Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin would face both short term and long term challenges, should she seek the upcoming GOP presidential nomination. While it is true that Palin has had favorable results in some polls, more recently, she has been projected to do worse then Ron Paul.
While Sarah Palin is a “lightening rod” for attention, the attention bonus she receives would ultimately be her undoing. The added attention from her celebrity status would only applify the following issues…
Palin- A Failed Leader
Having resigned as Governor of Alaska more then a year ago, Palin forfeited the only government-related experience which could have justified her run. She has done little to evolve her image as a leader, and so far she made no effort to prove herself to the public. Rather then stay committed to her oath of duty, Palin abandoned her post halfway, and simply resigned.
If Palin ever ran for president, you could immediately expect her to be slammed for brief 2 year term as Governor of Alaska. How can a person be expected to run an entire country of 300 million, when that same person struggled to govern about 700 thousand?
Her Celebrity Status
These past months, Palin has done plenty of parading. Her One nation Bus Tour has been teasing the media for quite some time. Despite her parading however, it hasn’t really done much to make people think of her as a serious candidate.
If Former Governor Palin wanted to make herself more presentable and serious, she would need to stop the “tours”. Instead she would have to take on major interviews, and express her opinions in a more serious manner. So far she has mostly used “talking points” to inspire others, rather then offer serious solutions to current Obama administration policy.
She is Not Running for Vice President
After accepting John McCains offer to serve as his Vice President, the McCain campaign attempted to “shelter” Palin. Because she was the “number two girl”, some of the spotlight could be redirected from the mysterious candidate.
Running for president however, is completely different. She will be the head honcho, she will be the one who is constantly in the spotlight, and she is the one who will have to attend all the debates and interviews. While a Vice President could slip by major debates and interviews, a presidential candidate would not have the same luxury.
The Media will Chew Her up
While Fox news is known to go slightly easier on Republican candidates, Palin will be unable to avoid interviews with other major networks. She learned that the hard way.
When she ran for Vice President in 2008, Palin failed miserably in multiple interviews. One of the most notable was the CBS interview with Katie Couric. In that interview Palin claimed she has Foreign Policy experience, because “Russia and Canada border Alaska”.
As the interview continued, Palin continued to stumble. (She had no idea what the Bush Doctrine was, and she continued to stress “talking points”, rather then specific issues.)
Palin is infamous for her poor performances in interviews. This fact would only further disadvantage her.
Experience is Important
Once again, Palin lacks experience in Politics, Foreign Affairs, and the Private Sector. She faces competition which boasts all those things.
Mitt Romney– Boasts a term as Governor of Massachusetts along with many years of experience in the Private Sector Ron Paul– Has served over 11 terms in Congress, serves as a member of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and has been involved in politics for a large portion of his lifetime. Rick Perry– Perry has served as Governor of Texas since 2000, making him the longest serving Governor in Texas history.
Conclusion:
With The odds stacked against her, Sarah Palin will most defiantly not run for President of United States any time soon. However should she does decide to run (which I am almost certain she won’t), you can expect her to face all of the issues presented above.
Palin supporters should channel their energy into more serious candidates, who actually are “declared”. (Candidates like Bachmann, Paul, and Perry)