Christopher Chantrill on Palin and the Future

Christopher Chantrill, whose forthcoming book Road to the Middle Class "celebrates the self-governing culture of the United States," is also a frequent contributor to American Thinker. In his latest Thinker opinion piece, Chantrill focuses on Sarah Palin and the future:

We know from Palin's book tour that she has a base. You know who they are because you've seen them in line at the book stores. They are the aspiring white working/middle class, the same people that turned out for Reagan a generation ago: "Ray the Principal," "Jose the Hairdresser," "Peggy the Nurse," "Bob the Cop," "Joe the Plumber." Today's Democratic Party, once the party of the little people, has nothing to say to them.

The next question is, can Palin connect with moderates?

Fortunately, there is a simple answer to that question: We don't know. We might have an idea if she were a loyal Republican workhorse. But she isn't. She's a force of nature.

[...]

If you read Sarah Palin's book and listen to her interviews, you'll know that she is hammering away at one simple idea: commonsense conservatism. What does it mean? That will depend. But Palin's record tells us that when it's time to run for election, she knows how to win. When it comes time to master the details, she's done that, like with Alaskan energy policy. When it comes to selling the public on her program with speeches and town meetings, she's been there. When it comes to getting her agenda through the legislature, she's done it.

The complete op-ed by Christopher Chantrill is here.