"Speaking of leadership, you know who I think has it in spades? Thanks, Mrs. Palin, for having the class our elected President is lacking. I think we could do a heck of a lot worse for a President that you. In fact, I think we have."- JP
This pretentious psycho-babble pseudo intellectual mumbo-jumbo incoherent tirade and verbal version of a chicken-without-a-head attack on Sarah Palin has the unusual reward of being a festival of misallocated terminology and leaving Palin with an awesome repartee of intellectual qualities we did not know even existed.Whereas Galt ridicules Valenti, at NRO's The Corner, Carrie Lukas deconstructs her argument:
[...]
Ms. Valenti says, “it isn’t [Palin’s feminism] a structural analysis of patriarchal norms, power dynamics or systemic inequities”. Wow, and we thought that Palin was a straight forward old conservative that simply arouses good old traditional hate from ‘fellow travelers’.
Feministing’s Jessica Valenti has a new op-ed in the Washington Post, and she has decreed that to qualify as a feminist one must believe that American women are oppressed.Feminism lost its way when adhering to the leftist politcal agenda became more important to feminists than empowering women. The more the feminist left uses abortion and gay marriage as litmus tests for feminists, the more irrelevant it becomes. Sarah Palin and her mama grizzlies represent the new feminism. Out with the old!
[...]
Valenti doesn’t explain why she thinks those of us on the right are wrong when we argue that American women are doing pretty well. She merely argues that we inappropriately co-opt the language of feminism when making our case.
"Gov.Jindal:to avoid ravished coast, build the berms.Ask forgiveness later;Feds are slow to act,local leadership&action can do more for coast"Updated: More from The Hill's Blog Briefing Room here. Will Gov. Jindal take his former Alaskan colleague's advice and go rogue?
While defending South Carolina gubernatorial candidate Nikki Haley from accusations she had an affair with a prominent South Carolina blogger, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said: "Nikki categorically denies the accusation that was spewed out there by a political blogger who has the gall to throw the stone, but then quickly duck and hide and proclaim he would not comment further on the issue. Quite convenient."One could also add that Sarah Palin has hired bloggers to be trusted members of her team, as Dan Riehl points out here. One could also say that the governor, when she criticizes the legacy media, doesn't digress to the point of mentioning that there are still some reporters and media outlets (though most of them are local, not national) that are fair and balanced, though they are largely a disappearing breed.
It's no surprise that Palin would defend Haley -- she recently endorsed her. And I have no idea whether the allegations are true or fabricated. What caught my attention was Palin's use of the term "political blogger" as a pejorative -- as if that, in itself, discredits the critic.
This seems to be a trend with Palin, who now mocks bloggers with regularity. During an interview on Fox News, she criticized the media for taking cues from "some blogger probably sitting there in their parents' basement, wearing their pajamas, blogging some kind of gossip or -- or a lie."
She ought to know better. The "pajamas" reference was famously employed as a dismissive insult against conservatives by former CBS News executive Jonathan Klein, who ridiculed bloggers questioning Dan Rather's bogus Air National Guard memos, saying: "You couldn't have a starker contrast between the multiple layers of check and balances [at '60 Minutes'] and a guy sitting in his living room in his pajamas writing."
In that instance, the mainstream media finally did take their cues from bloggers, and in so doing finally got the story right. The blogosphere was hardly intimidated. Out of that episode grew a conservative online outlet, Pajamas Media, run by Roger L. Simon, and Klein himself is now president of CNN, which recently hired Erickson to provide commentary.
On yet another occasion, Palin referenced "bored, anonymous, pathetic bloggers who lie to annoy me."
In fairness to the former vice presidential candidate, she has every right to be angry with some bloggers. She and her family have endured scurrilous attacks, including one from a liberal blogger who "broke" the bogus story of her divorce. Worse yet, right after her nomination as John McCain's running mate, Andrew Sullivan of The Atlantic invented a new type of "birtherism" when he went on a bizarre and misguided quest to prove Trig was not really Palin's baby. Sullivan went so far as to demand a paternity test.
On the other hand, it was blogger Adam Brickley (my former intern) who began the "Draft Sarah Palin" blog -- and was widely credited with helping to bring her, then an obscure governor from a distant state, to the attention of the McCain campaign. One could argue that Palin owes her fame to a blogger.
The Narrative is the official story about America. It is a story composed by the political left, which entered American public life with the progressive movement in the early 20th century and was elaborated in the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1930s and ’40s.- JP
[...]
Occasionally political leaders arise who go outside the official story line. Ronald Reagan was one. He was a threat, and a very attractive, genial, and well-grounded one at that. He was a candidate who had the temerity to question The Narrative. Worse yet, if elected he actually threatened to do something about it. He threatened to roll back taxes, eliminate the Department of Education, and reduce the size and scope of the federal government. To add insult to injury, he made a point of holding American exceptionalism—the “shining city on a hill”—at the very center of his political views.
For this, naturally, Reagan was vilified. His views were not merely mistaken, he personally was “stupid,” an “amiable dunce.” His policy prescriptions were not merely wrong, but “dangerous,” “trigger-happy,” “out of touch.” Thirty years later, it is difficult to recapture the ferocity of the left’s attacks on candidate Reagan in 1979 and 1980 and on President Reagan in the first several years of his administration. Here was no go-along, get-along guy, like so many Republican presidential candidates before and since; here was a genuine dissenter from The Narrative. And with such dissenters there can be no logical disputation or rational argument; their penalty must be personal annihilation.
[...]
Judging by its rhetoric, the left seems singularly threatened by Sarah Palin, but they can’t explain why. Because she’s attractive? So are most politicians, including the current president. Because she’s from Alaska? So are Ted Stevens and Lisa Murkowski. Because she lacks “experience”? So do lots of politicians, including the current president. Does anyone imagine that a few more years of “experience” will cause Sarah Palin’s critics to warm up to her? The left simply cannot supply a convincing rationale for its own mania. That a wife and mother is successful in public life and is also a conservative, populist reformer should not be possible. A political reformer opposed to the expansion of the federal government should be a contradiction in terms. Sarah Palin can undo by her simple existence every stereotype of the left’s Narrative. This creates a visceral threat. It cannot be permitted, or even laughed off—she must be destroyed. The threat to The Narrative is what provokes the name-calling and bizarrely substance-free personal attacks that have flowed relentlessly from Palin’s critics.
Maybe we’re out of step here, but the unanimous consensus of the newsroom is that we don’t really care if the Palins want some privacy from what they worry might be prying eyes.And we already know how the left will spin that last paragraph.
Fences have been known to make good neighbors and everybody knows we could use a lot more of those around here. So if the fence keeps McGinnis on one side and the Palins content, why would the “Today” show or ABC care?
Finally, those who are fond of Joe McGinnis might remind him (if he doesn’t already know) that Alaska has a law that allows the use of deadly force in protection of life and property.
"Via Facebook, her preferred form of communication, Sarah Palin takes Barack Obama to task for the administration’s delays in taking action on the Gulf oil spill and asks questions the lap dog media didn’t have the courage want to ask. But, where is the rest of the GOP?"- JP
"Dave Weigel is standing by his man, providing a forum for renowned 'creepy stalker,' known liar, and suspected plagiarist, Joe McGinniss... Mr. McGinniss has no idea who the Palins are. He is testing their ability to put up with an enormous amount of crap from a deranged old man with nothing better to do than to harass a family that just so happens to have a mother that doesn’t agree with him politically. He’s trying to see if he can push their buttons enough to provoke a reaction he can write about in his book and generate more publicity for it’s release. He is going to fail and he is going to fail miserably. The Palins will not be provoked to do anything and he is simply going to have to rely on his old method of lying. Joe McGinniss… Go to Hell and take Dave Weigel with you."Verum Serum:
"It was a foregone conclusion that his book would be a leftist hit piece, so this really isn’t a surprise. Stalker Joe McGinniss goes whining to the Washington Post... claiming that Todd Palin was mean to him"Whitney The Pipsqueak:
"For someone who threatened to call police [on] ABC reporters who stopped by his temporary home, McGinniss certainly has no problem speaking with Washington Post 'reporters'... McGinniss calling others 'obsessive' is both a serious case of projection and the pot calling the kettle black. McGinniss is the one who has said in the past... 'I'm not intending to write a salacious book about Sarah Palin's sex life. But if it's true, I'll find out.' And McGinniss expressed outrage over how Todd Palin spoke to him? With statements like that, it's no wonder that Todd took time to speak to McGinniss... It is no surprise that the Palins and their friends were so quick to get a fence built to give themselves greater privacy. Regarding Governor Palin's supposed inciting of violence? There is only evidence to the contrary! The Palin's response was one of swift practicality in protection of their family."JammieWearingFool:
"You can't make this stuff up. A deranged stalker is now so worried about his own privacy he threatens to call the police on a reporter."Moonbattery:
"Palin Hatred Justifies Everything.. You remember how creepy, stalker 'journalist' Joe McGinniss moved in next to Sarah Palin so he could leer over her family. All decent people were disgusted by this, because we recognize that a family's private home should be a refuge and a place of safety... But people who have lapsed into derangement over Sarah Palin's existence have lost any sense of decency... It's one thing to not want Sarah Palin to be president -- or hold some other office -- because of a philosophical disagreement with her political positions... I may disagree with the progressive left politically, but that is no reason to hate them. It's their utter lack of basic decency that makes me despise them."Kate Campbell:
"The hypocritical reporter sought friends for some damage control and a pal from Washington Post presents a fluff piece to try to sell a softer version of his duties keeping track of the Palins 24/7."God, Guts, & Sarah Palin:
"So, Joe McGinnis feels the need to clarify to David Weigel why he moved in next door to Sarah Palin. Uh, dude? We know why. You're writing a book and you thought the best way to come across as a serious, responsible journalist was to go paparazzi on the family. That's why. Honestly, how did you think the Palins were going to take it? The person who has written hit pieces on her administration and who has dined with Trig-Truthers moves in next door to write a book about her, and you thought what, that they were going to throw a welcome-to-the-neighborhood party?"Jamison Koehler:
"As a writer and journalist, Joe McGinniss sure has a knack for becoming a part of the news instead of simply reporting on it."Niall O'Dowd:
"Joe McGinniss is wrong to move next door to Sarah Palin in Alaska in order to gather material for his book on her due out in 2011. McGinniss is well known for pushing the envelope when it comes to his subjects. His 1983 book on the Jeffrey MacDonald murder trial result ended in a lawsuit by MacDonald alleging he had been set up by McGinniss. There was an out of court settlement. His next book on the Kennedys brought similar reaction from that clan who felt that McGinniss had greatly altered the key facts... Sarah Palin has a large young family and she and her husband, Todd are entitled to the privacy at their family home in Wasilla... McGinniss is clearly enjoying the publicity stunt but he should move along. There is nothing to see."Morgan Freeberg:
"Former Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin received a whole lot of criticism this week for the terrible crime she committed of being-spied-on."Jack Marshall:
"If you have a friend or colleague who can’t stand Sarah Palin... the Joe McGinniss story gives you an infallible [way] to gauge their ability to be fair and objective, as well as their ability to apply the Golden Rule. Palin and her family are victims of a bad neighbor and an unscrupulous, venal and predatory author. The fact that one doesn’t like certain victims of wrongdoing because of their political beliefs, their accents, or their talent for uttering simplistic sound-bites calculated to drive Democrats crazy shouldn’t obliterate one’s ability to determine right from wrong... Clearly, Joe has passed on his complete lack of empathy and decency to his son, who also mocked Palin’s objections to the arrangement... You don’t have to love your enemies, but ethics demands that you still have to respect them as human beings. See if the Palin-haters in your life can understand this, and agree that principles of justice and fairness apply to everyone, even Sarah Palin. If they can, you’ll know that their ethical instincts can overcome their biases."Lawrence Auster:
"Joe McGinnis, writing a book critical of Sarah Palin, rents the house next door to the Palins' house and looking onto their property, a grossly aggressive and intrusive act, and HE'S offended by THEIR 'hysterical' response to this move?"What the...?!:
"'Get off. You're tresspassing.' Sarah Palin to an investigative reporter? Nope. That would be the reporter himself speaking through his window to an [ABC] news team looking to ask him why he felt he needed to rent the house directly next to the Palin residence in Wasilla, Alaska... as is the way with the press in general, they just don't like the scrutiny. The poor dears... Of all the places he could live while writing about Sarah Palin, he chose the house directly next to her family residence? Why not just move into the basement? Creepy... One of the appealing aspects to Sarah Palin is the fact that she is a common person... and despite the Soros efforts to distract and discourage her, Sarah Palin takes it in stride and keeps moving forward. These clowns must really be worried about her. They just wont let it go. If a common person can't rise to political prominence, then we are no longer a people that have a government, but have become a government that has a people. "Cranial Cavity:
"Not to put too fine a point on it but this scumbag is the very same one who bid $60,000 to have dinner with Sarah. He later admitted he didn’t have the cash if he had won the bid."Right-Thinking from the Left Coast:
"America’s Leading Amateur Obstetrician — Sullivan — is trying to make Palin the villain here for posting a [photo] of McGinniss on Facebook... I’m actually sort of with Palin on this one. McGinniss gave an interview with Weigel where he tries to play this off, but he comes across as self-serving and rationalizing. He sounds like the criminals I used to hear on jury duty, trying to make everything they did seem innocent and routine. There were many places he could have rented in Alaska. Why take the home next door if not to annoy her? Moreover, McGinniss has a history. He famously cozied up to Jeffrey MacDonald to get his story even after he became convinced that MacDonald had brutally murdered his wife and kids. A lawsuit resulted, with a hung jury. When you manage to make a jury equally sympathetic to you and a triple murderer, you’ve pretty much crossed the line into the part of the map that reads, “Here There Be A__holes”. "Sen. John McCain:
"How low can you sink? There should be an outcry amongst the media. What he’s doing is just terrible. It’s unbelievable that somebody would sink that low."Stacy McCain:
"Weigel’s 'See-No-Evil' attitude toward Joe McGinniss, who moved in next door to the Palin family to work on his anti-Palin book, seems absurdly naive... Remember Jesse Griffin, who masqueraded behind the 'Gryphen' pseudonym as a vicious anti-Palin blogger and Trig-Truther? And remember how he lost his job at an Alaska elementary school after his identity was revealed and school officials learned how he’d been promoting pornography and masturbation on his blog... while being paid by taxpayers to supervise young children? Well, guess what? Joe McGinnis is a 'huge fan' of Jesse Griffin, as confirmed by none other than . . . Jesse Griffin... And why doesn’t it bother Dave Weigel that McGinniss is such a 'huge fan' of a vile joke like Jesse Griffin and the obnoxious gadfly 'AKM' (Jeanne Devon)?"Jerry Fuhrman:
"Anti-Palin Author Living Next Door Threatens To Call Police On Reporter... They invented the word schadenfreude for moments like this."Rich Crowther:
"Weigel’s fatuously disingenuous sweeping aside of the harassment which the Palins have experienced over the last 18 months, the total absence of any acknowledgment or sensibility on his part of the fact that every member of the Palin family has been hounded ceaselessly by people intent on their personal destruction, seems to speak volumes about his motives... It’s harmless enough, surely? Well the Palins see things differently, Mr Weigel. They have a different perspective, one borne of distressing, real life, personal experience. They and their children have lived through the unprecedented harassment of the last 20 months: the email hacking which led to frightening phone calls to their eldest daughter in the middle of the night; the 26 ethics complaints which stifled the Palin Administration and came to nought; the deliberately malicious attempt to cause controversy and split a family with fabrication about divorce; the attacks on their most vulnerable child; the lie that the Palins were under federal investigation for embezzlement; the burning of their church; the hate speak Trig Troofing conspiracies of Andrew Sullivan and Jesse Griffin and a notorious European blog; the misogynistic invective of a local Alaska Democratic Party office holder.... they’ve lived through all that and more, David Weigel… and could perhaps be forgiven that they seem inclined to be wary, less magnanimous than you, less inclined to exercise equilibrium. When Joe McGinniss moves in next door they don’t see that action as divorced from the context of the previous 20 months, as you appear to do, Mr Weigel."FireAndreaMitchell:
"Robin Roberts seems to enjoy the fact Palin is being stalked by left wing nut job Joe McGinniss, even saying this whole sick stalking episode would be a great SNL skit with Tiny Fey. Of course, had the same thing happened to her... I doubt she’d be as giddy."- JP
Memorial Day, to Remember Past and Present Sacrifice- JP“Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.”This weekend, as we enjoy time with family and friends, we should stop and remember the meaning of this national holiday. Memorial Day is a uniquely American holiday that finds its origins in the aftermath of our Civil War, when our country searched for a proper way to commemorate the many who had fallen in the long struggle to end slavery and unify our nation.
- General Orders No.11, Grand Army of the Republic Headquarters, May 5, 1868
Today, we remember all of those throughout our history and to this very day who gave their lives serving our country in uniform. Our prayers are especially with the surviving family members for whom everyday is memorial day, as they live on remembering their loved ones who died selflessly to protect the freedoms we hold dear.
And on Memorial Day, let us also remember all veterans, past and present, because everyone who wears the uniform and swears the oath is willing to make that ultimate sacrifice for America. So, in honoring them let’s keep in mind this version of a popular poem as we show respect for those willing to sacrifice all for our exceptional country:“It is the veteran, not the preacher, who has given us freedom of religion.(Enjoy this version of the poem recited by Fred Thompson.)
It is the veteran, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the veteran, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the veteran, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to assemble.
It is the veteran, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the veteran, not the politician, who has given us the right to vote.
It is the veteran, who salutes the flag, who serves under the flag, and whose coffin will be draped by the flag.”
- Sarah Palin
"To repeat a point I made earlier, whatever you might think of Governor Sarah Palin she's proven that knows oil and she knows how to slap oil companies around and get action. Does anyone doubt that if she were in the White House, even as a sitting Vice President that [the Gulf oil spill] would have been handled a lot quicker and a lot better?"- JP
The money helped Martinez finance a blitz of television and radio advertising as New Mexico's June 1 primary neared. She and former GOP chairman Allen Weh are front-runners in a five-way GOP gubernatorial contest, and the money from Perry came as Martinez and Weh exchanged hard-hitting attack ads.Sarah Palin endorsed Susana Martinez May 15th.
Martinez raised $721,318 during the past three weeks and spent $711,513, with more than 60 percent of that going for TV and radio advertising.
[...]
Perry supports Martinez because "he believes she is reformer with a strong voice who represents the future of the Republican Party."
The $450,000 from the Texas couple was the largest amount by individual donors to a gubernatorial candidate in recent New Mexico campaigns.
Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson received $300,000 from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and the national union's New Mexico chapter in 2002. Richardson's 2002 and 2006 campaigns set records for raising the most money for a New Mexico gubernatorial race.
May 26, 2010: Sarah’s fascist tendencies are on full display AGAIN! Now she’s gone and built a 15-foot fence between our houses. This woman’s gall knows no bounds. She has zero respect for my rights and prerogatives. I’m a member of the media, not some schmuck on the street! This kind of shameless manipulation of the press smells of the influence of Karl Rove, who I think I saw disguised as a pizza delivery guy. But she will not succeed! Tomorrow, into town to buy myself a ladder!Read all the diary entries at Big Journalism here.
[...]
May 28, 2010: Sullivan arrived this morning. His initial enthusiasm turned to disappointment when I explained that he misunderstood what I meant when I said “bear season.” He seems restless and out of sorts. First he suggested that I call Levi Johnston and see if he wants to come by to “hang out,” and now he wants to “go out on the town find us some real live lumberjacks.” I’m kind of tired and I think I’ll turn in early. Will I hurt Andrew’s feelings if I lock my bedroom door? Life in PC America is so complicated…
[...]
May 30, 2010: Bingo! I’m fast asleep at quarter to ten this morning with all the shades drawn and I hear a ruckus next door. I drag myself out of bed and look into their front yard and the whole brood is dressed up and piling into their SUV. Where the hell would a family be going together early on a Sunday morning when good Christian souls and Holy Cross graduates are home sleeping? I don’t know – yet – but my reporter’s instincts are tingling!
Left-wing, hack writer Joe McGinniss is showing signs of instability. Like a wife beater, he's now blaming Sarah Palin for being alarmed and upset that he -- well known as her literary stalker -- has suddenly appeared as her new next door neighbor.McGinnis has, wife-beater-like, told Washington Post blogger Dave Weigel that HE is the one "offended" by Palin's portrayal of HIM.
McGinniss told the Post that Palin should have "offered him a plate of cookies" when he moved in to stalk her instead of scoffing about him on her FaceBook account. He says that he was "deeply offended" at what she wrote and told the Post that he was even nice enough to shoo some tourists from Minnesota off Palin's lawn after he set up his surveillance operations next door.
Yeah, that rascally Palin is such a meanie, isn't she?
So, let's take a look at hack McGinniss' has done here:
University officials say the June 25 event has been generating interest and ticket sales in the mostly conservative San Joaquin Valley community.Curious how the critics continue to ignore the fact that the revenue CSUS will clear after expenses from the event is in dire need by the cash-strapped institution. But the left never lets facts get in the way when it's trying to tear down Sarah Palin.
"It's very clear that Palin has a lot of interest in our community," said Matt Swanson, president of the Cal State Stanislaus Foundation, which is hosting the event. "We have our usual donors involved, but more than 50% of them are new donors. It's not our intent to alienate anybody, but in this day and age, new money is the most prized thing of all."
But critics say Palin should not make the speech and are criticizing the secrecy surrounding it. The Times revealed earlier this week that the 2008 vice presidential candidate would receive $75,000 for the talk.
Cal State Stanislaus officials said the $500-a-plate event, which will accommodate about 400 people, is expected to net $150,000 to $200,000 for the foundation. Sponsored tables are selling for $5,000 to $50,000. They have stressed that no public funds are being spent and that costs will be covered by money raised specifically for the gala.
*You were probably thinking, "hey, I only wanted to move next door to Sarah Palin -- now what in the goshdarned heck is she doing inside my brain?" Well ya see, the deal is I'm not Sarah, but boy I gotta tell ya, we sure do get mistaken all the time! No, I'm just a plain ol' homunculus Sarah Palin that your own id created to sublimate your deep-seated psychosexual neuroses. Or so those egghead books say, anyway. But if you ask me that sure sounds like a lot of elite Anti-America liberal professor gobbledegook! By the way, your id says hi.You just gotta read the unedited original. Click here. Do it now.
[...]
I gotta say this sure is a beautiful anterior conscious you've got here! I absolutely love the open floor plan. It reminds me a lot of Andrew Sullivan's brain. How many square feet did you say? So spacious and clean and open minded, with the neutral colors. I could really see myself in a place like this, especially with a few moose heads and Eskimo dolls to brighten things up.
[...]
Whoa! Did you feel that? I think I felt a little earthquake! Oh -- I see. It was just you, banging your head against the stair banister trying to get me out of it. Trust me, you might as well give up on that, because it's not gonna work. Just ask Tina Fey. Say, what's this on your coffee table - a scrapbook? Goodness sakes, I love scrapbooking! It's so much fun isn't it? And such a wholesome pastime to keep American families connected. Do you mind if I take a look at yours?
Now that's different... I gotta say I don't think I've ever seen this many pictures of me in one place. And all of them with the eyes cut out! Now, maybe I never went to a fancypants college like you did, but I can tell that is very artsy and avant garde. I wonder what it means? No, no -- don't give me any hints! Is it some kind of latent pathological response to the struggle between your libidinal and destrudinal impulses?
Are you okay? You don't look so well...
"Joe McGinniss should not be living next door to Sarah Palin... This feels like a publicity stunt —- a brilliant one, to be sure, but not a mark of serious journalism... It is bad for journalism. It plays right into the hands of the many people -—including Sarah Palin, who [are] shrewdly ridiculing McGinniss -— with an interest in portraying reporters as creeps with no sense of decency. Journalism faces a credibility crisis, and reporters' motives are under attack by outlets like Fox News, Media Matters and a thousand merciless blogs. Joe McGinniss's very clever but utterly hollow stunt, it seems to me, exacerbates that problem."Vicki McClure Davidson:
"Double standard from liberals on lawlessness and invasion of privacy… no surprise."Gary P. Jackson:
"We have talked about the fact that McGinnis has been stalking Sarah for some time. We talked about his bidding $60,000 to have dinner with her. What we failed to mention is the fact that he pursued her on her book tour. McGinnis 'broke' the story that Sarah Palin, as shocking as it sounds, flies on airplanes. This loon seemed shocked that Sarah Palin wasn’t on her tour bus 24/7 and wrote a hate filled, nonsensical piece about it. You see, what this gutter snipe either couldn’t grasp, or in his zeal to smear Sarah, didn’t care, is the fact that Sarah’s schedule often saw her at a book signing in the morning, with afternoon and evening signings hundreds of miles apart. Many times it was simply impossible to go from one signing to the other by bus, because the distance was greater than the time allotted for travel would allow. As such, her publisher: HarperCollins provided air travel. Pretty standard stuff. We’ve also learned that McGinniss, ignoring all sorts [of] “no trespassing” signs, actually showed up on Sarah’s doorstep trying to give her a book he had written. This is beyond creepy. It’s sick."Jim Treacher:
"The next time some celebrity complains about the paparazzi, ask them if that includes what’s happening to Sarah Palin. If not, why not?"Tennessee Guerilla Women:
"Predictably, normally-sane-sounding bloggers, such as empathy-challenged Greg Sargent, now sound shrill as they defend the 'journalist' and dismiss Sarah Palin's concerns as paranoia... Paranoia? What kind of 'journalist' rents the house next door to your family home in order to write a book about you? So sorry to give you a serious pause Sargent, but Sarah Palin has small children in the home while an obviously sick and obsessive compulsive nut peers from next door."Politik Ditto:
"Wow, creepy...esp. when you consider that Palin has children. Sad that the obsession with citizen Sarah sees no end."Jake Boot:
"First it was Bristol Palin’s pregnancy. Then it was Sarah Palin’s very existence. And now, courtesy of the once-interesting but now completely unhinged blogger/amateur gynecologist Andrew Sullivan, it’s the Palin Family Fence... Poor Sullivan. Once one of the most interesting writers in the blogosphere, the Prince of Provincetown has managed to parlay an exalted state in both the MSM and online into a crude caricature of his former self. The occasion for his latest burst of high dudgeon is the Palin family’s newly constructed fence between their property and a rental house being leased by Joe McGinniss, the writer whose last major book, the true-crime thriller, Fatal Vision, was published in 1983, yet whose name still retains some cachet among his former journalistic brethren. McGinniss is currently at work on a book about… wait for it — Sarah Palin... And media folks wonder why the media is held in such low esteem."The Drawn Cutlass:
"When Sarah Palin Promises To Build A Fence... you can take her at her word"Cristina Espinosa:
"The 'journalist' McGinnis is renting the house next door to Sarah Palin’s home because he is writing a book about her. She is so 'uninteresting' that she deserves all this attention. But he cannot submit to conventional and even unconventional 'acceptable' methods for his research. He is doing it this way because she is a woman, and because not only does he have society’s consent, but a cheering crowd. Jack Shafer of Slate described McGinniss’s approach as 'journalistic a__holery' -– apparently a compliment... Halane’s Perspective: 'this is basically a bully effect... People in our society condone bullying if the bully serves their interest. People are stalking Palin and bullying her and no one cares bc it’s just Sarah. Makes for more joke material for the unclever at cocktail parties.' Again, the big news here is the media condoning and cheering this act"Weasel Zippers:
"I think Mr. McGinniss better get out of Wasilla while the getting is good. From the sound of some of the locals... he’s not going to find any sympathy from anyone there in what he is trying to do."Joe Clarke:
"Ultra Palin-Hater, and author with peccable ethics, Joe McGinnis is attempting to outdo some of his previous sleeze journalism after moving next door and inhabiting a house 15 feet from Sarah Palin's household of children and grandchildren. Evidently, he was lured by a Palin hatin' neighbor... Maybe a study of the mystery and intrigue of those associated with the publisher Random House, and how it has forefeited all virtue and integrity by not just enlisting an author to 'peek into Piper's bedroom' (according to Palin), but so many other distortions of truth and Americanism provided by Random House through the years. How would the editors and publishers at Random House enjoy snoops tracking them down and invading their lives?"Silent E:
"He Can Dish It Out But... apparently Sarah Palin’s new neighbor/stalker, Joe McGinniss can’t take the same crap he dishes out"Penny Nance:
"Palin is a conservative and, therefore, fair game because there is a double-standard. What if the public figure we are discussing was Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California)? The so-called 'feminist' groups would go wild. If a conservative blogger moved in next door and monitored her comings and goings 24/7 (perhaps even listening in on her conversations) we would never hear the end of it. Of course, the left would be right to be upset because it’s WRONG... Where are the feminists on this? I recommend the left carefully think through their reaction to Sarah Palin’s plight, otherwise, they may find their friends in similar circumstances."Larry Johnson:
"McGinniss pulling this stunt says a whole lot about him and his character. The sheer arrogance and hubris of such a move, figuratively and literally, is telling indeed."Rachelle Friberg:
"This guy is out to target and destroy Sarah, and it seems nothing other than maybe a very high fence can keep him out. I don’t deny that it is this man’s First-Amendment right to write any sort of book he wants to, but did he really have to move right next door to the Palin family to write it? This is not only creepy, but downright outrageous... This man is acting more like a member of the paparazzi than a friendly neighbor. If this man has any dignity at all, he will respect the Palin family’s privacy, but something tells me this man will not give up until he has the expose he seems so intent on writing. I do not blame Sarah for being upset. I find it hypocritical that members of the loony liberal left are calling her a crybaby, but defend celebrities from the paparazzi. I do not see the difference. Once again, the liberal left have no shred of common decency when it comes to defending Sarah Palin. They are unable to clearly see when a line has been crossed."Mo Elleithee:
"I am no Sarah Palin fan. But on this, she is absolutely right... This journalist has crossed the line."Jedediah Bila:
"This is an awful, disgusting, sickening situation. And if that was in any way unclear, it’s downright creepy. The fact that author Joe McGinniss and his publishing house—Random House—deemed it appropriate for him to move into a rental space fifteen feet from the Palin home for several months while he writes a book about Sarah Palin, is detestable. I am in no way suggesting that McGinniss doesn’t have the right to author a book about Palin, but I’d like to know what exactly he’s writing that requires him to be within fifteen feet of her house... It’s important to note that Joe McGinniss isn’t just a random author who decided that trampling on Sarah Palin’s privacy is the best way to make a quick buck this year. In March of 2009, he wrote a column for Condé Nast’s Portfolio that was dishonest at best, in which he claimed that Palin was the true impediment to the development of Alaska’s gas-pipeline. In the Fall of 2009, McGinniss bid $60,100 at a Ride 2 Recovery eBay charity auction in order to win the featured prize, dinner with Sarah Palin... In the Fall of 2009, McGinniss stopped by the Palins’ Wasilla house to deliver a copy of... his 1980 book. He also happened to be in The Villages in Florida when Palin was there on her book tour. And now he’ll be sleeping, dining, and peering from just 15 feet away."Jim Hoft:
"Palin-hater Joe McGinnis moved next door to the Palins to work on a book he’s writing about the former governor. That’s weird."Gary P. Jackson:
"Joe McGinniss... is the most unhinged, unethical, untrustworthy, bottom feeding parasite, in what can laughingly be called 'journalism...' It’s well documented that McGinniss has been stalking Sarah Palin for some time... It’s funny, now that the Sarah, and millions of her powerful supporters are calling McGinniss out on his deranged pursuits, and turning up the heat on him, he’s... playing the victim card... And you Dave Weigel, shame on you for giving this degenerate a forum to spout his nonsense, and shame on the Washington Post for letting you get away with it."Bill Lawrence:
"McGinniss does appear to have a fixation on Mrs. Palin, almost like something of out a Robert Mitchum movie -- think Cape Fear or Night of the Hunter."- JP
"You can never say for sure how a politician will respond to the pressures once they achieve a very high office. But what you can say is that Sarah Palin's heart and soul are wrapped up in love of Israel and the Jewish people. Earlier this month, Palin went to the Time 100 gala of the most influential people with her husband and three of her kids... she also wore a pin of the American and Israeli flags. Why did she need to do that? The answer, of course, is she did not. But this woman clearly loves Israel, and that's what's important."- JP
Shameless after weeks of golfing, photo ops and vacationing, Barack Obama took a “drill, baby drill“ swipe at Sarah Palin during his press conference today on the mismanaged Gulf oil spill disaster.Obama's exact quote was:
“The fact that oil companies now have to go a mile under water and then drill another three miles below that in order to hit oil tells us something about the direction of the oil industry. Extraction is more expensive and it is going to be inherently more risky. And so that’s part of the reason you never heard me say, ‘Drill, baby, drill!’Gov. Palin fired back on Twitter:
"Ahh, that's much of the problem,Mr.President;Drill ANWR&unlock land for safe onshore devlpmnt/energy securty"Touché.
“No, it wasn’t accurate - it was a piece of propaganda,” Baumbach told Eye on Boise today, “and people thought that there was enough truth in it to change their votes.” Baumbach said he decided to exercise his video-editing skills after a May 13 blog post from the Idaho Statesman’s Dan Popkey pointed out similar turns of phrase in the two speeches, and Dustin Hurst of the Idaho Freedom Foundation’s IdahoReporter.com followed up with a May 21 story including video from both speeches. “That wasn’t attracting much attention,” Baumbach said. Simply posting both videos wasn’t enough, he said, “when you’re trying to get the word out, sensationalizing something.”But the good ol' boy Republican establishment just loved Baumbach's video takedown of Ward:
“I admit that there was a lot of editing that went on there,” Baumbach said.
He’d just finished being congratulated by other like-minded Republicans after a GOP unity rally today at the state Capitol, where some were throwing around the word “brilliant;” last night, at GOP election-night headquarters, Baumbach attracted similar praise from some in the crowd who called him “the man of the hour.” Baumbach’s mash-up was featured on the “Tonight Show with Jay Leno” last night, though Leno left off the final scene in which Baumbach shows Ward’s face slowing morphing into Obama’s.We just hope that the "Tea Partiers" who supported Labrador are proud of the fact that their guy is an immigration lawyer "who represents clients before immigration judges, sometimes to help them remain in the United States after they’ve violated laws and are subject to deportation," according to the Spokesman-Review, and has been critical of Arizona's tough immigration law. Because that's one of the reasons why Sarah Palin wisely endorsed Ward.
No matter your gender or politics, you have to hand it to her: Palin is fearless. “You don't want to mess with moms who are rising up,” the Wasilla warrior said last week. “If you thought pit bulls were tough, you don't want to mess with mama grizzlies.”McKinnon goes on to briefly profile eleven Republican women who he believes bear watching. Of these, Sarah Palin has formally endorsed three -- Nikki Haley, Carly Fiorina, and Susana Martinez -- and has publicly supported a fourth, Gov. Jan Brewer of Arizona. Among the other seven on McKinnon's list, at least four are candidates with impressive conservative credentials, and we wonder whether one or more of them may be under consideration by the governor for possible endorsements.
[...]
With the growing disconnect between the political class (dancing the night away at a State Dinner on the South Lawn beneath baubles and butterflies and yukking it up at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner) and mainstream America (working hard to feed their families with 9.9 percent unemployment looming overhead and watching while the nation’s greatest environmental crisis unfolds), voters have lost patience.
Agree with them or not, it’s the women of the GOP—like Sarah Palin, Rep. Michele Bachmann (MN) and Gov. Jan Brewer (AZ)—who are tough enough to say exactly what they think. And their words are resonating with an increasingly vocal electoral bloc.
Women accounted for 54 percent of voters in the 2008 elections. Yet only six women currently serve as governors, with 17 in the U.S. Senate, and 76 in the House.
That underrepresentation may be about to change with a record number of women—and Republican women—running.
Palin is increasingly cutting her vinegar with honey, showcasing a self-awareness, a light-heartedness, and an ability to poke fun at herself that could potentially turn into some of her most powerful weapons.As Doug Gamble wrote in National Review six years ago, Ronald Reagan understood how to use humor in to advance his agenda, disarm his political opponents and connect with the American people. JFK also used humor to great benefit, but his sense of humor was somewhat different from Reagan's. Kennedy's use of humor had a special appeal to intellectuals and the White House press corps, while Reagan's use of humor, much like that of Will Rogers, was intended more for the common man.
[...]
As Palin matures into a force in the conservative movement, she would do well to show America more of this side of her. She must learn that not taking oneself too seriously does not make one unserious (unless, of course, you’re Michael Steele). In the process, she can gain something that both the lazy media caricatures of her and her incessant counterattacks lack: a third dimension.
Doug Turner, a young entrepreneur from Albuquerque has been the Libertarian Republican favorite in the race for New Mexico Governor. He has the endorsement of the Republican Liberty Caucus. He was featured on Libertarian Republican early on when he first announced.GOVERNOR – NEW MEXICO – GOP PRIMARY (Dialing Services LLC)From SurveyUSA (via Hedgehog):
Susana Martinez 41%
Allen Weh 30%
Doug Turner 9%
Pete Domenici Jr. 8%
Janice Arnold-Jones 4%
GOVERNOR – NEW MEXICO – GOP PRIMARY (Survey USA)
Susana Martinez 43%
Allen Weh 33%
Doug Turner 8%
Pete Domenici Jr. 8%
Janice Arnold-Jones 3%
But perhaps most important, Martinez is the one Republican who finishes ahead of expected Democrat nominee Diane Denish, a well-known and popular Dem elected official in the State.With two independent polls--including ours--now showing that Susana Martinez is threatening to rout Allen Weh in next Tuesday's GOP Guv primary, attention is turning fast to the main event--the face-off between Dem Diane Denish and probable nominee Martinez. And thanks to SurveyUSA we're already being titillated. A hypothetical match-up between the two women has Susana trumping Di 49% to 43%.Martinez, Ana County Prosecutor, is described as a "stalwart conservative." She's running on Border Security First.
Susana Martinez, who was endorsed by Sarah Palin May 15, has skyrocketed to a double-digit lead in the New Mexico Republican primary race for governor...New Mexico Independent described Palin's endorsement as a "lightning strike" for her campaign.Clearly, this race has broken open since the ABQ Journal poll released May 16 showed Weh leading Martinez 31 to 30. Looking back, the same day that poll so favorable to Martinez was released, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin flew to ABQ to endorse the DA. The next day the Martinez camp came with an ad accusing Weh of being soft on amnesty for illegal immigrants. This was a one-two punch, plus one, that sent the wealthy businessman reeling, and this poll shows he is still staggering around the ring.
Higher taxes and excessive regulations force jobs out of New Mexico.She may not be the first choice for New Mexico Governor of the GOP's libertarian wing. But Susana Martinez appears to be a candidate that all libertarians and libertarian-leaning Republicans could fully support if she wins the nomination.
My primary goal will be to make certain businesses in New Mexico continue to operate in the state, while attracting others to set up shop here.
I believe we need to create new jobs in New Mexico by lowering taxes and making our state more competitive... This means I will reform the tax and regulatory system by cutting red tape and making it easier to create jobs in New Mexico than it is in neighboring states...
While working in my family’s small business, I learned a key lesson: the private citizen – not the government – assumes risk and creates opportunity.
The political arm of Wisconsin Right to Life today announced its endorsement of Ashland County District Attorney Sean Duffy in the 7th Congressional District.Gov. Palin spoke at a Wisconsin Right to Life event in November of last year. If Duffy can win the GOP primary, his likely opponent will be State Sen. Julie Lassa, so far the only Democrat to enter the race.
Duffy is running against Dan Mielke, a farmer and activist from Rudolph, for the Republican nomination.
Duffy’s campaign has received national attention and the endorsement of high-profile Republicans including former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Sarah Palin’s father and brother, Chuck Heath Sr. and Chuck Heath Jr., have endorsed Republican gubernatorial candidate Tim James for governor of Alabama.
Chuck Heath, Sr. says, “I’m all for him. He’s my kind of guy. I’m very impressed with him.”
Heath met with Tim James earlier in the year at the Rainy Day Patriots’ TEA Party rally on Tax Day, April 15, in the Birmingham area. While there was some political conversation, the majority of the time was spent by the two men talking about their mutual love of hunting and the outdoors.
James said upon hearing the news, “I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the Heaths earlier this year. Just like Sarah Palin, they are down-to-earth people who love our country, believe in true conservative values, and know the importance of taking care of the natural resources our country has been blessed with. I am thrilled with this endorsement.”
Chuck Heath, Jr. says they think hard and long before endorsing any candidate. “We’re really selective and endorse very few people. We feel really comfortable with Tim James.”
He says they heard a lot about Tim and when the family met him they knew immediately he shared the same true conservative ideas and values. Heath, Jr. added that Tim James “clearly has a passion for hunting and the outdoors.” “Most importantly,” the Heaths say, “Tim James will slash government spending and protect citizens against tax increases.”
“Sarah hasn’t gone after the publicity, the publicity has gone after her,” he said. “She’s getting out there and she’s doing all she can to help this country.”Heath said his brother-in-law Todd Palin and some buddies “worked through the night” to build up a 14-foot high fence between the Palin's house and the house McGuiness is renting to give his family at least some privacy from the stalker-reporter's prying eyes:
As if anticipating the question, Heath said critics might ask why Palin is doing a reality show this summer if she doesn’t like attention. “That’s an attempt to show off this state,” he explained. “And promote people coming up, increasing tourism, brings more dollars into this state. It’s going to help this state out. It’s just amazing how everybody blows everything out of proportion and they boil it down to what he said, ‘this is just a publicity stunt’.”
Asked if his sister might decide to leave Alaska entirely – say, by running for president in 2012 – Heath is noncommittal. “Nobody knows her plans except for Sarah,” he said. “That’s the $64,000 question that everybody, everywhere we’ve gone has asked us. And like we say, in total honesty, we have no idea.”Read the full interview here.
If she did run, he says, the family “would definitely support her run. And would be excited for her to do that… I can say that if Sarah was in charge right now, I think this country would be going in a lot better direction that it is right now.”
Who paid Will Folks? He was alleged[ly] offered money. A LOT of money. In fact, RedState now confirms through a whole heap of sources that he’s been trying to sell this story for a year.So who was it already that paid the dirtbag for his bag of dirt?
We know who bit.
We know who didn’t bite.
We know who paid Will Folks to push this story out there.
