My Thoughts on Governor Palin

I want to start by saying that I am a fan of Governor Sarah Palin. I am one of those people who thinks that Sarah Palin has a bright future in politics outside of Alaska if she decides to pursue it. While I think that she probably didn't have enough experience with some of the issues that come up in a presidential campaign, I also saw that she was a quick learner. She more than held her own in the debate with Senator Biden, especially since she didn't have the luxury of having the media cover for any gaffes, like they did for him (e.g. France and the US kicked Hamas out of Syria? When?) Unfortunately, in today's business of "gotcha journalism" you have to figure out how to say the equivalent of "I don't know but I assure you that I will" without actually saying those words.

I also think the McCain campaign did her no favors, particularly in the national security/foreign policy area, by insisting that being commander in chief of the Alaskan National Guard gave her foreign policy experience. To me, it would have been better to point out that until Barack Obama made his European tour this summer, he hadn't met a foreign leader either. And if Barack Obama felt so sure of his foreign policy credentials, why did he feel the need to choose Senator Biden as his running mate, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations committee? Also, Harry Truman, Calvin Coolidge, and Teddy Roosevelt had limited foreign policy when they were Vice Presidents and they turned out okay.

But I digress and we could discuss the errors of the McCain campaign ad naseum but we will not do it in this post.

When I glanced at the "Today" show this morning, I caught a few moments of Matt Lauer's interview with Governor Sarah Palin and her family. The tone in the interview was much more respectful than what was shown towards her on the campaign trail. Now that the election is over, I suspect that the main stream media are feeling guilty for treating her badly and are trying to make some kind of amends. I think they know that they have lost credibility with half of the American people. I also think they know she is a ratings goldmine and they want those numbers, especially given how their viewership keeps eroding quarter after quarter.

The tone of the interview made me curious about Greta Van Susteren's interview with Governor Palin as well. So I went and watched all four parts of it here. I would urge you all to do the same.

One of the things that I took away from that interview is that Sarah Palin has thick skin. The media treatment of her was downright sexist and totally disgusting. We got a glimpse of that treatment during the Democratic primary when we witnessed how the media treated Hillary Clinton. But it was open season on Sarah Palin. I think if I had woken up every morning for the last nine weeks and read nothing but the worst lies and terrible stories that misrepresent my positions, not to mention the ad hominem attacks put out by bloggers, the main stream media, and bloggers working for the main stream media (Andrew Sullivan, I'm looking in your direction), I would have eventually gone postal on someone.

Governor Palin also made the point that if people wanted to know the truth about something, they could have asked her. Instead, the media would put out a story to misrepresent her position (e.g. that she slashed funding for unwed mothers) without bothering to correct it later (she actually increased funding by threefold rather than fivefold). I did notice this through out the campaign and that's when I firmly started to believe that the media had crossed a line. They were no longer interested in the facts or her record. They simply did not want anyone to stand in the way of Barack Obama's election.

Another example that the media ignored during the campaign, but one that I thought showed good judgement, was a bill she vetoed in Alaska that would have denied benefits to partners of gay state employees. Sarah Palin is against gay marriage but for civil unions. One would think that she would have signed the bill no questions asked, considering her personal stance. However, the question she asked the Attorney General when the bill came to her was 'is this constitutional?' It didn't matter whether she agreed with it or not, it mattered to her whether it was in violation of the Alaskan Constitution or not. This shows to me that she is less interested in pushing a personal agenda and more interested in governing according to the law.

Personally, I think if more politicians took that cue, we'd be a lot better off as a country. Then again, I think most politicians think that the US Constitution is something that can be championed when it supports their point of view or ignored when it conflicts with their point of view. It's nice to see Governor Palin isn't one of those people.