The Republican Party continues to amass expertise in losing elections. Its current reticence in getting behind the momentum of Sarah Palin, now the former Governor of Alaska, unequivocally proves the point.
Many have postulated in vain as to why such an energizing presence in the party has been soundly rejected by its "inner circle." Yet despite phony attempts at eloquence and deep analysis, it is clear that somehow, the basic integrity and common sense that Palin exudes are themselves the offending factors. All of that "of the people, by the people, and for the people," rhetoric may look good engraved on the monuments and surely sounds good in campaign ads, but this is just not how things are done in Washington anymore.
When measured against the current "ruling class," Palin's faults, or more precisely, those qualities about her which critics attempt to manufacture into faults, are trivial at worst. More pertinently, the derisive commentary is far more reflective of truly serious character defects on their own part. Sadly, many of them claim to lean to the political right.
Some have descended to the level of finding fault with the unconventional names Todd and Sarah Palin have given to their children. Certainly, such small-mindedness is a matter of absolute irrelevancy to Palin's nature, and merely another indication of the desperate efforts to marginalize her.
It also reveals a glaring hypocrisy among those critics with their flagrantly selective powers of observation. In comparison, they studiously avoided ever noticing anything unusual about the name "Hussein," as if it is a typical moniker expected for the average passerby on Mainstreet in Middle America.
Not surprisingly, many of these same critics have been having a field day ever since Palin's announcement of her resignation from the governorship of Alaska. Somehow, by prematurely leaving a political office, we are told that she has thoroughly betrayed the public trust and desecrated every worthwhile American institution right down to motherhood and apple pie.
Yet little if any similar criticism was leveled at Hillary Clinton who, during her waning days in the unelected post of "First Lady," suddenly recalled a "Jewish" heritage and a lifelong affinity for the New York Yankees. And all of this happened just as she and the little man were making a frenzied purchase of their dream home in the New York City suburb of Chappaqua.
Apparently, in the world of the political insiders, it is just fine to invent a residency in order to pursue political office and personal ambitions under the flagrant pretense of "representing" the people of New York in the United States Senate. Yet it is political "heresy" for someone to leave office, out of a sincere belief that their best interests and those of their State are served thusly. Nevertheless, in doing so Palin has proven herself to be of a far higher character than any of her attackers.
Of course, no discussion of Palin's detractors would be complete without a mention of the Republican Party's menopausal wing, as epitomized by former Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan and Washington Post token conservative "pundit" Kathleen Parker. In their incessant efforts to derail Palin, Noonan and Parker have descended to a level of discourse rife with shallow catcalls and jeers. In telling contrast, Noonan had heaped accolades on Barack Obama while Parker supports the elevation of judicial activist Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court and excoriates the GOP for refusing to follow along....
To read this column in its entirety, go to gopusa.com.
Christopher G. Adamo has been active in Wyoming politics for many years and is a managing partner in Best American Buy (www.bestamericanbuy.com), an e-commerce business that markets American made products including the incomparable Abigail Adams Bedspread Set from Bates Mills. Contact information for Chris Adamo, and his archives, can be found at www.chrisadamo.com
Note -- The opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, views, and/or philosophy of GOPUSA.
The way Sarah Palin is treated by the corporate media proves she is clearly doing something right. Many of the attacks sadly, or orchestrated by Romney supporting Republicans...see Republican: Romney is Another Kerry http://praisinpalin.com/ The Democrats, of course, love to bash Sarah because they cannot make excuses for Obama and his 4.7 trillion dollar giveaway.
Your spin on Sarah Palin and her shortcomings and antics are delusional at best.
Please don't compare Hillary to Palin. Hillary was not an elected official while she was in the White House, nor did she quit any of her jobs for dubious reasons. Sarah Palin claims her reasons for quitting was because she would become a "lame duck" in office in the latter part of her term as governor. Really?!!? Sadly, that is not justifiable cause to quit any elected office. If it were, officials in their final years in elected office would quit left, right, and center.
Thus far, Sarah Palin is the only elected official who sees this as a viable reason to quit her job which she asked for. She was unqualified for the position in the first place and things got too hot for her to handle and she QUIT!! She is a QUITTER!!
Dan Quayle received pretty vile treatment from the press - and it wasn't because he was a threat to the liberals, but because he was an easy target...
Palin generally comes across as ignorant and unintelligent in interviews, and frequently gets caught in lies.
A lot of what she says is nonsense, not "common sense."
Has any other governor ever resigned for the dubious reasons that Palin has? Governors resign for three main reasons - scandal, to accept or seek higher office or due to ill health. None of those apply in Palin's case.