Marc Ambinder writing at CBS News: Palin Needs to Take Herself Seriously.
Without being insulting, I think Ambinder cuts to the basic chase in terms of where Palin is, why she is there, and why she is likely to remain in place.
The main critique one could level at the piece is that it takes seriously the proposition that there is a more serious version of Palin that could emerge to run for the presidency. I have deep doubts on that count, as I think we have have already gotten the Palin that we are going to get. And while that Palin clearly energizes some, it is never going to be enough to win the nomination, and certainly not enough to win the presidency. Indeed, as Ambinder notes:
Palin doesn’t lead a movement now because movement implies a direction. She leads Palinism — a static universe that isn’t expanding beyond a density of about 23 percent of adults.
And those numbers are highly unlikely to budge. Now, that’s more than enough folks to sell books and drive TV ratings. It is not, however, enough to win the presidency.
I would note that the piece is not necessarily the most original thing ever written about Palin, as it notes facts that have been in play since lat year. However, it does focus on the heart of the matter, rather than on Levi, Playgirl, mooseburgers, McCain campaign sniping, and/or Oprah.
h/t: Sullivan
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November 19th, 2009 at 11:41 am
That is the crux of the matter. I have friends who like Palin, and are like Palin. They can tell a story, they can make you laugh or cry, they will cheer you on, but are they people I can take seriously in a leadership capacity? Only if they are leading the choir.
November 19th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Bad link for Mr. Ambinder’s piece, Dr. Taylor.
November 19th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
Oops–thanks for letting me know.
It is fixed now.
November 19th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
With all due respect, it appears that neither Mr. Ambinder nor Taylor have any clue as to the definition of “Palin Mania”. Despite most of the recent polls, printed articles, etc., Sarah Palin remains as popular as ever and will become even more so as her book sales increase.
The two aforementioned “authors” imply that Sarah will never “win the presidency” and they are so off base that it is ridiculous. They seem to forget that most of us in the TEA Party movement are 100% behind her in whatever capacity she wants to contribute to America.
November 19th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
No doubt the Tea Partiers would follow her into the sea like lemmings. Perhaps they can elect her dog catcher but there sure are not enough of them to elect her President and the more the rest of American sees of her the better; she becomes a bigger and bigger joke.
November 19th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
Ah, Ms Betty: You are in for one big surprise: if she runs, she will indeed be elected. Why? Independents. They were the contributing factor in Obama’s win. All of the polls conducted in the last month or so are showing that Independents are now in the opposite direction.
I just hope you will be able to accept the result.
November 19th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
chuckie b.:
Palin polls very, very poorly with independents.
November 19th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
Ah Mr. “chuckie b”, how wrong you are…
“This isn’t terribly surprising but it’s noteworthy: Whatever successes Sarah Palin is having among
Republicans, she’s absolutely tanking among independents and moderates.
The internals of the new ABC News/Washington Post poll find:
* Only 37% of independents think she’s qualified for the presidency, barely more than a third.
* Only 30% of self-described moderates think she’s qualified, less than a third.
* Only 38% of moderates view her favorably, versus 58% who view her unfavorably.
Meanwhile, the new CNN poll finds that only 29% of independents think she’s qualified.”
http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/polling/sarah-palin-tanking-among-moderates-independents/
November 19th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Ah, yes, leave it to a “non-partisan” respondent to quote partisan news sources who conduct polls. Anybody who believes that CNN and ABC are capable of providing an accurate, non-partisan poll is living in la-la land.
Let’s say you are right. I promise, it’s not going to last. Let’s resume this conversation in two weeks and I’ll bet we find the “times are a-changing” for independents.
However, Rasmussen says the Republicans are indeed changing their minds:
“Fifty-nine percent of Republican respondents to a Rasmussen Reports poll released Monday said Palin shares their values. Meanwhile, only 18 percent of Republicans polled said they see Palin as a divisive figure.
“Overall in the Rasmussen poll, 51 percent held either a “very favorable” or “somewhat favorable” view of Palin compared to 43 percent who had a “very” or “somewhat” unfavorable view of the former governor”. (http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1109/29643.html).
No one would have predicted that even as late as last week.
November 20th, 2009 at 7:02 am
[...] can’t look past the woman and go for the policy. I’m a little disappointed when Poliblogger agrees with Marc Ambinder when the latter said that Palin herself is promoting Palinism, or when other Conservatives accuse [...]