DISQUS

The Washington Independent: Palin 2012 Hopes Hinge on Broader Appeal

  • Kathy · 12 months ago
    NO NO NO Palin in 2012. She already has too much baggage and touting any Republican this early is suicidal for the GOP. The biggest obstacle for any Republican running for any office is the biased media so if the Republicans ever want to win anything again, they will have to figure out how to deal with the mainstream from the getgo. And if the Gop allows the fairness doctrine to pass, the party is done for.
  • Kansan · 12 months ago
    Palin's problems were not confined to the loss of independent voters. I'm guessing that she made the evangelical, charismatic voters more solid, they would have voted for McCain anyway, "the enemy of their enemy." Mainline Protestant voters were much cooler toward her.

    It should have been clear to anyone paying attention that she is a prodigious liar. It was not confined just to her "Bridge to Nowhere" or "earmark" claims. While fundamentalists seems to be willing to overlook candidate dishonesty, even in the case of a fairly secular legislator such as Ted Stevens, that's hardly an appeal to a broader base.

    From the start of the "Troopergate" affair a month before McCain selected her, public approval has dropped from 88% after she pushed through a $1,200 check for every Alaskan resident, man woman and child, to the point where the McCain/Palin ticket drew less than 60% support in Alaska itself.

    The more the public learns about Palin's lack of administrative competence and of her religious fanaticism, the less attractive she will be to the majority of voters. Of Republican voters, less than half are evangelicals.
  • Chris Weiss · 12 months ago
    What both parties have demonstrated is that the US is more centrist than anything else. Unfortunately, this means drift for both parties away from what used to separate them. Successful republicans and democrats will begin to look more and more alike on a policy level as we move forward.

    Palin is a polarizing figure. She will not help the Republicans re-establish themselves. She has no more blemishes than Clinton. Her real weakness is her lack of general appeal. Like a true socialist, libertarian, or other extremist, Palin does not appeal to enough of America to matter.

    Obama has his share of things you can criticize, but I viewed his acceptance speech as an understanding of the importance of compromise. The US is too evenly split and centrist to allow extremism. Clinton learned this less in 1994, and the republicans learned this as control slipped through their fingers.

    My prediction is that Palin won't make it out of the primaries if she can get enough support to run.
  • bacalove · 12 months ago
    As for Palin, her ambition is bigger than her talent. She is like someone pursuing a singing career who cannot sing. Let Palin burn her self out as she is quickly wearing out the welcome mat!
  • Sidesplitters · 11 months ago
    Who knows, I'm sure she'll make an attempt at running in 2012, but I doubt the GOP will give their blessings to her. She's a much more familiar face now than any other Republican out there at the moment, so I wouldn't doubt it if we do see her being seriously considered in '12.
  • LAThinker · 11 months ago
    She is all over the news, so her camaign is started

    http://www.ucubd.com/Index.aspx?id=886&cid=3165