Nerve Endings Firing Away

While Sarah Palin and her ardent supporters may not think that she has fallen, her decision to quit as the Governor of Alaska halfway through her first term may be the death knell to her still-nascent political life. Her rambling explanation on the July 4th weekend failed to convince anyone on either side of the spectrum. Even the timing was either to overshadow the frenzy of Michael Jackson’s media coverage or hide behind it.

She narrated quite a few reasons pertaining to her decision and as best as anyone could make out, the primary ones were that she didn’t want to waste taxpayer dollars on defending ‘frivolous’ ethics complaints and she was angry that the liberal media was picking on her and her family. Regards the ethics complaints, I would think the natural precaution would be not to act unethically and as far as I know, such complaints have persisted even before she shot to the limelight. Also, only three ethics complaints are pending and her excuse of saving taxpayer money on defending against such complaints falls flat when you realize that the money is already budgeted for the lawyers whether they are defending her or not. The excuse of media bashing is as lame as it can get and if her children were covered and discussed in the media and blogs because she paraded them during the campaign for her political benefit. And barring Letterman’s off-color joke, I don’t think her children have been subject to any less than what Chelsea Clinton was subjected by U.S. senators no less. The public spotlight can be intense, glaring, and brutal and if you wish to keep your family away, don’t involve them in the first place. You cannot have it both ways.

Also, any criticism by the media or blogs is not by default character assassination. If you wish for no media scrutiny then you should have lived in the pre-1991 Russia, the place that you can see from your front porch. Threatening to sue bloggers and throwing tantrums at them only boosts their readership and makes them famous. As Curious Gawker wonders (on Twitter), how did America send a man to the moon and then come to admire a woman who claims proximity to Russia as her foreign policy experience? But then I have seen my share of American stupidity over the past eight years. The recent election gave me hope that Americans have seen their folly and want a responsible adult in charge of their country. Too bad that Republicans cannot find one amongst them. They are either flying off to Argentina to bang their mistresses or giving media interview in fishing gear after quitting the job whose duties they are still expected to discharge until the end of the month.

A Governor midway through a first term is not a lame-duck even if you don’t want to run for a second term. By that logic, any second-term position is worthless and not worth investing your time in although most politicians find a second-term or a lame-duck period to get most done. Sarah Palin’s answer to a tough job – quit and ask for a new one that will open up four year later. If elected, how sure are we that she won’t quit two years into her new job citing media complaints? Only some people with half an ounce of brain can spin a quitter as being political shrewd. It is evidence of a narcissistic attitude and inability to be responsible for your current job in hopes of wanting a new one. Defending her, many say that it might be a smart political move but is it really in the best interests of the country especially from a party that loves to tout its ‘Country First’ slogan? As the writer of the above linked article claims, it is more about politics than about governing but the means cannot be more important than the end. America seems to be in a constant campaign mode which while being good for the media makes everyone else worse-off. At least in India, you don’t campaign until a few months before the polls open.

For those who think that Sarah Palin has been unfairly treated in the media, you have to simply take a look at her ten most awkward moments in the recent past. Some media interviews and other PR appearances gone awry. If she thinks any publicity is good publicity, then I hope she realizes that she is not hawking a cola. Even those brands guard their image carefully in today’s age of blogs and Twitter. Since the current crop of Republicans or what is left of them will accept any candidate who sounds folksy (even though most Americans don’t), then trying to win over independents is the key. But independents view her unfavorably almost 2-to-1 and we have come to realize from previous experiences that more people see of Sarah Palin, the less they like her. Instead of her current penchant for tamashas, she better hone up on solid policy issues and show herself to be capable and intelligent leader, which I’m sure she isn’t. But trying to be won’t hurt.

The rise of Sarah Palin also underlines the racial hypocrisy that still exists in America. Barack Obama had to fight hard to overcome his ‘blackness’ and show himself as an intelligent, smart, articulate leader who could appeal beyond his race. His family was scrutinized endlessly and even patently false and insidious allegations, some made by Palin herself (‘palling around with terrorists’) were propagated wildly in the media. The entire ’3am phone call’ questioned his leadership and decision-making skills. No complaints of liberal media then. But Palin, with her pregnant teenage daughter who then proceeded to break off with her child’s father that she had said she would marry and lack of any solid educational and professional qualifications, is considered a serious contender to the White House by the media. If she were black, she wouldn’t even garner a second look much less serious thought. If meritocracy is treasured by the Republicans, we can clearly sense the hypocrisy here.

Will Sarah Palin get the Republican nomination to challenge Obama or will future train wrecks (of course, there will be more) bury her for good? With the economy front and center on people’s mind still and will also be at the next election, merely parroting tax cuts ain’t going to sound convincing. But something tells me that she will be eaten alive by her own party. After all, Republican men are unlikely to let a woman tell them what to do, their newly-found love for pseudo feminism notwithstanding. Once the primary fights begin and old warhorses like Romney, Huckbee or even Gingrich step in, she will be hopelessly out of depth. Good looks and a need to be in the news cycle can only take you so far. And even those aren’t permanent.