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Fear Factor: Sarah Palin and 2012

Recently, I attended the Conservatives for Palin, and I gained some insight I think conservatives want to consider moving forward. The group was not like any I have ever known. There were all kinds of people there—Christians, Jews, Hindus, women, men, black, white, Asian, and even Nordic! They were gay, straight, old, young, republican, democrat, libertarian, and independent, and they all had one thing in common…they believe the stringent adherence to the US Constitution is the answer to the problems we have today.

Even if they are quiet, there are those conservatives who struggle with a female president. Dr. Dathan Paterno, noted psychologist and author says the reality is, that there WILL be a woman president in the near future—that it is in the American psyche. What happens if conservatives choose NOT to nominate Sarah Palin? Certainly the liberals will nominate a woman soon, and then they continue the whining about sexism that has worked for them for so long.

Liberals and establishment politicians of all parties seem to have a special venom for the former Governor of Alaska. If she is really so “unelectable” then why all the fuss? “Thou doth protest…”. If she is really so laughable, then why do the jokes about her keep falling flat? Could it be that they obsess about her for the psychological reason that they can’t stand the threat she poses to them? Could it be because they see her as the greatest threat in recent history to their personal goals, and the establishment media and messaging they have used to control politics in this country for a generation? Could it be that the nomination of Sarah Palin for President is a revolution?

Her nomination presents a real conundrum for liberals and establishment parties of all stripes. If the Republicans nominate Sarah Palin, how will the liberals continue to accuse the right of being sexist? Where will the feminists go to find their beloved glass ceiling victim status? If she has outspoken gay supporters who don’t disagree with her stance that this is a Judeo Christian republic with a founding document that matters more than someone’s sexual preference, then how will the militant gays continue to relegate Christians to radical, homophobic, hating extremists? If a family woman, a mom, can (based on her Christian principle) in fact love someone that the liberals say she hates, then what do liberals do with that? If the constitutional conservatives progress this nation to nominate the first female nominee for president, then how do liberals continue to abuse labels like “progressive” and “tolerant”?

Conservatives have their own issues. First, from a GOP perspective, consultants use their experience with the apparatus to be hired by candidates to run their campaigns. How will they do that if someone climbed to the top on a different tree? Some conservatives may struggle with her rebuke of legalistic philosophy in lieu of one that favors real liberty, and Christ-like love, even for those who live or believe differently than you. Perhaps most difficult for some conservatives to admit–When a woman like Sarah Palin is President, how to we reconcile our own sideline behavior without tremendous guilt? I wish I had a good answer to that last one.

The militant liberals don’t like her, but interestingly she has attracted a broad group of people who do like her. Their loyalty has resulted in an organization that is so talented and proficient, it is difficult to comprehend, even to a seasoned campaign veteran. Her supporters are constitution loving, focused and very, very serious about supporting her (or whomever she taps with her magic winning wand)! Not everyone at the Conservatives for Palin were certain she would run, or that she should, but almost all that I talked to agreed that if she did run, the Country would be shocked at her savvy and self deprecating ability to do so. They all agreed that she is far stronger, far more capable than any of her opponents even know. She is certainly well vetted, beyond that of any other candidate. Most people would agree that no other candidate has endured the ridicule and jabs that Sarah has overcome.

Her critics say she does all she does for money, but with two books and a television show, that argument doesn’t hold any more water than the fame argument, or the power hound. She just won 71%+ of the elections she touched, and many were considered “unwinnable.” She has become a culture icon of sorts. She could take her lipstick, shoes, glasses, mama grizzly, and even barracuda labels, and she could probably start a fashion line and retire to an Alaskan island with a lovely view of Russia.

The liberals have always underestimated Governor Palin and she has continued to shock them as she seamlessly wins elections like a political Houdini of sorts.

All of the accusations about her motives tend to leave the listening public with one logical conclusion: She must be in this because she believes in what she is doing, and genuinely cares about this Country. That is not a half bad motive by most peoples’ standards, and it is hard to argue otherwise and sound rational.

If Sarah Palin runs and wins, it will certainly be a political analyst’s dream to observe. Fear is not a factor for the Palins, and they seem to enjoy the challenge of overcoming all the predictions about their family. They might just shock us again in the weeks to come–and the ones after that.

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