Monday, November 16, 2009

The Palin Predicament

Sarah Palin's autobiography, aptly entitled Going Rogue is on the store shelves and its sales numbers are leaving Dan Brown and Stephen King in the dust.

As one of the most anticipated books in recent years, Palin attempts to settle the score with her Democrat critics, the liberal media, and even disgruntled former aides within the McCain-Palin campaign.

Palin's appearance on Oprah today seemed to play well with audiences. The ratings are not yet in but the show is likely to see a significant boost in viewership given the former Governor's celebrity at the moment.

All seems to be going well for Palin. But things are rarely what they seem...

This "Hockey Mom" is not being taken seriously as a professional and national political figure. The public is hungry for the latest gossip about her or her family.

The interview is the perfect example and highlights why producers want her on the show.

How can Sarah Palin appear presidential when the interviewer asks no policy questions?

Did Oprah ask Palin her position on health care? Was the Governor asked if she agreed with Obama's (mis)handling of the economic situation? What does she think of education in America?

We will have to wait for these answers because Oprah did not pose these questions. She went on, at great length, to discuss that fame-starved blockhead Levi Johnston. Oprah was very eager to hear what went wrong with the campaign despite the election being held over a year ago. And Ms. Winfrey was puzzled as to how Palin could be in elected office as a mother of five.

It can be argued that this was not the proper forum in which to discuss political ideology but it underscores Palin's predicament: many in the public and the liberal media are obsessed with the former Governor: what she reads, where she buys her clothes and how much they cost, is her marriage failing, etc. but could care less about her policy positions.

Her résumé is not respected, her accomplishments go largely unnoticed and she seems uneducated to the left because her alma mater is the University of Idaho and not one of the Ivy League elites.

She has work to do before she can be wholly accepted as a viable contender for the White House in 2012. Crafting a message and then delivering it to the masses while promoting her book would be a sufficient start.

Palin must speak to the issues, offering real solutions and innovative ideas, if she hopes to turn this celebrity book tour into a national political campaign.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

The Grand Old Party

Last night was a colossal victory for conservatism in America; a mere twelve months after the Democrats and the media declared it lifeless.

To their dismay, the voters came out in droves for the conservative movement yesterday, showing the same passion and vigor they had in August at the town hall meetings.

A blowout win in Virginia and an upset in liberal New Jersey, which had gone to Obama by some fifteen points a year ago, has laid the foundation for which conservatives can bring this country back to the right.

Bob McDonnell's campaign in Virginia largely resembled Chris Christie's own fight in New Jersey. They attracted independents and moderate Democrats by utilizing two principle themes: low taxes and job creation.

Their campaign strategy ought to be taught to every potential GOP candidate in 2010. They did not delve into social issues the way Mike Huckaphony likes to campaign to the evangelical fringe of the right. These men spoke to the voters and asked them directly if bigger government was the solution or if they might prosper being released from its iron-fisted grasp.

The Democrat Party is already busily spinning the election in their favor and downplaying its significance (Obama claiming he didn't watch, Pelosi exclaiming the left won) but do not be fooled. Theirs is a party running scared at the moment and every moderate elected official is contemplating his level of job security right now.

In the coming days and weeks, we will hear Democrats boast on the outcome in New York's 23rd congressional district. Bill Owens, a very moderate Democrat, defeated the Conservative Party's Doug Hoffman. Dede Scozzafava, an ultraliberal Republican, had picked up the nomination from the local party. Upon closer examination of her record, it turned out Owens was actually more conservative than she was. Hoffman entered the race to give the voters a real conservative choice.

Although Mr. Hoffman will not be going to Washington this year, it was a big victory for the conservative movement. 30 days ago Hoffman was an unknown, polling at 2-3%. When the residents in NY-23 started to learn more about him they gravitated towards his campaign in swarms. The shift was so powerful that Scozzafava dropped out of the race Saturday. On Monday, she held true to her roots as a Republican-in-name-only, and in the ultimate act of political pettiness, endorsed the Democrat.

Owens went on to win but this election made it clear that this is no longer the Party of John McCain, Colin Powell, and Arlen Specter. This GOP is made up of red-blooded Reaganites believing in American prosperity through lower taxes, more jobs and less government.

Do not be fooled by the likes of Pelosi, Reid, and Obama. There is panic en masse at the DNC today. The leadership in the Democrat Party knows there is no way they can push through radically liberal legislation with Bill Owens as its newest member of Congress.

Independents and moderate Dems make ours a Grand Old Party.