I'm seeing a governor who quit with time left in her term. She's going to get grilled for that move alone.

I'm not seeing a superb political chameleon because she isn't one. She's a God/guns/pro-lifer...how is she ever going to appear as anything but that?

She has a huge negative rating, despite the public fascination. She'd be real smart to cash in now, because by 2012 the media fascination will give way to the hard reality of tough questions. She can't handle tough questions, and I'd say she struggles with the easy ones too.

She'll have 3+ years to work on her act? That raises the question of why is she seen as viable now if she needs so much time to polish the routine?

I'm skeptical that she's even going to run at this point, and if she does she's going to get wiped out. Hell, I'll bet there are Republican hopefuls like Jindal and Pawlenty who are salivating at the thought of debating her. She just doesn't have the game for a national stage.

Small slice? Again, are you kidding? The religious right is even relooking at things. Palin's base is an extremely small minority.

Oh, and where will she find "skilled political operatives" that won't tell her to take a flying flip because, as much as they like money, they dislike having their names associated with losers even more.

Her breathless, rambling, rapid speech tells me something is up...and it isn't good for Sarah Palin's future prospects in politics.

Aren't those the people you want to have? Now, if we had nothing but elder statesmen, that would be trouble.

No leadership, because we're an opposition party and don't need it. The unity will be personified by Obama.

The GOP is on solid ground for 2010. Actually, we're on solid ground for 2009. Virginia and NJ governorships should fall our way. Just doing a little built-up housecleaning. Hell, the election was just last November.

Yes exactly, any major political party wants up and comers, and the GOP is sorely lacking in that department. That's why any "young" Republican is seen as a fresh face at this point.

Every party needs leadership, and the GOP is lacking there as well.

It's never a good thing when you depend on your opponent's failure to achieve success. The turd sandwich that GW left on Obama's desk is going to buy him plenty of patience from the American people, and if you think that in one term people are going to blame Obama for what was ailing the country when he took office, I'd disagree.

The GOP will need a heavy hitter with some revolutionary ideas to unseat Obama, and that heavy hitter is not on the current GOP roster.

The problem is that palin is a Flake. She simply is not fit for the highest office in America. It won't matter which year she runs she should not get nominated or elected.

Given the mess this nation is in Obama will be forced to make decisions that cost him supporters. Leaders have to do that. If he can turn things around soon enough then he will win back some detractors. Its a big If. But you are correct that Obama will probably not be as popular next time around.

ran against Al Gore and John Kerry.

Palin will have to deal with the Obama campaign machine.

And like it or not, they know how to work it. Maybe the Republicans can figure out how the primaries work and how caucuses work. They have about 3 1/2 years.

If she can put together a cohesive campaign machine then maybe so, maybe she will be a real tiger. A threat.

Unfortunately (for her supporters) I believe her ego is way to big to be part of a team or a machine that can be successful.

Bush "should" never, ever, have been entrusted with the highest office in the land. But he was.

Hopefully there are some people in the GOP with enough common sense to not allow their party to be an accomplice to yet another farce, In defense of Bush, Palin makes him look quite presidential.

Here is a little secret, look for Obama to have a different running mate in 2012. My bet is a woman not named Hillary.

For 8 years he allowed his cronies to strip the country of all of its wealth and credibility.

I believe you are right about Obama. He will look worse than Jimmy Carter did when his term is up, because of what Bush's cronies did to the country. There is no way the country will recover in 4 years, and already the right (with the help of big corps) are blaming everything on Obama.

Palins folksy talk will bring the electorate back to the "good old days" and she will sail into office if she spends the next couple of years getting her ducks in a row.

I so do not want her to be the first representative of my gender in the Oval Office. I fear that she will be.

Palin will have to deal with the Obama campaign machine

Yeah but Urkel and his mobsters are going to have to come up with a whole new set of lies. The American people may not buy the same old lies again.

Jack

Not sure why this is an obsession for you, but you'll notice that the Dems dropped the whole gun control issue some years ago. Because gun control is a guaranteed black-and-white no-brainer political albatross. Palin's gun stance doesn't hurt.

As to pro-lifeiness, a majority of voters now call themsleves pro-life. They're certainly far to the right of Obama on the issue.

You're right, of course, that voters can't stand it when politicians mention God. That's why none of them do it.

Will be at 10% for 3-4 years? Granted, this recession is different because it was triggered by a meltdown in the capital markets, but it is political wishful thinking to harbor the notion that unemployment will be allowed to remain that high for that long. This stimulus is already having an impact. Last January the experts were predicting that this recession would end in the spring of 2010 and now those same people are predicting the end will occur in the fall of 2009. That doesn't spell 10% unemployment over a 3-4 year period. Without that all I can see is a bunch of wishful thinking.

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You misunderstand me Urq. I'm a gun owner. I'm a 3 gun owner as a matter of fact, and my 2nd Amendment is important to me. However, I don't think it's a critical issue to most Americans when deciding on a presidential vote. I think the Divine Sarah made her love of hunting and shooting too much a part of her overall image. Not everyone likes that in a politician.

The Divine Sarah took her pro-life position too far as well, not helped by her daughter's unfortunate situation. It's one thing to be pro-life, and another to dictate your morality to 300 million citizens. Her pro-life position in all cases is far too rigid. Her preaching of abstinence as birth control, coincidental with her teenaged daughter getting knocked up, made her look completelt out of touch with reality.

Sarah Palin never mentions god? Sure she does. She mentions god quite often. She wears her religiousness on her sleeve. Why, just yesterday, in between the squawking of sea birds behind her, I clearly heard her say that she prayed while making her decision to quit her job as the governor of Alaska.

That's what I meant by God/guns/pro-life. Those are not the kinds of key positions people see as critical when voting at this point in time. Important? Maybe. Key? I don't think sio.

Moot point now I think, ...my hunch is that Sarah Palin is finished as a politician. (except in the Rush Limbaugh sense)

Here I thought you were saying that those positions would hurt her. Which they wouldn't. I would agree that they are not enough to win an election.