Anyone who reads this blog knows I have never written about politics in the conventional sense, but I must admit to being flummoxed by this one. I guess the strategy here is fairly obvious. The GOP wants to go after the disaffected Hillary voter, particularly women, who have regularly voted democrat. So they decide to nominate a woman for VP. OK, what other qualifications:
- someone in the party
- someone more socially conservative than McCain (b/c he’s got problems on the right)
- someone not associated with the current admin (sorry Condi)
- and someone who can pass the vetting process
Mix together and stir. The result? Sarah Palin. Age 44. BA Univ of Idaho in Journalism. Former sports reporter. Former mayor of Wasilla. Of course you’ll hear all this.
Now here’s the thing I don’t get. All the GOP ink spilled on Barak’s experience. McCain would be the oldest person ever elected as president. He may be in perfect health right now. But honestly, you have to say there’s a reasonable chance he could be seriously incapacitated or even die in office. This woman is ready to be president? What, did she take a class on being president at Idaho? Being Gov. of a population of 650,000 folks in Alaska for two years makes you ready? Can she name any of the leaders in China? Does she have a sense of who is likely to be the next president in Pakistan?
Just as point of comparison, the population of Alaska is roughly the same as that of the metropolitan area of Syracuse, NY. Our county executive, Joanie Mahoney, is a female republican. Why not nominate her for VP? She’s about the same age as Palin and has a law degree from SU. She was a criminal prosecutor for a while. That’s got to beat being a sports reporter in Anchorage.
But really this strategy does not make sense. Are HIllary voters really going to vote for someone who is pro-life? Are they going to vote for someone who supports the teaching of creationism in schools?
I could see if McCain had nominated a social moderate woman, someone closer to his own politics, that this might have worked. But I don’t see how you attract HIllary voters and social conservatives with the same choice. I guess we’ll see.
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Alex Reid 