Palin 2012?

Barack Obama will be elected the 44th President of the United States on Tuesday, and jockeying for inside position to become the Republican Party’s 2012 nominee will begin Wednesday morning. As a diehard Republican, I don’t understand why my party seems to be drawn to those who are common and folksy. Should we not instead be striving for greatness? Republicans talk about the horrible state of education in this country, yet vilify leaders who have achieved great things. Should we discourage parents from inspiring their children to attend Harvard or Princeton? I worry that as America faces bigger challenges and greater obstacles than at anytime in recent memory, the GOP will nominate another fruitless leader in four years.

At this time of impending difficulty, do you think that attending four colleges in five years to earn a journalism degree and being mayor of a city with the population of two average-sized California high schools prepares you to be President of the United States? I think not. Governor Sarah Palin brushes off her lack of intellect and plays up her desire to be seen as a common person and “hockey mom.” She claims that her experience as Governor of Alaska has proven her ‘instinct’ to make tough decisions. There are 300 million people in the United States. Shouldn’t we be able to elect someone who has both? I am not suggesting that the President needs a PhD, but we should elect people with gravitas. Unfortunately, Democrats know it when they see it and Republicans tend to mock it when they do.

Regardless of the outcome of Tuesday’s election, Palin will surely challenge Governors Mitt Romney and Bobby Jindal for the Republican nomination in four years. Let’s compare –Romney ran the most successful private equity firm of all time and delivered healthcare to every citizen in Massachusetts, Jindal helped lead the Department of Health and Human Services and was in charge of the Louisiana State School system, and our current Vice Presidential nominee shoots moose and spends $150,000 on wardrobe additions.

Palin is attractive, ambitious, and conservative, but completely inexperienced on the national and international stages. With President Obama running what is likely to be an enlarged government that spends more on social programs than ever, four years from now the GOP will likely turn to the most anti-government, anti-Washington candidate since Barry Goldwater. Palin is loved by talk radio and Fox News conservatives because of her pure conservative beliefs. As a former Vice Presidential nominee, she will be the best-financed candidate other than Romney and will be anointed by energy interests threatened by Obama’s green initiatives. She draws Obama-size crowds and will appeal to rural voters in the Iowa Caucuses and South Carolina Primary.

My party needs a reality check. We must strive for excellence – not mediocrity, and recognize leadership – not simply familiarity. America has some ominous years ahead, and if we are going to continue to be the last, best hope of the world, voters need to choose the smartest, most experienced, most capable, and outstanding leader they can find, not the person most like their coworker or next door neighbor. Voters may feel they can relate to Governor Palin, but would you want to elect your next door neighbor as Vice President of the United States? I surely would not.