Palin Goes "Dark," Leaves Supporters Wondering
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Fans to Sarah Palin: Please, post a tidbit on Facebook. A little chirp on Twitter would be nice.
It's been five whole days since Palin stepped down as Alaska's governor and her Internet fans are dying to know what's next.
"Sarah can you give us just a hint!" writes one Facebook follower.
But the hockey mom-turned politician who promised to launch her change to private life on social networking sites has been quiet so far. In fact, she's gone "dark," leaving supporters to flood the Web with speculation. Palin hasn't said publicly what she's been up to since stepping down, and her spokespeople wouldn't give any details.
The big question on their minds is the 2012 presidential race. Will she or won't she?
Her silence is not keeping supporters from discussing the possibility of her chasing the country's top job or taking on another national role.
Said one Facebook entry: "Drill, Drill, Drill ... all the way to the White House!!!!"
Said another: "Sarah, our country really NEEDS YOU NOW!!!"
One person asked Palin if she was keeping tabs on the site.
"Is there any way you could somehow let us know you're reading this?" the poster asked. "Maybe a little tweet sometime when you get your Twitter up again."
The clamor comes amid a vacuum of knowledge about what awaits the former GOP vice presidential candidate since she left the state office Sunday with 16 months remaining in her first term. Her departure came with no elaboration of her long-term political plans. Short-term, she was expected to speak Aug. 8 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California, but her spokeswoman, Meghan Stapleton, posted a note on Palin's Facebook page Thursday that she is not attending the event. She gave no explanation, and did not respond to requests for comment on the ex-governor's plans.
Palin has said she could campaign for political candidates across the U.S. Also making the rounds are unconfirmed reports that Palin could be open to being a conservative voice on a radio show.
Or she could be a homemaker, according to a third of 900 voters responding to a poll by FOX News. Even members of her own party are divided over what Palin should do next. The poll, released this week, showed 27 percent of Republicans believe the vice presidency would best suit Palin, followed by 18 percent who see her as a homemaker, 14 percent who would cast her as a talk show host and 12 percent who favor her as president.
In her last three months as governor, Palin routinely tweeted about state business and other subjects, including domestic energy development, the death of Alaska-based soldiers and dismissals of ethics complaints against her. Nearing her gubernatorial departure, she indicated she would use a personal account on Twitter to continue to stay in touch and more freely speak her mind.
"10 dys til less politically correct twitters fly frm my fingertps outside State site," she tweeted July 17.
Palin's attorney, Thomas Van Flein, said Palin will resume her Twitter feeds in the near future. He said he was not at liberty to discuss any of her post-office activities.
Where some supporters are concerned, soon is not soon enough to hear from Palin.
"Anyone find it strange that Sarah has not shown up at all on Twitter by now??? If she waits too long, people will move on," one supporter wrote Thursday on the Web site Conservatives 4 Palin.
Wrote another: "Sarah can't even go 4 days without tweeting? I think she's smart to go 'dark' for a while."
That she is laying low came as no surprise to Pam Pryor, a spokeswoman for Palin's political action committee. SarahPAC reportedly has raised more than $1 million.
"Seeing how she just left office, I would think she's taking a few days off," Pryor said. The time off is a way for the governor to "shut off the lights and close the door and go from one chapter to another."
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RACHEL D'ORO | 07/31/09 05:13 PM |