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Maverick: No More

Posted by TONY CAMPBELL, Columnist in At TMV, Politics.
Sep 3rd, 2008 | Comments

As I listened to the unfolding drama that is Governor Sarah Palin, one of the stories I heard was how she was picked for the number two slot on the ticket. The story goes that McCain’s staff informed him that if he picked Senator Joe Lieberman, the Republican Party faithful would revolt at the Convention. At the end of the day, the pick of Sarah Palin was primarily due to a case of peer pressure. I thought that is how you pick a class president in grade school; not how you choose a person a heartbeat away from the presidency.

In the annals of presidential history, the caption under Sarah Palin will read: “the winner of the mega political powerball.”

I know I will get in trouble over this but someone needs to say it. For the good of the Republican Party, Sarah Palin should resign. Why? There are three very good political reasons; the most important being winning in November. Although I am a registered Republican, I am undecided how I will vote in November. As I have stated before, both men have issues that make me uncomfortable. So, here are the reasons why Sarah Palin should resign:

1. John McCain is an afterthought at his own Convention. The Republican Convention of 2008 has been transformed from why Republicans should win in November into an apologetic for keeping Palin on the ticket.

2. The only story that is coming out of St. Paul is the ongoing vetting of Palin. This is the Republican Convention and there are no significant attacks on Barack Obama. All of the media energy is focused on a distraction that is not winning over any undecided voters. In fact, Obama has increased his lead since the Palin story broke last Friday.

3. McCain’s experience has been turned into questions about his judgment under crisis. The choice of Palin has caused the main stream media to ask whether McCain can make executive decisions. If that argument gets traction, McCain’s experience (age) will be a factor for the first time in this campaign.

The bottom line: McCain’s message will not be able to break free from the hurricane that is Sarah Palin. If the Republican Party does not rectify this issue, they will lose the presidency in November. If Sarah Palin has any future national ambitions and if she wants her legacy to be a positive one, she should take herself off of the ticket…there is always 2012.

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elrod

As terrible a choice as Palin is, John McCain cannot throw her overboard. Even a "spend more time with my family" resignation wouldn't work. It would be an admission that the biggest decision of his campaign was a failure. And it would alienate social conservatives.

If Palin were canned, McCain would lose by 15 points and Obama would get 450 electoral votes. He HAS to fight for and keep Palin.

Polimom

I agree with elrod. It's really hard to see how McCain's campaign could recover from back-stepping on such an important decision.

BBQ

I guess I would rather see the person I want in office win than lose. Now she still has to win people over and show she has the judgement to be VP (and to possibly be Pres). She still has time to do it.

But if you think having her drop will help McCain you are insane, it's over we are talking landslide victory for Obama and he would barely have to work for it.

As for the Lieberman pick, McCain would probably still lose. I really don't think that many indies would be impressed with him. Too many see him as the GOP's lapdog and add that the right (not only socons but just Republicans in general) would revolt over having the 2000 VP for the Dems as their VP. I also think Ridge had two strikes against him, pro-choice, ties to Bush and failures of Homeland Security. The only good choices were safe and uninspiring ones like Pawlenty.

superdestroyer

McCain was set to lose no matter waht he did. He put everything on one roll of the dice and lost.

However, there is probably not going to be a 2012 or any other year for the Republicans . by 2016, the Democrats will have over 60 seats in the Senate, will have redistricted at least 30 Republicans out of Congress with no Republican congressmen norht of Virgina and East of Ohio, and the fund raising will have ended.

pico13

I agree with the above posters, if he took her off the ticket now McCain would lose by a landslide. The Evangelicals who have rallied and donated for Palin would never forgive McCain and likely not show up to the polls in November, and the damage caused by admitting he made a colossal error in judgment on his first real decision regarding the presidency would hurt him more than just living with the error and zealously defending it.

That said, I fully expect Palin to give a well accepted speech today that puts much of the controversy behind her and not turn into the crippling albatross around McCain's neck that many are predicting. I still don't see how she can be a "game changer" the far right is insisting she is or seriously appeal to that many independents, however. I guess we'll see.

Polimom

pico -- actually, she does have some appeal for independents (speaking for myself). I like the way she handled the pipeline, for instance. I don't have to think drilling the ANWR is a fabulous idea to admire how she took the problem on.

Much of what the campaign is saying about her, to bolster her "maverick" cred, is still pretty up in the air, though.

Her extreme social conservatism is problematic to me only if she thinks it should be reflected in our national policy. She hasn't been asked that question yet, and her answer will matter to me.

I was already concerned about McCain's stated goal of overturning Roe v. Wade. In combination, I'm extremely wary of them, and the party platform (and appearance of a socon takeover) is quite disturbing to me.

pacatrue

Dang, I wish sd were running the Republican party's campaign. Right now as a Dem, I'm pessimistic and expect to lose.

Palin has definitely been a bright spot for the Dems, despite the fact that I'm not proud of how many left-leaning bloggers have treated her. Biden has received almost ZERO attention from the media post convention. They could be playing up misstatements of his in the past or the inevitable dubious ties that 30 years in the Senate brings. Instead, I'd be surprised if he couldn't get a good read in right now on the Amtrack without anyone bothering him.

Leonidas

McCain is his own man and we weighed the choices and chose the person he felt could best achieve his agenda. She is a reformer and that played to his strength. She has different opinions on some things so he can run ideas by her if he wants to keep in touch with the wishes of a part of America that he's not as aware of. But in the end when the campaign is over and assuming he wins, it is McCain and only McCain who has the seal of the Presidency and he wont be afraid to use it how he sees best. Given his past history, anyone who thinks otherwise is fooling themselves, whether they are liberal, conservative, or moderate.

kritt11

Leonidas-- Remember he is 72 and a cancer survivor. I think that should have been his main consideration-- part of the tizzy is because it wasn't.

kritt11

Pacatrue--- Biden has made few enemies in his 30 years, and is admired even by his opponents. The best they'd come up with is a 20-year-old plagiarism charge. If your looking for family values-- the guy takes Amtrak home to his wife and kids at night.

Leonidas

Biden is fine as a VP pick, even being a pretty partisan fellow but the problem is Obama is at the top of the ticket. He is the heartbeat that will be in the Oval office if the democrats win, and honsetly, I don't think he is ready, even less so than Palin. Furthermore even if he had McCain's experience as a small government moderate conservative, he is just about the biggest anti-thesis to what I want in office, a very liberal big government type with a record of severe partisanship.

kritt11

As long as we are involved in Iraq and Afghanistan and fighting a worldwide war on terror- we will have big government. It always amazes me that fiscal conservatives still back Bush and condemn Clinton-- who balanced the budget and left a surplus. His military adventures were mostly the ones we could win without spending 12 billion a month.

DLS

McCain doing a Miers on Palin now is like the Titanic's captain deliberately setting off explosive charges inside the hull, below the water line.

DLS

Palin is a surprisingly good choice, in fact. It appeals to people who want reform of Washington first and foremost, which includes spending and "ambition" reform, that is, not "change" in the form of retrogression to ever-bigger-spending Democrats of older times when Blue Nation was the model for government and the Big Three and the UAW the model for industry.

Biden has faults but was Obama's best choice -- helps allay concerns about foreign policy (if not appeasing and acting against US interests, than at the very least naive and unrealistic, have been Americans' fears about Obama and foreign policy) and extends outreach to the establishment-friendly Dem voter crowd. In fact, making connections to the establishment is what will facilitate the likely Obama push for a great expansion of government interventionism as well as spending by Washington.

kritt11

DLS- There is a huge difference in trying to reform Alaska politics and trying to reform Washington politics. But it does play well with voters.

Palin's problem is that there is a lot of her own muck that we are just finding out about. Also, there is no way someone could argue that she would be more ready to take over the office than Sen Biden.

AustinRoth

"There is a huge difference in trying to reform Alaska politics and trying to reform Washington politics."

Got to agree there. One is a difficult task, the other impossible. No one can do it.

pacatrue

Laughed at Austin's last comment. Maybe true, maybe true.

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