nomination; the most prominent RINOs still in the race are Mitt Romney and Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty.
Of those who have declared, the clear favorite for my money – at the moment – is Herman Cain. He’s the best speech giver and public speaker, and has a wide resume in both government work and the private sector, and has succeeded pretty much at every step along the way.
Newt Gingrich’s time is passed; his expiration date arrived when he attacked the Paul Ryan budget and coined the term “right-wing social engineering.” Might not be a RINO yet, but he’s certainly a RINO-in-training.
Gary Johnson has no chance, and neither do Fred Karger, Tom Miller, Tim Pawlenty, Vern Weunsche.
Who’s left? Rick Santorum doesn’t fire me up; Ron Paul does, but not in a good way. And Mitt Romney is a RINO, and the last thing I want to see is another John McCain fiasco.
So who’s left?
Plenty of promising conservatives, that’s for sure.
There’s Michele Bachmann, who is more likely to end up as someone else’s running mate. There’s John Bolton, who would bring a lot of needed honesty and foreign policy experience. And there’s a dark-horse move to draft Texas Governor Rick Perry, which wouldn’t be a half-bad idea.
I’m less than interested in Charlie Crist and Lindsay Graham. And Jon Huntsman is a nobody.
And then there’s Sarah Palin, who could be the best of them all … except for Herman Caine.
So here’s my list, in order of preference, at the moment, for the top of the GOP ticket.
1. Herman Cain
2. Sarah Palin
3. Rick Perry
4. Michele Bachmann
5. John Bolton
All of those in my Top 5 are far more conservative than Romney, Pawlenty, Gingrich and Santorum. I’d vote for any one of those five over President Obama in a hot second. But especially Cain.
And the future looks bright for the GOP. Here are some names to keep in mind for 2016, 2020 and beyond: Chris Christie, Scott Walker, Paul Ryan, Bobby Jindal, Jan Brewer, Nikki Haley, Susanna Martinez, and Mary Fallin. They are all powerful conservatives and the political equivalent of unlocked cell phones.
Palin hints she will run
Sarah Palin has made it clear that she is considering a presidential bid in 2012, and that if she runs, she believes she could score a knockout punch to the Obama Administration. Despite her personal convictions, though, some in her party remain unconvinced, preferring long-time party loyalists like Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and others.
The landscape has changed somewhat since Palin ran as the lifesaver of the doomed McCain ticket, making the race closer than it otherwise would have been. One such change is that Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal’s stock has dropped without much explanation, while New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s stock is soaring due to his tax-cutting, budget-slashing, plain-spoken ways in a largely blue state.
The main problem is that party loyalists types like Romney still control the party, despite the advances made by Tea Party activists like Palin. If Tea Party support were key, though, Texas Governor Rick Perry would likely top the list over Palin, despite the fact that he has never indicated interest in a demotion from being Texas Governor to being US President.
So ultimately, Palin’s blatant water-testing is interesting, but much remains to be seen. If forces like Christie, Perry or Jindal enter the race, Palin would likely fade as a favorite. But if compromising John McCain types like Romney, Huckabee and Gingrich remain her stiffest competition, Palin could easily become the next GOP presidential nominee, just due to a lack of other energizing conservatives on the scene.
But it’s early; one’s time is better spent on designer furniture shopping than prognosticating 2012 political results.
Palin teaming with Burnett for reality series
Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin and reality TV producer Mark Burnett are teaming up to shop a reality TV series around Hollywood, which would focus on Alaska and the Palin family, according to numerous online reports. Considering a reality show, even if approved for next fall, could spend as much as a year in production and it’s already 2010, the chances of Palin running for the GOP presidential nod in 2012 are starting to look slimmer and slimmer.
No one can begrudge Palin wanting to cash in and make a living for her and her family; but with her job search possibly impinging on the 2012 presidential campaign season, it’s looking like Palin may have her sights set on 2016 and beyond, or has embraced the celebrity life.
The reason a reality TV jaunt could impinge on a presidential run goes not just to conflicting schedules, but to FCC campaign standards. If Palin wishes to run, no broadcast show featuring her could air once her campaign for the White House officially begins, without invoking the specter of “equal time” laws regulated by the FCC. Since it’s unlikely any broadcast or cable net is going to give the green light to a Palin reality show that it would need to clone for some twelve to twenty candidates from the two major parties as well as minor party candidates, the chances of a show getting green-lit by Hollywood would likely depend on assurances from Palin that she’s committed to the show over a presidential run… at least until the first season completes airing.
There are numerous precedents for such situations; in 1980, broadcast TV had to cease airing old movies and TV shows featuring Ronald Reagan until after the Carter-Reagan showdown was over. More recently, in the late 1990s, former pro wrestler and talk radio host Jesse Ventura was forced to step down from his radio gig to run for Minnesota governor.
Huckabee may not run in 2012
Appearing on Fox News Sunday this weekend, former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee admitted he may sit out the 2012 race for president, due in part to his weekly Fox News Channel show. This is great news for real conservatives, since Huckabee is no more conservative than John McCain was, even though he was younger, more Christian and more pro-life.
While his word is likely to be less reliable than good insurance quotes, for now the nation can breathe a sigh of relief and hope that a real conservative, like Sarah Palin or Bobby Jindal, rise to the top in 2012.
Now that he’s not running, T-Paw supports Vikings stadium
When he’s not whizzing around the country pretending to be a front-runner for the 2012 GOP Presidential nomination, or enjoying some Myrtle beach golf, Tim Pawlenty has built his political credentials around being a fiscal conservative… which is good, considering he’s John McCain Jr. in almost every other respect.
But now that he’s not running for re-election in Minnesota, Pawlenty has finally voiced support for a new Vikings stadium to ensure the state keeps the team beyond their current lease at the Metrodome, which expires in less than two years, in 2011.
The clock is ticking and now that he’s virtually irrelevant in state politics, now T-Paw supports a stadium? Sorry, but that’s weak support at best. The Vikings should always have made more sense to build a stadium for than the Twins; having Brett Favre at QB shouldn’t make such a difference.
Of course, supporting a “public option” on a stadium may actually damage T-Paw’s conservative credentials. And as a fan of Sarah Palin and Bobby Jindal, that would suit me just fine.
Palin’s bio will be out in November
Former Alaska governor and vice presidential contender Sarah Palin’s autobiography will hit store shelves November 17, according to the latest reports; the book, titled “Going Rogue: An American Life,” will receive an initial print run of 1.5 million copies, and is coming out nearly six months ahead of schedule, clocking in at a respectable 400 pages or so.
While there’s no mention of any private placement memorandums, Palin’s book is expected to span her entire life, not merely her run for the VP spot with John McCain. Palin is a favorite among the GOP’s conservative wing for the 2012 race for the White House against Barack Obama.
Obama’s wife swipes at Palin again
While talking at voters yesterday, Michelle Obama – wife of Democratic presidential hopeful Barack “Barry” Obama – warned voters not to vote for someone because “I like that guy” or, “she’s cute.”
When asked whether she was targeting Alaska governor and GOP VP candidate Sarah Palin with that comment, Michelle replied that she had meant to reference herself with that comment.
One problem there: Michelle’s not on any ticket herself, so her rationalization doesn’t hold water. It was a Palin swipe, like it or not, and you don’t need cell phone amplifiers to hear that signal clearly.
Palin’s the ticket
Let it never be said that WonderfulPessimist.com can’t admit that it was wrong. A few months ago, someone posted a comment to one of my articles insisting that Alaska Governor Sarah Palin would make the perfect running mate to John McCain.
I did some brief research into her background and basically pooh-poohed the idea. Why? Well, first I got some bad info on her; I was under the impression that, despite some otherwise nice conservative credentials, she was a global warming sell-out.
Turns out, that’s not the case. While she acknowledges the importance of climate change, she stated in her convention address that she doesn’t believe it’s man-made. At least that’s a middle-ground stance I can live with.
While my instincts are usually more reliable than life insurance quotes, I have to admit that as I learned more about Palin, I’ve become more and more impressed.
With only two years as governor under her belt, I certainly think 2012 would have been a better year for her, as well as for Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindall. But there’s no position better in this nation to train for the presidency than to be someone else’s running mate and vice-president.
WonderfulPessimist.com still has a sea of reservations about John McCain himself; yet with Palin on the ticket, we can at least trust there will be a solid conservative as his presumptive successor once his term is over – assuming McCain-Palin win. Can’t count those votes before they’re cast, after all.
And it does pose an interesting scenario for 2012. If McCain decides not to go for a second term, there is a very good chance that the GOP ticket next time around could be Palin-Jindall. For a Reagan conservative like me, that would be a dream come true.
And with a ticket like that in 2012, the charge could never again be made that the GOP is a home only to “angry white men.” Take that and stick it in your ear, Dems! Who’s the party of diversity now?
Palin for Veep?
While Hillary may have dashed the hopes of liberal women for a female in the White House, the GOP still has a legitimate – if somewhat longshot – contender to be John McCain’s running mate, a heartbeat away from the presidency if he wins in November.
Sarah Palin, the current GOP governor of Alaska, is hardly of the shrill, Hillary-like, progesterone-ingesting style of female politicians. For one, she is ardently pro-life and recently gave birth to a fifth child she knew would be born with Downs Syndrome. She has maverick credentials, going up against incumbant GOP governor Frank Murkowski, who she accused of impropriety, a charge that ultimately proved true.
Furthermore, she is a fiscal conservative. The problem for conservatives with Palin is that she buys into the Al Gore line on global warming, an important battle line in US energy reform; her views on domestic drilling, especially in her state’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, have been kept under wraps since emerging as a potential running mate for McCain.
Palin has potential, but comes from a state too small in electrol votes to be considered a lock; also, while she adds youth to the ticket, Palin has only been governor of Alaska for two years, lacks foreign policy experience and could be seen as underqualified for the second-in-command role.
We’ll see what McCain thinks soon, I’m sure.
