Two of the brightest young lights in the San Diego political sky -- Democrat Bryan Crane and Republican Andrew Lund -- are weighing in every other week on hot topics.
This week's topic: Sarah Palin's book "Going Rogue" came out this week, and as she has made the heavy talk-show rotation, there has been much talk about a presidential run. Would you like to see her as a candidate in 2012? -- Ed.
Crane's Punch: The cynic in me immediately says yes. Let Sarah run and divide her party, siphoning the votes of religious conservatives and Joe, the unlicensed plumber. An incumbent President Obama could spend the entire election cycle campaigning for other Democrats and still easily collect a second term.
The problem is that this scenario sacrifices the national dialogue that a contest between great leaders provides. Mrs. Palin's expertise in moose hunting is no qualification to lead our country through complex challenges. Her presence on the national stage is a distraction.
Democrats are ready, as evidenced by health care reform, to bring our best ideas to the table and refine them under the scrutiny of public debate. We look across the aisle for good -faith participation in this process. Palin's imagined "death panels" are the opposite. The GOP must decide whether to join us in productive discourse or follow her snowmobile to nowhere.
Lund's Punch: Sarah Palin brought new life to the Republican presidential ticket in 2008. Her down-to-earth attitude and folksy personality excited many Republican voters to get involved in the election process. As Senator John McCain’s vice presidential candidate, she complemented the ticket, providing executive leadership and a fresh "outside the Beltway" perspective on national issues.
Although Mrs. Palin has not yet declared that she will be running for president in 2012, she is under consideration, as are many other candidates such as Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and Mitt Romney of Massachusetts. All of these candidates would make great choices for the Republican nominee, and I think right now, Sarah Palin has one of the largest grass-roots followings of any of the candidates. I am very excited to see what she and the other candidates have in store for the Republican ticket in 2012.
Politics
Crane's Counterpunch: Sarah Palin has negligible governing experience. The population and budget of Alaska are 1/5th and 1/10th that of San Diego. Alaska levies no sales or income tax.
Palin has repeatedly demonstrated a lack of knowledge on national and international issues. She feigns folksiness as a segue to an oversimplified, often purposefully inaccurate message seeking to divide Americans.
If the GOP holds the best interest of our country at heart, it should turn away from Sarah Palin.
Lund's Counterpunch: Unfortunately, this always seems to be the response from the other side on Sarah Palin. They are more interested in bad-mouthing her then actually examining why she appealed to so many people in America. Maybe Democrats think that all women must be Democrats.
The Democrats should be more concerned with President Obama’s sagging approval ratings and the fact that voters are rejecting his message in Virginia and New Jersey instead of Sarah Palin’s possible candidacy.
Bryan Crane, who is the president of the San Diego County Young Democrats, earned his PhD at MIT in 2005, works at San Diego biotech Illumina and admits to being unable to run in flip-flops.
Andrew Lund is the current President of the San Diego Young Republicans.
