And Now, A Word From Sarah Palin…
by Ruth Ann Harnisch on 07/03/09 at 4:35 pm
When I heard that Sarah Palin was turning over the keys to the Alaska governor’s office to her lieutenant, I couldn’t help wondering what she was seeing from that famous front porch.
Health crisis? Another out-of-wedlock pregnancy in the family? Burgeoning scandal about to hit the fan? Time will tell, but if I were to bet money today, it would be on this: Fox News has made the sassy superstar of Republican politics an offer she can’t refuse. If I were in her mukluks, I’d be all over that like white on snow.
I posted my guess on Twitter, saying that I thought the Murdoch machine had dangled Oprah-type money, plus the promise of a 24/7 platform from which she can energize the base for a few years. I suggested that the Fox GOP cheerleading squad could rah-rah-rah around the clock until she resigns to run for president. (OK, I didn’t say exactly that, given the 140 character limit, but you get the idea.)
On Fox, she would have a happy home from which to develop her policy skills, bone up on the basics of the Constitution, capitalize on her people skills, while enjoying the perks of celebrity with nobody complaining about the cost of her wardrobe.
Instant pundits are saying it’s a stupid move if she wants to be president, but I think it’s smart.
Given her capabilities and her flaws, it’s smart to get out of public office right now. While she’s a servant of the people, she is held to a standard of accountability which has been a challenge for her to meet. And she is constrained from attacking her attackers – a governor’s standard of conduct is different from that of a talk-show host.
Palin has been vocal about being attentive to the doors that God opens for her, and this could be a big ‘un. Rush Limbaugh is the most powerful spokesperson for the GOP, and she knows she’s at least that credible, has at least that much charisma, and is a whole lot more attractive and likeable.
It’s much harder to be a good public official than it is to be a good “personality.”
She can probably make tens of millions of dollars in appearance fees, book deals, television deals, radio deals, licensing deals (the Official Sarah Palin Doll! Pull the string and it says “You Betcha” and winks!), and let’s face it: she does have a lot of mouths to feed.
She can have a full-time promotional machine at Fox, paid for by others, without having to make a single fundraising call (except possibly to her agent). She can build her fan club, champion her causes, and become an even bigger cult figure than she already is. Heck, even if there IS a scandal brewing, a television home would be a wonderful place to fight it out – she’ll be in the public eye anyway. Might as well have a cable network on her side.
It shouldn’t take long for the real reason behind her resignation to be known. What’s YOUR best guess? Earliest timestamp on the most accurate explanation for Sarah Palin’s early exit gets a $500 Amazon gift certificate. If you agree with me and we’re right, guess the date her Fox contract will be announced. Earliest timestamp on the correct date wins.
The old newshound in me is so curious – what does Sarah see from that front porch of hers?
21 Comments
Dorothy Siminovitch
Jul 3rd, 2009
Thank you for making me laugh out loud.
Dayna Heit
Jul 3rd, 2009
I absolutely think you are correct. I think the offer will come on July 27 at 9:00 am.
Stephen Fairley
Jul 3rd, 2009
Ruth Ann,
Great insight, as usual. Let’s see what she does next.
-Stephen Fairley
Twitted by AKatcher
Jul 3rd, 2009
[...] This post was Twitted by AKatcher [...]
Joy M.
Jul 3rd, 2009
Ruth Ann,
Good guesses but mine is that she knows one of the investigations has something on her and will be exposed soon but not immediately. Or there is another unexpected Palin family pregnancy. Or she is running off with Greta
Either way I think 2012 is definitely out!
Sam
Jul 3rd, 2009
I think you’re right AND the task of governing Alaska has become just too difficult. She has nothing to gain, politically, from staying there. She knows the problems are becoming more entrenched, and she is not capable of solving them.
What will it be? A California-style budget crisis? Detroit-style corruption? Just general mismanagement disasters?
I can’t tell. But I’ll go out on an uneducated limb, for 500 bones. I think that in about a year Alaska will be billions of dollars in debt and five more ethics complaints will be made public in the next 2 months.
Jason
Jul 3rd, 2009
I think you’re right, so I’ll play:
August 10th, 7:30am
Joy Haynes
Jul 3rd, 2009
Great guess and rationale! I think you are correct. I think the announcement will be August 14 at 9:00 a.m. CST
Arjun Singh
Jul 3rd, 2009
Maybe she just wants out of it all. If she does want to stay in, I gotta say she would make a pretty strange commentary with all the “nahs” and “gollys” and “shucks”. Its possible that the media elites would look down upon her. On the other hand, she may be a huge hit with many folks who don’t connect with the usual pundits.
Richard Fallin
Jul 3rd, 2009
I think you are right and my date is August 7th. I hope I win.
Harold Grimes
Jul 3rd, 2009
I think she will become a community organizer for the entire country.
Linda Ballew
Jul 3rd, 2009
After listening to her breathless tirade, it seems she’s running from one position to another.
If it’s Fox, my bet is sooner than later – say – July 15. She’s too accustomed to running the game to “pass the ball” – unless she’s been invited move up to a gazillion dollar pro team…
Stephen Fuchs
Jul 4th, 2009
My thoughts too, Ruth Ann
Jack Waters
Jul 4th, 2009
I agree with you, so my guess is August 3 around 11 am
Rosemary
Jul 4th, 2009
Hmm, wouldn’t it make sense to wait until after the Labor Day holiday when DC opens for biz again? I’ll guess September 7 at 9:00 a.m. Wink to the kindergarten girl who knows that date and time oh so well.
Liz Toole
Jul 6th, 2009
Ruth, I couldn’t help smiling as I read your prediction. I agree with you. I also agree that she would be a fool not to take an offer from Fox. Celebrities can carry their own agenda and this will benefit her in years to come if indeed politics are her desire. I think she should go for it while she is still on the minds of the American public.
I think you will see FOX announce a contract August 1st. Then you will see her come to life in September! Have a great day from your Canadian friend!
The Palin Ploy: My Respectful Dissent to “Another Dead Horse” | thelobbyist
Jul 7th, 2009
[...] on her post July 29th. I can’t take credit for that prognostication. That belongs to Ruth Ann Harnisch. But my conjecture remains that there is a strong possibility that this exit is simply based on a [...]
Doug Liser
Jul 11th, 2009
I completely agree with you and have been telling friends that since the announcement. There’s another angle that promotes the Fox hypothesis: both the Clinton camp and several “adult’ GOP members are very close with Rupert. Neither power base base in cares to see Palin in front of crowds of 30,000 chanting “we hate Obama – that damn Socialist” for different reasons. Palin is an unmanageble force and parking her at Fox where their friend is her boss provides a lot of safety going into the next election cycle.
Plus Rush is eating Fox’s lunch and Fox needs her now.
random
Jul 21st, 2009
sarah palin is an aging beauty queen. like all queens, she needs attention. she may have been promised and lured with all kinds of offers, but the bottom line is she has an insatiable appetite for attention. she’s like a kid who doesn’t differentiate between bad and good attention. her level of understanding of anything at all is so low i can’t believe for a minute that the gop really would put her on another ticket. that doesn’t stop them from using her from now ’til then as an attention getter for the gop. and of course it certainly doesn’t stop fox or anyone else from offering her big bucks to be stupid in public. as we’ve seen these past many years, stupid tv pays. people like watching stupid tv personalities. makes them feel more intelligent. if she’s being offered money to host a show or do any other tv thing, it’s a case of the network banking on her draw. jeez, i’d watch her from time to time just for the comedy. and i can’t wait for the ongoing fodder handed over on a silver platter to the amazing and wonderful TINA FEY!
here’s my real idea: gop will benefit from boosting sarah palin until she self-destructs. then they’ll look smart when they drop her off on a side road and proclaim their superiority for noticing how very insane she is!
Alice C. Burr (MacKearnin)
Aug 10th, 2009
She might be moving….so she can see Washington D.C. from her porch!
Linda Just
Oct 5th, 2009
Ruthie – right on about Palin writing a book or whatever as for a news position? Well, sounds like a fun contest…let’s see…how about just before election day? Which one, umm, how about Nov 7 2009? I got married on that day once.
Leave a Comment