Jury still out for me on whether "our Sarah" was qualified enough to be nominated for VP. And the verdict about the Republican party becoming too populist in tone is a "guilty" one in my eyes for sure. Not that the Dems do not stand convicted of far worse crimes. But all that said, the K gives Lilla a thorough and richly-deserved thrashing. Kudos.

Thanks, Carl. I'm actually with you in not being sure about her qualifications for the job and I agree with Peter that if she wants to be viable in the future a Senate seat would help. Nevertheless, the media treatment of her was simply shameful and brought into focus the unhinged contempt our cosmopolitan elites have for supposedly ordinary folks. Lilla's own piece was dripping with a sense of superiority....and yet the view of high intellecutalism is comically superificial--the sort of thing that would make great fodder for the satirical talents of a Swift...

I trust you've both seen this detailing the nature and extent of the hoax behind the claim that Palin did not know that Africa was a continent. It seems now that SNL should be obliged to do another parody of the ineptitude of the reporters covering Palin . . . it's much worse than their first one implied.

I think she had little time to get warmed up and the way the Handlers handled here is more the issue here than her competence.




As for her future, I think a Senate seat would be the kiss of death. It will destroy her as it has done to other rising stars of the party. She should stay a governor and go a great job. And she should also start hosting semi-annual round-tables, so policy wonks and activists can meet up there, to create a counter balance to Washington hell hole known as K-Street.




I think the future of the GOP ought to be in fostering regional centers of conservative growth... to allow for varieties of conservatism that suit the different regions of the US. Its about time one gets rid of the liberal republican in the north-east and start growing conservatives there, and there are many there.. but all too often they get little help from the state GOP machine which is all too often in the hand of the old dead northeastern establishment types who are hoping that What Brooks and Frum and gang hope for will me a return to their water-down version of liberalism. The sad fact is the liberals who rule the DNC have done likewise and who want to bye the imitation when you can buy the real model. Hence the fate of Lincoln Chaffee and others of his ilk.




Ironically if one looks at How Donald Carcieri survived the tsunami of 2006 and Lincoln Chaffee did not, notice Carcieri is not only pro-life, but law and order type much to the right of the Pro-choice Chaffee. A populist swing that cultivated popularism with the proper regional flavor, may actually revitalize the northeastern Republicans. Why? Because the Democrats have abandoned the working class in favor of the professional middle class who because of the nature of higher education in America are much more liberal socially than the working classes and immigrants and given that the Democrats care more for advancing leftward socially, while going towards the center economically, the electoral battle ground should follow groups who have been ignored and sold out... not compete for who can be the more economically sound social liberal.

Palin and the conservative intellectual tradition? Cerebral contests between intellectual soldiers? Sophisticated philosophical disputes? Lack of cultural urbanity? Palin called Obama a terrorist.