Let’s think about presidential politics like baseball. There are the minor leagues and then there’s the major league. The minor leagues include members of congress, governors, business tycoons, big city mayors and apparently members of the Illinois legislature.
The corps of governors is one of the most productive in the minor league system, producing four of the last six presidents. But not every player has big league potential. If you were putting together a list of possible candidates for president, it would be quite natural to survey sitting and recent governors, but you would not put every governor on the list because they are not all qualified.
Sarah Palin, the soon-to-be-former governor of Alaska, fails to make the cut and I wish someone would tell her. I also wish someone would tell the news media in general because the press seems to be engaged in a conspiracy of silence on this one. Countless columns and hours of talk shows are dedicated to Gov. Palin’s most recent moves toward a 2012 run for the White House. Serious network correspondents travel to Alaska to interview her, book her on morning TV, and cameras follow her every move as if she is the next Barack Obama. Her decision to resign the governorship only added to the media attention.
I have to assume the blanket coverage of this potential candidate, with a thin resume, is driven by the need to be fair. Any other politician who had been selected to run on the national ticket, as a vice presidential candidate, is expected to get a shot at running for president and to take that shot. Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, Al Gore, John Edwards and Joe Lieberman — just to name a few.
Media Conspiracy?
The more cynical side of me thinks the press is engaged in an effort to build up Sarah Palin just to watch her come crashing down. The news media never conspires in the classic sense of a tiny group getting together behind closed doors to determine how the news is going to be covered. But news organizations and reporters do tend to run as a pack and part of the pack appears to be playing along with Palin’s taste to be a national player — feeding her ego — just enough to keep her headed toward the kill.
What separates Palin from other potential candidates is not the fact that she is a woman. There are many female candidates capable of being president. What makes Palin different is her utter lack of relevant experience and her obvious lack of familiarity with national and international issues.
Barely Intelligible
Some charitably describe her manner of speaking as folksy. I prefer barely intelligible. From day one of her appearance on the national stage, she has relied on a talking point approach to public policy. A fifth grader could memorize Palin’s platitudes and survive most TV interviews, but the job of president requires much more than that in terms of communication skills.
There is another troubling aspect of Palin’s public life. It seems to be all about her. She is always in a battle with someone. Her family, the state police, the liberal media, Washington and most recently, David Letterman. Is it really possible that she is so often the victim if she is really a leader? Or do these spats reveal a character flaw — a petty and vindictive personality — that describes a person who is in it for herself.
So let’s start the campaign for the 2012 Republican nomination right now. I can’t wait and apparently Gov. Palin can’t either. Life on the campaign trail will reveal Palin has unique leadership skills that suit ed her perfectly to be governor of Alaska.
Dean Pagani is a former gubernatorial advisor. He is vice president of public affairs for Cashman and Katz Integrated Communications in Glastonbury.
