Palin Post Mortem: It's All Over but the Shouting

Sarah Palin hits the road, finally

but isn't shouting Sarah Palin's one stock in trade?

Sarah Palin: It’s Over

Yesterday, amidst much politicking and hoopla, Sarah Palin handed over her position as Alaskan governor to Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell. Her final ceremony was a good old fashioned, campaign rally fundraising style picnic, an opportunity for the ex-Alaskan Governor and former Vice President Nominee to level some parting shots and engage in lots of self-congratulation.

The focus of her remarks was certainly timely admonishing her audience to beware of big government. With a true sense of self-importance she told the crowd, "With this decision, now, I will be able to fight even harder for you, for what is right, and for truth. And I have never felt that you need a title to do that.."

And there in lies the big self-deception, while she may not need a title, the only title that qualifies her to look beyond is holding the governor’s office in Alaska for only 2 ½ years. While she would argue Alaska, given it’s unique geography, its massive size and not bordering on any other states, presents some unique challenges, it is also one of the nation’s smallest states in overall population with only North Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming having fewer citizens. Alaska does not have many of the typical kinds of problems that help define major national issues. The Alaskan economy is more dominated by a single industry, oil, than any other state depends on a single source for its economic health. With Anchorage as its largest population center with 279,243 municipal residents in 2008, and 359,180 residents within the Metropolitan Statistical Area, few of the issues surrounding urban and major metropolitan areas impact the state’s political situation.

Add it up, Ms. Palin’s experience amounts to nothing and her lack of experience is now further enhanced by witnessing how lack of experience is one of many factors that is making the Obama administration such a dangerous disaster.

For the Republicans to offer America a good alternative to the incompetence, inexperience, and radical ideology of the Obama administration, they must field a candidate with significant experience who has proven the ability to get results, not just give red meat speeches that appeal to some factions of the Republican base. Sarah Palin is a superb role model for the anti-abortion constituency given her personal decisions and her daughter’s, but this is not the issue that will rally moderate voters, attract independents or alienated Democrats. While Sarah Palin can address issues such as health care and economic reform, she does so only as a commentator not someone who has the depth of knowledge or experience to manage efforts to deal with such efforts.

The bottom line is America has already seen her upsides and they simply are not going to be enough to sustain her. Poll results show her popularity slipping. She’s still strong with the so-called Republican base, but her appeal is sliding away elsewhere with unfavorable ratings rising into very dangerous territory. In a Washington Post/ABC poll, her overall favorability has fallen from 58% to 40% with a 28 point drop-off from Moderates and noteworthy 16 point reduction among conservatives. Worse, her overall negative rating is up to 53% with 40% still seeing her positively.

Perceptions about her being a quitter, unable or unwilling to take the heat, and her lack of experience are getting louder and louder regardless of how many conservative commentators and handful of Republicans defend her. Her defense is not coming from Republicans currently holding office.

Right now, Sarah Palin has little problem getting media exposure. Tune in Fox news for more than a couple hours and count how much talk she gets. It’s quite substantial and questions about her are directed to most major conservative and Republican figures. However, how long will this last?

Being a governor, gave her an anchor, a position from which she had potential credibility, Sarah Palin, Governor of Alaska. From this point forward, she is “Former one term Governor who resigned having completed only 2 ½ years.” While she still might have some value as a fund raising speaker, talk alone won’t make her relevant, and she has given up the one platform she had to gain experience and gather accomplishments.

She guards her public appearances carefully fearful to face the national media which has been highly critical of her, but any candidate seeking leadership in the Republican ranks must come to terms with the media and show tact and toughness in interviews and Sunday morning talk show exchanges. Appearing on conservative talk shows and Fox news and speaking before obviously sympathetic audiences which provide instant good photo ops will never build bridges to any audience she needs to reach to gain wider appeal.

The longer we see her in action, the most dominant impressions are her shrillness, lack of substance, self-pity, and quickness to dwell on blaming others for her problems rather than having strong positions and a unifying message to rise above the rabble.

The 2012 Presidential election is still a long ways off. By the time the primary season heats up, Sarah Palin will be yesterday’s news. She might be hosting a talk show somewhere or write a column for some conservative action group. She will not be drawing crowds or taken seriously as a contender. She is rapidly losing her ability to serve as a draw to help Republican candidates in the 2010 midterm election. This election will be decided on specific issues and fear of what the radical overhaul of American society the Obama administration has so rapidly attempted to heave upon us is destroying the country. The economy will be front and center. How is Sarah Palin uniquely qualified to raise consciousness on these issues?

Sadly for her sake, all she can do is make a lot more noise and that noise is becoming more and more irrelevant and cacophonous with each passing day. Her pages in the history book are all but written. She will be relegated as a unique curiosity, that someone from Alaska, largely considered outside the political mainstream, would be the Republican’s first female candidate for national office.