This has been around a while (probably NSFW), but I thought it would be nice to trot it out in honor of your moose-hunting, lipstick-on-a-pit-bull, serial dissembler and 2012 Republican Presidential candidate's book tour! That's right-- the whole nation is GOING ROGUE!
To me, the most fascinating thing about Palin is how she blurs the line between politics and celebrity. Certainly it seems she has no taste for the more mundane aspects of governance, but at the same time she remains firmly planted in the political realm (see NY-23 and the Hoffman affair). She's actively positioning herself as a media celebrity (book tour, TV and speaking engagements, and a reported talk show in the works) and indeed some of her behavior over the last few months is indicative of someone who is more of a GOP rabble-rouser than a serious political candidate. From the public sparring with Levi Johnson (a.k.a. Ricky Hollywood) to the shameful propagation of the "death panel" meme, to the Letterman hisitronics, she's been seeming more Glenn Beck than Ronaldus Magnus these last few months.
But for those of us who would like to see her fade off into the sunset, or at least into the 3-6 pm time slot between El Rushbo and the newly-liberated Lou Dobbs, I fear disappointment looms.
For it is exactly this media circus atmosphere from which she draws her support. More than any other current politican, Palin creates this intensely emotional reaction amongst her followers. Without being in the spotlight, without sparring with media "elites", without pundits around to say mean things about her she loses the sense of being the underdog and the sense of martyrdom at the hands of the LIBERAL MEDIA that engenders such a powerful reaction among her followers and serves to deflect attention from some of her more glaring political shortcomings. Its no surprise to me that her numbers have dipped a little in the last few months as she has been out of the public spotlight.Thus her shaky relationship with the truth is no real detriment among those who love her. If anything, pointing out she is being less than forthcoming serves to harden her support among those who do like her, as it merely plays into the "media-trying-to-keep-me-down" meme that is her bread and butter. She's truly taken Karl Rove's lessons to heart-- while we're all busy trying to live in our reality-based world, she's out there creating her own, in which she doesn't fire state troopers to settle personal scores, meets with Russian trade delegations, didn't want the bridge to Nowhere, never went through a clothing audit-- the list goes on and on. Saying these things doesn't hurt her at all as long as she remains at the forefront. She needs the spotlight and in the spotlight she will remain. Even so, she's quite cunning and calculating and seems wired to go for the jugular. I mean think about it-- did anyone in your high-school class have the nickname "Barracuda"?! Even if I'm not particularly scared by her, if I were Mitt Romney I sure as hell would be quaking in my mittens. She will crush that namby-pamby like a bug under her jackboot.
My prediction for her is that she will not attain national political success-- but she will point the way towards an eventual right-wing-extra-teabaggy resurgence. As such, the whole circus remains worth watching. I'd be interested to hear what the red-meaters think... comment below!
On a final note, you Larry King fans out there might notice some similarities between Palin's media strategy and this young lady's.
Palin/Prejean '12!
