Posted on 08/30/2008 12:31:59 AM PDT by grey_whiskers
I was at the Minnesota State Fair all day today, resigned, but not too disappointed, at the prospect of hearing that Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty had been named the Republican Vice Presidential candidate to run with John McCain. A blue collar, environmentally-friendly guy, pro-life, not red meat for the base, but enough (maybe) to soothe them will extending a tepid hand to blue collar voters in the industrial Midwest and Rust Belt.
Imagine my surprise, when, after wandering around the fair for most of the morning, and eyeing the cheese curds, I chanced by the Minnesota State Republican Party building (not too large in this state), and seeing on a white board outside the following words scrawled in erasable marker:
McCain
*
Palin
I did a double take--I didn't bring my glasses and wasn't sure. PALIN ???
(I had seen a couple of rumors here last night, but dismissed them as wishful thinking. My own wishful thinking pointed towards FRed Thompson. More on him later.)
When I got home, and began to FReep, all heaven had broken loose. Articles on "Palin Pick Causes 'Elation' among Evangelical Leaders " -- "Choice of Palin Steals Spotlight" -- "[Sarah Palin] The Game-Changer". And the press has been having conniption fits: from Andrea Mitchell to Bob Beckel, nothing but silence, contempt, feeble jabs, and stuttered incoherent rage. Not only has the choice of Palin stopped the Obama momentum and news cycle over the weekend--it has literally turned the race on its head.
Consider the following factors:
1) It energizes the jilted Hillary voters, getting them to (at worst) sit out, and (at best) re-think their allegiance to the Dems. This will play out more in the future, as the non-hard-core Feminazis decide whether an unvarying committment to Roe Vs. Wade really outweighs all else.
2) It energizes the Republican right, who had been fearing Lieberman or Ridge. Palin is pro-life and has recently given birth to a disabled child (Down's syndrome).
3) The energizing of the base makes the question "why to vote FOR the Republicans" than "why to vote AGAINST Obama", always a preferable position.
4) The shift from defense to offense, means that the race card has been knocked out of Obama's hand. Women have a race-proof excuse to prefer a woman. And with men, they have an excuse for Palin too -- she's a hottie. (Hey, Republicans ARE the Neaderthals, right?)
5) Palin completely destroys the "Washington insider" game -- Alaska is as far as you can get from D.C.
6) Palin by her background and story, has a much more compelling "personal interest" than Obama ("I went to Ivy League Schools, and So Did My Wife, but we're victims of racism."). She is solidly, truly, earthy and blue collar--she has fought corruption and "big oil" (another attempted Democrat talking point) -- her husband is a native Inuit (another victim card), and a UNION MEMBER.
7) The viral factor. This is the same day of the nomination, and there are already a bunch of sites out there talking about her: a humor site similar to the Chuck Norris jokes, another one with an offcolor title, and "buzz". This is the excitement, the connection to the grass roots which the Obamabots have been trying to generate, but which could not be sustained by mere hype, smoke, and mirrors.
8) She has five (F-I-V-E) kids. While being governor (and now maybe VEEP). She is the vindication of every overworked soccer mom in the country. Even Hillary's "I should have stayed home and baked cookies" falls flat next to this. You want experience? Five kids trumps 30-odd years as a Senator commuting to Delaware from DC, or pissing through $50 million dollars in grant money for failed socialist education projects in Chicago. It's almost as impressive as surviving the Hanoi Hilton.
9) Yes, she knows oil, being the gov. of Alaska, and thinks manmade global warming is a bunch of hooey. And being from Alaska, she is self-reliant: she is not about to put up with B.S. about tire gauges. This is a woman who used to get up at 3 A.M. before school to hunt MOOSE. (Did I mention she's a member of the NRA?)
Cheese, Moose, Palin.
Sounds like a Møøse just bit Obama.
This is where FRed Thompson comes in. He announced yesterday on redstate.com that he is setting up a PAC (FREDPAC) to promote conservative candidates and ideas. Sarah Palin is a one-person rainbow coalition -- and she's conservative. While everyone is still excited, let's see what we can do to see that she establishes "coattails" in the lower races in this election: and then, working with FRED and other interested parties, wrest control of the party, and then the country, from the RINOs and socialist appeasers. It's time for a new conservative revolution!
"to soothe them will extending a tepid hand"="to soothe them while extending a tepid hand"
WAY WAY WAY past my bedtime.
Cheers!
Sarahlicious!
and she likes Moose stew. I’d like to see Michelle or Hillary eat some of that. Palin makes very soccer mom proud.
Well, the McCain campaign knocked Obama off balance. I’m sure the Obamaniacs thought that reactions to Obama’s speech would dominate the news cycle over the weekend. Instead, Sarah Palin is the big story.
There are so many story lines with Palin. She’s a mother, businesswoman, governor, pro-life, pro-family. She’s been a real working mother. Millions of more moderate or non-political women will identify with her more than they ever could identify with a liberal woman such as Hillary.
We knew that McCain was scheduled to introduce his running mate, but somehow I don’t think an announcement about Mitt Romney or Governor Pawlenty would have had the impact we’ve seen for Sarah Palin.
Stay tuned for 60+ days to see how this all plays out. This could be an election in which the running mate makes a decisive impact.
On a serious note,
Did you get to heckle Al Franken?
I don’t know how Inuits look but he looks pretty gringo to me.
Inuit grandma. 1/4 blooded.
“VPilf” - bwahaaahaaaaa! Funniest thing I’ve heard in years
I like mooses (to look at, not eat). Actually never had any moosemeat. I wonder what it tastes like.
A moose once bit her sister.
She shot the moose. "Delicious".
The same reason my wife didn't let my son wear the Obama bin Biden '08 t-shirt to the State Fair.
I did point him out to my kids from a safe distance and mock his pastel shirt, and explain what a loon he is.
Cheers!
Nice analysis. I’m glad Pawlenty is staying put here in MN.
On a not so serious note, did you try the Big Fat Bacon or the Pig Lickers? We’re just back from the Black Hills and can’t decide if we have enough energy to make the trek to the Fair. Bacon dipped in chocolate and sea salt might just do the trick. :)
We did go to the dairy building and get the malts with fresh raspberries. They were off-scale delicious.
Full Disclosure: ...Sweet Martha's chocolate chip cookies by the bucket with the all-you-can-drink milk.
Cheers!
Moose tastes alot like venison; more specifically like mule deer.
If a moose ever dares to bite me, I’m gonna have his azz for lunch! :)
The Big Fat Bacon is carmelized in maple syrup and served on a stick. Pig Lickers are dipped in chocolate. Different booths, I think. Mmmmmm...
Nothing can beat Sweet Martha’s cookies with milk. I’ll live vicariously through your experience. LOL
Sarah Palin is the best treat of all. McCain picking a true conservative as his running mate is wonderful! I can’t wait to see the Obamameister’s dead cat bounce on Tuesday. Delicious!
Great Sign!
It is seriesly hugh, and the moose and the cheese are extremely tasty. I couldn’t be happier.
That bumper sticker is great (can’t wait until the McCain/Palin sticker I ordered yesterday arrives in the mail, but do wish this one was really available!)
Yup!
Thanks for the link here from another thread. Good stuff!
I hate to be off color, but I think a lot of guys will be thinking about taking ol' One Eye to the Voting Booth.
Cheers!
I don’t know how inuits look but he looks really good to me.
Just like chicken.
I’ve have Deer stew which is really really good. I’m thinking it’s kinda like that.
“I wonder what it tastes like.”
Sort of like chicken.
her husband is a native Inuit
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Really? He sure looks caucasian to me.
i don’t know eithr but i’m assuming they have a Mongolian-Eskimo look which he is sure lacking
but..lots of folks claim Indian ancestry even if fairly scant
my wife is maybe 1/64 Creek and her brother is trying to get a distributorship MBE off that..lol
Excellent article
Cheers!
2 NE liberals vs. a guy from Arizona and a woman right accross the pond from Russia! With an Alaskan Inuit hubby.
(Do Inuits consider themselves Indians? Or an ethnic group? Or do they care? I haven't seen Indian casinos going up in Alaska, so they may not be Indians.)
“I’m glad Pawlenty is staying put here in MN.”
Hold on to that one...and tight!
President Bush snagged our Governor (Tommy Thompson) for his HHSD during his first term...and the ‘Rats moved in swiftly with little opposition. I know your State has a core of rock-ribbed Republicans in its legislature, but the rest of us consider MN a ‘blue’ state. Wisconsin is Purple...on a GOOD day, LOL! We have ‘Diamond Jim’ Doyle, a lesbian Lt. Governor (Babs Lawton), our CongressLesbian Tammy Baldwin, Senator Russ (’Me, Me, Me! It’s all about ME!’) Feingold, and ‘Confirmed Bachelor’ Herb Kohl. *Rolleyes* He’s not fooling anyone.
Yeesh! What a line-up!
It’ll take us decades to recover, so don’t make the same mistake we did! :(
Makes one wonder how much of that comes into play when a President or Presidential candidate selects someone for a VP slot or a Cabinet position. Maybe I read too much into it, but dang! I sure HOPE they consider the fact that they’ll lose ground in a particular state when they tap someone on the shoulder.
Who will take Sarah’s spot as Governor in AK? One hopes they have a (R) waiting in the wings!
No idea who is waiting in the wings in Alaska. The state seems to be a little quirky, but focused on individuals. I like it that way. :)
I am just thrilled to death about the Palin pick. My husband, son and I were returning home from the Black Hills yesterday, so I had to hear Palin’s speech on the radio. I actually teared up. Conservatism is a rare thing these days and Sarah brings it home!
“I actually teared up.”
“Conservatism is a rare thing these days and Sarah brings it home!”
OMG! I did, too! We watched it on TV at McCain HQs in my little Cow Town and supporters were leaping for JOY at this pick!
The Heartland LOVES this pick. Sarah is every woman I am friends with, every woman I’ve admired throughout the years. She is ME. (I’m not saying that in a bragging way; she’s just SO easy to identify with, and that is SO to our advantage!)
What is it, Diana, that makes us tear up?
It’s never mattered to me who was on the ticket. As long as they were a conservative, it was fine with me.
I hate to admit it, but a woman as VP means a lot to me. It’s the icing on the cake. Kudos to the Republicans for making it so.
Don’t hate to admit it. She earned it. Not like the Lefties that rode in on the coat-tails of their sleazy husbands! *Cough*Hillary*Cough*
I can see why Mrs. Palin is such a threat to Leftist women. She is EVERYTHING they fear, just as you (most likely) and I are everything that the NOW Hags fear in we ‘everyday women.’
Accomplished, articulate, ready to take up arms and fight for what’s right when needed. We love God, our Country, our Husbands, our Kids, our Community. And we APPRECIATE what we have; it never occurs to us to put our hand out!
Oh, and then we actually take action to CHANGE THINGS FOR THE BETTER, versus playing the “Victim” card or blaming others when we fail.
When we fail (and it ‘tis a rare thing) we just pull ourselves up, dust ourselves off and get on with it. No shame, no blame.
Yep. I’m liking this more and more! I think America will wake up this November. Near-landslide in the making, IMHO.
‘The Emperor’ will be seen with no clothes long before then.
And it all started this past Friday, LOL!
(OMG! I just had a horrid thought; this is how the Lefties feeeeeel about Hillary! and her defeat. They really thought she DESERVED the Presidency, though she didn’t EARN it. *SHUDDER*)
Moose chili is actually quite tasty. Never would now it was Bullwinkle ;-)
Kind of Dumb when you consider who her running mate is, and who Bullwinkle's enemies were.
But it's a Dem. Intelligence not included.
Cheers!
Diana,
I hope the Left feels afraid of “real” women, because we are legion.
Being a wife and mother is one of the toughest jobs in the world, and a blessing.
The Left tries to outsource our role and make it meaningless. I’m glad Sarah Palin has such a big network of family and friends to help her along the way. Trig is so cute. I’d volunteer to hold that little sweetie for a long time.
Pretty much sums it up.
Inuits are generally, to put it politely, “profoundly homely”.
He’s 1/8th Inuit from what I have read.
bump^ and bookmark
The gifts from the Palin VP pick keep on coming.
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