John Kennedy's Father Joe had created a problem, he had ticked off FDR. That wasn't a good political move in 1940 for a young man who wanted to be President someday. Solution; young John wrote “Why England Slept.” to distance himself from appeasement and his pop. Later “PT 109” was written to make Kennedy look like a hero, the kind of guy you'd want in the oval office when the pressure was on.
George W. Bush had a problem, he was in the shadow of his Father. Solution; in 2000 he wrote (actually Karen Hughes wrote it, but whatever) “A Charge to Keep,” outlining his belief in compassionate conservatism and touting his executive experience.
Obama wrote a book about his childhood knowing his bio was a problem.
Dan Quayle wrote 3 books before he ran for President in 2000, which were so successful that he was no longer a laughing stock, but the wise old man of the field.
Gary Hart wrote a ton of books, but the “America Can Win, blah, blah, blah” from 1985 was designed to make him look like an expert in military affairs for his 1988 run for President. Hey, it was on Donna Rice's summer reading list for 1987 anyway.
“Earth in The Balance” helped make Al Gore VP so he could later provide crucial impeachment insurance for Bill Clinton.
I'm done, you should get the point by now.
Sarah Palin has a particular problem, people think she's too dumb to be President. Remember, “fair” doesn't matter, only perception. Now I ask you to imagine that instead of “America by Heart” she had written a study of the Spanish-American War. Better yet, the story of Teddy Roosevelt during the war and how it shaped his foreign policy as President.
Suddenly, there she is on C-span talking calmly and confidently to Brian Lamb about TR for a solid hour. No filter, no screw balls, no commercials, just Brian, Sarah, and TR for an hour. Pretty good picture isn't? The not so subtle message of Sarah as a modern day TR comes across pretty clearly, does it not?
Nope, didn't do it.
Kennedy's Why England Slept was his college thesis.
A Charge to Keep by Bush was ghostwritten by Michael Herskowitz and is about Bushes life and political philosophy.
Obama wrote books about himself that are actually written by Ayers. They're fiction.
You stated:Governor Palin should have spent the last three years traveling the world and writing a book on foreign policy
She IS traveling the world and she HAS stated her beliefs many times. She has also written Going Rogue and America by Heart. And she "talks politics" in both books.
The truth is that NOTHING she could do would "please" you OR the left.
JP, you argue well. Well enough to be a lawyer (and I mean that as a compliment), but you actually lost your legs on this one some time back. You're now trying to walk on thin air.
None of the people you mentioned is running for president in 2012, except for Sarah Palin and Barack Obama, both of whom have penned a couple of books, each. I asked you who among the current field of Republican candidates has written the type of scholarly tome you demand of Sarah Palin. So far, you've said much, but have failed to answer that question (Newt wrote on a different topic).
Where's Mitt's book on history? How 'bout Michele's? Herman Cain's? Why is Sarah Palin the only one who MUST produce a scholarly treatise on foreign affairs or history? Oh, that's right, it's because everyone else in the field has already proven that they're mental giants of impeccable pedigree, who possess a command of US foreign policy and history that would make Jefferson blush.
So tell me. How is it that Sarah embarrassed the entire left-wing establishment recently with her superior knowledge of the history of Paul Revere's famous ride? Not one American in a thousand was aware of that part of Revere's story, but Sarah was. And it made national news.
Yet, she still has to prove to you and those who have no intention of ever supporting her, that she meets your artificial and inflated standards.
I think you know where you can put those standards.