Republicans 'considering' Sarah Palin 2012 presidential campaign
Republicans bracing themselves for defeat on Nov 4 are already contemplating the prospect of Sarah Palin becoming their presidential candidate against a President Barack Obama in 2012.
By Toby Harnden in Miami
Last Updated: 12:07AM BST 23 Oct 2008
Sarah Palin - Republicans 'considering' Sarah Palin 2012 presidential campaign
Conservative Republicans are talking enthusiastically about Mrs Palin as a White house contender next time, acknowledging that if a week is a long time in politics then four years amounts to several lifetimes.
"Sarah's the one," said one leading conservative who is convinced Mr McCain will lose this election. "The party is broken and only she can fix it. We need someone who comes from outside Washington and relates to the aspirations of ordinary Americans."
Mrs Palin appears to be subtly distancing herself from Mr McCain and positioning herself for a presidential run in her own right, much as John Edwards did in 2004 as John Kerry's Democratic vice-presidential running mate.
She has repeatedly stated, often on conservative talk radio, that she would be more aggressive in making the case against Mr Obama while at the same time distancing herself from campaign tactics such as automated telephone calls.
The Alaska governor, a heroine of the Religious Right for her uncompromising stance on abortion – even in cases of rape, she believes abortion should be outlawed – recently said that unlike Mr McCain she supported a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage.
Mrs Palin has also contradicted Mr McCain on policy towards Pakistan, over drilling for oil in Alaska and on de-listing North Korea as a terrorist state. While some believe these are merely gaffes illustrating her uncertainty over policy, others fear she is deliberately undermining the Republican nominee.
She has also made clear she was unhappy with the way she has been "handled" by the McCain campaign, which kept her out of the media spotlight until it felt she was ready and then arranged a series of interviews with network anchors that turned into disasters.
Some Republicans are concerned that Mrs Palin's reputation has been irrevocably damaged among the moderate voters needed to win a general election, and that she is already too divisive a figure.
But Alex Castellanos, a leading Republican strategist said that Mrs Palin could have a bright future. "It depends if she can return to being more than someone who rallies the conservative base.
"For a while, she was much more than that. She represented Americans frustrated with failed government in Washington. She wasn't just a conservative, she was a populist. She was President Harry Truman, she was that Maggie Thatcher figure. She can become that again."
Cheryl
Whitman said she and McCain share a philosophy of scaling back the role of government. a point of view partly shaped by her EBay experience. "The EBay model is very Republican in its essence -- it's about making a small number of rules and getting out of the way while not overtaxing the community," she said.
posted on October 23, 2008 09:10:18 AM new
This "they gonna take away our abortions" or "they gonna censor books" is the flip side of the coin where people can't decide whether Obama should cure cancer first, fix health care, or cure the world's economy.
The answer is "none of the above".
You realize, of course, that it takes a war, an unpopular incumbent AND a bad world economy to make this race even close?
If Obama wins and 4 years from now cancer isn't cured, people use their $50 gov checks to pay their $500 increase in taxes and fees, etc, etc, you think he'd have a chance at re-election?
Obama was created by the Chicago machine because he was personable and looked good in a suit. Palin can out Obama Obama.
