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Conservative backlash against Palin @ 1:45 pm by Eric Zimmermann Sarah Palin's resignation has left political analysts scratching their heads. But it has also left conservative activists and bloggers confused, frustrated, and often times upset. Some of Sarah Palin's biggest fans now openly wonder if she has any shot at the 2012 nomination. Ed Morrisey at Hot Air calls Palin's move "easily the most bizarre resignation I've seen, and just about senseless." Citing her lame-duck status as a reason to resign was "the most incoherent part of the entire statement," Morrissey ads. Using this logic, Palin should never have run...

Mark McKinnon and MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell share a laugh over the McCain advsior's remark about Sarah Palin.

Mark McKinnon, vice chairman of Public Strategies & President of Maverick Media, wrote a great article for The Daily Beast titled "How her mind works" about the time he spent with Governor Palin.

I have been quiet about Sarah Palin for a bit, not needing my comments count to soar into the stratosphere again, but I do want to give her a little bit of free advice. If you see her, pass this on, wouldja? You clearly won the round with David Letterman, but you were sailing a little close to the wind. For anyone, playing the victim is always dangerous, and really being a victim (as you are) does not minimize that risk -- it rather doubles it. This might seem counter-intuitive, but that's how it works. Persecutors hate real victims more...

In this defense, I will do something I try and avoid and attempt to get into some one's head. First, there is a great deal of hypocrisy in the attacks on Palin. All those that call Palin a quitter should have been equally as tough on the likes of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. George W. Bush, especially, ran for governor of Texas in 1998. Within a year, he was running for President and two years later he was president. Senator Barack Obama was elected Senator of Illinois and began his term in January of 2005. By Janaura of...

Advancing in another direction.

There are two aspects of Governor Palin's decision to resign now, which have not been competently discussed, or discussed at all, in the main stream media. One is based on the map, the other is based in American political history. Regarding the map: I have two, immediate sources to know how long it takes, with what sort of wearing down from the journey itself, to travel to and from Alaska. One is my cousin who is a leading labor lawyer, and who went from Atlanta to Alaska frequently when the Aleska Pipeline was under construction. The other is my son-in-law's...

Of all the lines of argument concerning Sarah Palin’s resignation as governor of Alaska, surely there is none more disingenuous than the “she abandoned her post” line proffered today by Donny Deutsch on MSNBC and yesterday by Ruth Marcus in the Washington Post (whose article was entitled “Big Girls Don’t Quit,” another example of the bizarre double standard according to which it is acceptable to deride a 45 year-old Republican grandmother by calling her a “girl”).

Is she crazy? Or is she crazy like a fox? That’s the question being asked of former vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin after her stunning announcement last Friday that she will resign as Alaska’s governor later this month. From the left and the right, the puzzlement is the same: Why has Palin decided to leave her office so abruptly? Republican strategist Ed Rollins, noting that “everyone is shocked” by Palin’s decision, asserts that “everyone is going to assume there’s another story. You don’t just quit with a year and a half to go.” National Democrats, meanwhile, are licking their chops at...

[C]omparisons do a disservice to Reagan, who not only served two full terms as governor of California, but also spent decades studying the issues and immersing himself in conservative philosophy. His writings and radio commentaries make this abundantly clear. He proved people wrong because they objectively were wrong. This does not mean that whenever the media writes off or attacks a conservative politician that he or she is the next Reagan **** to win and govern effectively you have to do more than "galvanize the party base" and "convince conservatives" -- you also have to convince independents and even some...

The flap with Shannyn Moore is over remarks the liberal blogger made about why Palin is quitting her job as governor ... Palin, through her lawyer, on Saturday threatened to explore "legal options" against Moore and media outlets that choose to republish like-minded "false and defamatory allegations" about Palin's resignation. Lawyer Thomas Van Flein said that soon after Palin's surprise announcement, several unscrupulous people "asserted false and defamatory" allegations. Moore is the only person named specifically.

Sarah Palin learned a lot of things in her time as John McCain's running mate -- about the savagery of the media; about the duplicity of politicos; about her own gifts as a politician. But she did not learn the most important lesson of 2008: no drama. The passing months show how right Barack Obama's critics, starting with Hillary Clinton, were about his inexperience. But his supreme overconfidence prevents the caution humility would suggest. The waves are well over the bow of the ship of state now, yet Obama's White House seems to change course almost hourly. What hasn't happened...

Forget about Sarah Palin as the Republican presidential candidate in 2012 and probably ever. She may have no interest in seeking the GOP nomination. But if she does, her chances of winning the nomination have been minimized by her decision to resign as governor of Alaska. She's knocked out one of three legs of the presidential stool and a second one is wobbly. I say this reluctantly because Palin, in my view, is the most exciting Republican figure to emerge in decades. She mesmerizes crowds in a way that no other Republican leader can come close to matching. She has...

The response to Sarah Palin's surprise resignation last Friday clearly reveals the limitations of the American political class, right, left, or what have you. There's an old academic joke, probably apocryphal, about Count Metternich, Austria's foreign minister during the Napoleonic era. While attending the Congress of Vienna, Metternich is sleeping off a banquet when one of his aides bursts in at three in the morning. "Your excellency! Count Nesselrode, the Russian ambassador, just died." Metternich jerks awake. "Died, you say? What a terrible thing! I was speaking to him only tonight... Uhh... send a message to the Tsar -- Austria...

A few words about Sarah Palin: She is one of the most fascinating women I have ever met. She crackles with energy like a live electrical wire and on first meeting gets about three inches from your face. Her instant subliminal message is: “I don’t know you very well, but I’m very clear about who I am.” She reeks of moxie and self confidence. And she’s fearless. Well, she was mostly fearless when I intersected with her. But, she was also a week out from a nationally televised debate with Joe Biden, and she knew she was in trouble. She...

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin used her Twitter page Sunday to fire back at critics seizing on her decision to abruptly resign from office this month and to rebut speculation of an FBI investigation. Shortly after lawmakers, pundits and political strategists took to the Sunday morning television talk shows to call her decision to step down a political mistake, Mrs. Palin posted several Tweets on the social-networking Web site aimed at reassuring supporters that she had made the correct decision. "Critics are spinning, so hang in there as they feed false info on the right decision made as I enter last...

Sarah Palin lacks what the GOP needs most The Republicans need a White House candidate with ideas, steadiness and the ability to unify. That's not Alaska's departing governor. Doyle McManus July 5, 2009 Is Sarah Palin the answer the Republican Party is looking for? Not likely. Palin's abrupt announcement that she's quitting as governor of Alaska may be part of a long-term strategy that leads to the Oval Office. But at the moment, it looks more like the impulsive act of a hot-headed politician who can't abide criticism -- poor attributes for anyone who hopes to run for president. Take...

Sarah Palin's decision to resign as governor of Alaska was greeted with doubts, criticism and downright derision -- not just from Democrats or the media or bloggers, but from Republicans. Critical responses to her decision came from many Republican insiders -- not just people who have an axe to grind such as Mike Huckabee and Lisa Murkowski, but others such as Karl Rove. That followed criticism of Palin just before her announcement from Charles Krauthammer and Jonah Goldberg. When talking off the record, Republican insiders are even harsher toward Palin, as Marc Ambinder notes: With a few exceptions, almost every...

Bashing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is sport for many journalists, particularly those who are perhaps bored by the summer doldrums. "She is by far the best-looking woman ever to rise to such heights in national politics, the first indisputably fertile female to dare to dance with the big dogs," writes Todd Purdum in the August issue of Vanity Fair. He coins the term "polar disorder," concluding that Mrs. Palin is surrounded by "clouds of tabloid conflict and controversy" and "has disappointed many of those who once had the highest hopes for her." Yeah, yeah. Enough already. Mrs. Palin is not...

After a low-profile Fourth of July, Sarah Palin took to Twitter this morning to decry her critics and urge supporters to weather the media criticism over her decision to resign as governor of Alaska. "Critics are spinning, so hang in there as they feed false info on the right decision made as I enter last yr in office to not run again," she wrote through TwitterBerry, a mobile device application for the popular 140-character-per-"tweet" social-networking site. The brief message, consistent with the tone of her Friday news conference, during which she condemned as "blood sport" the national political process, came...

The response to Sarah Palin's surprise resignation last Friday clearly reveals the limitations of the American political class, right, left, or what have you. There's an old academic joke, probably apocryphal, about Count Metternich, Austria's foreign minister during the Napoleonic era. While attending the Congress of Vienna, Metternich is sleeping off a banquet when one of his aides bursts in at three in the morning. "Your excellency! Count Nesselrode, the Russian ambassador, just died." Metternich jerks awake. "Died, you say? What a terrible thing! I was speaking to him only tonight... Uhh... send a message to the Tsar -- Austria...

What a shock that Maureen Dowd devoted her New York Times column Sunday to attack Sarah Palin. It did not so much criticize Alaska's governor for prematurely stepping down from her official duties as to finish off what sister snipers Katie Couric and Tina Fey began last fall. The assassination of Sarah Palin - by media. For those who didn't pay attention, Mrs. Palin's unexpected stratospheric rise as a national political figure threatened the media's preordained presidency of Barack Obama. In light of how the Obama machine took down Hillary Clinton, which unsettled many feminists who believed 2008 was their...

Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell had an unremarkable first year in office, loyally supporting Gov. Sarah Palin. But in the past year and half, a crescendo of unexpected announcements and dramatic developments have thrust him into a more prominent role, culminating with his unanticipated move into the No. 1 seat announced Friday. One day later a spokesman for the governor's office said Parnell would seek a full term in 2010. But for the next year and a half the job is all his. Parnell made headlines in March 2008 with his surprise decision to run against 18-term incumbent Don Young in...

Soon the Republican party will have no choice but to make Mitt Romney its leader. We've seen a suspiciously steady trickle of losers quietly exiting the ranks of 2012 hopefuls -- Bobby Jindal with his disastrous State of the Union rebuttal; John Ensign and Mark Sanford with their affairs; and most recently, Sarah Palin's bizarre resignation from the Alaska governorship. The only candidates left are Mike Huckabee, Tim Pawlenty and Romney. If history is any guide, we should expect some foul disclosure out of the Huckabee camp any day now. You just can't get away with saying something like this...

I’m confused by all the confusion among the chattering classes about Palin. I thought her press conference explained it very clearly – though she couldn’t put it precisely this way without sounding vain, but it’s obvious. Even though she’s just a state governor, she’s a HUGE national star who is both sought after and attacked as if she is already a president (a Bush, not an Obama). But she basically can’t participate because she’s tethered to the governor’s office up in Alaska. Consequently, she has to fight with one hand tied behind her back and she also can’t go around...

I pretty well nailed Governor Palin’s strategy when she announced. Today there is little doubt to what she intends to do: “I am now looking ahead and how we can advance this country together with our values of less government intervention, greater energy independence, stronger national security, and much-needed fiscal restraint,” the former Republican vice presidential candidate wrote in a posting on her Facebook page. Palin’s spokeswoman, Meghan Stapleton, confirmed Palin wrote the entry. One thing I did forget to mention in the previous post which is clear today - Palin is going to shove as much crow down as...

Marion man already driving around with Sarah Palin 2012 poster By James Q. Lynch The Gazette j (James Q. Lynch/The Gazette) Harlan Muth of Marion has been displaying a Palin 2012 poster on his van since last fall. Muth hopes the Alaska governor gets into the race for the Republican nomination for president. Harlan Muth isn’t organizing Sarah Palin’s presidential campaign, but pledges as soon as someone does, “I’ll be with ’em. In the meantime, the Marion maintenance contractor is turning heads with his “Sarah Palin 2012” poster prominently displayed on his van. “It’s getting a fantastic response,” Muth, 63,...

Andrew Breitbart takes on the elitist media, specifically the three female "feminists" who have been on the trash Sarah bandwagon from the beginning, and he does it with gusto: What a shock that Maureen Dowd devoted her New York Times column Sunday to attack Sarah Palin. It did not so much criticize Alaska's governor for prematurely stepping down from her official duties as to finish off what sister snipers Katie Couric and Tina Fey began last fall. The assassination of Sarah Palin - by media. For those who didn't pay attention, Mrs. Palin's unexpected stratospheric rise as a national political...

With respect to the rumor-mill that was desperately trying to churn out the extortion lies, I carefully watched twitter to see who said what, then doubled back doing some research of my own trying to locate the origins of the stories. Then I conducted a WHOIS search on a powerful tool I use which found the main websites linked together to one main site are all inter-related... and a lawyer/former lobbyist is the Registered Admin for the site. She is extremely highly connected - to a powerful lobbying legal firm - and the who's who throughout Washington, New York, Chicago...

There is a point in tournament poker where one player doesn't have the chips to play out the next raise, but they have great cards, so they call "all in." At that point, nobody can raise them and the hand gets played out -- either to a game changing win or a total loss for the person who made the call. It appears Sarah Palin decided she and her family could no longer deal with the thousand cuts, so she is "all in." Palin may well decide to stay home and make macaroni and cheese for the kids, but history...

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin made her own declaration of independence yesterday by announcing that she's resigning as governor of Alaska. It was another gutsy and smart move on her part that has confounded the experts and has many writing her political obituary. I believe it's just wishful thinking on their part and these folks have no clue what just hit them. Since Sen. John McCain chose her to run as his vice-president she, her family, and her staff have been through the wringer as opponents have turned over every rock in hopes of taking her down. Every time she sneezed...

Rush Limbaugh Comments on Sarah Palin's Resignation  July 5, 2009  BEGIN TRANSCRIPTRUSH: This is Rush. I’m on a golf vacation, parts unknown, all week long. Six cities, six courses, starting today. On this Palin business, you know, one of the reasons I haven’t said anything to anybody is I don’t know what this means – and I think all of this is just speculation. We don’t know what her reasons for doing this are yet. The speculation here and the predictions here rival some of the irresponsibility I saw with people speculating on the cause of death of Michael Jackson when...

When I was about 5 years old, my best friend’s house burned to the ground. Our family was awakened in the middle of the night and I remember looking out the window in my sister’s bedroom watching as my friend’s house was burning. Mother and my sister were both crying while Daddy went to see if he could help our neighbors. I asked my mother why it had happened. I remember her answer as clearly today over 50 years later; she said, “Nobody really knows why bad things happen to good people, but it always seems that it works out...

Of all the reactions to Sarah Palin's Friday morning press conference, the most common by far is bafflement followed by gentle and not-so-gentle mockery. Those who've long since deemed Palin a criminally incompetent Lady Macbeth were delighted to see her crash and burn. Sensing some kind of ulterior motive, one emerging narrative is that she is abandoning ship before some messy ethics violation is revealed in an effort to preserve her 2012 presidential viability. One outlandish theory I've toyed with is that she intends to build a new life as an evangelical super-celebrity, the tough-but-loving mother of a large Christian...

Once the hunted, Sarah Palin becomes the hunter. Sarah stunned the world Friday by doing something that isn’t done. She is willfully giving up one of the most powerful positions a politician can aspire to. She is stepping down as Governor of one of the most important states in America. The media elites were stunned. It was almost hilarious watching their reactions of disbelief. Their commentary was downright entertaining, and further proof that they don’t have a clue. Even those on Fox! And the symbolism of doing this on the 4th of July holiday, the time we celebrate our nation’s...

Greta will be hosting a special on Governor Palin this evening on the Fox News Channel titled: Gov Sarah Palin: An American Woman at 9PM Eastern. It appears from the preview at http://www.foxnews.com/ that this show may have run last night at the same time. I have not seen any reference to it anywhere, so I thought I'd alert those who might be interested in viewing it.

Millions of liberals rejoiced and thousands of Republicans heaved a sigh of relief Friday as Sarah Palin announced her decision to resign as Alaska's governor. In her usual forthright manner, Gov. Palin made clear that she was not content to squander her time on 'politics as usual'. Here, here. Sarah Palin has withdrawn from the arena she describes as "superficial wasteful political blood sport." She, like millions of Americans, is tired of 'politics as usual'. On Saturday, Palin issued a message on social networking site Facebook saying, "I am now looking ahead to how we can advance this country together...

Here is video of the Fox News Sunday Panel, July 5, 2009, discussing the news of Gov. Sarah Palin's resignation as Alaska Governor. The panel consisted of Bill Kristol, Jennifer Loven, Stephen Hayes, and Juan Williams. Kristol thinks it could turn out to be a smart move - although risky; Hayes and Williams think it is a terrible decision. . . . . (Watch Video)

On Fox News Sunday this morning, Weekly Standard editor, and FNC contributor, Bill Kristol predicted Sarah Palin’s path to the White House in 2012. He predicted that Palin would become a leader of conservatives, the leader of the GOP, and then president, just like Obama did. According to Kristol, Palin is just like Obama. Here is the video courtesy of Think Progress: (VIDEO AT LINK) Kristol said, "Barack Obama ran for Senate in 2004, was elected to the Senate and the moment he was sworn in began running for president of the United States. He had no Senate leadership record...

There is something about a Down syndrome child in plain view which has exposed the moral and emotional bankruptcy of the left-wing of the Democratic party. And they hate Sarah Palin because deep down, they hate themselves for being who they are. I don't know why Sarah Palin resigned, what her plans are, or whether she has or wants a political future. I do know why the left hates her so much. And it keeps coming back to Trig. Yes, some people hate Sarah Palin because she doesn't have the traditional pedigree, she isn't one of them, she is too...

Alaskan Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, who will succeed Gov. Sarah Palin after she leaves office this month, called Palin Alaska's greatest gift to the United States on Saturday. "I was very surprised at first," he said of Palin's decision to resign, which he said she told him Wednesday. "But then as she began to explain why she was doing it, I began to see it was Sarah Palin, once again, moving to put Alaska's interest first," Parnell told CNN. Palin, a Republican and John McCain's vice presidential running mate last year, said Friday she will step down as Alaska's chief...

As speculation swirled that her decision was connected to a pending corruption investigation, Mrs Palin's lawyer issued a four-page letter warning legal action against bloggers and US publications that reprinted the allegations, which she strongly denies. "To the extent several websites ... are now claiming as 'fact' that Governor Palin resigned because she is 'under federal investigation' for embezzlement or other criminal wrongdoing, we will be exploring legal options this week to address such defamation," said Thomas Van Flein, her lawyer, in a statement. He also told the Anchorage Daily News that he was unaware of any criminal investigation involving...

Here is video in two parts of Karl Rove and Mike Huckabee on Fox News Sunday, July 5, 2009, reacting to Gov. Sarah Palin's Resignation as Alaska Governor. They were also joined by Alaska Lt. Gov. Parnell, who will become Governor when Palin leaves office on July 26. Rove believes Palin has hurt herself with the resignation, and Huckabee thinks it is a very risky move. Huckabee believes she has now opened herself to the attack that if she can't handle the political attacks as Governor and stick it out, how could she handle the Presidency? . . . ....

The Simi Valley Club is having a 50th Anniversary Gala. Here is the data: Guest Speaker GOVERNOR SARA PALIN When: Saturday, August 8, 2009: 5:30 p.m. Cocktail Reception and Tours 6:30 p.m. Dinner Where: Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum 40 Presidential Drive Simi Valley, CA COCKTAIL ATTIRE - NO CHILDREN UNDER 12 $150 PER PERSON UNLESS YOU ARE A MEMBER OF THEIR CLUB REPLY BY JULY 20, 2009 WITH PAYMENT MAKE CHECK PAYABLE TO SVRWF RESERVATIONS NON-REFUNDABLE

Eight days before the election, I spent 20 minutes alone with Sarah Palin on her campaign bus between rallies in Leesburg, Va., and Fredericksburg, George Washington's childhood home. Our encounter brought to mind a crusty Texas editor's description of politicians who didn't know what they didn't know: Delusions of adequacy. By then, John McCain's handlers were so spooked by the disastrous Katie Couric interview they'd hermetically sealed his running mate from media interrogators. But Tucker Eskew, the savvy Republican operative running her road show, graciously offered some "face time" - if our conversation was off the record. Reluctantly, I took...

As Gov. Sarah Palin blasted the media Saturday in a tough Facebook post, her attorney delivered a strong warning to news outlets that they should not report any stories that allege the Alaska governor is leaving office because she is under any kind of federal investigation. CNN has not reported these allegations were in any way connected to the governor's decision to leave office early. "To the extent several websites, most notably liberal Alaska blogger Shannyn Moore, are now claiming as 'fact' that Governor Palin resigned because she is 'under federal investigation' for embezzlement or other criminal wrongdoing, we will...

Martina McBride, 1993 (Independence Day) "Let freedom ring. Let the rightious sing. Let the whole world know that today is a day of reckoning." Governor Sarah Palin shocked the world on a beautiful Friday afternoon in Alaska. Political gurus don't understand why she did what she did. What is the strategy behind this political move. Why would a popular 45 year old Governor walk away from her term with 18 months left. Early questions ranged from "Is she sick ?".."Is she under investigation from the FBI ?" or.. "Is she finished with politics ?" My theory is. YES, she is...

Here is video of Republican strategist Mary Matalin saying she believes Gov. Sarah Palin's resignation announcement is a "brilliant" move that will rally many supporters around the nation in her defense. Matalin says she believes this assuming there is no scandal behind the decision, which she does not believe exists. . . . (Watch Video)

Here’s a quick round-up of some more reactions. Ann Coulter is her usual brilliant self:

Ms. “You Betcha” really outdid herself Friday. In a breathless, rambling, manic and, let’s be honest here, downright nutty address outside her Wasilla home, the self-described “pit bull with lipstick” shocked and amused the political world by announcing she’s quitting, mid-term, as Alaska’s governor. Why?