I’m reading Sarah Palin’s statement again, because this still makes no sense this morning, and this had me laughing:
I will support others who seek to serve, in or out of office, for the right reasons, and I don’t care what party they’re in or no party at all. Inside Alaska – or Outside Alaska.
But I won’t do it from the Governor’s desk.
Her resignation simply makes no sense at all. I feel the same way I did a couple weeks ago when Sanford was AWOL and no one knew where he was- you have no evidence that he was doing something wrong, but the behavior is just so bizarre you can’t figure it out. Her logic is just baffling- she is not goin g to run again, and that makes her a lame duck, so therefore she is just going to quit a year and a half early so she does not succumb to the same old politics as usual? So is she opposed to anyone ever running for a second term?
This just makes no sense, even the next day. Something is going on.
Englischlehrer
On dailykos there are rumors swirling she is about to be indicted on charges of embezzlement. Her house was built by the folks who built that unnecessary sports complex in her hometown, ALLEGEDLY.
ricky
Name one thing about her as national figure which does.
linda
that whole lame duck issue she babbled about — how lame duck governors partake in wasteful overseas trips and she didn’t want to get caught up in that. i mean, wtf… where does it say she’s mandated to make those trips. couldn’t she have better made/illustrated the point by remaining in office and noisily declining those little perks.
i’m confused.
rob!
The last two weeks for the GOP–Ensign admits his affair, Sanford implodes, Franken finally beats Coleman, and now Palin implodes–probably makes them long for the good ol’ days of the 2008 election!
demkat620
Watched the presser again and it is disturbing. This was not shrewd, or planned or even well thought out.
She did not jump. She was pushed.
Josh E.
Not to mention that she made the announcement on a Friday afternoon on a holiday.
jon
Didn’t she just declare for the WNBA draft? David Stern might actually turn the tens of people who show up into hundreds if she makes it onto the right team.
Rosali
Agree with Linda @3. Palin says “Lame ducks are lazy. I promised the opposite. Therefore, I will quit.”
gbear
She’s using The Chewbacca Defense.
Blue Neponset
It makes perfect sense. If someone photoshopped a picture of Tunch wouldn’t you quit blogging?
demkat620
I’ve got tickets to a ballgame this afternoon. Almost don’t want to go. This is too entertaining.
dsc
Who would want her “support?” (said in a high squeaky voice of absolute incredulity).
I am ever amazed at her ability to mangle the language–it proves again that she has never read a damned thing. Her syntax is so grating, and her desperate attempt to sound smarter (?) makes her reach for the oddest metaphors (which she almost never completes).
A degree in journalism–no wonder the MSM is so full of people who cannot think, write or reason (I have a degree in journalism, though I have never been a practitioner).
Leelee for Obama
For her kids’ sakes, I hope that’s the right theory. There are so many possibilities that could involve them-I hope it’s just plain old corruption.
gbear
Phoenix Woman is making the case that those comments were jabs at other governors who are considered presidential contenders. It’s still doesn’t make her move any less bizarre.
Persia
@dsc: Almost a decade ago, one of my (journalism) professors was at a seminar with the late Peter Jennings. Someone asked what colleges could do to train future journalists, and Jennings replied, basically, to teach them about the world they were in. He said he had twenty people who could put up a satellite link between Croatia and LA in seconds; but who couldn’t tell you where Croatia was or why it mattered in the greater geopolitical world.
I think exactly nothing has changed.
Tom
For some reason, I can’t get the song “Beauty School Drop Out” out of my head.
Leelee for Obama
no wonder the MSM is so full of people who cannot think, write or reason
is so true. I am a bit of a grammar bitch, I admit, but the crap that passes for English on the news makes me insane. I must say it at least once a day “They get paid for this?” Doesn’t anyone proofread?
blockquote won’t work!!!!!!
Montysano
Speaking of ducks, the geese in the background of her speech were the perfect counterpoint.
JK
After reading Palin’s speech for the nth time, it reminds me of Lewis Carroll nonsense verse mixed with James Joyce stream of consciousness mixed with William Burroughs/Brion Gysin cut-ups mixed with Prof Irwin Corey’s gibberish monologues.
Anyone who can discern a coherent theme or idea in this speech, deserves a MacArthur Foundation genius award.
Suicidal Zebra
I did think that perhaps she was quitting to become the face of a Republican cause célèbre, such as Operation Rescue or the NRA. Now, I just think she’s batshit insane.
@gbear
Awesome. The statement also reminds me of this scene, and it would have been nice to see one of the press express the same sentiment.
gbear
@gbear:
Crap. I linked to the wrong Phoenix Woman post. Here’s the right one. Still half asleep this morning…
Double Crap. The other link I posted (Chewbacca Defense) goes to a South Park clip. When I first saw it it didn’t have the longish advertisement in front of it. I’m not very successful at the internets this morning.
calling all toasters
@Montysano:
…to the loon in the foreground?
linda
no wonder the MSM is so full of people who cannot think, write or reason
i can’t wait for the transcript of chuck todd opining on palin last nite with david shuster. i swear there’s no way in hell todd had seen that performance because his entire commentary was how this would impact her 2012 chances. and not one freaking word on the crazy. shuster quickly dumped him.
Adolphus
@Josh E.
Actually it was morning in Wasilla, Alaska, getting close to noon I think. Not sure this makes a difference one way or another because I suspect she and the rest of the Alaska politico’s are well attuned to East Coast media deadlines.
Keith G
Something may be going on, but I just don’t think so. I know it’s more exciting to dig for some attempted grand design, but maybe this is just reaping the flawed harvest of stupid seeds. I feel she was over her head before McCain “tapped” her. What we saw yesterday was the flawed implementation, of a incomplete plan by a largely inept political actor. Happens all the time, just usually not at this level.
‘Course, Palin is getting a (temporary) last giggle, as contributions to her PAC have jumped during the last 24.
Where’s Lily?
JGabriel
Englischlehrer:
I have a hard time believing Palin resigned over the same type of local corruption trouble she forgave Ted Stevens for just last year. I could be wrong, of course, but it feels unlikely.
.
linda
deserves a MacArthur Foundation genius award.
funny you should mention macarthur … so did she (although a different one). lol:
In the words of General MacArthur said, “We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction.”
Cat Lady
Logic isn’t appropriate for Palin. Only haiku will do.
She can get the job.
and can’t do the job. Starbursts!
Train derails. Also.
C’mon, try your own. It’s easy.
geg6
There is no doubt in my mind that there is a shitstorm of a scandal about to hit. But the explanations coming out so far don’t make any sense to me either. I mean, petty grift from a contractor? Seriously? Ted Stevens didn’t step down even after getting convicted for that. It HAS to be bigger than that becuase of there was a photo illustrating the definition of “blind ambition,” it would be of her. I can’t imagine that she’d so hastily step down over that. I’m waiting with baited breath for it to break. Should be awesome. I can’t stop thinking about Todd and the AIP connection. Those nuts have “domestic terrorists” written all over them.
Tom
Just read this in the NYTimes article. Can’t say it shocks me.
ronin122
@linda: Chuck Todd has shown himself to be a total numbnuts. The asshole thinks that because Palin is a celebrity that people will forgive her if she tries for 2012 (right, because the big guys within the party thought she was viable before randomly resigning as governor with two years before she would start running). The Beltway is full of assholes.
Howard Fineman is saying that in his view this is a total sign of her trying to run for 2012. He’s a fucking dumbass, not even most the people at FreeRepublic think she’s going to run anymore and you know how batshit they are.
Rosali
The good news is that if she gets indicted for corruption, McCain will have to lay low and stop making public pronouncements. His mere presence will remind everyone that he was the one who selected Palin to be VP.
Julia Grey
I have trouble believing Palin resigned over the same type local corruption trouble she forgave Ted Stevens for just last year. I could be wrong, of course, but it just feels unlikely.
Not to mention how freaking BORING that would be.
I want something juicier, dammit!
demkat620
@ronin122: Credulous is a good word for both Todd and Fineman.
Both of them bought in to the whole “Palin was a genius pick” idea.
gypsy howell
The “hell yeah” along with the “I don’t think lame duck governors should take fun trips on the taxpayers dime” comments make me think she just got a huge offer from Fox for a show.
Make millions of dollars, have fun, “travel around the state, to the Lower 48 (maybe), overseas on international trade” ? Hell yeah!
Plus, it keeps her wingnuttiness in the public eye, minus the need for any actual governing, until 2012. Although really, does she even WANT to be president in 2012? Clearly, she hates the work of governing.
Money, power and nice clothes are what it’s all about for her, and she doesn’t need to run for office for that if she’s got a nice cushy Fox job.
Probably she’ll just dangle the 2012 prospect in front of the right wing to keep the cash rolling in for the next few years on Fox. Then the Wasilla Grifter will announce that sadly, her lucrative job on Fox is just too too important for America — and Alaska! – to give up.
Demo Woman
It’s difficult to try to figure out what is going on in Sarah’s head. If she thought that resigning and giving a rambling speech would help her campaign for President, she’s wrong.
Maybe she’s tired of the governing thing and wants to make some money before her star power fades or she’s about to get hit with a scandal. Why wouldn’t she immediately resign if there is a pending indictment?
RSA
Yup. Of course, on at least one rightwing blog (Pam Atlas’s, I think) you’ll find praise for Palin’s not having used a teleprompter.
As for the lame duck business, I take the general principle to be that as soon as you make a decision not to run for another term, you walk off the job, now being a lame duck. Of course, this makes being a second-term President a difficult matter…
Demo Woman
@Rosali: lol. Please let it be a scandal.
JGabriel
NYT via Tom:
Pity. It sounded like somthing from Walt Kelly’s Pogo: “We have met the enemy, and he is us!”
.
Julia Grey
Wouldn’t it just be too awesome if SHE has had an affair?
Some Guy
@geg6: Shitstorm of a scandal does seem to be the wise bet. It is my pick, too.
One thing I noted, and I think it is emblematic of Republicanism (as party vs. neocon as “political theory”, *cough*) is from Kristol’s comment that Palin had done most of what she could do as governor already, so why not quit?
Pause and breath the stink of that in for a second. Holding office is about building your vitae – governing is not the point. We knew that, we have seen so many episodes that prove that the last 8.5 years, but there you see it in the reasoning of a flick of the wrist comment. The governing logic of Republicanism is completely opposed to government as anything other than a power mechanism. Holding office is like corporate ladder climbing – take a job long enough to get a bump and ditch it for the next opportunity. Government is no different than private sector enterprise in terms of job responsibility. It saturates the entire mentality of Republicanism; it is the constitutive impulse that defines it. From there you get a complete disregard for public interest and democracy as they are just canvas for grandiose, incoherent rhetoric coupled with venal, bumbling power mongering.
JGabriel
@Julia Grey:
Exactly! Heh.
.
JK
Palin wants the Republican nomination without having to work for it.
Palin will play cat and mouse with the MSM about her 2012 plans for as long as she can to fuck with and annoy the hell out of Romney, Huckabee, Jindal, and Pawlenty and keep them from gaining traction. I can see reporters swarming away from these stooges in droves to cover the latest Palin event.
Between Sean Hannity and Greta Van Susteren Fox News is Palin Central, so she can get on their network anytime and get a huge audience.
linda
@demkat620:
i bet politico’s roger simon is still weeping.
ronin122
@demkat620: And both of them lose a lot of my respect for sticking with it through to the end. But surprised I am not, since the Beltway morons are so disconnected from everyone in the real world that I struggle to see why anyone can take them seriously or even find them quasi-relevant.
10 months later I still don’t understand what was so “genius” about it. I mean obviously it was a stupid choice but I cannot even fathom why it would be “genius” even with warped thinking. She was an ignorant jackass with a separatist husband, who is such a hypocrite she doesn’t even notice the cognitive dissonance with her views on abstinence and her knocked up teenage daughter, who knew nothing about anything of relevance, who couldn’t answer a debate question (not even a poor answer), who almost half of the country thought she was NOT qualified to be in her position of power, who was riled up in numerous corruption scandals, who encouraged people thinking that our current President is a socialist terrorist.
Please, someone tell me how she was helpful in doing anything that was a net positive for the GOP or even McCain’s campaign (sure she brought the wingnuts to the rallies but since these are the same people yelling “terrorist, shoot him” I doubt McCain wouldn’t have gotten them).
Brick Oven Bill
Bad Political Advisor (4:1)
Sex Tape w/ Todd (9:1)
Human Biodiversity Tape (15:1)
Abuse of Office (5:1)
Trig is Not Hers (19:1)
Book/TV Deal (2.5:1)
Other Man (11:1)
Other Woman (65:1)
None of the Above (5:1)
Adolphus
In one way this does kind of make sense if you put your head in a 21st Century GOP place. To the modern GOP it is all about campaigning not governing. In the real world the best way to get a promotion is to do your current job well. Not only does that get the attention and argue for the next step, but you hopefully learn something from the intermediate jobs to do the next job better. In politics this means getting elected to progressively bigger positions and accruing a track record, a team, and skills along the way so that if you do win the next election you will be better at governing.
But the modern GOP is all about winning the next election and governing is an afterthought at best and a means to win elections at worst. She won the only race for the Alaska governorship she will ever run. Governing is for losers. Task accomplished, move on to the next which is winning the presidency.
It doesn’t make sense to me, especially since she will be facing all kinds of accomplished governors and ex-governors in the Republican Primary who will beat her senseless for being a quitter. But then I think governing well is the best way to get elected and sustain a movement, so what do I know?
geg6
linda: Simon was as astute as Todd and Fineman with Shuster last night. I was just shaking my head in amazement. I can haz better pundits pleez!
Seanly
@gypsy howell:
I think Gypsy hits the nail on the head. Palin is a grifter, plain & simple. The payout on her latest scam isn’t so hot so she’s gonna blow town.
RSA
My only reservation about the scandal possibility is that, if it were embezzlement or some other crime, I expect Palin would think she’d be better positioned to handle it as governor–all those yummy state resources and connections. A serious personal scandal that might result in her stepping down? Maybe.
Montysano
Perhaps she’s been out hiking the Appalachian Trail? Or discussing Uganda?
Nah….. we couldn’t get that lucky.
JGabriel
gbear:
I’m more inclined to agree with SiubhanDuinne, who speculated yesterday that:
It would make sense. If Palin is being forced out by someone in the GOP, you can see why she might be pissed that she’s getting the shove while Sanford gets to stay on in SC.
.
David
10/4/2008
“Palin and Bush speak in the same tongue. It’s a very special language that only national conservative politicians (and toddlers) speak. It’s called “gibberish” and there’s something about it that certain people in our country find very reassuring to hear in the mouths of those who are running for the most powerful job in the world.”
~Digby
http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/sinister-gibberish-by-digby-jonathan.html
PGE
This looks so hurried that it’s clear she was pushed. But by who? No matter the nature of the scandal or indictment, she’d probably be in a better position to fight it with her hands on the levers of power. My thinking is that whatever it is must be big enough that there’s no surviving it politically and, perhaps, even economically. And that the big money republicans promised her wingnut welfare in the future if she jumped ship now to minimize the contagion of the rest of the party. I just can’t imagine what would be that big, though. Certainly not a Ted Stevens type scandal. She looked like someone who is running scared, and even a corruption scandal seems unlikely to do that to her.
geg6
Another clue that this was not about 2012. The anger that was quite obvious to me and, apparently, Joan Walsh that may explain the even more lack of coherence to her speaking than usual. She was PISSED. No way you’re that pissed off if you think you’re making some brilliant polotocal move. OT: If any of you have HBO and OnDemand, they have a great doc running on free speech, “Shouting Fire.” I’m about halfway through it and just riveted.
SGEW
The question is: what news item are we not paying attention to today/this weekend because of soon-to-be-ex-Governor Palin?
me
“Let the
rabbitsducks wear glasses, save our brothers!”linda
@geg6:
simon’s column following the biden/palin campaign face-off is astonishing in its wrongness. he was truly smitten by palin and contemptuous of biden’s grasp of issues.
they are truly destructive forces. but then that’s long been obvious.
Nicole
@calling all toasters: “loon in the foreground.” Hilarious. I’m stealing that.
JK
@JGabriel: @Tom: @linda:
This is par for the course for Sarah Lazy Palin:
Quote one person when you meant someone else – Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Maj. Gen. Oliver Prince Smith
or
Quote someone in your VP acceptance speech about whom you didn’t know a damn thing in advance, who it turns out was a hatemongering scumbag who wrote of his disappointment that FDR wasn’t killed in an assassination attempt and later wrote of his hope that RFK would be assassinated – the writer was Westbrook Pegler- He’s the writer Palin referred to as having written “we grow good people in our small towns”
If Al Gore, John Kerry, or Barack Obama had made either of these mistakes, I have a feeling that the MSM wouldn’t let them off the hook.
Ked
@Brick Oven Bill:
Wow, it looks like BOB’s got his groove back. I was worried about you there for a few weeks.
WTF?
dbrown
Sorry – no longer matters.
Josh Hueco
George W. Bush’s belligerent Bible Belt stupidity, coupled with Nixon’s pissy resentment of ‘elites,’ in a base of old-fashioned Greed-Is-Goodism. Plus a big rack to titillate the Fox Newsers. Modern Republicanism distilled into its purest form. She won’t be missed.
blogenfreude
My take is that it’s bigger than just the stadium … Palin’s the sort who would denydenydeny something like that. Bradblog is saying it’s an iceberg – lots we can’t see. I, for one, will enjoy this immensely.
SGEW
@Ked: “human biodiversity” is B.O.B.’s euphemism for racism.
donovong
Here’s my guess. She has a brand, spanking new contract with Uncle Rupert to take on a show immediately before Hannity and after LoofahMan. Millions upon millions of dollars in additional endorsement possibilities to boot.
She may be a fucking loon, but she will be a RICH fucking loon!!
Suicidal Zebra
@Ked:
Reference to the infamously scarce Michelle Obama ‘whitey’ tapes.
JK
@linda: @ronin122:
The only thing Chuck Todd was ever good for was number crunching.
NBC News fucked up big time when they took him off of that task and put him on the White House beat. Now he’s completely lost and he’ll never find himself.
Brick Oven Bill
Found herself bored following the Presidential campaign and wandered onto the Internet, where she found the 2007 weblog award winner, and fell in love with me. Strapped on a diaper, a cheerleading outfit, and a 1911 ACP. Currently travelling at a high rate of speed south on the Alaskan Highway after determining my secure undisclosed location through Janet’s supercomputers. Will show up on my doorstep tonight and respectfully request permission to share her book royalties, and be my firecracker (412:1)
geg6
SGEW: Glad you can parse that because I sure had no fracking idea what that meant. Though I must say, it worries me that you can parse that.
Laura W
@JGabriel:
Maybe Sanford broke her heart? Just heard this on XM (Stevie Nicks’ version) and couldn’t help myself. Not feeling very clever this morning, so I’m sure most of you could do far funnier versions. Maybe BOB could use it on his upcoming CD?
She’s a good girl, loves her red s h o e s
Loves Jesus and America too
She’s a good girl, crazy ’bout Putin
Loves lyin’ and her runnin’ too
It’s a long day living in Wasilla
There’s a pipeline runnin’ through the yard
And I’m a bad boy ’cause I dont even miss her
I’m a bad boy for breakin’ her heart
And I’m free, free fallin
Yeah I’m free, free fallin
All the vampires walkin’ through the party
Move south down Argentina way
And all the bad boys are tappin’ in the pee stalls
All the good girls are home with broken hearts
And I’m free, free fallin
Yeah I’m free, free fallin
Free fallin, now I’m free fallin, now I’m
Free fallin, now I’m free fallin…
I wanna glide down, shoot me some wild wolves
I wanna piss her name in the snow
Gonna free fall out into nothin’
Gonna leave this world for a while
And I’m free, free fallin
Yeah I’m free, free fallin
SGEW
geg6: I’ve read his blog. He’s worse than you think.
Rey
Totally bizarre, so is she gonna campaign for Dems, Inds and Libs?
My interpretation of crazy talk is limited but, this sounds like a new gig at Faux news to me.
ksmiami
Okay – so this is my 24 hour later theory – I think she did something REALLY UNTOWARD during the time she was running around being McCain’s VP nominee and Schmidt knew about it, or was exposed to it (I mean, she did come out in a towel, right?). Anyway, it was swept under the rug, but threatened to surface due to the Schmid/Palin/Kristol flame wars and she got really scared – I mean like boffing a 25 year old male staffer scared. I know this sounds like left field, but it is either this or a giant sized familial scandal… it just seems like the timing is right. Thoughts?
Common Sense
I swear the funniest damn part about all you Todd haters is 99% of ya wanted him to get the MTP gig in the first place. NOW he’s unqualified to be a beat reporter. In 2008 he was the shining future of the network and Schuster was just further proof they aren’t listening to the people’s choice and instead went with the network tool. Maybe NBC wanted him in AAA before sending him straight to the Yankees?
gbear
@SGEW:
Well here’s one story we’re missing: The Westboro Baptist Church is planning a protest at faggy Michael Jackson’s funeral. With a move like that, you’d have to call them a suicide cult now.
dan robinson
Her book deal is supposedly worth around $7 million. I wonder how much of that is predicated on book sales? If I remember correctly, it is to be published by both HarperCollins and Zondervan. Maybe they are betting on a large evangelical turnout to by the Zondervan edition.
When I was a kid, we would go to Maranatha, http://www.vacationwithpurpose.org/ just up Lake Michigan from us, some Sundays we would drive down to Gull Lake http://www.gulllake.org/ and we even went to Winona Lake, although it seems to have stopped having the Bible conference. There is a ready market for her book at these venues. Here’s an upcoming speaker:
By the way, if the answers are in Genesis, to question is Genesis 24:9 an answer?
But I digress.
Politics is a business, and just like any other business, there are expectations. Her behavior is so far outside the norm for expected behavior that I think she is finished as a serious candidate for anything.
Bill E Pilgrim
Okay. Look I’ve been examining this thing and I think it’s code. The words in all caps must be the key, right? So if you read only those, then select only the second letter of each one, the entire rambling speech actually boils down to a short message:
KLAATU BARADA NIKTO
Holy shit.
I always knew she seemed like an alien.
Er, did anyone see Todd’s eyes starting to glow as she spoke?
JK
I think this term is a reasonable description of Palin’s speech
Word salad- a mixture of seemingly meaningful words that together signify nothing.
geg6
Common Sense: Well, I never touted Todd as the savior of anything, let alone MTP. And Shuster isn’t the host of MTP, network tool Gregory, aka Rove’s Backup Dancer, is.
gbear
@SGEW:
One story we’re missing is that the Westboro Baptist Church is planning a protest at faggy Michael Jackson’s funeral. This move officially puts the WBC in the category of ‘suicide cult’.
demkat620
@geg6: Oh hells yeah. That was the first thing that jumped out at me. She was madder than a wet hen yesterday.
Somebody got caught.
matoko_chan
Its obvious she was pushed.
Here’s a better tune for Palin….im still tryin to make up for inflicting the horror of Carrie Underwood on the balloonjuicers.
I’m waiting
For my moment to come
I’m waiting
For the movie to begin
I’m waiting
For a revelation
I’m waiting for someone
To count me in
Cos now
I only see my dreams
In everything I touch
Feel their cold hands on
Everything that I love
Cold like some
Magnificant skyline
Out of my reach
But always
In my eyeline now
Did you wanna be a winner?
Did you wanna be an icon?
Did you wanna be famous?
Did you wanna be the president?
Did you wanna start a war?
Did you wanna have a family?
Did you wanna be in love?
Did you wanna be in love?
When we fall in love
We’re just falling
In love with ourselves
We’re spiralling
We’re tumbling down
We’re spiralling
Tied up to the ground
We’re spiralling
Happy Fourth ‘Merica.
We sure dodged a bullet there.
;)
rs
That was quite a performance, perhaps inspired by Lord Buckley’s “The Nazz”. Or it could reflect the quality of the meth being cooked in Wasilla.
By the way, my money is on Sanford’s wife having dirt on him and Palin from some governor’s conference.
JK
@Common Sense:
I never wanted Chuck Todd to host Meet the Press. I thought he did a very good job dissecting poll data and should have been left in that position. God only knows why NBC thought he deserved to get the WH beat.
Bill E Pilgrim
@JK: That was no salad ever seen on this planet, I promise you.
A Neptunian Waldorf, heavy on the nuts.
Common Sense
@geg6:
Yeah my bad mixed up Schuster’s gig.
Regardless, go check out the Tim Russert threads here. Todd was the majority choice for the gig on BJ.
gbear
Hmmm. Not a good day on the internets at all. I’ve been trying to post a comment about the Westboro Baptist Church is planning a protest at Michael Jackson’s funeral, but the post keeps disappearing when I hit ‘submit’. Please excuse the multiple post if it ever shows up.
SGEW
@Common Sense: If Nate Silver gets a gig at MSNBC and turns into a major WATB insider Washingtonian hack, I’ll still not regret appreciating and complimenting his past political analyses.
Being on television is bad for you. There is no lack of evidence.
Mudge
Two things I do not understand are women and wingnuts and Sarah Palin may encompass the most impenetrable aspects of both, but I keep trying to see how the resignation could be a positive thing for her. Obviously my opinions are distorted due to the aforementioned lack of understanding.
The only positive political result I can see from this is that she believes that this move will get her the Republican presidential nomination. This will not win the general election, mind you, but if she loses that contest, it will be someone else’s fault. She will now have time to fully lambaste Obama and the media in her uniquely obtuse, nonsensical way.
I asked my wife ( who is not very political at all) for her analysis and she said it sounds like Sarah Palin was bored. She had no idea why, but she accepted that it was logical that Palin would resign out of boredom. Makes as much sense as anything else I’ve heard and it plays into her apparent high regard for herself.
If we eliminate the positives, then her reasons for resigning must be due to negatives. I keep coming up with false positives. But then again, I understand neither women nor wingnuts.
geg6
Common Sense: Ironically, Shuster would have been my personal pick for MTP. He has the requisite scepticism about the words politicians spew I’d like to see on a Sunday talkfest.
JK
@rs:
Thank God for Lord Buckley. There’s an all too brief reference to him in the PBS documentary Make Em Laugh.
Buckley on You Bet Your Life with Groucho Marx
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zw1eSo8-Zns
Dennis-SGMM
@dan robinson:
She is purportedly getting a $2 million advance and she’s already chosen a ghost writer.
As for her leaving office, it could be something as simple as having her approval rating in Alaska drop from 90% to 50%. The more they knew her the less they liked her. For someone as narcissistic as Palin seems to be that might be sufficient grounds to take her ball and go home. She’s also delusional enough to believe that the rest of the country will embrace her with open arms if she just focuses on us so phooey on Alaskans – she didn’t like them anyway.
The Grand Panjandrum
TPM’s David Kurtz:
My own personal take is that she is too thin-skinned for national politics. She’s from a state with 600,000 people in it, and a majority of them are Republicans. She was always given the benfit of the doubt in that friendly territory and the national spotlight is not for the faint of heart.
Now that she’s signed a book deal with a $2 million advance, and rumored to be worth close to $11 million I suspect that the Wasilla Hillbillies will be yukking it up down by the Cement Pond this Independence Day.
JK
@Dennis-SGMM:
Who will handle the simultaneous interpretation from Palin into English?
Bulworth
@rob!:
I’m sure this is good news for the GOP–or at least good news for John McCain!
Bulworth
@Rosali:
Well, you know, she could actually just stay in Alaska, in office, and, you know, actually govern.
CynDee
See, this is why we have animals. Can we get back to Lily and Tunch now, and what’s for dinner? Surely we are not going to spend a whole perfectly good July 4th on the Non Sequiturians.
Dennis-SGMM
@JK:
Palin has insisted that she’ll do most of the writing. That’s BS of course but I actually wish that she would. The result would make those Burroughs/Brion Gysin cut-ups look positively lucid. Finnegan’s Wake, also.
Bulworth
@Josh Hueco:
Heh, indeed.
Bulworth
@CynDee:
Poor Tunch is being left at home. Geeze.
Jennifer
It’s obvious she’s about to get hit with a scandal tsunami.
First off there’s the petulant and panicked tone of the whole rambling mess.
And hard though it is to decipher anything Palin says, she referenced the rest of her term as wasting time and taxpayer money several times. Others have assumed this was about lame-duck governor junkets. I took it to mean that once the shit hits the fan, she’ll be so immersed in trying to defend herself against legal charges that nothing will get done, particularly since she coupled the references with “the media climate” at least twice. She even tried to work in a “if you criticize me you hate the troops!” meme, though because of her verbal dyslexia it takes some deciphering to get to it. It starts out with a shameless pander to the best people ever to live, our troops, and she turns it around to “that’s what should be our priority – looking after them, not nitpicking at me.” That’s a paraphrase of course, because if I cut and pasted what she said verbatim, you’d all have to spend several minutes on the translation.
She kept going back to how she and her family have been persecuted by the media and others as if this somehow would prevent her from doing her job as governor. We know she’s crazy and not real bright, but even she’s not dumb enough or crazy enough to expect anyone to buy into the idea that photoshops of Trigg in his mother’s arms as BatBoy were causing material damage to Alaska or Alaskans. That was just pure Palin deflectionism.
There was also a strong thread of martyrdom running through the whole thing; numerous times she represented what she was doing as a personal sacrifice for the state, the people of the state, the “team”, etc.
All in all, it looked to me like she was positioning and crafting pre-emptive excuses for what we’re all about to find out about. We’ve seen enough of her to recognize when she’s lying, being evasive, or avoiding telling the whole truth, and there was nothing in that rambling incoherence that smelled like the whole truth. The glimpses we did get of some semblance of truth were pretty much all focused on her statements on the media and the political climate, where she reflected her anger about not being above reproach or ridicule – that was honest. There was one passage in particular – and sorry I can’t be arsed with watching that train wreck again to point you to the time marker – which sounded like nothing so much as “and I would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn’t for you meddling kids!” that used to end every episode of Scooby-Doo.
I know with her it’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking that it’s entirely possible that she’s delusional enough to think this move will catapult her to national office, that quitting is something she’s done before and so not out of character, that other career opportunities beckon…but look at the timing. A hastily made announcement at the beginning of a long holiday weekend. Word from insiders that as recently as a few days ago she had no intention of stepping down. Todd takes a few days off from the few weeks of fishing season to come home for this announcement.
If there was any kind of a plan behind this, it wouldn’t have been done this way. This was a reaction to something. We’ll find out what it was within a few weeks.
Karmakin
The whole issue is very muddled…very confused. But there’s one thing that I’m positive of, from every molucle in my body….
This is the biggest /ragequit that I’ve seen in quite some time.
JenJen
Could somebody please buy Pat Buchanan a clue? He constantly overestimates Palin’s popularity, and people this awful at political punditry shouldn’t be on my teevee.
He truly clings to this notion that because McCain briefly went up in the polls after Palin joined the ticket, that means Palin was good for the ticket. To me, that blip was just a wholly anticipated, natural post-convention bounce that, like all bounces, didn’t last.
But here’s Pat, saying Palin appeals to all the middle-class women in America, and especially Hillary voters. Now, see, this doesn’t make any goddamned sense.
Sloegin
Now I’m wondering if she’s trying to mimic ol’ Tricky Dick Nixons rise to power, and this is just her free-association version of the Checkers speech…
SGEW
@JenJen: This polysci post (via Yglesias) that correlates polling data during the campaign pretty much convinced me that Gov. Palin was the worst political choice for a running mate possible. Look at that third graph!
Demo Woman
Levi is going to write a tell all book about the Palin family according to Huffington Post.
Jennifer
One thing’s for sure: the competition for GOP Drama Queen of the year is tight.
JenJen
@SGEW: Thank you so much for those! Exactly.
And even just anecdotally… here in Ohio, after Hillary lost the primary, I knew many women who were completely ambivalent about the November election until Sarah! showed up on the scene. Next thing you know, these women are door-to-door canvassing for Obama, right by my side.
Sarah Palin helped heal the Obama/Clinton supporters’ rift better than anybody. :-)
Demo Woman
Sanford must be disappointed that he’s off the front page of the news. Maybe he and wife will hold a joint news conference.
Rosali
@Jennifer:
She was talking to the potential jury pool.
Sloth
@demkat620:
Yes, precisely. Read the transcript, it is merely bizarre, and you could maybe think that a truly misguided person might think this is good politics.
Watch the presser, it’s obviously something she cooked up at the last minute. The second half diverges radically from the first half. She is, essentially, babbling throughout the whole thing, obviously completely freaked out by -something-.
She was pushed.
And if she wasn’t, anyone running against her for higher office will just run that presser as a campaign commercial.
Joshua Norton
Somebody quits their job in Alaska and people – real people – actually give a shit. This is her legacy.
Goodbye Snowbilly Queen. Our Lady Di of the North, our Mother Teresa On Ice.
WHY GOD, WHY?? WHY DID SHE HAVE TO LEAVE?!?
breaks down weeping
Jackie
@JenJen: That was my experience too. Everyone mad at the sexism directed at Hillary was incredibly pissed that McCain thought they were stupid enough that “any vagina will do”. Then she started her beauty queen vamping and everyone knew instantly who she was. We’ve all had the experience of someone just like her. It isn’t a good thing.
I met some good folks from “Hillary sent me” canvassing in Indiana.
JenJen
@Jackie: In my humble, on-the-ground opinion, Sarah Palin helped us win Ohio.
You know what I can’t stop thinking of? Tina Fey, playing Palin at the VP debate, holding the flute and saying, “Oh, are we not doin’ the talent portion?”
Ahhhh that was great.
Graeme
My initial reaction to McCain’s selection of this woman was ‘weird.’ Everything that’s happened since then has elicited the same comment. This is no exception.
I am hoping for a scandal, but I am expecting her to go to FOX. Either way, I do not believe the 2012 hype. She was already lacking experience. Ripping a page out of the Ross Perot playbook isn’t going to bolster her credibility, and even most wingnuts seem to understand this is the end of the line for her politically.
Dennis-SGMM
@Jennifer:
And it’s only July.
jcricket
I like to think of her as Oprah of the North. Or maybe Jerry Springer.
This whole circus is awesome. Either some scandal’s about to break (good for us as it taints the GOP by association and keeps them mired down for months) and/or she’s a crazy nut-bag who believes she can run from president after dragging down McCain, lying a bunch, bitching and moaning, and then quitting her one actual job.
Either way, we win.
jcricket
Good point. She may just want to be a Newt-like national figure, getting six-figure fees for spouting nonsense, and getting invited on national TV because she “moves news”.
We should not, in any way, be afraid of her. Yes, a segment of the population is very, very, VERY excited by her. But that segment is, at most, 30% of the population. The other 70% hates her, and within that, 30% or so are independents who get driven to oppose her (witness what happened during the McCain/Obama campaign, or what’s happening in AK now with her own legislature).
So in politics, it’s not about getting 100% of the votes, just a majority. You could do a lot worse than having to “run against” a party that simultaneously excites 30% while agitating and turning off the other 70%.
Sloth
Yup, agreed.
Ensign, Sanford, Palin, Coleman concedes – it’s almost as if someone is cleaning house.
Maybe someone actually is. The republican party has taken a series of body blows in the last few weeks, but there is plenty of time to recover and without those four, it’s easy to argue that they are actually better off, once the stink clears.
Demo Woman
Even though there is no love lost between Sarah and Lisa, maybe Lisa knows something else is brewing.
gbear
@Graeme:
Why can’t she do both. This is Fox you’re talking about. If Newt can be a pundit, so can a post-scandal Sarah.
They’ll find a way to get a live feed from her jail if it comes to that.
edit: ack. jcricket got there first.
Xanthippas
I say scandal. Palin is one of the last polished professionals to ever run for high office, but nobody does this unless they’re in a world of trouble. We just don’t know what it is yet. Could be something like this though:
Anoniminous
Palin. There’s no there, there.
The woman is an incompetent ass with, at best, average intelligence and demonstrably below average knowledge.
She rose to national prominence through no skills or effort on her own. She was plucked from obscurity by a presidential campaign that couldn’t get its act together.
During the campaign she had to be protected from the media.
Her communication skills suck.
One could continue.
As she was, she is, and so she shall be.
Her incoherent drivel in lieu of a political speech should not surprise anyone paying attention during the presidential campaign. Her flame-out shouldn’t surprise anyone either. ‘Twas in the cards. That it only took eleven months is, I concede, a bit of a surprise.
Why she did it, assuming (BIG assumption) it was a rational decision … we’ll find out.
Maybe.
Eventually.
What we can say is her attraction to her “base” — those mesmerized by the philosophical and intellectual cut and thrust found in reruns of Hee-Haw — will remain. While not enough for a national political career their numbers do allow a sufficient market for Fox News or, perhaps, a national radio call-in show. In those venues the inability to think, the breathless pronouncements of the inane, and a narrative of emotive hogswallow are positives, necessary. In that world a Federal indictment for embezzlement — or whatever — is solid proof™ of the deep fear Palin inspires in Democrats, LIEbruls, ACORN, The Kenyan Terrorist©, etc. etc. etc.
With a book deal (pity the poor ghost writer!) comes a publicity tour and a natural step into some kind of media gig where she shall sit, for decades, like leprosy on the body Politic.
Zuzu's Petals
One thing that says to me – in addition to all the other evidence – that this isn’t a step toward 2012 is the fact that those most likely to be advising her about such a step were taken completely by surprise.
For instance:
gopher2b
It’s really not that complicated. She wants to run in 2012 and she needs to learn about and learn how to talk about national issues. She cannot accomplish that as governor of Alaska (its closer to Russia for god’s sake). She also needs to make money.
She will turn up in a few weeks as the host of some Fox News channel. They pay her 2 million+ a year. The whole family will move to DC where she can circulate in DC conservative circles. Kristol will be talking in her ear the whole time. Todd will be miserable.
Joshua Norton
Well, he’ll always have Greta to hold his hand (or other parts) through the rough patches.
JenJen
I think John may have spoken too soon in the other thread; perhaps conservative reaction will not be that disappointing after all! Exhibit 1: Margaret Thatcher comparison; Exhibit 2: Sarah’s just being Sarah!:
Victor Davis Hanson
K-Lo
Dennis-SGMM
@gopher2b:
Nah gah happen. Americans will be more than a little leery of electing a President who might go AWOL because Putin Photoshopped a picture of baby Trig. And Putin has teh wicked PS skilz.
jcricket
How long before we find out that Todd and Greta have been “prospecting for oil in prudoe bay”?
Dennis-SGMM
@jcricket:
Drill, baby, drill!
John Hamilton Farr
It’s something much worse than anyone has hinted at. There IS a god, or something.
JenJen
@jcricket:
FTW!
Graeme
@gbear: You’re right that she can do both. FOX would love to see her crucified only to rise again on their network.
@Zuzu’s Petals seems to be right to me. That her advisors didn’t see this coming tells me something is amiss.
As for the quotes along the lines of what JenJen posted… I’ve seen a few. How am I supposed to take VD Hanson seriously if he doesn’t understand the difference between a Thatcher and a Palin? Is the Right so full of hacks they wouldn’t understand intellectual heft if it beat their ass with a rolled up copy of the Constitution?
What do I know? I was chased out of the party as a RINO before W. got re-elected…
John Hamilton Farr
@Jennifer:
Ohhhhh, yes.
JenJen
@Graeme: That’s exactly it, that’s the problem. There’s a certain portion of the right-wing that wants another Thatcher or Reagan SO BAD that they will create one out of thin air.
They’re playing RPG’s while the rest of us are down here in the reality-based community. It’s maddening to read punditry by VDH on a normal day, but suggesting that quitting four colleges and two political offices will one day appear “Thatcheresque” is just fucking crazy-talk.
Dennis-SGMM
@Graeme:
VDH takes himself seriously enough to make up for the rest of the world not taking him seriously at all.
grumpy realist
What is Hanson smoking? Anyone who puts Thatcher and Palin in the same sentence…..?!
I may not have liked Thatcher’s policies, but no one would say that that woman wasn’t smart or didn’t know how to express herself properly.
Palin compared to Thatcher? Good Grief.
demimondian
@grumpy realist: Actually, the comparison between Baroness Thatcher and Sarah Palin is cruelly accurate. The Iron Lady is currently so far into dementia that she might actually be as incoherent as Gov. Moosefrau.
grumpy realist
Demimondian–am sad to hear that. As said, I didn’t like her policies, but she certainly did have the capabilities of a “great leader” at that time.
Since I keep hearing around the net that Palin has “lost a great deal of weight” recently, I’m wondering whether this impromptu resignation might not be explained by a medical problem–something like a diagnosis of really bad cancer.
If Sarah is one of those convinced that God has a Plan for her Being President, I could see getting hit with something like that to bring on the rage we saw in her resignation speech. Fiat justicia, ruat coelum.
San Antonio Dem
I read this comment somewhere else and can’t remember who wrote it, but here goes: between Sanford and now Palin, which season of The Wire was more entertaining than this? Talk about your real life political dramas.
Woodrowfan
I’ll be a contrarian and say she’ll have her own show not on Faux, but on CNN by October.
San Antonio Dem
My nomination for comment of the weekend, courtesy of Politico:
“’I think Sarah Palin is on the verge of becoming the Miami Vice of American politics: Something a lot of people once thought was cool and then 20 years later look back, shake their heads and just kind of laugh,’ quipped Republican media consultant Todd Harris.”
Joshua Norton
@grumpy realist: Fiat justicia, ruat coelum.
Not to be pedantic about it, but it’s “Fiat justitia ruat coelum.” Let justice be done, though the heavens should fall.
Dave C
@gopher2b:
It really is more complicated than that. If her resignation was in fact planned by her with no outside pressures or impetus, why did her speech sound like it had been written (I use that word loosely)five minutes before she gave it? And why did she sound like she had just snorted six vials of crack before giving it? Any theory of why she resigned needs to explain not just the reason for her resignation but the beyond-the-pale insanity and incoherence of the manner in which she did it. And saying, “Well, it’s just Sarah Palin,” doesn’t cut it either, as this is crazy even for her.
Brachiator
She’s a new kind of supermavericky Maverick. She’s going to show us how the nation should be governed by, you know, not actually governing.
It’s totally absurd, but Palin has managed to benefit from the news cycle and from the general incompetence of the media.
The PBS NewsHour with Jim Lehrer could only provide perfunctory coverage. They had a report from a local anchor who had talked to some of Palin’s friends (who didn’t know what was going on), but soon lamely responded to chief correspondent Judy Woodruff’s direct questions with “Well, I think …”
It made me wish to God that an anchor would have the gonads to tell an on-scene reporter, “You’re wasting our time because you are either unprepared or haven’t done any actual reporting, so we’re going to switch away.”
Later, the official pundits were as confused as anyone else about Palin, but generally felt her resignation was a bad decision.
But I note that regular News Hour pundit David Brooks was off for the holidays, and later it appeared that the PBS show Washington Week had been taped before Palin’s resignation, since they did not mention it at all.
And of course, Palin has escaped the Wrath of Letterman and being mocked on shows like public radio’s Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me, since all the comedians are on vacation.
This has largely left 2nd tier pundits like VD Hanson free rein to bloviate over La Sarah’s Swan Song. And the results have been suitably pathetic.
JenJen – RE: K-Lo — Rather than just be a celebrity, this could be a real opportunity for her to show us her stuff — what’s important to her, what she wants people to know about her, why we should pay attention to her, why we should consider her for the highest office in the land (after already gone with the cool dude with little national electoral experience — though in his case it was little experience, period)
So let’s see. Palin is going to counter Obama’s supposed lack of experience by giving up being a working governor — one of the traditional, old fashioned ways of demonstrating competence — and instead going Galt and attempting to dazzle the nation with her sparkling personality.
gopher2b
@Dave C:
I NEVER said she was smart. But, I gaurantee you her “new future” will be announced in 1-2 months. And it will involve her (1) making more money, (2) having a forum to learn about and talk about national issues, and (3) give her a national audience.
Guarantee it.
JenJen
@Brachiator:
Well, sure. According to K-Lo, this frees Sarah’s time up; now she can counter THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES’ LACK OF EXPERIENCE full-time!
Oh, and also too, Sarah! can “out-celeb” Obama. Good luck with that!
Steve V
CW is that it’s either scandal or health, yes? I would like to know how many times a pol has resigned from office prior to the end of his/her term for a reason other than scandal or health. I think it just has to be one of these things, yes?
Pasquinade
Another perspective, from a commenter at Firedoglake:
http://firedoglake.com/2009/07/04/is-sarah-palin-making-a-sacrifice-play/
cliff
has anyone yet examined the speech for religious code from her cult?
wasn’t that ‘look to the north’ thing in one of those bizarre religious vids? joels army or something?
I dunno cause I really don’t want to go sorting thru all that insanity again, but surely someone here recalls…
Ruckus
Anon @121 Hit it clearly – “There is no there, there”
Everyone is looking for a logical answer and there is none. She has never been logical, thoughtful, or even lucid so there is not any reason a sane person on any side of any aisle may be able to figure out.
Brachiator
@gopher2b:
This would be one of the craziest re-brandings in political history. Palin is going to give up being a working governor in order to become — what? — the National Mom, travellin’ around the nation talkin’ to real Americans and stuff. Also, and.
And how is this supposed to help her with foreign policy? I know that Deeper Wingnutia believes that other nations should just shut up and do what we tell them, but I cannot imagine any foreign head of state giving her the time of day, with the possible exception of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who of course has an eye for the ladies.
apostropher
wasn’t that ‘look to the north’ thing in one of those bizarre religious vids?
“North to the future.” It’s the state motto of Alaska.
cliff
that masters commission thing is what I was thinking of ..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8twqZpUT2NQ
Kilkee
Since there’s much chatter that this would have to be an ENORMOUS scandal to provoke such a manic speech and dash out the door, would I be crazy to go back and re-read some of Andrew Sullivan’s fulminations on The Birth of Trig?
Kilkee
Since there’s much chatter that this would have to be an ENORMOUS scandal to provoke such a manic speech and dash out the door, would I be crazy to go back and re-read some of Andrew Sullivan’s fulminations on The Curious Story of the Birth of Trig?
Kilkee
Since there’s much chatter that this would have to be an ENORMOUS scandal to provoke such a manic speech and dash out the door, would I be crazy to go back and re-read some of Andrew Sullivan’s fulminations on The Curious Story of the Birth of Trig?
JK
@Brachiator:
I was equally disappointed with that local reporter segment on the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, but I was pleased to hear former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson compare Palin to a spoiled celebrity.
I think it’s terrible that our top comedians, Stewart, Colbert, Maher, Letterman, and O’Brien, were unavailable to mock Palin. These guys need an early warning system to alert them to breaking comedy news so that they can break into regularly scheduled programs and tell some jokes.
Simonee
Here’s my take:
Newsom has been a pretty awful Mayor. I used to intern in communications office in 2004– the year Newsom decided to allow gay marriages. While he’s absolutely beautiful and well-spoken, the dude is a total press whore. And while that may be a good thing because he has the ability to bring visibility to progressive causes, Newsom has a tendency to celebrate non-victories for the sake of getting himself in front of the camera. So nothing gets done and he gets all the credit.
I hate how he tries to portray himself as an environmentalist but chose to slash the budget of public transportation in order to give his environmental policy advisors high salaries (over $175k each). It makes him seem like a used car salesman, which people accuse him of.
San Francisco has a $570 million deficit, and Mayor Newsom has been MIA. Local papers have taken to calling him “Waldo” because he’s been too busy campaigning for Governor instead of dealing with the budget problems.
That being said, Newsom would have had my vote for sure if Sacramento wasn’t facing budget problems. At this point, I don’t know how he’d handle a $26 billion deficit when he can barely muster the energy to go to work for a $576 million dollar deficit in SF. That’s the only deal breaker for me. I’d happily vote for him over any Republican because CA Republicans are crazzzzy. But I don’t know about voting for him in the primary.
Brachiator
@JK:
I’m pleased to find that I wasn’t the only one dissatisfied with the shallow non-information in the local reporter segment on Palin. It was a total waste of time.
And you’re right about Gerson’s assessment. It was unexpectedly candid. And his harsh judgement was all the more resonant knowing that his fellow pundit David Brooks was not on the panel because he was taking a day off.
I agree. It looks like the Daily Show and Colbert will still be on vacation next week, but Letterman and Conan will be back on the job. It’s also too bad that Leno is drydocked until the fall.
And in this era of Twitter and iTunes and Youtube, I would like to see SNL do a quickie News Update special, paying Tina Fey any amount of money necessary to do her take on Palin.
Xenos
Maybe Willow really is pregnant and carrying Alex Rodriguez’ baby.
Zuzu's Petals
@grumpy realist:
I could be wrong, but I just think the whole tone of the thing would have been different. Same goes for any personal reason.
Zuzu's Petals
@Brachiator:
And the local paper isn’t much better.
On the other hand, everyone was caught flat-footed.
Dennis-SGMM
@Zuzu’s Petals:
To say the least. Palin would have organized a gigantic pity party in the largest venue in Alaska if she was resigning because of illness or some other personal reason. Because it is really all about her.
Seanly
If Palin was pushed out or there is such a big scandal growing, wouldn’t there be at least a hint of it in the MSM? I’m watching the Situation Room* & no one is saying hint one about this scandal. If there was some big scandal about to drop, someone other than one or two Alaska bloggers would be on this.
* I don’t usually watch anything on CNN… I swear…
Common Sense
Ya know, Palin also benefits in that MTP isn’t showing tomorrow so they can show Wimbledon. It’s not just the comedians.
grumpy realist
So we’re back to:
1) there is a reason that makes sense (scandal, illness), or
2) there is no reason that makes sense. (Palin just loses it, stomps off stage whining “you won’t have me to kick around anymore”.)
Palin’s supporters will support her no matter what, but I think the other 80% of the country is probably continuing with the WTF?
In fact, by not coming out with a good explanation (no matter how brilliant her devotees think her “speech” was), Palin is just focusing the attention of people on her trying to figure out what the logic is.
And if she really did pull a Tricky Dick, I think she’s just made herself radioactive with the Republican party leaders. Even Steele understands that you can’t win a national election getting only 20% of the votes.
mclaren
Palin’s resignation makes perfect sense. Ever the crudest kind of crass opportunist, the cheerleader decided she could make more quick cash by gibbering her drivel in front of the far-right wackos now in control of the Republican Party (Bill Kristol, Charles Krauthammer, et al.) who were willing to pay $1000 a plate than she could score as governor.
If Palin thought she could make the most cash and get the most publicity quick by barbecuing one of her children, she’d be stocking up on barbecue sauce and lighter fluid. Palin is that most dangerous combination: an ignorant kook who cares about nothing but hard cash and quick fame. She’s the Mark David Chapman of 21st century politics.
drillfork
Probably a bit of truth in much of the speculation. So she’s hitting the Wingnut Welfare Tour to foot her pending legal bills (from those ethics complaints that, you know, were already thrown out).
As for this:
It just means that when Palin hears someone as slug-nutty as herself on TV, she’ll think, “yes, I support this person.” Then she’ll resume doing what ever she was doing at the time, like swinging with Todd and the Van Susterens.**
** I know, icky image there. I hope my nightmares cease soon.
Donald Joy
“Who is Sarah Galt?”
Palin is “going Galt” for now, to deprive the criminals in power of some of the very life-force which they require to operate; which they so rapaciously usurp and abuse; which they hold in such contempt and attack even as they crave and covet it for their own corrupt engines and purposes…she is going Galt in order that, eventually, the nation desperately cries out for her influence and active return to the fore, by that time as an electorate and apparatus that much more willing to cooperate and heed her ideas and proscriptions.
Ayn Rand foresaw all of this.