Kevin Drum hits on a fundamental shift (via Andrew Sullivan):
Despite all the grief she’s gotten, I continue to think that the selection of Sarah Palin as John McCain’s running mate represents the breaking of a consensual cultural barrier far more fundamental than most people realize. … She was chosen purely at the level of celebrity, and an awful lot of people seemed to be just fine with that.
I fear he’s right.
November 14th, 2008 at 3:20 pm
In thinking about Palin, I can’t help but think she represents a similar appeal as George W. Bush. Neither is/was well informed on key world and economic issues, but each somehow connects with a significant number of Americans who don’t care about those things.
The celebrity factor around her was a bonus for the Republicans. I think she was picked to appeal to Bush’s constituents, whom McCain wasn’t doing well with, as well as middle-class conservative women. The goal was to get those core groups (who otherwise might have stayed home) to vote.
November 14th, 2008 at 11:19 pm
Palin was a Hail Mary pass that worked about as well as most of them do. She was a bone to conservative white evangelicals and a clumsy attempt to attract women voters. She was probably no less qualified than Dan Quayle or Spiro Agnew, among others. When she was chosen she wasn’t a celebrity outside Alaska and some right wing circles. Virtually nobody knew who she was, which is why she got such positive press at first. But the celebrity machine took her in and made her a star. Maybe a lot of people seemed fine with that, but a larger number didn’t.
Ironically, the other celebrity famous for being famous who McCain pulled into the race announced some policy statements that were far better than any of Palin’s. This celebrity was also, like, much more articulate. Unfortunately Paris Hilton was doing it as a joke.
November 15th, 2008 at 10:14 am
One thing we can say for sure about Palin, is that she is the only one of the 4 (McCain,obama & Biden) who had a plan and determination to make the country energy independent.
November 15th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
I found it fascinating that Palin was lauded by the right wing who, a generation ago, would have told her to stay home with the kids.
November 16th, 2008 at 1:26 am
Palin’s plan for energy independence basically involved: drill, baby, drill. If this is energy independence, then it is obviously a new and different usage of the word “independence” than appears in Websters.
With Palin I honestly believe we’re seeing the ultimate endgame of celebrity and evangelical politics. It doesn’t matter to her fans how unknowledgable she is. She just looks good and has the right viewpoints.
Scary.
November 17th, 2008 at 12:44 am
Perhaps the choice “purely at the level of celebrity” with “an awful lot of people seemed to be just fine with that” is just the coming to a head of the boil of vapidity on the buttocks of American politics.
November 17th, 2008 at 10:20 am
“She was chosen purely at the level of celebrity”
How is an unknown Governor from Alaska chosen as a celebrity? That makes no sense. She BECAME a celebrity AFTER she was chosen, because she appealed to middle America.
I can tell from the gnashing of teeth from the liberals how effective she was
November 17th, 2008 at 10:26 am
Swordsman:
If you think Palin’s energy policy was only drill baby drill, then you weren’t paying attention. Maybe you can thank her later for the Alaskan pipeline that will bring us natural gas, that won’t keep us hostage to oh, let’s say Russia or Iran.
As for the failed energy policies of liberals like Nancy Pelosi who preferred to take a vacation, rather than do anything about high energy prices, burying your head in the sand and hoping it will go away is not going to cut it.
Probably no one on this board hates oil more than me, but to think we can just flip a switch and not need it for years to come is at a minimum naive, and at worse dangerous.