Call Me GOP

Kelly Ayotte, former New Hampshire attorney general, has really gotten Democrats spooked. They fear the G.O.P.’s charismatic “rising star” could be the next Sarah Palin. Rumor has it she’s eyeing a possible seat in the U.S. Senate — one Republicans are desperate to gain. Political analyst Dean Spiliotes says, “She’s young, she’s got a nice family, two little kids, married, photogenic, articulate…All the things you want in a candidate. And she’s fresh.”

But with all this talk about her personal life, there’s little mention about her political history and positions. Does this describe a sad, sad state of American politics? Do the Dems really have nothing to worry about?

In an interview with POLITICO, Newt Gingrich advised Sarah Palin on what she needed to do to make a political comeback in 2012: write a book detailing her political ideologies and experiences; become a regular TV commentator; establish a base in NY or DC; master the art of three kinds of speeches (to fundraise, “project her brand,” and campaign); and be prepared for the work ahead.

This seems like sound advice for any presidential hopeful, but the work doesn’t end there. What else would you tell Palin — or anyone getting ready for a 2012 presidential run?

(via)

After three weeks and more than 4,000 votes, our tournament is finally over.  No surprise here: you’ve decided that Mitt Romney should speak for the G.O.P.  He held a commanding lead over all his opponents, knocking out Eric Cantor in the final round by slightly more than 900.

So why Romney?

Many of you have singled him out as the candidate with the best chance of unifying the party in a way the McCain/Palin ticket failed to in 2008. Mike noted that, unlike Palin or Rush, Romney doesn’t “stir up” passion among Republicans, yet he’s often sought after as a voice of reason and intelligence.

In fact, many of you pointed to his patient positions regarding issues such as health care that paint him as a rational, reliable choice. The ideal candidate, you said, is competent, not extremist. For now, while most states identify with the Democratic Party, the G.O.P. must attract independent and crossover voters to grow stronger. The party’s looking for a more moderate leader to take them forward, and it seems Mitt is the man.

Is this an accurate summary of what I’ve learned these past few weeks? What would you add that I might be missing?

This Rasmussen report indicates that if the 2012 election were held today, Obama would face fierce competition from possible Republican nominee, Mitt Romney — followed closely by Sarah Palin. However, the president remains ahead. What does the G.O.P. have to do to beat the president if he seeks a second term?

Who’s emerging as the favorite G.O.P. candidate for 2012? Mitt Romney, a recent Gallup poll indicates. In fact, over a quarter of Republicans and Republican-leaning citizens polled favor him. What does this man offer that the other candidates don’t?

Read about it at FOX.

Mike Huckabee says that the G.O.P. needs Sarah Palin to rebuild the party because she “rallies people.” But didn’t she turn people off just as much as she drew them to her? What else did Palin bring to the Republican Party?

Well, it didn’t take Sarah Palin long to get back into the conversation. No doubt for some within the Republican Party that’s a great thing, while for others it’s a cringe-inducing resurfacing of someone they’d much rather forget.

Today, she’s on the op-ed pages of the Washington Post , weighing with her opinions on cap and trade—or “Cap and Tax.”

(Before she gets to the issues, though, she takes on the MSM: “Unfortunately, many in the national media would rather focus on the personality-driven political gossip of the day than on the gravity of these challenges. So, at risk of disappointing the chattering class…” Never mind that she’s given them a lot to chatter about lately or that one of the biggest players in the MSM is playing host to her ideas, but I guess her “many” leaves room for a few exceptions.)

With her firsthand knowledge of Alaska’s role as a current, though potentially much greater, provider of American energy, Palin lambastes Obama’s proposed “cap-and-trade” energy policy, maintaining that it will ultimately impose a tax on the poor and middle-class Americans, lead to massive job losses for those in the energy sector, and place an undue burden on the average hard-working American.

She advocates that we “responsibly tap the resources that God created right underfoot on American soil.” That means the oil of Alaska, the oil and natural gas deposits throughout much of the West, and coal from across the country.

For her fans she’s the voice of reason, a Washington outsider, looking out for the interests of the average hard-working American. She’s promoting American jobs and American energy independence.

But others are wondering how someone who’s so concerned about Americans could have quit the very job that would have let her look out for them. Or if she’s got all of her facts straight. Over at The Daily Dish, Conor Clarke calls her facts into question, wondering if the op-ed is “more heat than light.” Clarke claims that “Cap and trade creates revenue, which can be used to mitigate the costs for consumers. When the Congressional Budget Office did its analysis of the distribution of the costs and benefits of the House’s cap and trade bill, it found that the poorest quintile would actually benefit.”

Is this an op-ed from an expert or the debut of an ascendant national conservative personality?

Which brings me to some central questions for conservatives and the G.O.P.: What is the core appeal of Sarah Palin? What does she represent that the G.O.P. needs? Is it her politics, her personality, her understanding of real Americans? Because love her or hate her, she’s here to stay and she’s shaping the conversation.

Okay, I know I said I’d stop, but it’s hard. Talking about the woman can be just so…so…addictive. As reported by the Huffington Post today, “Pullin’ a Palin” gets a second entry Urban Dictionary. Pretty funny, but does she really deserve the bad rap she’s received? I’m going to pull a Palin* and leave the question open for debate.

* Old definition: “avoid answering questions directly because you don’t know the answer.”

I know I’ve been talking a lot about Sarah Palin lately — only because the story has dominated the news. But an opinion piece in the NY Daily News says that to move forward, the G.O.P. has to get over the Alaskan governor. I feel like the party has such mixed (and extreme) feelings about her. What are yours?

Influential Republicans weigh in on Sarah Palin’s resignation (as reported by NPR). Their thoughts seem mixed, too. Read what they’re saying here.