Palin's Crude Awakening

Forget the Jackson 5, this was the weekend for the Palin 5, as the soon-to-be ex-Governor, Sarah Palin pointed to a poll of her five children as the true reason behind her abrupt decision to step down as governor of the Frontier state. "Four yesses and one hell, yeah!" was the verdict of the Palin 5, ranging in age from 15 months to 20 years. Surely, plucky Piper, gave the most enthusiastic thumbs' up.

But as with most things Palin, what you hear is often a manufactured reality. It's a fair bet that a few months from now it will be abundantly clear that the quirky dynamics of the Alaskan economy had a lot more to do with Palin's retreat than that family poll.

Why is Palin sick of being governor? Sure, there are the stories about how tough it was for Caribou Barbie to adjust to life back on Lake Lucille--even with her new status and new wardrobe. But in the end, the real deal-breaker for Palin may have been something as mundane as the price of oil, which has dropped like a rock since Senator John McCain picked her out of obscurity to be his running mate last August.

Oil? Yes, it's all about oil, and it hasn't been a pretty picture this past year if you run an oil exporter, whether you're an Arab Sheikh, or the leader of the 49th State. This has been a rude awakening for Palin who rode on the coattails of soaring oil prices during her first 18 months in office. From January 2007, when she was sworn in as governor, up until the time she became McCain's running mate in August of 2008, crude prices rose by more than 100 percent. And you betcha, much of Palin's so-called political achievements was tied to the action in the oil pits.

Remember the pit bull/hockey mom's boast that she was able to give every Alaskan an extra $1200 dollars in pocket money last summer? Oil. Alaska's enviable budget surplus? Oil. For Palin's Alaska it's now all gone the way of $4 dollar-a-gallon gasoline.

In fact, for the governor, the last 12 months have been a mirror image of her first 18 months on the job. At $64 dollars a barrel, oil prices are down more than 55 percent from a year ago. Sobering news if you're running a state that gets 80 percent of its revenue from the oil and gas business.

Earlier this year, Alaskan state lawmakers estimated that the state would run a deficit of $2-3 billion dollars this year, based on $75 dollar barrel oil. It's now 15 percent below that mark, and even bigger deficits are looming.

Lower prices not only mean that Alaska has less revenue to tax, the state's cut goes down along with prices. When oil was at $120 a barrel, Palin was sitting pretty as the state took in more than 40 percent of every barrel coming out of Prudhoe Bay. Today, that cut is only about half as much.

Do the math and you can see why Palin wants out of Dodge as soon as possible. The longer she hangs on as governor, the more of her oil-fueled achievements are wiped away. Now that's reason enough to call an audible.

Comments

[godsense2]

Seems to me that Keenan's supposition makes Palin out to be smarter and shrewder than everyone gives her credit for.

Make up your mind detractors, is she smart to resign or not?

And listen to all the vitriol you guys and gals spew day in and day out. Why do you have so much insecure hatred in your life?

If Sarah's such a loser why waste so many keystrokes on her. Why is she so horrible to y'all. I just don't get it. So sad.

[2876]

And listen to all the vitriol you guys and gals spew day in and day out. Why do you have so much insecure hatred in your life?

The same can be said for all you obama haters. Why all the hate?

[godsense2]

i don't hate Obama. I disagree with his approach to governing

[franksters]

Typical Republican move. Just like George W. Bush started an unjust war w/ Iraq, managed it poorly, and left the mess for someone else to clean up, Palin is doing the same thing to the Alaskan people. Cutting and running...­...she's not fit for public office.

[oldjerseygirl]

FINALLY!!! someone posts the real truth.

[Willow207]

From Alaska Daily News
From Kyle Hopkins in Anchorage --

Forty percent of Republican voters nationwide say Gov. Sarah Palin hurt her chances of winning the party’s nomination for president in 2012 by resigning as governor, according to a new poll from Rasmussen Reports.

The national polling firm conducted a telephone survey of likely GOP voters after Palin’s surprise announcement that she’s leaving the job. Only 24 percent said quitting helps her chances. Another 28 percent said it doesn't matter either way.

What else did pollsters find?

Palin remains a polarizing figure, even for Republicans. Those polled listed Palin among their top two choices for Republican presidential candidates in 2012. The survey asked who people would vote for in their state's primary. Palin finished just behind Mitt Romney and ahead of Mike Huckabee on GOP wish lists.

But in the same poll, Palin ranked among the two candidates they’d least like to see head the Republican ticket. She tied with Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who is still an unknown to many Republican voters around the country.

Palin’s decision to resign played better with conservative Republicans than moderates, the poll says: GOP voters who are Evangelical Christians are fairly evenly divided but a narrow plurality say Palin’s resignation helps her political chances more than hurts them. But the plurality of other Protestants (41%) and Catholics (46%) disagree, seeing the governor’s move as hurtful politically.

[ByersL]

THIS should be front page news in AK!

[TRYKER]

Palin aborts her governorship in 3rd trimester! It was "her choice".

[politicaljunkie41910]

I said much the same in some previous posts. With the price of oil down there won't be the freebies that Alaskans have come to know and love and the surplus that Alaska enjoyed when she came into office would be wiped out and she would now have to cut services or raise taxes and other fees to balance the budget which won't win her any popularity contests from those 'handout loving socials' she represented.

By resigning, she leaves the hard decisions to others to make, allowing her to remain that legend in her own mind. Once again, she has proven that you can fool some of the people some of the time, and republicans, all of the time.

[WorldGoneWild]

Terry, you might be right on the oil price issues facing Palin but it proves everyone's point that she can't handle trillion dollar deficits or high unemployment.

[jaslyn]

They need to start calling her Bailin' Palin, cuz she's bailed out of pretty much everything she's ever attempted. When the going gets tough, the barracudas look for different hunting grounds. Right now, the real cash is book selling, and speeches.

[zanzig]

The wikipedia entry for barracudaas is hilarious. Contains the following statements (taken at random):

They are voracious predators.­.. they hunt relying on surprise and short bursts of speed...Th­ese fish do not care for their young...La­rge barracudas have been known to eat young barracudas­...Handfee­ding them or trying to touch them is strongly discourage­d...Wearin­g jewelry and other shiny objects is discouraged as barracudas are attracted to things that glint and shine.

[GrandGuignol]

LOL!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!

[Salome]

LMFAO!

[CTtransplant]

Hey...SHE picked the name, not us! Guess she knows herself pretty well! LMAO!!!

[sippewissett]

Also read the entry for "palin"in the Urban Dictionary. Very prescient since the entry has been there since the campaign: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Palin

[larmar]

The Urban dictionary definition of barracuda is much better !

[JanSP1971]

Please let's cancel the Palin family soap opera..... we can no longer play her game. John McCain and the republican party created this monster and we have to stop feeding it.

[Beka13]

The bottom line is that she couldnt take the heat so she got out of the kitchen.

[OLEGAR]

The contestants in the "IQUITAROD" soon to be - - - -

[2876]

Naw....She­'s just following the money trail.

[rich misty]

LOL Fox News tells us it's not Sarah's fault.

First they would have to prove to me that Palin understands the connection between the price of oil and the Alaska state budget. Can anybody demonstrate that Palin understands this?

It's her ethics.

[Whitley2009]

Ethics? I'mstill trying to figure-out her recent comments about a "Department of Law." How can she lay claim to any kind of ethics in government when she doesn't understand even the most rudimentary structure of government?

[Taiyo]

All she thought about was that none of W's corrupt conduct was punished, so she just figured that if he could get away with it, so could she 'cause she'd be protected by the White House Department of Law.

[trisha08]

Palin, I need to discuss it with the Dept of Law up there in the White House and will get back with ya', Charlie.

[SharpDressedMan]

I disagree with you Terry. The price of oil didn't prompt Sarah Palin to resign.

Alaska heavily depends on petroleum for its economy but the state is used to roller coaster prices. No one faults her for declining oil prices because they are out of the state's control and determined by by geopolitics and international economics.

Ethics charges are suspect but those alone couldn't provide enough impetus.

Ever since she returned to the state after Election Day, she was never the same person. This year's Legislative Session showed her influence and interest in state matters dropped dramatically. The relationship between Governor Palin and the Legislature is more adversarial than cooperative.

Another reason might be the increasing demand for Palin to visit the Lower 48 and the enormous amount of money she stands to make. That demand clashed with her obligations to the state. Travel to and from Alaska is hardly convenient. A one way flight to the Midwest takes about 14 to 16 hours with about 2 or 3 stopovers. Sarah Palin got rid of the jet former Governor Murkowski bought so she had to rely on commercial airlines.

We will know in time all the reasons for Palin's abrupt resignation. I am sure each revelation will be another media splash.

[lifesucks]

"No one faults her for declining oil prices because they are out of the state's control and determined by by geopolitics and international economics.­"

So does that mean when prices are up, the gov can't take credit for that as well? Cause I am thinking maybe she did.

[SharpDressedMan]

Correct. No governor can take credit for higher oil prices in an oil producing state.

If she took credit for the higher prices then all the better that she resigned.

[oregonbird]

Talk about giving Palin the benefit of the doubt. Nothing that isn't DIRECTLY related to her, personally, has any relevence in what Palin does. Even when the mental illness really kicks in.

[rabiddog6708]

Palin needs to go to work for Fa.ux News because she was no future in politics.

[trisha08]

Is she smart enough to be on Fox News? Keep in mind, that is very, very, very low bar.

But her recent claim of an imaginary Dept of Law that's in the White House.....­that throws out all ethics complaints? Wow. She doesn't even understand the basics of our government.

[Whitley2009]

Liz Trotta would be walking out their door as Palin walked in.

[2876]

Fox news would tire of her rather quickly. The only thing Palin can do is read off a teleprompter. Can you imagine her off script? Lol....We'­ve already seen and heard her off script and it sure isn't pretty.