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Friday, July 03, 2009
Thoughts on Palin’s resignation
My jaw dropped for the first time ever in response to a political event today. I like to think that I am surprised by little in politics, but Sarah Palin’s resignation shocked me.
Let me open by saying this - I do not want to discuss the supposition by the cynics both right and left among us that the other shoe will shortly drop and a scandal is on its way. With Sanford’s and Ensign’s affairs still recent news, I understand the temptation. However, typically the resignation proceeds, rather than precedes from the scandal. That’s because scandal in politics is a simple balancing game - if the politician can weather the initial media storm (and no serious legal infractions were committed), he or she is usually fine. See, for instance, Bill Clinton and Rudy Giuliani. Unless there are indictments pressing down on Sarah Palin that have been kept absolutely secret for the past several months, I don’t think this is the case.
So that being said, the big question on everyone’s mind: why?
Seeing her children attacked by foul-mouthed leftists like David Letterman and her personal reputation and pocketbook damaged by incessant, baseless ethics complaints obviously had a lot to do with it. She mentioned both in her speech today, and I will fully credit those explanations.
But I think her action today should be looked at it in a broader context. If Sarah Palin was truly wearied by the vile attacks on her person during the campaign and immediate aftermath of the election, she could have gone back to Alaska, shut her mouth, and probably lived in relative peace. She didn’t do that. Instead, she traveled around the country and abroad, gave speeches to conservative groups, and did the “team player” fundraising type activities all rising party stars are expected to do.
This is not a woman who intends to step quietly out of the spotlight.
I think with her announcement today that her future in elected politics is over for the foreseeable future. She likely knows that - if she were dead set on another presidential run she knows she would have had to have at least finished out her term before taking a step back from the stage for a time. And for that, I am truly saddened. She is blazingly charismatic, and there are no other Republicans out there right now who can capture the imagination of such a large portion of the Republican electorate. Had she made some more good political moves, made some compromises on her tone and general approach to politics (more issue-oriented talk and less red meat, for instance), and so on she would have been to a shoe-in to be a top presidential contender in 2012 or 1016.
So, her resignation tells me that she doesn’t want to do that.
Her decision therefore leaves her in a strange limbo - she won’t be giving up the spotlight, but she’ll be backing out of any future in electoral politics (at least for quite awhile). What we have here is a very rare breed of politician - one who knows that pure political power is not the end-all-to-be-all of influence. Some have likened this to Obi-Wan’s decision to let Darth Vader kill him in A New Hope - you remember the line: “Strike me down, and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine.” There might be a point to that comparison - Sarah Palin’s charisma can still do a lot of good rallying conservatives, and it may be that getting out of office is the very thing she needs to unleash the talents she has.
I know nearly all of Eternity Road’s readers were deeply disappointed today. I was too. But nothing about her actions or words this year leads me to believe Sarah Palin is going away. I suspect she may have already lined up her next role in the conservative movement, and conservatives will rally to her all the harder. We have to remember: our ideas transcend any one politician, and we should get behind anyone who uses his or her talents to their utmost to advance those ideas, even if it means giving up power.
So my sadness is giving way to quiet, deeply respectful applause today. Sarah Palin is a great political talent, and I will trust her judgment on this.
And who knows? The Romans cherished the story of a farmer named Cincinattus, who was reluctantly plucked from his crops and elevated to dictator to save Rome from an existential threat. After defeating the enemy, Cincinattus voluntarily gave up power and returned to his farm. The fantastic film Gladiator married this beloved Roman tale to the story of a man ruthlessly beaten down by his enemies, but who nonetheless rose from the metaphorical grave to gain victory in the end.
Certainly, no American politician since Washington has really followed such a career path, but after 4 or 8 years of the nakedly power-hungry Obama and his allies, might we be looking for our own Cincinattus?
Keep your eyes on Sarah Barracuda. She’s got an interesting future ahead of her.
Comments
I trust her judgment too, and for our sake, I hope she keeps us in her future. This is not a knee jerk reaction but a well thought out deliberate decision.
Posted by on 07/04/2009 at 01:25 AM"I know nearly all of Eternity Road’s readers were deeply disappointed today...”
Please forgive me for coming so late to the discussion. But, when I heard the news, the thought that crossed my mind was not disappointment, but anticipation, because I had a strong feeling that she would be doing what she hasn’t been allowed to do up until now: Speak her mind and tell the truth to people who care about what she says. The restrictions the Office of Governor imposes on its incumbents was preventing her from responding properly to her detractors and costing the taxpayers of Alaska more money than she thought was appropriate in the attention that had to be paid to every petty nusiance suit brought against her.
If you haven’t seen it yet, allow me to describe the photo of Gov. Palin moments after her speech. As she walked away from the microphones, she wore a grin of such anticipation and relief that it is hard to describe. Something tells me that this is one “Huntress” who knows what she’s after, and has found the spoor of her quarry. And, to tell you the truth, I wouldn’t be surprised if she even cares if she becomes the 2012 candidate. At this point, I believe she is more interested in speaking the truth and energizing the base than she is in achieving the Presidency.
Posted by LizP on 07/05/2009 at 03:06 AM
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