Sarah's Shocking Step (Aside)
Is Palin gone for good?
By ROBERT A. GEORGE
Updated 5:30 PM PST, Fri, Jul 3, 2009
Well, no one can accuse Sarah Palin of being predictable.
Running for re-election -- and then for president two years after that? Been done too many times (most recently by Hillary Clinton in 2006/2008).
Serving out one term as governor -- and then quitting in order to run for president full-time? Less common, but not unheard of. In fact, that's exactly what Mitt Romney did in 2006.
But resigning with more than a year left in her first term? What on earth?
Maybe this shouldn't be such a surprise. She's had numerous public tiffs of late: David Letterman, Alaskan bloggers, John Kerry. And, it shouldn't be forgotten that she has a baby at home. Trig is, as Palin notes often, a "special needs" child. If anyone had a right to say that she wants to spend more time with her family -- or protect that family from the awful spotlight that the national media imposes -- it would be her.
Even so, quitting as governor mid-term is such a drastic move that it invites speculation of the most unflattering kind (so much for this writer's prediction that she was definitely running for president in 2012). Not surprisingly, the Democratic National Committee put out a release accusing her of leaving Alaskans high and dry. Quitting mid-term is one of those objective actions that any future opponent -- regardless of party -- can use to their advantage.
That this announcement comes just days after the release of a harsh Vanity Fair piece chronicling the level of ugly infighting within the McCain campaign over Palin also raises suspicions that there is more to come out about Palin. That article also brought up the family questions too -- with unnamed campaign staff suggesting that she was suffering from post-partum depression. But, there too is another example of a fact that might not be apparent outside of Washington, DC: Palin is a remarkably divisive figure within the GOP -- forget about the broader public. During last year's campaign, otherwise conservative commentators like Katherine Parker, Peggy Noonan and the Manhattan Institute's Heather Mac Donald would make no secret of their disdain for Palin.
So Palin does step back from politics for some time. This action most likely takes her out of the 2012 sweepstakes -- but not completely out of the public debate. She has a book deal in the works. As soon as that's released, she will be on the talk-show circuit, hawking it. Being out of office will also allow her to pick and choose what paid speeches she wants to give -- and what political chits she may want to collect by doing select fundraisers for candidates next year. This was a strategy adopted by Richard Nixon after an ill-fated run for governor in 1962. He skipped the presidential race in 1964, supported candidates across the country that year and 1966 -- and won the White House in 1968.
If Palin decides to sit out a cycle, she will only be 53 or so in 2016 -- still prime age for launching a presidential campaign. By that time, the McCain campaign of 2008 will be ancient history, Bristol will be in her mid-20s, Willow will be finishing college. Trig will be in school, but she will be better prepared on how to balance a national media glare and her family life.
Either way, America hasn't seen the last of Sarah Palin.
Not by a long shot.
Robert A. George blogs at Ragged Thots. Follow him on Facebook and Twitter.
Copyright NBC Local Media
First Published: Jul 3, 2009 2:13 PM PST
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