Karl Rove Jabs Sarah Palin's Reality Show: It Doesn't Help People 'See You In The Oval Office'

Call him old fashioned, but GOP strategist and poster child for the Republican establishment Karl Rove seems to thinks that Sarah Palin might lack the necessary "gravitas" to be the party's presidential candidate for 2012.

The former vice presidential candidate's new reality TV show, "Sarah Palin's Alaska," isn't helping, Rove told The Daily Telegraph in an interview.

"With all due candour, appearing on your own reality show on the Discovery Channel, I am not certain how that fits in the American calculus of 'that helps me see you in the Oval Office,'" Rove said.

"Being the vice-presidential nominee on the ticket is different from saying 'I want to be the person at the top of the ticket,'" Rove continued. "There are high standards that the American people have for it [the presidency] and they require a certain level of gravitas, and they want to look at the candidate and say 'that candidate is doing things that gives me confidence that they are up to the most demanding job in the world.'"

This is the second time in a week that Rove has appeared reluctant to provide any degree of enthusiastic support to Palin.

On CBS's "Face the Nation" this weekend, Rove said that Palin would be a "formidable candidate" if she ran in 2012, a decision he wasn't ready to weigh in on. He also appeared to air a certain degree of concern, noting that candidates would be vetted to determine the "strength they need to work on magnifying and weaknesses that they need to endeavor to overcome, or challenges that they need to overcome."

Questions about Palin's presidential qualifications have been par for the course for Republican candidates and politicians alike of late, and Rove is far from the first to give a less-than-passionate response.

Alaska's Joe Miller and Delaware's Christine O'Donnell, two Senate candidates who shocked the establishment with primary victories thanks in part to heavy support from Palin, were both unwilling to definitively answer questions about her presidential fitness.

Carl Paladino, the Tea Party-backed candidate running for New York Governor, gave a more concrete response regarding the Palin 2012 buzz:

"We need a real leader," Paladino said of the former Alaska Governor, whom he called a "TV personality," in an interview last month. "Not someone who just wants to go and throw a bunch of words around and proverbs and -- I want somebody that is going to be totally responsible. Someone that is a student of that government."

Comments

[BICHONS9]

03:24 PM on 11/09/2010

You know...If this were not so important, it would be rediculous..The republicans swoon Sarah Palin pretending that they think she is a viable collegue..Everyone knows that she is not qualified for higfh office...I have often wondered, "Does she know that..." She has been made a fool of. Or maybe she'll have the last laugh making a great deal of money. I have never cared for her but as the Republican party mocks her behind her back and uses her to bring in votes from her followers, I feel sorry for her!!! I surely do not like Carl Rove at all..but he is right..he's just trying to say things "nicely".

[maigrey]

04:15 AM on 11/09/2010

You know the popcorn is buttered and the show is starting. Round one goes to Karl. Get rid of the hick in the body politick. C-ya Sarah!

[cbwHouston]

10:42 PM on 10/30/2010

Karl Rove Not Keen on Palin Reality Show: Where's the 'Gravitas'? -Tom Diemer…Correspondent for Politics Daily

"… Americans have high standards for the person occupying the White House, said the man who was President George W. Bush's top political adviser. "They require a certain level of gravitas…:”

• "Guard against the postures of pretended patriotism." -George Washington…The 1st President of the new United States of America from 1789-to-1797

• "We have nothing to fear, but fear itself."- Franklin D. Roosevelt… 32nd President of The United States of American 1933-1945

• “Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty.” Ronald Reagan…40th President of The United State of America 1981-1989

• “There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured with what is right in America.” William Jefferson “Bill” Clinton…42nd President of The United States of America 1993-2001

• America, this is our moment. This is our time, our time to turn the page on the policies of the past.... The journey will be difficult. The road will be long…. “…if we are willing to work for it, and fight for it, and believe in it…”- Barack Obama Democratic Presidential Nominee June 2008, today America’s 44th President of The United States of America 2009-present.

Sarah Palin 2012… Mary Hart grills Palin on 'Entertainment Tonight':

Webb-Link:
http://www.etonline.com/tv/102269_Sarah_Palin_I_will_Run_for_President_in_2012_If_There_s_Nobody_Else_To_Do_It/

[ashlee56]

10:00 PM on 10/30/2010

As much as I can't stand this guy, at least he has the spine to speak the truth about Palin. I don't hear any other idiot Republicans saying how they really feel about this waste of life Palin.

[Mik McAllister]

08:22 AM on 10/30/2010

In completely unrelated news, Dick Cheney has invited Sarah Palin to go hunting in an undisclosed location.

[Tim Smith8422]

09:02 PM on 10/29/2010

Best Palin interview ever. Please subscribe if you like. Much more to come.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl6Pd4rmM0w

[reviewingthesituation]

03:54 PM on 10/29/2010

Does Rove not realize that the vice-president becomes the president should the president die or be incapacitated? Doesn't that mean that being a vice-presidential candidate does, indeed, require as much gravitas as running for president? He seems to think of a presidential slate as Martin and Lewis. Guess who's Lewis.

[KDog76A]

04:21 PM on 10/29/2010

Dou you not realize he was speaking about Palin as the form VP candidate, and not about her being a future VP candidate but being the Presidential candidate? And that in either case, his point is that someone starring on reality TV doesn't fit the bill as President?


The fact is Rove is right.... Palin would be a terrible candidate and worse President. Its a shame you can't be rational enough to take the argument for what it is and just say... yeah, Palin would suck as President.

take the blinders off... left and right agree more than they think on a wide array of issues... even more so the closer those issues are to the center.

[reviewingthesituation]

07:32 PM on 10/29/2010

The light must have dawned for Rove only recently. He wasn't saying any such thing when she was actually running on the Republican ticket. I spotted her as a phony, narcissistic flake almost immediately. And I guarantee you, if Palin were on a Republican ticket again, he'd take back every critical word.

[mrsL]

05:41 PM on 10/29/2010

Joe Biden!

[CarolinaYankee]

03:44 PM on 10/29/2010

My favorite part of the new trailer for her show is when she says"NO BOYS UPSTAIRS" that must be a new rule for her girls, obviously.

[AthenasOwl]

03:41 PM on 10/29/2010

"Gravitas"????
Like Bush had? Now, there's a real standard to live up to.
Even so, I agree with him that Palin doesn't measure up. Never thought we could go down hill from W.

[prodemlib]

03:31 PM on 10/29/2010

...well her "reality show" IS trash

[Colitas]

03:09 PM on 10/29/2010

“Being the vice-presidential nominee on the ticket is different from saying 'I want to be the person at the top of the ticket,'" Rove continued. "There are high standards that the American people have for it [the presidency] and they require a certain level of gravitas, and they want to look at the candidate and say 'that candidate is doing things that gives me confidence that they are up to the most demanding job in the world.’”

The irony here is that Rove is doing the media’s job for them by pointing out that celebrity doesn’t translate into intellect or ability to address the very serious issues of our times. And while the media is very fascinated with a person that didn’t realize Africa was a continent it isn’t asking if this is really someone that could seriously do the work of a president. Indeed they're going out of their way to ignore what a buffoon she made of herself as a vice-presidential candidate. Instead they're trying to latch onto any wisp of smoke to prove she can run while ignoring all of her obvious deficits. The last time they did this we ended up with a moronic two term president, two wars we couldn't afford and an economy that's been hemorrhaging ever since.

Will the media ever learn?

[kellym33]

02:36 PM on 10/29/2010

There used to be a high standard when it came to presidential candidates, and them came Sarah Palin and the tea party. Now it seems perfectly reasonable to elect anyone to any position! Heck, no education, no problem! No political experience, even better!! The dumbing down of America, brought to you by Sarah Palin. Actually, John McCain!

[obelixicodix]

03:37 PM on 10/29/2010

it's actually a very good point, all this 'dumbing down' actually started because the dimwit lady was brought into spotlight, by, McCain ... more people should blame him from doing this great disservice to America.

[whatchamean]

02:05 PM on 10/29/2010

Rove represents the interests of corporate GOPers. I am sure he enjoys their reliable votes coming in to congress. They will be summarily marginalized pretty quickly and sent to the back benches until votes are called for. We will probably see Rubio and Paul added. Rubio will be the exception as they see him as a rising star and hispanic so you will see him often a their most poignant usful idiot.

[KDog76A]

04:23 PM on 10/29/2010

look who didn't read the article... hey its fine if you want to be a leftist... but if you're just another useless political automaton spouting partisan rhetoric, get over yourself and learn to think critically.

[youvebinfarteen]

01:46 PM on 10/29/2010

Rove wants a pure sophisticated republican party. One without hicks, One of aryan decent.

[KDog76A]

04:27 PM on 10/29/2010

this comment made by someone who doesn't get that neo-nazi aryan skinheads ARE hicks...

Way to show your own bigotry by lumping hate as being cornered by the Republicans.

[Jim Krow]

01:05 PM on 10/29/2010

Popcorn has greater gravitas than Tea Party candidates.

[KDog76A]

04:25 PM on 10/29/2010

quit drooling on your keyboard

[Jim Krow]

06:24 PM on 10/29/2010

if it weren't for simple mindedness, tea baggers would be out of business.