So far, it seems impossible for Sarah Palin to err badly enough to upset her base. And she's certainly been thorough in her experimentation.
When Alaska resident Kathleen Gustafson found out her former Governor was coming to Homer Alaska with a Discovery Channel film crew, she unfurled a giant "Worst Governor Ever" banner in full sight of the cameras. Palin came over to speak to her, and landed herself in hot water. Palin asked Gustafson her profession, and, upon hearing 'teacher,' allegedly rolled her eyes. I say allegedly, but the footage is out there for anyone to watch and judge. In fact, if you prefer, you can watch Sarah Palin possibly roll her eyes in slow motion or synchronized to the beat of the song "What is Love?"
Andrew Sullivan, a blogger who's been covering the story for the past two days, has previously been attacked for his opposition to Palin and his support for 'Trig Trutherism' (a pejorative name for people who question the circumstances of the birth of Sarah Palin's child, Trig). Sullivan has previously detailed in post after post (after post) the extreme risks Palin was taking if she really took two flights and a long drive to reach her preferred hospital for Trig's birth. He concludes that the whole story must be at least partially fabricated.
If this bizarre incident were the only evidence we had that Sarah Palin doesn't make decisions or policy based on data or that she sometimes exaggerated wildly for political gain, it would make sense for Andrew Sullivan to keep pushing the story. But if his real aim is to point out her political liabilities, he's neglecting the low-hanging fruit linked above.
This kind of sensationalist attack does nothing for liberals. When the video of the eye-roll hit the blogosphere, conservatives didn't shy away; on the contrary, it represented a potent recruiting tool for them--another chance to show liberal pundits thrown into a tizzy by the unshakable Sarah Palin. Quickly, the story swelled with Breitbart-style ad hominem attacks on Gustafson, the teacher who started it all. Conservative sites quickly accused her of lying about her credentials. At First Things, Jim Hoft quickly transformed the facts of "According to the Alaska Teacher Certification website there is a Kathleen Gustafson registered, but unknown if this is her" to THAT WAS NO TEACHER... Unhinged Leftist Who Confronted Palin Is a Singer in a Drag Queen Band.
When some commentators pointed out that Gustafson was a theatre teacher and that the pictures of her 'drag queen band' were in fact photos of her directing a student production of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Hoft appended a correction of sorts:
UPDATE: The Palin-haters now claim that "theater tech" is the name of some class they teach in Alaska.
Sure it is... Keep spinning libs.
Arguments about style and minor slipups are never going to penetrate the unreality-based community that makes up a major part of the GOP base. For our criticisms to stick, they need to be rooted in the policy differences between the Dems' attempts to help those hurt by the recession, and the Republican attempt to prevent Congress from passing any bills until January.
It's time leftist bloggers changed our tune, and we needn't wait for the next Palin gaffe to get practice sticking to the issues. Libertarian Rand Paul is currently getting the Palin treatment as coverage of his Senate race picks up. Apparently (according to an unnamed source in GQ), during his college years, he was part of a secret society that indulged in drugs and the satirical worship of an idol called "Aqua Buddha." That story is certainly a boon to headline writers, but should his college hijinks really eclipse coverage of his staunch opposition to the Americans with Disabilities Act? Sharron Angle's apparent terror whenever she spots a reporter is funny, but her opposition to Medicare and other social safety net programs on religious grounds is frightening.
In the 2010 elections, liberals ought to be able to defeat Paul and Angle because their policies are laughable, not because their gaffes are. If the Democratic Party can't make a persuasive case on the merits of these policies--some of the most basic protections for vulnerable Americans-- we don't deserve to win.
Follow Leah Anthony Libresco on Twitter: www.twitter.com/leahlibresco
3:14am
Alexandria, VA
The Democrats need to just make 2 columns:
1. Issue & 2. Sara's stand
That's it. I'd love to see it. No goofy speech of hers can offset it.
She was a rotten Governor and would along with Shameless John ,As President, feed an insatiable search for power by Palin,She is like an employee who suddenly gets promoted to a position of say so in a company, unbearable,ego driven,must try to prove their worth by belittling others,and take credit where non is due
Does she ever make a policy decision about How to get anything accomplished???
She makes her bed, and those that see her phoniness will call her on it everytime.
That is the real story here. Kathleen's right to freedom of expression was denied by a member of Palin's team. The only freedom of expression that Palin and her hanger's on are concerned about are their own.
Progressives don't want to deal with the fact that their belief system is hopelessly antiquated and dependent on the centralization of state power in the hands of the few in Washington.
Modern progressives, unlike their New Dealer forbears, look upon business the way the Visigoths looked upon Ancient Rome, as a source of booty for their political allies. Progressives don't think that small businessmen and other Registered Voters haven't figured out the scam that lefty Progressives and Obama are running.
The Caesars tried this kind of thing. They failed as well. Progressives will too. Progressives will blame Palin, who has nothing to do with their failure. She has never held national power. Obama and the Democrats have. The failure of the Left is both widespread and catastrophic. The author of this piece is casting about for another device to use against Palin because he knows the usual ad hominem devices are not working in a time when the working people of this country are experiencing 15% real unemployment. Nice going, progressives!
Historians will look back on this star-crossed Administration and this experiment in soft-authoritarianism known as "progressivism" and ask how Americans could have gone down this path. They will also ask how reasonable "progressives" could have elected a reasonably intelligent individual such as Barack Obama who ended up making his predecessor look as if he was Pericles.
O yeah, Republicans are SO different - ever heard of no bid contracts? Invading the wrong country for a trillion dollars? handing over a few billion to wall St after collapsing the economy?
Bloggers on the left that follow Palin, for whatever reason, have the right to call her out on anything, because the media sure isn't doing it. They are reporting her as if what she says is true and accurate because she helps the ratings. There is no media out there willing to report Palin's actions and then discredit her words as not factual...no disclaimers out there. Olbermann may do it, but his viewers are people that agree with him almost 100% of the time.
Bloggers and blogspots tell it like it is and that shouldn't stop. In the meanwhile, candidates should stick to the issues and do as you have suggested. It would be nice if the media could muster up the courage of a Walter Cronkhite or a David Brinkley. These journalists would have had her number a long time ago and refused to report her.
She is the ultimate Party Crasher. Her comments following the death of Ted Stevens sums her up. At a time when there should be sorrow and decorum, she is promoting herself. She is pathetic and shallow.
Have a nice day!
A big face full of 'Political Correctness' tsking by "the base" . "Now, boys and girls, this is NO way to handle this situation~ IGNORE THEM ~ FOCUS ON THE CAMPAIGN POSITIVE POINTS"
And we got a double dipped dose of BUSHCO.
"Fool US twice, shame on US" ~ Why this Independent still is and NOT a member of the DNC
Catching them in their affairs and media mishaps is a tempting, easy way to dismiss them on a daily basis, but it's only playing them on a level they've already regrettably caught up to us on. Maybe not in eloquence, or even raw intelligence, but certainly in frequency.
See Rand Paul on Rachel Maddow for how much more deeply allegations of bad policy can harm a career than viral political mud-slinging.
What strikes me as disturbing is that the eye rolling "was she or wasn't she" has been the center of discussion and not Palin's inauthentic respect for citizens' right to free speech, for citizens' right to be heard.
Ms. Palin's cronies, including her husband, did everything they could to obstruct the exchange from being recorded, and then tore down Ms. Gustafson's sign; in essence, they were determined to silence Ms. Gustafson.
First Amendment rights indeed, Ms. Palin.
This tape, ultimately, reveals more of your transparent dishonesty.
You are a phony who only loves the Constitution when it works in your favor; You neither truly understand nor truly respect it.
Great post.
Fabulous article. I could not agree more. Every statement from a liberal or progressive about Sharron Angle and Sarah Palin should begin and end with "She wants to take away Social Security and impoverish the elderly."