misunderestimation

With less than a week to go and, if you would believe the press, an almost-certain victory for Obama, the speculation has begun about the political future for Governor Sarah Palin:

Despite all the criticism, she has many supporters among Republicans who see her as bright, tough and a star in a party with relatively few on the horizon.

“She’s dynamite,” said Morton C. Blackwell, who was President Ronald Reagan’s liaison to the conservative movement. Mr. Blackwell described vying to get close to Ms. Palin at a fund-raiser in Virginia, lamenting that he could get only within four feet.

“I made a major effort to position myself at this reception,” he said, adding that he is eager to sit down with her after the election to discuss the future. Asked if the weeks of unflattering revelations and damaging interviews had tarnished her among conservatives, he replied, “Not a bit.”

Brent Bozell, president of the Media Research Center, a conservative group, called it a “top order of business” to determine Ms. Palin’s future role. “Conservatives have been looking for leadership, and she has proven that she can electrify the grass roots like few people have in the last 20 years,” Mr. Bozell said. “No matter what she decides to do, there will be a small mother lode of financial support behind her.”

We’ve seen a number of headlines lately that give the appearance of a campaign that is not pulling in the same directions. Add to that the belief by some that the Republican Party needs to be shaken a bit and the land could be ripe for a different face for the party:

“I do think we need a more diverse group of messengers,” [Former leader of the Republican Caucus in the California State Legislature Jim] Brulte says. “Too many Republican candidates tend to look at lot like me and guys like John McCain. And I think we need more messengers like Sarah Palin and more messengers like Abe Moldinado, who is a young state senator who spoke at the national convention.”

Of course, much damage has been done to Palin’s image in the current campaign. While some see her as the new face of the party, others are more skeptical:

“She’s an idiot. A politically immature woman, A complete idiot who just doesn’t get it. It is a joke that she is running for vice-president,” [Dan Simon] said.

Simon, a human resources manager who is attending the Human Society for Human Resource Management’s Diversity Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, is from South Dakota, a state known for backing Republicans in presidential elections.

Well, that’s one man’s opinion. I don’t believe she’s an idiot in the sense used above, but I agree that she’s politically immature. However, political immaturity is exactly what I was looking for in a candidate. I was hoping we would get a true non-Washington candidate with some common sense. Someone who thinks about their actions for more than, “will this get me reelected” or “how much money can I get if I decide in favor of this?” I’m so fed-up with politics and the games being played.

Will someone please set-up and take some responsibility for the mess we are in? Will someone please actually lead this country? Leadership is making the hard decisions DESPITE the ramifications. Frankly, I just don’t see that happening with the current batch of candidates. Time to start hoping for better in 2012.

More misunderestimation

• Sarah Palin – The Ultimate Political Diva? McCain Campaign Advisors Think So
• Alaska’s Anchorage Daily News Endorses Barack Obama
• West Hollywood: Sarah Palin Hung in Effigy
• Wall Street Journal Video: Hatin’ Palin
• SNL: Will Ferrell as George Bush Endorses John McCain and Sarah Palin

Tags: 2008 Election, Sarah Palin