Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Attn. Media and Politicians: It's All About Palin
Time Magazine ^ | September 20, 2010 | Mark Halperin

Posted on 09/20/2010 8:24:52 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

FROM: Mark Halperin

TO: Coastal Elites, the Media and Establishment Politicians of Both Parties

RE: Sarah Heath Palin

Don't underestimate Sarah Palin. Yes, she is hyper-polarizing: she sends her fans into rapture and drives her detractors stark raving mad. But she can dominate the news cycle with a single tweet and generate three days of coverage with a single speech (as she did this past Friday in Iowa). Her name recognition is universal.

You are right to complain that she is not offering specific policy proposals and that her inaccessibility to media outlets other than the one that pays her — Fox News — puts her beyond the kind of scrutiny and accountability we have come to expect for our leaders.

But the mistake you are making is to assume that Palin needs or wants to play by the standard rules of American politics. Or that it even occurs to her to do so. Trash her all you want (even you Republicans who are doing it all the time behind her back) for being uninformed, demagogic and incoherent, and brandish the poll numbers that show fewer and fewer Americans think she is qualified to be President. Strain to apply political and practical norms to Alaska's former governor. You are missing the point.

Surely you've come to accept the reality that as a businessperson, Palin is a genius. The gusher of revenue from her speeches, books and television deals sweeps away any doubt that she can brilliantly harness her energy, charisma and popularity into a moneymaking bonanza.

But what you need to appreciate is that the same dynamics of supply and demand that Palin has cleverly exploited for financial gain also make her inimitably formidable as a political force.

Take this weekend's Des Moines, Iowa, speech, for example...

(Excerpt) Read more at time.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Extended News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: 2010; halperin; iowa; palin; sarahpalin
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-28 next last
Comments?
1 posted on 09/20/2010 8:24:56 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

Halperin is a snarky twit. Palin says more about her policies in less that 140 characters that most lying politicians say in an hour on DeFace the Nation.


2 posted on 09/20/2010 8:27:17 AM PDT by Chaguito
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

Think that Palin is the sound choice for 2012 or not, it’s the heighth of insult to see the Times act out the part of honest critique here.

The Times is an arm of the DNC, pure and simple. Nothing they have to say is of any value on topics concerning politics. Of course that’s unless you want to see the surface of the Marxist brain in action.


3 posted on 09/20/2010 8:30:12 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (All hail Prince Skid-mark, Barack Hussein Obama, constantly soiling himself and our nation.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

4 posted on 09/20/2010 8:30:19 AM PDT by onyx (If you support Sarah and want on her Ping List, let me know!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

So Mark Halperin is openly giving marching orders to all self-respecting Republicans. Right. Well, what have they got to lose at this juncture? At least he didn’t just say: “Sarah Palin is a mean old witch and everybody who votes for her is a doody-head.”

I just love getting helpful advice from sworn enemies.


5 posted on 09/20/2010 8:32:32 AM PDT by sinanju
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet

The writer treats the crushing of Castle and Murkowski as losses for the GOP, without apparently realizing or alluding to the fact that those primaries were colossal wins for Conservatism.

If he doesn’t ‘get’ that, then he has no important perceptions to impart.


6 posted on 09/20/2010 8:33:02 AM PDT by agere_contra (...what if we won't eat the dog food?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: DoughtyOne; Chaguito; onyx

Boy! They sure get mad when the Republican in question refuses to play the game their way.


7 posted on 09/20/2010 8:34:57 AM PDT by sinanju
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet
Attn. Media and Politicians: It's All About Palin

Bob Becktel of FoxNews apparently got the talkingpoints memo. He was saying this morning that Palin is the detriment to the GOP.
8 posted on 09/20/2010 8:35:30 AM PDT by TomGuy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Chaguito

There is a great video on the page, the one with the picture that says “I like Sarah”.

The point of the video is to point out in a snarky way that Sarah is not specific and people read into her speeches what they want, but she is very clear to me - and the people listening obviously get it.

Of course, the obvious point to us, that Obama spoke for the whole election on “Hope and Change” and the common electorate never knew what he meant, doesn’t occur to Time.


9 posted on 09/20/2010 8:38:06 AM PDT by I still care (I believe in the universality of freedom -George Bush, asked if he regrets going to war.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: sinanju

Hilarious! Too funny!

I don’t see how she runs, however, until she gets her republican base poll numbers up, which remain dismal, and then the next hill is that of polling well with the independents, who will elect the next prez. What do you think?


10 posted on 09/20/2010 8:38:51 AM PDT by RitaOK
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet
First they ignore you (DONE)
Then they mock you (DONE)
Then they fight you (You are Here)
Then you win. (2012 here we come)

But the most important thing to consider is, what does it mean to win. Is winning a Sarah Palin presidency, or simply a Tea Party candidate as president? What if she doesn't run, but extracts a high price for not jumping into the race.

Gov Palin might decide she prefers the roll of William F. Buckley to Ronald Reagan. And that is the key, she has positioned herself such that she doesn't need to win the presidency to win the game. She may never be queen, but she will certainly be the king maker. She is building a machine for electing conservatives that will finally give us a way to fight the well funded RINO campaigns, like Romney, Gingrich and the rest.
11 posted on 09/20/2010 8:41:04 AM PDT by GonzoGOP (There are millions of paranoid people in the world and they are all out to get me.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: sinanju

I had to laugh at Halperin wetting his pants because Sarah got more publicity from her speech in Iowa than all the others combined at the Values Voter convention (as though he cares) about VV.


12 posted on 09/20/2010 8:41:07 AM PDT by onyx (If you support Sarah and want on her Ping List, let me know!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: TomGuy
He was saying this morning that Palin is the detriment to the GOP.

She's a detriment to the GOP ESTABLISHMENT - like every conservative is. THANK YOU goes to the TEA PARTY grass roots citizens throughout the country.
13 posted on 09/20/2010 8:42:50 AM PDT by presently no screen name
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]

To: 2ndDivisionVet
Palin is a genius. The gusher of revenue from her speeches, books and television deals sweeps away any doubt that she can brilliantly harness her energy, charisma and popularity into a moneymaking bonanza.

Screw being president. Make her the head of the RNC.
14 posted on 09/20/2010 8:44:43 AM PDT by Question Liberal Authority (Worst. Post-Racial President. EVER.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: RitaOK

It’s a long time to 2012 but I think she should formally announce and get to work establishing what she wants to do in office.

I see no reason for conservatives in this election to play coy with the voters. She should establish what she wants to do and why and start selling it like crazy—in between playing kingmaker—Flat tax, regulatory reform, school vouchers, all that desperately needed stuff, and force her prospective opponents to either agree or debate her. I want to vote for a president with a plan not just a pretty face.


15 posted on 09/20/2010 8:44:51 AM PDT by sinanju
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: sinanju

I particularly like it when they pretend to give advice to Republicans how to win, or appeal to ‘more’ of the American public. This always involves adopting the Leftist game plan to some degree or another.

These sages think that isn’t a transparent tactic. I’m not sure what they are being paid, but it’s too much.


16 posted on 09/20/2010 8:45:35 AM PDT by DoughtyOne (All hail Prince Skid-mark, Barack Hussein Obama, constantly soiling himself and our nation.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: sinanju
when the Republican in question refuses to play the game their way.

BINGO!
17 posted on 09/20/2010 8:47:23 AM PDT by presently no screen name
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: RitaOK

>>”I don’t see how she runs, however, until she gets her republican base poll numbers up, which remain dismal, and then the next hill is that of polling well with the independents, who will elect the next prez. What do you think?”<<

Huh?!

Palin’s 76% Favorable Among Republicans Tops Others in GOP
http://www.gallup.com/poll/141341/palin-favorable-among-republicans-tops-others-gop.aspx


18 posted on 09/20/2010 8:54:34 AM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet (I don't need a newspaper to know the world's been shaved by a drunken barber.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: sinanju

Best wait until after the midterms for her personal policy delineation.


19 posted on 09/20/2010 8:56:46 AM PDT by agere_contra (...what if we won't eat the dog food?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: TomGuy

Rasmussen’s new poll—showing the majority of the country in agreement with her and disagreement with Obama, her approval numbers way higher than his, and the majority of independents now approving of her—could not be more timely for this latest garbage.


20 posted on 09/20/2010 9:01:15 AM PDT by 9YearLurker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 8 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-28 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson