I’ve seen a lot of clips of Palin pulling in the salmon nets and trying to wax philosophic about what the future holds in store for her, but Time reporters really give good treatment to the idea that maybe the last place a GOP Presidential 2012 contender wants to be is in office.
“Resumes ain’t what they used to be; they count only with people who trust credentials—a dwindling breed. The mathematics Ph.D.s who dreamed up economy-killing derivatives have pretty impressive resumes. The leaders of congressional committees and executive agencies have decades of experience—at wallowing in red ink, mismanaging economic bubbles and botching covert intelligence. If there has ever been a time to gamble on a flimsy resume, ever a time for the ultimate outsider, this might be it.”
Maybe, the GOP could use a little dose of anarchy—at least in the interim before 2012. If the republican gambit that Obama’s socialist takeover is sinking the country pays off, in any significant form by 2012, then a GOP contender might want as much distance from that system as possible. Not just whining about the politics from the inside, but getting completely out altogether.
Plus, it’s hard to be stuck with public scandal, when you’re not in public office.
In that case sharp-tongued liberal pundits may want to hold off on the high-fiving just yet. Palin’s move may be the stupidest she’s ever made in her career, in which case--she’s done for. But arguably, she may have been done for anyways, in which case going all in for the true outsider status may just be the most diabolically genius setup for a comeback in political history.