Is Sarah Palin at the Tipping Point?
April 8, 2011
Chris Cilizza, who writes The Fix at the Washington Post, is one of the most reliable purveyors of the political conventional wisdom of the moment. He writes today that Sarah “may have peaked, politically speaking.” He cites recent polls as evidence of “Palin fatigue” among Republicans and says the most likely reason for the dimming of Sarah’s star was her churlish and ill-advised response to the Tuscon shootings in January.
Even my friend Geoffrey Dunn (his book, The Lies of Sarah Palin, will be published next month) now puts the likelihood of Sarah running for president at only fifty-fifty.
I disagree. There is a natural ebb and flow in the tides of politics, and not even Sarah (or maybe especially not Sarah) can always be at high tide. The primaries are still almost a year away. She stumbled badly with her needless–did I mention that it was also churlish and ill-advised?–response to the Gifford assassination attempt, and at the end of January another CW spinner, Dana Milbank of the Washington Post, declared February a “Palin-free” month. Even Sarah could tell she was over-exposed.
So she’s retreated to the high grass temporarily. But let’s remember that it was only two months ago that her hiring of Michael Glassman to head Sarah PAC was seen as a strong indication that she was preparing to challenge Pres. Obama next year.
Then she went to India and Israel when she could have made just as much money closer to home.
So, no, I don’t think we can yet write her off as a fallen star. If nothing else, her old Wasilla High point guard instinct will not allow her to stay on the bench as Michelle Bachman becomes the Tea Party’s new darling.
One thing about tides: whatever direction they’re flowing in, they’ll soon move in the opposite direction.
Posted in Sarah Palin, The Rogue | 
Tags: 2012 campaign, Cilizza, Geoffrey Dunn, Glassman, GOP, Milbank, Palin fatigue, presidential campaign, Republican primary, Sarah PAC, Tea Party, The Fix, tipping pointl campaign, Washington Post
24 Responses to “Is Sarah Palin at the Tipping Point?”
I don’t believe her ego will allow her to not run. She’s delusional enough to actually BELIEVE she was born to be POTUS. If nothing else she will run for POTUS, lose, continue to grift until she can’t grift anymore, stir hate and derision and cause as much damage as possible and for dessert become the new Tammy Faye.
I think the only GOP candidate who could possibly stir things for the better is Trump. Not that I want him to be President, but his knowledge and knack for the back and forth would prove highly entertaining when juxtaposed with lightweight Obama.
That said, Sarah has many friends, confidants, supporters, and “believers in” in AK and the country. They defend her against personal attacks, they try to protect her family from media malpractice. Even the most ardent liberals in AK must realize that she is not vastly hated even there. People generally are mature, non judging and compassionate souls. The next several months will prove interesting.
The run for POTUS is not a reality tv show and Trump’s brand of shouty arrogance makes a mockery of the process and the office.
Furthermore, there is nothing lightweight about Barak Obama. You don’t get to be the first non-White POTUS by being a lightweight. His detractors love to call him a lightweight and then turn around and say he’s an evil genius that is going to take over the world as if he’s some kind of conjoined GW and Cheney.
As for Sarah’s popularity, recent polls suggest the exact opposite of what you have written here (except for the fact that her most ardent supporters will defend her with wild-eyed adoration).
Palin has a few core supporters. Mostly centered around fundamentalist believers and racists. Most Alaskans just roll their eyes when her name is mentioned. She really has no physical presence, even in her own town. We just don’t see her or her family out and about in Wasilla.
I wonder if Sarah Palin and best bud Michelle Bachmann have communicated lately? I’m sure Michelle has rattled Sarah’s cage with all this running for Presidental talk, representing the Tea Party. I imagine she, or Todd or RAM has done something stupid, like impulsively send an indignant email which will come back to bite her.
So now traitor Michelle is on the short list of people Sarah can trust, boo hoo, poor Sarah, everybody wants to steal HER thunder and get a boost from HER ratings, steal HER brand, make money off HER notoriety.
She must be “petulant” about all that, and taking it out on her favorite foe, President Obama, the guy who stole her Presidency. She’s such a sore loser.
pet·u·lant
[pech-uh-luhnt]
–adjective
moved to or showing sudden, impatient irritation, especially over some trifling annoyance: a petulant toss of the head.
Donald Trump! …..and how many times has he stuck various people with his bankruptcy proceedings? I think it’s a joke but I hope he does run. Talk about lightweights.
We are being fed such a bunch of nonsense from corporate media who knows what’s really going on. I think she’s too crazy not to run. As long as she’s making money & getting attention she’ll be in the ring. She’s a sociopath so I doubt making a rational decision is possible.
I don’t agree with the term “ill-advised response” with regard to Sarah’s comments after the attempted Gifford assassination. There’s evidence that she received excellent advice: leave it alone. Lie low. Being Sarah Palin, however, and completely incapable of a reasoned, intelligent reaction, she ignored the advice she received.
That is just one among her many problems. When she does happen upon good advice- not often as people who give good advice tend to give up on her- she ignores it and does what she wants. She’s almost entirely reactive in what she does- reactive and vindictive. It’s a bad combination in personal life, but if it just affected her and her family, we could afford to ignore it. Given that she has larger ambitions, we don’t dare.
No question that Roger Ailes gave her good advice: keep your mouth shut, lie low, let this pass, it doesn’t have anything to do with you. However, her id ill-advised her ego, while her superego–not for the first time–was nowhere to be found.
Only one thing I disagree with.
You’re spot on, really. Except Tammy Faye didn’t spread hate.
I am by no means a fan of hers. She’s passed now, let her R.I.P.
Tammy Faye was the ONLY Evangelical that welcomed every/anyone with open arms. She was never against the Gays, she even helped AIDS patients.
No. $arah will be very, very destructive. The more she loses popularity and money, the meaner she will get. It always has to be somebody else’s fault. She’ll be more like the Westboro Batshit Church. She’ll go around spreading hate and fear until she drops.
$he is the ultimate evil Diva.
… and The Donald would be the first to tell you that HE, personally, himself never declared BK, his COMPANIES DID. Which is a testament to and warning about how he’s learned to use and abuse the system, and why he thinks he’s worthy of being POTUS. HE didn’t do it – it was a legal remedy to HIS COMPANIES financial problems.
Whenever the ADN has a Palin article it usually draws hundreds of comments, 98% negative about her
AND her family, many from conservatives who view her as a phony who has never performed well
in any office she’s held from pta member to governor. Wasilla had to hire a ciry manager when she was
mayor because she couldn’t do the job, & Todd ran the show when she was the so-called governor.
We hear much about her ‘wonderful, close-knit family’ & what a great mother she is, yet she doesn’t seem to want to stay home & care for her children. It’s all a contrived myth including the ‘devout Christian,’
claim. It’s highly doubtful she’ll make a run for the WH with all the skeletons in her closet. The press won’t give her a pass this time like they did before & her double talk & fact-twisting is too well known now.
I don’t know whether she will run or not. I do know though that she makes bad decisions.
What always amazes me about her is that before accepting McCain’s offer to run as VP she knew that she hadn’t carefully followed national politics or world affairs, and yet knowing this she accepted the offer! It’s like knowing your afraid of heights, but accepting a job as a tight rope walker. Doesn’t make any sense.
It seems to me that there is a strong possibility that when she makes the decision she won’t be analytically looking at polling numbers. It will be about feelings and probably about what the people close to her say. So the question then is how does she feel and how many sycophants are there currently around her?
I can well imagine that if there is any grain of truth to the Todd rumours then that would surely be a big disincentive to run. Not because she thinks they will explode into the light of day, but because they will cause people close to her to council her not to run…and possibly for self serving reasons.
Anyway she is a fun person to watch from afar. I’m just glad I live in another country and there is no possibility she will be the leader of my country. 🙂
Oh come now … in your wildest dreams! Sarah has NO friends in Alaska. You would think that even when visiting Wasilla, you might see “something” to indicate it is Sarah’s hometown. People cringe when her name is mentioned. What you say is support is FEAR. But “like” her? Support her?
No way.
And she has peaked and is on a downhill slide. This story of her well known FAKE pregnancy has been waiting in the wings for a long time. Defending Palin is now an act of futility.
Thanks for confirming what I found when I visited Wasilla. She may have a few shrill loud supporters – the flying monkey brigade – but the people who live in Alaska have begun to loudly voice their disgust at her antics and stupidity.
She never has represented Alaska – in her very short 1/2 term, she sold her constituents down the river.
She will not be forgotten. And her actions and her behavior, as well as her faked pregnancy is all she will be remembered for. A giant stupid joke on the people of Alaska. Talk about buying a pig in a poke.
Is it crazy that I’m having a small geekspasm that you actually answered me?
If you can stand to listen to Backmann her voice is almost like she is desperate to be heard, Loud and empty,Sarah Palin voice is terrible to listen to , when they get rattled boy its a roit.
Palin is like Trump, egos are bigger then their head. Neither one of them has ability to be a honest and sincere about running. Its a game. Why would Palin or Trump want to run when they can rape the US with their deals and cover ups. Trump likes to be a free lancer, thinks is he no one smart loves to make deals and screw people out of their property. My thought is neither one of them are worth a deal or pile of BS to ferilize they simply have no idea, only money Trump would not be able to be in control and take control of others people bank accounts. He is a con along with Palin.
Kudos to you, Ivyfree!
Have you been there? Because I have. I attended the past two iron dog starts and witnessed the congenial atmosphere and people flocking to her, I know of several of her current close friends and have talked to a couple. I have several close friends in the Matsu Valley that have nothing to do with Sarah and have never given me any pause to think there’s widespread fear. Many people even in the Valley have never met her but desire to (I have no comment on them as I don’t know them). The Valley Repub Club thats she’s made appearances for is behind her and she does have avid supporters who have only met her a couple times. I was only saying in my earlier post is that it’s silly and ignorant to assume or believe NO ONE IN AK LIKES SARAH ON ANY LEVEL.
However it’s more ignorant if one thinks Sarah would have support for running for President. The two are different. Despite the fact that Obama is generally not liked in AK, Sarah definitely has no chance of winning back her state.
and let the people who will no doubt call me a concern troll begin their rebuttals in 5-4-3
Yes – I HAVE. The people in Wasilla “play the game” … they giggle behind her back and they roll their eyes. Not everyone in Wasilla buys into her shenanigans. They know she trashed their state.
You of all people should realize that you can put on a nice phony smiling face – and snark behind someone’s back…it’s done all the time in Alaska.
Her dumpy little dirt road that leads to her hand written “private driveway” pasted on a garbage can? Oh yeah – class all the way. Is she really hiding an RV on blocks on her slab?
I’ve even seen the McGinnis rental – and he was there –
NO ONE speaks positively of Sarah – we were all over Alaska…if they don’t hate her, they laugh at her.
Get your head out of you ….. whatever … political phonies always are fawned over. Doesn’t mean anyone actually likes them. Not from what I heard when I was there.
Wasilla is a giant gravel pit … with a Dead Lake and a Swamp Thing. Poor Wasilla.
Before reading this, please keep in-mind that McGiniss and Cizilla, on-the-most-part, cater to completely different audiences.
Too often she-said, he said opinion-based trivia drives the national conversation. Absent context or an in-depth factual analysis leaves audiences wanting and arguments unpersuasive. Chris Cizilla is no exception. While he may have his finger on the pulse of Washington politics and has recently, within the past year, come to realize Sarah Palin, who is part of the right wing faction of the GOP, is too extreme for mainstream America, ♠ Cizilla never quite explains how he arrived at that conclusion.
Granted asking whether Sarah Palin has run her course, or not, is germane to the conversation, but it must be asked in the context of how it pertains in relationship to whether she is qualified to be president and if is she even remotely electable so the audience can better understand why it is relevant. Cizilla and others like him need to explain that. Otherwise while we’re consumed in an endless, trivialized she-said/he said argument and too distracted to notice that Sarah is not only back in the running, but is, god forbid, ahead of everyone else.
That’s cool, Ivyfree – good for you! Truth be told, we probably all secretly aspire to have Joe reply to our comments. Especially flattering because we know he’s busy writing about The Topic Which Will Be Addressed in The Rogue.
Very well said, jk.
It’s Giffords. With an S.