Don't Count Saint Sarah Palin Out for President in 2012!
Don't write off Saint Sarah all you political pundits, press smartypants, and Washington insiders. You're out of touch with the men and women who love Sarah Palin--always have been and clearly will be. In your mind--Mr. Rove, Mr. Steele, and Mr. Huckabee--Sarah Palin has thrown away her chance to take the White House by handing in her resignation as governor. That's not what presidential candidates are supposed to do. They're supposed to toil away for years--decades, even--as senators or governors--before announcing their candidacy on the long haul to The Big White House.
Well guess what, boys--election rules are now made to be broken. 
Didn't you all just watch Barack Obama steal the White House right out from under the feet of the establishment-anointed Hillary Clinton? And he did it by forging a new path to the presidency based on an enormous grass roots movement that got its momentum from regular folks.
Oh yeah. Sounds familiar. Well Sarah Palin, despite her Katie Couric missteps, is no dumb bunny. The lady from Wasilla didn't leapfrog from nowheresville to Alaska governor by accident. She is a canny operator in her own right, with the ability to understand and embody the opinions of her audience. And they already like her better than before!
A new nationwide USA TODAY/Gallup Poll has found that two-thirds of Republicans want Palin to be "a major national political figure" in the future. In fact a whopping 71% of Republicans say they'd likely vote for her if she ran for president in 2012. And this poll was done after her resignation!
In fact, announcing her resignation on the eve of Independence Day wasn't done so the deed could slide under the radar of a long holiday weekend.
No way. She did it BECAUSE it WAS Independence Day and she wasn't really announcing a resignation. No, she was actually proclaiming "my independence...no more politics as usual."
When Sarah Palin shared the presidential campaign trail with Mr. Maverick himself, John McCain, she quickly learned that The Maverick is still a path with enormous appeal to the conservative small government crowd. That crowd still gets teary-eyed over the belief that every man or woman can make it for him or herself with just spit, vinegar and hard work. No need for government intervention. And don't forget, Obama won the presidency because he was the Maverick Democrat.
Now, the Lipstick Pitbull is banking on the fact that over the next 3.5 years there will be a behemoth of a backlash against Big Government, Big Spending, and Big Big Deficits--all the things that she and her supporters abhor.
And you know what--she's probably right. No matter how successful Obama's policies for routing a recession, there will be a swing back to the ideal that less government is more. America is just like that--cycles happen.
In the meantime, Saint Sarah can spend her time advancing her "higher calling" out of office. She made it very clear in her resignation speech that she has a mission and a missionary's fervor.
In her own words, she is done with conventional "politics as usual." Big Government spending is "amoral." She needs to "BUILD UP" and "FIGHT" for our country. She will support others who "seek to serve for the RIGHT reasons."
Sarah sees herself as the Joan of Arc for hardworking "average Americans." 
And like saints and missionaries of the past, when you have a calling that necessitates taking a bigger, more important road than regular roads, then you can't be bothered by accusations of "frivolous ethics violations," or by the typical "blood sport of the national political process."
I don't agree with critics that claim Sarah was speaking gobeldy gook when she was announcing her resignation. No, she was saying exactly what she wants to do. And it's clever.
No more time wasted on unproductive opposition that she would face in office. Instead, she'll take her message successfully on the road. And whether she's a new fox at Fox or reads speeches in front of sold-out auditoriums, Sarah Palin does know how to speak in a way that emotionally connects with her audience.
So beware to all Republicans and Democrats who count her out of the 2012 presidential race. These are unprecedented times, and unprecedented approaches that are not politics as usual will work. Saint Sarah has years now to go grassroots and spread her gospel. And guess what? It could work!
Photos: AP
For more on Sarah Palin, follow Bonnie on Twitter at www.twitter.com/bonniefuller.
Follow Bonnie Fuller on Twitter: www.twitter.com/bonniefuller
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READ GLENN BECKS BOOK " COMMON SENSE" AND "LIBERTY AND TYRRANY" BY MARK LEVIN
These books are only good for backup toilet paper.
You really are into the lunatic fringe of this country. I would rather read the comics. Glenn Beck is of Palin's ilk - together they make less than common sense.
are sales that bad?
Bonnie, you state:
"Well Sarah Palin, despite her Katie Couric missteps, is no dumb bunny. The lady from Wasilla didn't leapfrog from nowheresville to Alaska governor by accident."
What the heck are you talking about? That is exactly what Sarah Palin did. Her selection was the result of McCain's campaign miscalculating the potential for chagrined Hillary supporters to be stolen from the Democratic Party based on a perceived sunami of gender-based animosity for Obama.
Palin's missteps with Couric are not the result of undue pressure to perform a certain mainstream way to curry favor. That comment about Putin and when he flies, where does he fly, it's over Alaska, and saying she has foreign policy bona fides because she can see Russian out island territories from her front porch, are among the most nonsensical comments anyone could make. Sarah was on par with the South Carolina beauty pageant contestant's garbled comments about maps.
Sarah is fishing for salmon this week, and you seem to be fishing for professing that Sarah Palin is still / should still be viable for 2012, when even Palin recognizes that makes no sense.
Palin is the finest example of what the right wing has been screaming about referencing President Obama's use of a teleprompter in all of his speeches. She gave a brilliant performance at the Republican Convention, yet when she is off the 'prompter, she's an unmitigated, babbling, incoherent mess. This is who she truly is and what is driving her ego-driven bus off the cliff.
Please don't stop her from self destructing, it will be good for America, and the Democratic party's chances of remaking the USA into a better place.
Obama+his wife can't make a speech without a teleprompter. Even when Sarah improvises she still makes sense.FREE
The only people she makes sense to are truly senseless people to begin with - they have to be to buy into her insane rhetoric and BS.
I would be worried if she made sense to me.
As Reagan would famously lament:
"There you go again." Can't just throw disparaging comments at President Barack Obama alone, you've got to throw some of your icky at his wife too. Pathetic.
And for the record, President Obama off teleprompter, is evidenced at the many press conferences, when after opening (teleprompter) remarks, he fields questions from reporters, and provides smart, detailed, salient, prescient, well-thoughtout and well-constructed answers... you know... like a college professor would respond!
The weak teleprompter argument was not relevant when conservatives were flailing around with it 3 months ago. You are off message and out of step CherRenae. Check your Limbaugh Letter robo-email message for totay's juicy zinger attack lines.
Sorry, I couldn't decipher your poorly-made point through all the caps and exclamation points.
There really is nothing more enlightening than a person who states a conclusion as if it's a fact, and then offers no explanation or backing points.
No one is going to take your precious freedom.
You will always have the freedom to fear commies, socialists, and that funny neighbor
You will always have the freedom to hate weirdos, gays, libber-als, and other strangers
You will always have the freedom to remain ignorant of evolution, global warming, dinosaurs, and the universe
You will always have the freedom to be a multi-billionaire CEO of a bankrupt company.
Nice to see someone at Huffington Post is actually nonbiased and liberal. Sarah Palin represents a grass roots down to earth political figure. She will now be free to expand her horizons, get experienced with foreign leaders and policies. The american people love her cuz she is a regular person and not a career poltician. There needs to be term limits for congress.W
Thank goodness you are part of a very shrinking minority. Saint Sarah my a*s*s!
You must love the way she ran up the debt of that dinky town she was mayor of from zero to above 20 million in a single term.
She should have looked into taxing the meth labs.
I guess you also love her SOCIALIST ways. Like INCREASING the size of the checks she handout to the AK residents from the oil and gas revenues. Which by the way is the reason she was sooo popular before becoming a VP candidate. Also, all of the federal money for the bridge to nowhere that she was FOR before she was against. You Betcha!
"Sarah Palin represents a grass roots down to earth political figure. She will now be free to expand her horizons, get experienced with foreign leaders and policies."
LMAO
Ok, I'll give you that much. After she hires a ghost writer to pen her upcoming book, and make her millions from the people that would actually pay money to read it...she could be ready in another 30 or 40 years...
...if any foreign leaders will bother with her... or give her any of their time.
Plus...If she can't handle it...she can always quit again...an
Palin for president is toooo nauseating a thought to even consider. To think this country could sink sooo low in every respect to elect something like her is a devastating thought.
Can you imagine her talking to Putin, Chavez, or any other intelligent leader of a country?
I can hear the laughter now. After Bush to elect Palin would only prove to the world we are no longer a world leader or even a viable country.
Chavez an intelligent leader of a country? He is a communist dictator that only the left could love and dream of having the same government as those lucky enough to be under his loving and kind care. Republicans would prefer to have less government and no dictator.
I think the last 8 years proved that to be a lie.
I'm so disgusted that Miss Wasilla could even be mentioned as a candidate for President. Clearly, she lacks basic education, knowledge, intelligence, curiosity, ethics and relevant experience to be elected to office anyplace.
This is made worse by the tenor of her rallies that riled up the worse elements of our society to shout dangerous threats.
Please, bloggers, writers, journalists and pundits...
I do not know whose koolaide you have been drinking but obviously the huffington post is the only place you go for commentary.
Keith Oblerman spouts off some of the stuff you are referring to as well but most of it was not verified by the press and ran as nothing more than spin.
Not verified by the press? Yea, if it's not on tv, the internet or in a newspaper it must not be true. Not verified by the press? I've watched her speeches, the ones she has written herself - rambling at best. And I watched her at the rallies last year and she did rile up the base enough for some to shout "Kill him". Spin? Not verified by the press.
If Palin stumbles into the Oval office in 2012 she will not be counted out, it is the nation that will be counted out. With her lack of knowledge on any subject, her meandering statements with no meaning, and her vapidity, the nation will be in very, very deep trouble. it will make Bush's presidency look like Camelot!
Well I guess Obaman could still be president over the last 7 states of the 57 states he believes comprises the United States so there would still be some people left for stimulus money to go to. He could also have those states be a test case for cap and tax and universal health care.
I am all for those additional states that Obama planned to visit being a Progressive experiment, just leave the rest of us alone.
"just leave the rest of us alone."
Exactly were those same thoughts in my head during the 8 years of Bush and Cheney...y
"first DUDE" in the little club he was a member of.
Typical whiners, you Republicans. You don't get your way, you lose...and you want to take your ball and "go home".
Pitiful.
I have no idea what you're saying!
I can't help but remember the hatred and bigotry that exuded from the last few Palin rallies during the last election. These were rallies where Palin was Palin. The video feeds of the participates showed that they felt no constraint or civility toward those who disagreed with them. It was blatant, racist and bordering on mob violence. The attendees showed during and after these events that they felt empowered to feel this way and voice their innermost and darkest feelings without any constraints whatsoever.
I would be the first to admit that Palin does have a certain feel for public display. Dare I say charisma here? She has been able to parley that into a minor political career. But she shows no internal understanding of the violence and prejudice her words and actions can conjure up. She has demonstrated a complete lack of understanding on issues vital to this country as demonstrated in her recent VP campaign adventure. What bothered me the most was that she didn't seem to care a whole lot. She was content to wallow in her ignorance and wing it. Rule from the gut as George W. had. And look where that got us both domestically and internationally.
Jeez Louise Ms. Bonnie can you imagine that type of personality a heartbeat away from the presidency? Can you imagine such an unsteady and irresponsible hand on the power levers of government? It frightens me and I think it should you.
Yuo are exactly right. How can this woman represent the United States...w
However I can't count her totally out as much as I would like too. If the economy continues to get worse and there is some sort of terrorist attack close to 2012 the American people have shown their willingness to be frighten into making some pretty dumb and irrational decisions. Remember over 80% of American supported invading Iraq in 2003 on the fear that Saddam was going to nuke us.....
How can she represent this Country when she does not know that the VP does not make legislation up in there? Or, that there is no Department of Law that protects the President? How can she represent this country when she has absolutely NO clue how our system works?
Candidacy will fizzle fur shizzle.
"Well Sarah Palin, despite her Katie Couric missteps, is no dumb bunny"
Um, yes she is. I hope she runs. It will be fun to watch.
Hooey!
I have little faith in the intelligence level of my neighbors but I have galatic quanities more than you.
The only reason she didn't completely melt down as McCain's running mate was that she was managed (most of the time) by professionals. Without that filter she will be a complete mess.
Actually I hope she does get the Repub nomination. The drumming she would get would hopefully shut her up and discredit her forever.
She can run, but she can't hide, remember she tried that before!
Sarah Palin's negative opinion score (44%) is right up there with Hillary Clintons. And Hillary's unfavorable rating was what doomed her run for the nomination, despite having much of the media and party insiders on her side. She consolidated her base in record time, but she couldn't grow through the firewall of people who couldn't stand her, which left her with nowhere to grow.
Palin will do the same, if she tries.
I am sorry, I am counting her out. She was never in, IMHO. A bad joke was all.
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