Quote of the Day (March 31, 2011)

In South Florida to address a group of Tea Partiers
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Herman Cain via The Shark Tank:

“The liberal mainstream media, notice how they have tried to destroy Sarah Palin, notice how the more popular Michele Bachmann gets, the more they try to destroy her? You want to know why they go after those two ladies more viciously? Because they know that Michele Bachmann or Sarah Palin is going to draw a lot of the women vote away from the Democrat party. They are scared to death of that if they were to run and get the nomination. They are doubly scared that a real black man might run against Barack Obama.”

- JP

Loesch: Correcting the Right On 'Sarah Palin’s Alaska' Tax Breaks

It was the cheapest PSA that Alaska has ever produced
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Big Journalism Editor-in-Chief Dana Loesch weighs in on the Alaska Tax Credit nontroversy which is being manufactured by by the Vichy right against Gov. Palin:

Jim Geraghty started a brouhaha yesterday by criticizing how the makers of “Sarah Palin’s Alaska” received $1.2 million in tax credits by filming in the state — and that Palin signed the 2008 law which made it possible. Because she’s now apparently omnipotent, able to see into the future and plan for it by signing into law a complex program with numerous in-house checks and balances. Geraghty questioned Palin’s conservative credentials.

… but it looks problematic for a crusader for small government to end up collecting a seven-figure paycheck from an endeavor that received a seven-figure subsidy, all set up by a program she signed into law.

What’s problematic is to define the tax credit in this issue as a “subsidy.”

Tax credits are offered as an incentive to do business in a particular area, city, or state as a way to attract business and commerce into said area. These tax credits are usually offered as a percentage of total money spent and the credits can be sold at a discount to businesses looking to alleviate their tax load. The exchange creates a cashflow that helps offset the costs of doing that particular business in that area; in this case filming in Alaska is very expensive. A net gain of dollars flows into those local communities and the credits establish a way for a particular locality to compete with other cities or states for business; over the long term it can they help establish a broader tax base by increasing the number of professionals drawn to the area.

The optimal situation is to have a tax code is low enough where regulations aren’t so restrictive so as to warrant the need for tax credits. That is the real debate. However, it is within every state and city’s right to make themselves more competitive by offering tax incentives to attract business and create a business community. Aren’t we, as conservatives, supporters of the 10th Amendment? You pay for things by increasing your tax base, not by increasing regulations or taxes.

It’s also important to note that this was a bipartisan piece of legislation she simply signed into law to spur commerce and diversify Alaska’s economy — not something Palin created to help herself as has been subtly suggested on other parts of the web.

[More]

- JP

NB: HuffPo silent on Maher's status after vulgar attacks on Palin

Which is worse: calling a man a 'commie punk' or a woman a 'c---'?
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Huffington Post has banned Andrew Breitbart's articles at its front page, but the leftist website remains curiously silent on the status of Bill Maher, who is one of its regular contributors. Maher has made several below-the-sewer references to Sarah Palin recently, while Bretbart's apparent offense was to call former Obama green czar Van Jones a "commie punk." Most of what Maher called Gov. Palin is too vulgar to be quoted on a family-friendly blog.

The obvious double standard here has motivated NewsBusters associate editor Noel Sheppard to send no less than three emails to HuffPo founder Arianna Huffington and editor Roy Sekoff Tuesday and Wednesday. Sheppard reports that he still has not received a reply:

Of course, I realize Arianna et al are in a very tough spot. They made what was clearly an absurd statement about "tenets of debate and civil discourse we have strived for since the day we launched" when everyone in the industry knows their website is filled with hateful rhetoric and ad hominem attacks against conservatives on almost a daily basis.

The laughter at Ruiz's statement throughout the blogosphere on both sides of the aisle was deafening.

Complicating matters further was one of their popular contributors the day after Breitbart was canned making a vulgar slur at Palin and another one nine days later.

As most people know, Huffington has been friends with Maher for years. She was a regular guest on his Comedy Central program "Politically Incorrect" appearing in an ongoing gag with Al Franken called "Politics Makes Strange Bedfellows."

Maybe more importantly, Maher is a darling of the Left. Would Huffington dare do anything to him like she did to Breitbart?

Unfortunately, not doing so totally invalidates the reason given by Ruiz for Breitbart's demotion.

No wonder I didn't get any replies to my email messages as I'm sure these folks hope this matter is going to just go away as quickly as possible - but they shouldn't count on it.

[More]

Sheppard concludes that the continued silence on this hypocrisy by those in charge at HuffPo will only serve to "reduce whatever journalistic integrity and credibility they claim to strive for, potentially leading AOL and its shareholders to seriously question their investment."

- JP

Whittington: Barack Obama, Sarah Palin Argue Over Energy Policy

Palin has an attack point against Obama that will be hard for him to defend against
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In his speech this week on energy policy, President Obama made a point of going "off-teleprompter" to ridicule Sarah Palin for the "drill, baby, drill" slogan that was actually coined by Michael Steele at the 2008 RNC Convention, but used to great effect by Gov. Palin during the campaign that year and afterwards. In response to Obama's speech, she went on Facebook to challenge many of his claims. Instead of expediting new drilling permits, for example, she pointed out that his administration has approved few permits since it imposed a moratorium on drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and a de facto moratorium on drilling in the Arctic, has proposed a 2012 budget that would do away with some key oil and natural gas production tax incentives, and has established regulatory policies that are anything but encouraging to oil and gas development.

If the pump price of gasoline continues at or near the four-dollar level now that election fever is beginning to break out, Yahoo! contributor Mark Whittington predicts energy policy will become a key campaign issue for 2012, one on which Gov. Palin will have the advantage in the area of public debate:

The tit for tat argument over energy policy might be a hint of things to come for the 2012 election, should Palin decide to run. Palin knows quite a bit about energy policy, stemming from her days as an energy regulator then governor of Alaska. Furthermore, she has linked energy policy with economic growth and national security in what amounts to a Palin Doctrine.

Palin further provides a critique of what passes for Obama's energy policy that amounts to an accusation that he is manipulating oil and gas prices to make them artificially high in order to make his favored alternative energy technology more attractive.

Palin thus has an attack point against Obama that will be hard for the president to defend against. Despite his denials, he has locked up quite a bit of American's oil and gas resources, resulting in greater dependency on foreign oil and higher oil and gas prices. Obama can dispute this all he wants, but Palin will be able to ask people to either believe the president or their lying eyes.

If Palin does decide to run for president, she will have a substantial argument for electing her beside the fact that she is not Obama. She will be able to promise to unlock domestic energy reserves, sparking new domestic energy production, creating tens of thousands of jobs and, perhaps, bring the country out of the economic malaise that has featured throughout the Obama presidency.

[More]

For Sarah Palin supporters, the 2012 debate over energy policy can't come soon enough. That's just one reason why the left will be employing the politics of mass distraction. They will be working overtime to try to keep the national discussion off of the economic issues that are hitting average Americans so hard in the checkbook.

- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention, Part 245

"They'll Stone You" Edition
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Bob Dylan - Rainy Day Women - 1998 Newcastle
Dan Riehl at Riehl World View:

"I don't know if this demonstrates how truly stupid are our Beltway bois who like to dress up as conservatives, or how deranged they are when it comes to Sarah Palin. And, yes, that goes for Jimbo at NRO, nice guy, or not. What's utterly ridiculous is Geraghty's and other's takes on this... What policy is it, exactly, that conservative Sarah Palin embraced as Governor of Alaska, hmm? Oh, look at this, she reduced taxes to encourage commerce. Nah, nothing conservative in that, now is there? Obviously, she had been planning a reality show all this time, how forward looking, our Sarah. Let's just forget that many states have entire departments devoted to facilitating this same type of thing... Tim Pawlenty has been Governor of Minnesota since 2003. Why on earth did it take that conservative until 2010 to take a serious look at the budget for his state's film board? How many millions did it dole out during his terms, I wonder? Get right on that, won't you, Jimbo?"

Dan Riehl at Riehl World View:

"Rut Roh. I guess this kills Mitt's chances of getting an NRO endorsement. Barbour's toast, too, I guess. Mitch Daniels?? How could you??? I thought you were conservative. I've already dealt with Pawlenty. I guess Bachmann's a shoe in for the 2012 NRO endorsement at this point, right? Idiots."

Dan Riehl at Riehl World View:

"I imagine Jimbo might hyperventilate over every new Chris Christie You Tube video. While Christie cut $2 million from NJ's tourism budget, it still spends several million dollars of taxpayer dollars a year to attract tourists. Through some tax credits, Alaska now has Ice Road Truckers, Deadliest Catch, Alaska State Troopers, Palin's reality show and other productions, which often tout Alaska as a beautiful tourist destination, while building a cottage film industry that provides jobs and income to Alaskans. They're even building a sound stage up there, so I hear. Certainly in Jim's mind, if Palin's tax credits are an issue, Christie's 5% hotel tax to fund all that government spending in NJ is an even bigger problem for him, right? So, how would Christie defend all this spending as a conservative were he to run in 2012? I bet Jimbo will get right on providing us the answer to that troubling question."

Greg Pollowitz via Twitter:

"So if @sarahpalinusa is elected prez, she might give tax breaks to intl cos to open factories in America and create jobs. Socialist!"

Lady Liberty at From the Desk of Lady Liberty:

"The Daily Caller is ticked off they got called out by Palin for what she described, very accurately I might add, as ‘sloppy’ journalism. It was sloppy, but it was also intentional in my opinion. This was a conservative media hit piece designed to slap her down just prior to a possible announcement she might run for President. It’s right in line with the Rove-’O'Reilly backstabbing of Palin (and a handful of other rising conservative stars) narrative of late."

Mark Levin via Twitter:

"This is getting absurd, and the fact that inside the beltway conservatives play this..."

John Hayward at Human Events:

"What could Palin have done to soothe Jim Geraghty’s concerns? Insist the producers of her show refuse to take advantage of the substantial tax credit they were entitled to? Refuse to do the show? He’s probably right that she’ll take heat for it, but she takes heat for existing... I don’t see why Sarah Palin’s appearance on a television program that took advantage of a state tax credit should automatically make her a supporter of direct federal subsidies, or a hypocrite for opposing them. If the people of Alaska want to terminate that program, it would be relatively easy for their legislature to do so… certainly much easier than cutting off the direct cash pipeline from our wallets into NPR and PBS, or getting the company run by Obama’s soulmate Jeffrey Immelt to pay a nickel of federal taxes."

Nice Deb:

"‘Dissent is the highest form of patriotism’ officially ended with the New age of Obama upon us... 4/19/2009: Joe Klein: Yes, Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck ‘seditious’... I wonder if there’s been any progress by the linguists in the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to find a word stronger than ‘Hypocrisy’?"

Foxfier at Head Noises:

"Gosh, That Sarah Palin-- Using the word 'squirmish' to mean 'a small fight'... Whups, that's the Boston Globe, last November. Anyway... wait a sec, how many of these dang things are there?... Oh... *throws in towel* I give up! How can I show that Sarah is a stupid-head making up words when there's examples from when she was in college? Curse you, Mrs. Palin! How did you go back in time twenty-five years and put a word into newspapers! Seriously, though, folks-- I found this all on the first page of a Google news search. I didn't even have to go half way down the page before I got more than I felt like putting together in paint. Maybe y'all -- (oh noez! Did I just "invent" a word?!? It's not in my dictionary! Wait, "noez" isn't there, either...) -- should try a simple internet search before you copy the lefty talking heads and start hollering about someone 'making up' a word?"

Matthew Sheffield at The Washington Examiner:

"Scuttlebutt has it that no one has thrown his/her hat into the ring as everyone is waiting to see what former GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is going to do."

Clifton B at Another Black Conservative:

"The Republican primary debate scheduled for May 2 at the Reagan Library has been moved to September 14. This is the debate that will be cosponsored by Politico and NBC... Even with a new date set, Republicans should really consider skipping this debate all together. Since 2008, both Politico and NBC have shown themselves to be less than impartial. Since scores of Democrats flatly refuse to go on Fox News cause they find it biased, why can't Republicans flatly refuse to deal with the likes of Politico or NBC? I think skipping this debate could be a way for the right to finally call out some of the biggest hacks in the media. I am not going to hold my breath for it though. As Sarah Palin has said, some Republicans have the fighting instinct of sheep."

Tom Maguire at JustOneMinute:

"Obama Looks For His Inner Sarah Palin..."

streiff at RedState.com:

"Politico’s Ben Smith Sees Red People... The left, immune to any sense of ridiculousness, is relegated to trying to convince each other they are smarter than anyone on the right. Naturally, this often leads to hilarious results. When Sarah Palin told a Tea Party crowd to 'party like it was 1773' the leftosphere went positively orgasmic until someone pointed out that the Boston Tea Party occurred in 1773, not in whatever year the left thought it did."

Benyamin Korn at JewsForSarah.com:

"William Kristol walks back his criticism of Sarah Palin..."

Gripping Hand:

"I’ve been puzzled about the vitriolic hate directed at Sarah Palin ever since she was introduced to a national audience. The seething and ranting has reached epic proportions and has gone way beyond any disagreement over policy positions. Was it simply that Palin was an attractive, relatively conservative woman? Was is that she wasn’t a product of the so-called elite educational institutions? Her political credentials were no worse than many other national candidates, so that couldn’t have been it. So what was it? The answer came to me yesterday... While driving in Kentucky, I saw a... bumper sticker... which stated, 'Palin does not speak for THIS woman!' While surprisingly free from ad hominem attacks or or scatological references, it illustrated the problem with Palin – she’s a woman. In the eyes of the left, that is simply inexcusable. Why should anyone think that Sarah Palin speaks for anyone other than herself? When she speaks, she says what she thinks, not what all women think. People can chose to accept what she says or not, or debate certain points with her, or engage in any other sort of rational debate with her, but the conversation is still with *her* and not with any collection of people other than ones that specifically say she represents them. And there is the problem – the left cannot accept that individual people have individual opinions."

- JP

Day By Day (March 31, 2011)

Lucky Luciano
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Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day:


Please support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day.

- JP

Quote of the Day (March 30, 2011)

Sarah Palin's Not-Really-a-Problem Problem on Film & TV Subsidies
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Ace at Ace of Spades HQ:

"There is no issue about her that can't turn into a fight immediately... It's really not fair to slam Palin for having not made this ideological commitment to strict libertarian non-intervention before most of us made it ourselves."

- JP

Alicia Colon: Rethinking Sarah Palin For President

"Dream ticket - Palin/Rubio."
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In the digital edition of The Irish Examiner USA, Alicia Colon admits that while she has been an admirer of Sarah Palin, she had never taken Gov. Palin seriously as a 2012 presidential candidate. Ms/ Colon was one of those who was lulled by the media sirens into relegating the 2008 vice presidential candidate to the role of kingmaker. But ironically, the same media's attacks on the governor caused the author to reevaluate Sarah Palin as a potential president. The final straw for Ms. Colon was when Canadian TV columnist John Doyle slammed the television series "Sarah Palin's Alaska" in the Globe and Mail:

I didn't watch the entire Palin series but the ones I did watch left me with the impression that Sarah Palin represented the American woman we rarely get to see in the media-strong, independent and proud to be a mother. Mr. Doyle found this last image so offensive, he had to mock it because what mainstream media anchorwoman touts that familial connection? Fox News on the other hand has its anchorwomen proudly blooming on air throughout their pregnancies and not hiding their womanhood.

I also came away with a wishful thought about how wonderful it would be for our country to be represented by such a strong, vibrant woman who clearly loves this nation. I felt the same as a teenager when John F. Kennedy emerged as a presidential candidate and the nation was overwhelmed by his youth, charisma and beautiful family. We knew very little then about Kennedy's negatives and if the Internet had been around in 1960, it's doubtful he would have been elected. Conversely, we know everything about Sarah Palin and despite the distortion and lies about her character, what we see is what we get and frankly that honesty is what we need right now.

[...]

Her record shows that she would not be burdening the American people with a multi-trillion dollar budget that would bankrupt the country. Her recent interview with Greta Van Susteren proved her to be a realistic and sympathetic observer of the difficulty Israel faces on a daily basis. Unlike our president who leans more towards the UN condemnation of that harried nation, Palin asked the question Israelis have been asking for decades: "Why is it that in the past, too often, the U.S. government has told Israel that they're the ones, the Jewish community, that they need to back up, they need to back off or there will never be peace? They need to keep conceding? Why aren't we putting our foot down with the other side and telling the Palestinians, if you're serious about peace, quit the shellacking and the shelling, quit the bombing of innocent Israelis. Look at the young Israeli family that was slaughtered in their house a week or two ago. Look at today, the bombing of those innocents at a bus station in Jerusalem."

This is not a dumb woman. This is an extremely competent and courageous woman whom I'd vote for in a nanosecond as my Commander-in-Chief. Dream ticket-Palin/Rubio.

The more the media attacks her, the more we get to hear her intelligent and self-assured responses debunking them all - and all without a teleprompter. No wonder they hate her.

[More]

- JP

Mark Levin: From a good friend

" I missed the part where the 'tax credit' was specifically earmarked for Ms. Palin."
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Posted just minutes ago by The Great One on his Facebook Notes page:

From a good friend
by Mark Levin

"I don't know if you are going to address Geraghty's outrageous attack on Palin's show and the alleged 'tax subsidy' she granted herself (three years before she ever had the idea to make the show - she must really be prescient) in NRO today. I know you have so many things you have to cover every day you might not have time - understandable. I find such a biased, ill informed attack coming from NRO really sad. Why do they fear Ms. Palin so much? What has she ever done to earn their ire - other that stand for homespun American values and principals? Why single out Ms. Palin's little info-mercial for Alaskan Tourism? Geraghty calls the Alaskan 'tax credit' a 'government subsidy' of Palin's film. What?! I missed the part where the 'tax credit' was specifically earmarked for Ms. Palin. Many localities offer tax credits to bring 'business' to their areas, whether film, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, etc. Has Geraghty ever stopped to think that a 'tax credit' is a kind of 'tax cut' - I guess not. Aren't lower taxes as an incentive to spur free market expansion supposed to be a basic tenant of conservatism? I guess Geraghty missed that meeting. It seems Geraghty has also missed the fact that Burnett Productions, and Ms. Palin, will all pay federal income tax on what they earn from the showing of the film - mainly from TLC and advertisers. The Alaskan Tax credit will only act to lower this tax burden."

"Not only am I saddened by these attacks of 'one of our own' but I am fearful. If the GOP nominates another 'Bush Republic' to run against POTUS, the GOP will lose. The Tea Party conservatives will stay home, they will not work for another 'McCain' and the unions will turn out the vote for the incumbent (rhetorical question coming) why don't the establishment Republicans see this?"

No, my friend, I won't be addressing it. I think you said all that needs to be said.

- JP

Sarah Palin recalls an earlier 'new energy proposal' by Obama

"2012 is just around the corner."
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Gov. Palin rips Obama's failure on energy policy in an op-ed on her Facebook Notes page:

FLASHBACK: What We Were Saying One Year
Ago About Obama’s Failed Energy Policy

It’s unbelievable (literally) the rhetoric coming from President Obama today. This is coming from he who is manipulating the U.S. energy supply. President Obama is once again giving lip service to a “new energy proposal”; but let’s remember the last time he trotted out a “new energy proposal” – nearly a year ago to the day. The main difference is today we have $4 a gallon gas in some places in the country. This is no accident. This administration is not a passive observer to the trends that have inflated oil prices to dangerous levels. His war on domestic oil and gas exploration and production has caused us pain at the pump, endangered our already sluggish economic recovery, and threatened our national security. Through a process of what candidate Obama once called “gradual adjustment,” American consumers have seen prices at the pump rise 67 percent since he took office. Meanwhile, the vast undeveloped reserves that could help to keep prices at the pump affordable remain locked up because of President Obama’s deliberate unwillingness to drill here and drill now. We’re subsidizing offshore drilling in Brazil and purchasing energy from them, instead of drilling ourselves and keeping those dollars circulating in our own economy to generate jobs here. The President said today, “There are no quick fixes.” He’s been in office for nearly three years now, and he’s about to launch his $1 billion re-election campaign. When can we expect any “fixes” from him? How high does the price of energy have to go?

So, here’s a little flashback to what I wrote on March 31, 2010, at National Review Online’s The Corner:

Many Americans fear that President Obama’s new energy proposal is once again “all talk and no real action,” this time in an effort to shore up fading support for the Democrats’ job-killing cap-and-trade (a.k.a. cap-and-tax) proposals. Behind the rhetoric lie new drilling bans and leasing delays; soon to follow are burdensome new environmental regulations. Instead of “drill, baby, drill,” the more you look into this the more you realize it’s “stall, baby, stall.”

Today the president said he’ll “consider potential areas for development in the mid and south Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico, while studying and protecting sensitive areas in the Arctic.” As the former governor of one of America’s largest energy-producing states, a state oil and gas commissioner, and chair of the nation’s Interstate Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, I’ve seen plenty of such studies. What we need is action — action that results in the job growth and revenue that a robust drilling policy could provide. And let’s not forget that while Interior Department bureaucrats continue to hold up actual offshore drilling from taking place, Russia is moving full steam ahead on Arctic drilling, and China, Russia, and Venezuela are buying leases off the coast of Cuba.

As an Alaskan, I’m especially disheartened by the new ban on drilling in parts of the 49th state and the cancellation of lease sales in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas. These areas contain rich oil and gas reserves whose development is key to our country’s energy security. As I told Secretary Salazar last April, “Arctic exploration and development is a slow, demanding process. Delays or major restrictions in accessing these resources for environmentally responsible development are not in the national interest or the interests of the State of Alaska.”

Since I wrote the above, we have even more evidence of the President’s anti-drilling agenda. We have the moratorium in the Gulf of Mexico as well as the de-facto moratorium in the Arctic. We have his 2012 budget that proposes to eliminate several vital oil and natural gas production tax incentives. We have his anti-drilling regulatory policies that have stymied responsible development. And the list goes on. The President says that we can’t “drill” our way out of the problem. But we can’t drive our cars on solar shingles either. We have to live in the real world where we must continue to develop the conventional resources that we actually use right now to fuel our economy as we continue to look for a renewable source of energy. If we are looking for an affordable, environmentally friendly, and abundant domestic source of energy, why not turn to our own domestic supply of natural gas? Whether we use it to power natural-gas cars or to run natural-gas power plants that charge electric cars, natural gas is an ideal “bridge fuel” to a future when more renewable sources are available, affordable, and economically viable on their own. It’s a lot more viable than subsidizing boondoggles like these inefficient electric cars that no one wants. I’m all for electric cars if you can develop one I can actually use in Alaska, where you can drive hundreds of miles without seeing many people, let alone many electrical sockets. But these electric and hybrid cars are not a quick fix because we still need an energy source to power them. That’s why I like natural gas, but we still have to drill for natural gas, and this administration doesn’t like drilling or apparently the jobs that come with responsible oil and natural gas development. They don't have a coherent energy policy. They have piecemeal ideas for subsidizing impractical pet “green” projects.

I have always been in favor of an “all-of-the-above” approach to energy independence, but "all-of-the-above" means conventional resource development too. It means a coherent, practical, and forward-looking energy policy. I wish the President would understand this. The good news is there is nothing wrong with America’s energy policy that another good old-fashion election can’t solve. 2012 is just around the corner.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

Sarah corrects the lamestream media. Again.

Further proof that they cannot be trusted
*
Posted just minutes ago on Gov. Palin's Facebook Notes page:

Setting the Record Straight on State’s Film Production Tax Credit

Goodness, cleaning up the sloppiness of reporters could be a full time job. In response to The Daily Caller's online inquiry, I gave them a statement that the writer buried on his story’s second page (which most people won’t even notice – I didn’t even notice it) after he spent the first page completely spinning a situation to give the impression that Alaska’s film production tax credit legislation was somehow solely my idea hatched up to benefit the Palins years before I was ever involved in a documentary series on TLC/Discovery Channel. Here’s setting the record straight: As Governor, I signed into law a popular bipartisan bill that was crafted and passed by others and has resulted in numerous Alaska-based productions that are airing today. The only alternative to signing the legislature’s work product would have been for me to veto their legislation, which would have been useless. Besides all that, their legislation worked.

This bill was not some secret big government agenda. These Alaskan legislators just wanted Alaska to be able to compete with the many other states that offer similar incentives. As I noted in my statement (which was curiously buried by The Daily Caller – whose editor-in-chief was recently called on the carpet for publicly using a degrading term to describe women), I can’t speak for the film tax credit programs in other states, but the program in Alaska has been effective. The bipartisan legislation I signed into law in 2008 was borne out of elected lawmakers’ frustration with the fact that shows and films about Alaska were mostly filmed elsewhere. They wanted to incentivize production companies to film in Alaska instead of Canada, Washington state, or Maine. Their bill worked, and as the legislation’s supporters will testify, the state’s economy enjoys the benefits of having this production money circulating right here at home. It was so successful that state lawmakers now want to renew the film production tax credits for another ten years. Keep in mind that we don’t have a state income tax, state sales tax, or state property tax in Alaska. Our state government is predominately funded by oil and gas revenue. Essentially we are using revenue generated from the development of Alaska’s natural resources in order to diversify our economy and create jobs beyond just resource development. Not only does this help promote a new film industry in Alaska, it obviously also has the added benefit of encouraging our tourism industry. These shows and films about Alaska act as perfect tourist advertisements for our state. People come here to experience what they see on the shows filmed here. The dramatic increase in Alaska-based television shows and films are testament to the fact that this legislation worked, and it’s exciting to see our state showcased and appreciated. There has been more film productions here than ever before, and the economic benefit of filming here exceeds the tax credit.

And another point missed by this reporter: apparently The Daily Caller’s conspiracy theory must be that I did all of this not even to benefit myself but Mark Burnett Productions. As I tried to explain to the writer at The Daily Caller, if you believe in this bizarre scenario then why not ask the sponsors, drafters, and supporters of this legislation that would boost job creation if they crafted this bill years ago in order to benefit Sarah Palin. Any suggestion that I somehow did something wrong by signing this legislation is ridiculous. The accusation hinges on the notion that I signed the legislation into law knowing that it would personally benefit me. That’s totally absurd. It wasn’t even my bill, and obviously I had no intention of benefiting from it when I signed it into law in 2008 because I had no idea I would be involved in a documentary series years later. If you’re going to accuse me of benefiting from legislation I signed into law, why stop there? Go ahead and accuse me of “benefiting” from the legislation my administration actually did craft – like for example, our oil and gas evaluation legislation (ACES). You could say I “benefited” from it in the sense that due to ACES the state where I live (Alaska) now enjoys a $12 billion surplus. In fact, you could say that as an Alaskan, I benefited from all of the legislation I championed or signed as governor – just as every Alaskan benefited.

As I also tried to tell the reporter, it’s also a false accusation to suggest that signing this bipartisan bill somehow goes against my position on the proper role of government. I’ve said many times that government can play an appropriate role in incentivizing business, creating infrastructure, and leveling the playing field to foster competition so the market picks winners and losers, instead of bureaucrats burdening businesses and picking winners and losers. Again, I can’t speak for what other states do, but Alaska’s film production tax credit program was an effective way to incentivize a new industry that would diversify our economy. It worked. The lawmakers’ successful legislation fit Alaska’s economy, as our economy is quite unique from other states’ due to our oil and gas revenue. Perhaps it would behoove people to learn much more about the 49th state’s young economy before making broad accusations about the efficacy of business programs. People who live in ivory towers don’t understand the real world where governors and lawmakers actually have to fight to attract business and jobs to their states.

One final thought: having to set the record straight on my Facebook page yet again is further proof that the media can’t be trusted even to print a statement in a manner that people can read.

- Sarah Palin

The Daily Caller article Gov. Palin refers to is here.

- JP

Gov. Palin on the Bob & Mark Show Friday? (Updated)

10:30 AM Texas Time
*
When entertainment site Hollywood Life reported that Sarah Palin would be on Bob & Mark in the Morning Friday "to make a major announcement," we were skeptical, because for one thing, gossip reporters are notoriously unreliable sources of information. So we emailed Bob Lester with a request for confirmation, and he replied Wednesday morning:

No word on what Palin will be talking about on Friday. We can only hope she announces something "Big" on Friday?

www.kwhl.com

Listen in. 7:30 a.m. our time.

So Hollywood Life at least got the scheduling part right, if Bob is to be believed and isn't planning a prank. However, whether the guv will make a "Big" announcement, as HL touted, is still up in the air. The reason for HL's great expectations, of course, is that Gov. Palin had promised Bob & Mark that if she announces for president, their program would get to break the news. But we have our doubts that she will make that particular announcement if she even appears on the show Friday for two reasons. One, she has also hinted not to expect any such announcement for months, and two, Friday is April 1.

Given how the media left and the elitist right attack her for every little thing she says and does, we can't see her making her presidential announcement on April Fools Day. But we wouldn't be at all surprised if she, with the complicity of the two Anchorage radio hosts, has a little fun at the expense of her critics. It's not like they don't have it coming.

Update: Fox News has shot down the rumors, as Dan Springer reports. As we expected, there will be no major announcement by Gov. Palin on the Bob & Mark show Friday:

The word comes from the person closest to Palin, her husband, Todd, who set the record straight that rumors she may announce a 2012 presidential run where just that -- rumors. Fox News also spoke with Meg Stapleton, Palin’s former spokeswoman, who says that there would be no major announcement of any kind on Friday. Stapleton has remained in contact with the Palin family and also spoke with Tim Crawford, Palin’s chief fundraiser, about the rumor.

But that's not the half of it:

Todd says that Sarah Palin is not even going to be a guest on the show.

That last one is a bit of a surprise, as Bob and Mark seem, to us at least, to be taking advantage of their friendship with the governor. Why risk harming that relationship with a cheap publicity stunt?

- JP

Day By Day (March 30, 2011)

Tokyo
*
Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day:


Please support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day.

- JP

Quote of the Day (March 29, 2011)

Palin on the Issues: Energy Independence
*
Right Wingnut at Right Speak:

"The following is a very long list of op-eds and Facebook posts, relating to energy, written by Palin over the past two years..."

- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention, Part 244

"Annoying Little Pri Mosquito" Edition
*

Gina Dalfonzo at Christianity Today Blogs:

"When comedian Bill Maher called Sarah Palin a 'dumb t--t' on his HBO show last week, few people were holding their breath waiting for the National Organization for Women to come to her defense. But as a matter of fact, NOW — the largest feminist organization in the U.S. — did. They just did it in a way that brings to mind the old saw, 'With friends like these, who needs enemies?'... There’s an important application here for Christians, who believe that all persons, of all beliefs, backgrounds, and genders, are created in the image of God and derive their worth from him. That in itself should ensure our respect for each person's dignity, and restrain us from personal attacks based on gender or race or appearance or any other God-given quality. All of us struggle in that area, myself not least. But as Christians, we have a vital reason to fight the temptation: our stated belief in the value of each human life that God has created. Whether the woman making headlines at any given moment is Sarah Palin or Hillary Clinton, Michelle Obama or Laura Bush, some of us will have reasons to disagree with her. But disagreements should be just that: disagreements. As Christians, however strongly we deplore a person’s ideas or actions, we should know that to attack a woman on the basis of gender, or any other essential part of her identity, is to attack the God who made her."

ZIP at Weasel Zippers:

"If I was Todd Palin I’d be looking to corner Maher in an alleyway and beat the pulp out of him."

Noel Sheppard at NewsBusters:

"In a recent 'Real Time' installment after the riots began in Egypt, the host said that for lasting political change to occur in this region, there's going to have to be a sexual revolution that improves the treatment of women. But apparently to Maher, such equality doesn't begin at home, for he has in the past eleven days called Palin a t--t, a bimbo along with Congresswoman Michele Bachmann and now the dreaded C-word which to women is like the N-word to African-Americans. Once again, I point my finger at the National Organization for Women. By not specifically admonishing Maher, 'Real Time,' and HBO in its weak defense of Palin last week, this hypocritically self-described women's organization was implicitly telling this so-called comedian and the network he represents it's just fine to make sexist attacks on this woman - and conceivably all conservative women - no matter how vulgar. Welcome to the new and NOW-approved feminism, America - where liberal women's rights are to be defended while conservative women's rights are to be trampled on like a restaurant door mat."

Jim Treacher at The DC Trawler:

"If I called, say, Michelle Obama the kind of stuff Bill Maher calls Sarah Palin… how much overtime would the drones at Media Matters rack up?"

Howard Portnoy at Hot Air's Green Room:

"It is unclear how low radical-left opinionator Bill Maher can go in his disparagement of Sarah Palin, but suffice it to say he has to train his gaze upward at this point to catch even a fleeting glimpse of the sewer he long ago passed on his descent into the realm of crude schoolyard taunts... Although liberal women are finally speaking out against Maher... there is no indication he plans to desist any time soon with the irrational and self-debasing name calling. And why should when he’s got the approbation of 'a largely gay (and certainly gay-friendly) audience' to fill his sails? As his moral fiber, or what is left of it, disintegrates, he can look forward increasingly to standing-room-only audiences — so long as he doesn’t mind playing to houses with 60 seats."

Tim Rogers at FrontBurner:

"I Hope Bill Maher Doesn’t Kiss His Mother With That Mouth..."

Rich Trzupek at FrontPageMag.com:

"It’s ironic that Maher would dare to question the intelligence of anyone, of any gender. This is after all the same fellow whose one appearance on a serious national news show featured him declaring that Brazil 'got off oil' over the last thirty years and that the South American country now powers their economy on sugar cane. In fact, Brazil is the world’s ninth largest oil producer and the president of the United States wants to trade batteries for more Brazilian oil imports. Clearly, Maher is not a bright enough bulb to evaluate anyone’s intelligence."

B. Daniel Blatt at Gay Patriot:

"Sarah Palin has really become the official left-wing panty buncher... What is it about attractive and outspoken conservative women that drive certain left-wingers bonkers?"

Wendy K at NewsReal Blog:

"Back in the ’80s it would have been unheard of for any woman politician, either from the Right or the Left, to be blasted with obscenities. No one would have dared. In the very unlikely circumstances that someone did lob an obscene comment at a woman the person would face stern consequences. Certainly when Ferraro was on the ticket she was never called a monster or a b__ch like Hillary Clinton. But whatever was done to Clinton pales in comparison to the treatment of Sarah Palin. Sexually degrading and menacing words have been hurled at Palin on a daily basis. Because no one in a position of authority called off the dogs early on (think Obama here,) it’s been open season on her and other conservative women."

Ace at Ace of Spades HQ:

"Rolling Stone's Not Really Sure Who Jeremy Morlock's Commander in Chief Was But They Do Know Who He Used To Play Hockey Against..."

Ronbo at The Freedom Fighter's Journal:

"As I predicted several days ago on this blog, the leftist media has authored another blood libel against Sarah Palin by way of Morlock, a soldier who recently confessed to be guilty in the murder of innocent civilians in Afghanistan. This latest wild charge by the Left is based only on the fact that Morlock was a resident in the same town as Sarah Palin and allegedly knew some of her children. If you follow this logic, isn't Barack Obama guilty of every murder committed in Chicago when he lived there?"

Ronbo at The Freedom Fighter's Journal:

"When a major Leftist Media outlet like the Soros funded 'Huffing & Puffington Post' devotes an entire page to Sarah Palin - the American Socialists are peeing in their pants in worry that the first female president and ultimate feminist may be a Christian woman with children."

Daria at The Conservative Diva:

"I am not quite sure why Kerrie Heretic — a self-described conservative — is so filled with venom over Sarah Palin, a courageous leader who has been an unapologetic, consistent voice for freedom, American Exceptionalism and commonsense conservatism in the face of relentless death threats, character assassination, slander and a campaign of personal destruction on the part of DNC operatives that ultimately resulted in her resignation from her Alaska governorship and prominence in the Tea Party movement. Kerrie, why don’t you save some of your bile for the man who is destroying our country, the same one Palin fearlessly takes on on a daily basis — unlike the weak-willed boys of the GOP establishment?"

Jim Hoft at Gateway Pundit:

"Guess she didn’t like it, huh?"

Freedom Fighter at Joshuapundit:

"As some of you might recall, I've been fairly critical of the Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg and some of his positions on Israel, which at times seem to be almost a kissin' cousin to those of his anti-Semitic former Atlantic colleague Andrew Sullivan. However, his site today has an interesting piece that sheds a great deal of light on something that out to be brought out into the sunlight. Entitled 'Goldblog is a Pro-J Street Blog' he makes that point that while much of what J-Street does he disagrees with, he's deeply angered that the Israeli Knesset held a hearing to determine whether J-Street was a pro-Israel organization, and that Israeli PM found time to meet with Governor Sarah Palin (whom he despises) but not with the minions of J-Street... J-Street and similar organizations were not formed and financed to promote Israel and Zionism. George Soros put them together to provide a beard, an 'alternative viewpoint' for President Obama's anti-Israel stance in order to negate any accusations of anti-Semitism. The bird who flies over from the next tree to try to foul someone else's nest has no business feeling slighted when the birds who've chosen to live there take that amiss and try to stop him."

- JP

WSJ Political Diary: Sarah Stateswoman

"India offers a lesson here."
*
Abheek Bhattacharya, Asia-based editorial page writer for The Wall Street Journal, opines in WSJ's Political Diary that Gov. Palin hit the right notes in her recent speech in New Delhi by discussing the values that U.S. and India hold in common:

Sarah Palin did a fine job bolstering her foreign-policy credentials in a speech in New Delhi this month. She hit the right notes discussing the common democratic values and the similar geopolitical outlook that tie the U.S. with India. And she hailed New Delhi economic reforms that were launched 20 years ago and have deepened the bond.

"The relationship between our countries could shape the course of the next century, tilting it in the direction of free people and free markets," she said.

The former Alaska governor also addressed how free-market reforms could inform energy policy.

[...]

The other side of her vision involves developing the natural resources in America that regulations, like bans on offshore drilling, have "stymied." In a time of high unemployment and high inflation, unlocking the country's mineral wealth can both create jobs and provide larger supplies of oil and gas to ease high energy prices.

[More]

h/t: Benyamin Korn

- JP

Day By Day (March 29, 2011)

Prostitutes
*
Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day:


Please support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day.

- JP

Quote of the Day (March 28, 2011)

Bachmann, Palin and Iowa
*
Stephen C. Rose at Associated Content:

"If Huckabee does not run, the two most likely candidates for the coveted two top finishes in the Iowa caucuses could well be Bachmann and Palin... It is too early to suggest that a ticket with a Palin or Bachmann at the top and Marco Rubio as running mate would not send at least a shiver up the spine of Democrats."

- JP

Gov. Palin: Obama didn't tell us what the endgame is in Libya

His nuanced speech was "profoundly disappointing"
*
Sarah Palin and Greta Van Susteren discussed President Obama's Libya speech on "On The Record" tonight:


- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention, Part 243

"Minute by Minute" Edition
*

Tommy at The Right Sphere:

"I can’t say that I am shocked, but I though it might take more than a few minutes for the left to use the sad passing of former U.S. Representative and 1984 Democrat Vice-Presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro to play politics. But, it turns out I was wrong... I will never get why the 'tolerant left' needs to use almost every event imaginable to bash Sarah Palin. Not only is it tacky and crass to use the death of an honorable public servant like Gerry Ferraro as a club to bash Sarah Palin with; it just shows that the only tolerance the left really has is for those they agree with. You know, for someone that they consistently try to portray as... woefully unqualified to be president, they sure do spend an awful lot of time talking about her. I wonder why that is?"

Weasel Meister at Weasel Zippers:

"Pure Class: Sarah Palin extols Geraldine Ferraro’s accomplishments... High road all the way."

Clyde Middleton at Liberty Pundits:

"I can’t leave this topic without commenting on the National Organization of Women and all the similar entities that purport to further women’s equality. When they supported Bill Clinton in the 'Hide the cigar... ' days, pimped Geraldine Ferraro as the incarnate Virgin Mary, and dissed Sarah Palin as 'well, sure, a woman, but not that one' they lost all credibility. Planned Parenthood’s mantra of 'choice' is thin gruel when the definition of 'endangering a woman’s life' includes worrying over money because of another mouth to feed. We have no 'equality' movement in the United States, just a collective of carnival freaks that pimp a narrow political ideology."

Vain at The Sarah Palin Revolution:

"I think Bill Maher has encountered Sarah Palin's 'No Mosquito Zone'"

Joe Newby at Examiner.com:

"Sarah Palin compared Bill Maher to 'an annoying little mosquito found zipped up in your tent' and encouraged conservatives to not get distracted by the petty, vulgar attacks of liberals like Maher. The problem with mosquitos, however, is that many carry diseases like encephalitis, dengue fever, and malaria. In Maher's case, the diseases are ignorance, hate, and radical liberalism."

R.G. Yoho at Allvoices.com:

"Bill Maher hates Sarah Palin because she bravely stands for all of the things he despises - faith, family, moral values, love of country and personal responsibility."

DCE at Weekend Pundit:

"It never ceases to amaze me, the level of vitriol leveled towards Palin or at her family. It shows how far manners and adherence to the unwritten rules of politics have fallen among the Left. This may end up coming back to bite them in the a**, as it should. During the 2008 presidential campaign, both the Democrats and their bought-and-paid-for media went after Sarah's family, a long standing taboo. Candidates were always considered fair game. Their families were not. The Dems crossed that line and now they may never be able to step back across it. Even now they continue to hammer her and her family as if they are deathly afraid of her. Maybe it's because they are."

Lee Stranahan at Big Journalism:

"Breitbart’s statement about Palin as... kingmaker was not, as [TPM] claims, a response to polls, but something that Breitbart has been saying for at least 70 weeks. As in, well over a year."

John Nolte at Big Hollywood:

"The former Governor of Alaska has star power to burn, savvy to spare, is as tough as a hickory knot, and yet while were told again and again by The Sophisticated Class that she’s dumb as a post, somehow she also happens to be right about almost everything... I’ve never seen anyone put through such a cruel, mean-spirited, public meat grinder where their family, womb, faith, gender, dialect, looks and culture are all fair game for the worst kinds of smears. And because she has survived this unprecedented evil with such grace and dignity – Sarah Palin is my hero. And of course I want her to be president... But it’s just a fact that the price of a President Sarah Palin is a hole in the crucial pop culture war that only she can fill. And only a wicked, journOlisting MSM would attempt to spin into a negative a man publicly declaring that he would like to see this one person lead the charge in a battle that has defined his life more than any other."

Designated Conservative:

"We need a President like Sarah Palin."

Doug Ross at Director Blue:

"After an exceptional track record as a local official, mayor, and then governor, Palin was tarred as 'inexperienced' and 'stupid', though her resume far surpassed that of the Democrat presidential candidate. Post-election, a series of 18 frivolous lawsuits, most launched by Democrat political operatives, threatened to bankrupt her and her family. She resigned the governorship and began raising money for Tea Party-backed conservative candidates in 2010, arguably becoming the primary rainmaker in the historic GOP landslide. Palin's charismatic appeal, plain-spoken American values and love of country make her a favorite for conservatives and a huge target for Democrats and legacy media, who appear terrified by her amazing popularity."

Jacob Sanders at 208 Weeks:

"Public Policy Polling collected Palin's approval/disapproval ratings in 27 states, and I have created a map version..."

Paul Bedard at Washington Whispers:

"The poll was also good news for Palin... Not only did she best Christie as the candidate who likely GOP voters see representing their views, 17 percent to 14 percent, but she was second to him for who voters would pick today to run against Obama in the general election. And when Zogby removed Christie from the presidential preference poll, she topped the nine others in the field, winning 14 percent of the support."

Nikki Schwab and Katy Adams at the Washington Examiner:

"Palin picking pro-life group over 'nerd prom'..."

Benyamin Korn at JewsForSarah.com:

"The good news is that both the RJC and the good folks at SarahPac are on the same page. Long-time RJC director Matt Brooks was pro-active in contacting SarahPac to assure Gov. Palin’s team that Frum’s trouble-making was in no way at the behest of RJC leadership. At the same time, Mr. Brooks included an item in the RJC’s national newsletter praising as 'entirely accurate' Gov. Palin’s 'harsh criticism' of President Obama’s latest lame statement on Israel – this time in response to Wednesday’s terror-bombing at Jerusalem’s central bus station. "

- JP

Gutfeld: Maher's creepy comedy exposes hypocrisy of feminist left

Red Eye's March 26 Greg-alogue:
*

- JP

Tony Lee to Gov. Palin: Run

Will her absence from the early debates make GOP hearts grow fonder?
*
Political advice is a most curious commodity. Some politicians pay prodigious sums of money for it, yet there's no shortage of pundits who offer it freely. For those who would argue that the advice of professional political consultants is worth far more than whatever wisdom the run of the mill pundit may have to offer, we have two words: Bob Shrum. With his 0-8 record in major campaigns and his prediction that the Democrats would keep control of the U.S. House in 2010 in mind, how much worse could free advice be?

Human Events contributor Tony Lee is one of those dispensing no-cost advice, and his recommendation to Sarah Palin is to jump in the race:

Of course, some in the GOP establishment are baiting her with the prospect of becoming “kingmaker for life” because they desperately want her to sit out the nominating process.

And though Palin can jump in the race the latest of any candidate and freeze the whole field until she makes a formal decision, my suggestion would be for her to jump straight into the race on the 4th of July without first forming an exploratory committee, which she can say is done only by those in the Washington establishment.

Lee likes July 4 for the obvious patriotic connection, but also because it marks the anniversary of the weekend that she resigned as Alaska's governor, a move for which she has received no shortage of criticism. Choosing the 4th of July weekend, Lee points out, gives her a symbolic "do-over."

While there's no compelling reason for Gov. Palin to announce sooner rather than later, holding off until the first week in July may be playing the waiting game a bit too long, if she hasn't already signed up most of her campaign staff by then. As former Thompson supporters, we recall that one of the many missteps Fred made in 2008 was to jump in the race too late, after all the better worker bee had been snatched up by rival campaigns. May or early June seems to us to be a more prudent time to announce, but what do we know? Our advice, like Lee's, comes with no price tag attached.

BTW, Lee's advice to Huckabee is also worth noting: the former Arkansas governor, says Lee, needs to convince the GOP establishment that he can take Sarah Palin out of the race. No simple task that, and it's one that could easily be assigned to any of Gov. Palin's would-be rivals for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination.

- JP

Day By Day (March 28, 2011)

Frangible
*
Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day:


Please support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day.

- JP

Quote of the Day (March 27, 2011)

Left Grossly Uses Ferraro's Death to Bash Palin
*
Lori Ziganto at NewsReal Blog:

"Vile, yet predictable. The left has no qualms about politicizing absolutely anything on the backs of the dead. You’d think they’d at least take a moment to mourn Geraldine Ferraro’s death and give their condolences to her family and loved ones, but you’d be wrong."

- JP

NY Sun: Sarah and Sarah

Her mantra of constitutional conservatism welcomes everyone
*
An excerpt from Sunday's editorial in The New York Sun

One of the things that Sarah Palin did on her stopover at Israel was announce that she was eager to return for a longer visit, and we found ourselves wondering whether she will eventually make a visit to the Machpelah. For the first body laid to rest there in the cave purchased by Abraham was that of Mrs. Palin’s namesake, Sarah, Abraham’s wife and the mother of Isaac. We have sometimes found ourselves wondering whether the affection Mrs. Palin exhibits in respect of Israel is related to the fact that the former governor — the Alert Alaskan is our favorite alliteration for her — is named after the first, the most beautiful, and the most prickly of the Jewish matriarchs.

We were put in mind of this not only by Mrs. Palin’s visit to Israel but also by the contretemps that followed the suggestion by a leading journalist in Washington, David Frum, that Mrs. Palin was alienating Jewish voters by failing to arrange her visit through a the Republican Jewish Coalition, of whose board Mr. Frum is a member. The RJC has been paving the way for one of the most important migrations of American Jews, from the Democratic Party to the party of Lincoln and Reagan. It’s sometimes lonely but always heroic work, and no doubt there were those in the RJC who wished they could have been the organizing party of Mrs. Palin’s first visit to the Jewish State.

The contretemps, however, was a matter of politics rather than principle, and how could it be otherwise? For on the substance Mrs. Palin has been a passionate supporter of Israel. This seems to be well-recognized by the executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition Matthew Brooks, who made a point late last week of defending Mrs. Palin’s most recent critique of President Obama...

[More]

- JP

Michael Hauschild: Sarah Palin represents what a president should be

A view from flyover country
*
Nebraskan Michael Hauschild, in an American Thinker op-ed, says average Americans don't need the professional punditocracy to tell us which candidates are "presidential" or not:

Sarah Palin represents what a president should be in these very troubled times; she's made choices in the last several years which many misinterpret in the framework of their own shortcoming. The slings and arrows launched at Palin vibrate with bias, chauvinism, elitism, and partisan politics and a sense of superior intellect from the howling scornful classes mentioned above.

I offer one man's simple observation -- a view from a citizen born and raised in the heartland of the rugged Great Plains: Sarah Palin has done more for the sanctity of life, for the preservation of American values, for the American traditions of integrity and honesty in political discourse than all the wannabe pundits across the country beating their chests and voicing "expert" proclamations of disdain since the name Sarah Palin became a household word.

We know Sarah Palin well enough now to know that she would take the burden of president if she felt it would be best for her country. She would step aside and put her credentials and principles behind another leader if she felt it would be best for her country. She has, is, and will continue to do what is best for our country with no focus on personal gain other than the security of America.

From the perch of a humble patriot citizen in the heartland of America, I believe that Sarah Palin wants what I want -- our American life as our forefathers intended: a Constitutional Republic, with checks and balances in place. If she can deliver this, she'll likely seek office; if she can contribute or support a candidate, she'll do that, too. If she can serve best on the periphery, that'll be the role she takes. She'll seek to save the country with her actions, not risk its destruction because of a lust for power.

[More]

- JP

Day By Day (March 27, 2011)

Obama Ackbar!
*
Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day:


Please support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day.

- JP

Quote of the Day (March 26, 2011)

Sarah and the Joooos are "fair game"
*
Smitty, at The Other McCain:

"I was eating breakfast the other morning, and some civilians were at the next table. A guy facing me says ‘Sarah Palin’, and the grey-haired bint with her back to me proceeded to vent her spleen. “I hate that woman. She’s so divisive. She’s got a disabled child and she’s running around the world. . .” I had to move to another table. It would have been equally offensive to have heard such a diatribe about, say, President Obama. Only, like the Israelis, it’s OK to blast Sarah anytime, anyplace."

- JP

Gov. Palin: Geraldine Ferraro was an inspiration and role model

"She prepared the way"
*
Sarah Palin remembered Geraldine Ferraro in a Fox News interview Saturday:


And also on Facebook:

On the Passing of Geraldine Ferraro

My family and I would like to express our sincere condolences to the family of Geraldine Ferraro. When I had the honor of working alongside Geraldine on election night last year, we both discussed the role of women in politics and our excited expectation that someday that final glass ceiling would be shattered by the election of a woman president. She was an amazing woman who dedicated her life to public service as a teacher, prosecutor, Congresswoman, and Vice Presidential candidate. She broke one huge barrier and then went on to break many more. The world will miss her. May she rest in peace and may her example of hard work and dedication to America continue to inspire all women.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention, Part 242

"Living on a Thin Line" Edition
*

Jonathan S. Tobin at Commentary Magazine:

"Did Palin Zone Out on Obama and Israel? Nope... An on-line discussion at Politico about her comments was headlined on its homepage as concerning 'Palin’s idiotic comments about Israel.' So how 'idiotic' were they? The correct answer is not very... Far from stupid, these remarks are actually very much to the point about the willingness of this administration, and some of its predecessors to pressure Israel to make concessions when the real obstacle to peace is what it always has been: the Palestinians' unwillingness to make peace or to give up terrorism... If Palin thinks of it in terms of zoning, it may be because, unlike Obama, she takes it for granted that Jews have the right to be in their own country and build wherever it is legally permissible to do so. Twice in his first two years in office Obama picked very nasty and public fights with Israel’s government over the building of homes in existing Jewish neighborhoods in Jerusalem. These arguments were not only an unprecedented attack on Israel from an American president on the issue of Jerusalem. They were both unnecessary and had the effect of making peace negotiations with the Palestinians less likely. So when you look at it from that perspective, maybe it’s Obama and not Palin who has been the 'idiotic' one when it comes to Israeli building policies."

MariaS at Dodo Can Spell:

"I absolutely love her stance on Israel... No wonder the hard-Left hates her the way they do .... she's going to push their faces into the dust at every opportunity... much to our eternal entertainment."

Mendy Ganchrow, M.D. at Ganchrow World View:

"As I wrote previously, I did not believe Sarah Palin was a credible candidate for President. Last nite she was on Fox with Greta,and I have to say that both Sheila and I were truly impressed with her demeanor. She just returned from India and Israel. It was not just her views in Israel that I felt comfortable with, but her whole approach to Libya and leadership. She has matured since the hectic days of the campaign. If she runs she will be a formidable candidate."

Zvi Wiesenfeld at Doozenhowser:

"Well Done Mrs. Palin... I am officially in love with Sarah Palin."

Ed Morrissey at Hot Air:

"Palin says she would have supported a no-fly zone a month ago when the mission was defined as pushing Gaddafi out of power. Now, with an almost completely ambiguous mission and unclear objectives, Palin says we shouldn’t have bothered... Palin does a good job here providing the conservative viewpoint on military intervention and victory. She offers much more coherence in ten minutes than the Obama administration has offered in six days of fighting in Libya."

Robert Naiman at The Christian Science Monitor:

"As a matter of logic, if President Obama can bomb Libya without congressional authorization, then a future President Palin could bomb Iran without congressional authorization."

Tom Donelson at Texas GOP Vote:

"Ah, in reviewing Obama's performance in the White House, there is one thing that comes out truthfully; how Obama stacks up poorly against Sarah Palin when it comes to leadership... Obama's biggest failure is to set forth a vision for his policy and even today, Americans and the world for that matter, don’t know what end game Obama has in mind. With President Palin, the end game would be the end of the Gaddafi regime... We are seeing a President who was not ready for prime time with advisors who were also not ready for prime time. So how it is that Sarah Palin would have been worse? At least President Palin would not have needed to be educated on the importance of America’s role in the world nor the importance of market economics as the basis for economic policy. But it is now apparent one learns more from the University of Idaho than Harvard."

Patrick S. Adams at Liberty's Lamp:

"All of those on the Republican side who put Sarah Palin down are either purposely or inadvertently getting into bed with the liberal media."

Chris Wilson at Wilson Research Strategies:

"Recent interpretations of national polling data have suggested that former Alaska Governor and Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin is “losing ground” based on movements in her image rating among all self-identified Republicans and Republican-leaning Independents. But what are we really looking at? FACT: The recent Washington Post/ABC news poll that is the basis the 'losing ground' comments still shows Palin on the right side of the favorable/unfavorable scale with 58% having a favorable impression and 37% with an unfavorable impression... If you look hard enough, you might just find some of the same 'conservative elites' who are attacking Sarah Palin today saying eerily similar things about Ronald Reagan in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s... In the recent past these 'conservative elites' have been important in how conservative voters evaluate candidates. So far their attacks on Palin aren’t having as much of an effect as one would think. And her image, especially among strong conservative voters, remains very positive... her greatest asset is that she can appeal to the same large voting blocs of middle class conservatives who elected conservatives in primary and general elections in 2010, and when she gets a chance to speak to increasing numbers of voters on her terms, it wouldn’t surprise anyone to see her number shoot right back up."

Jim Geraghty at NRO's The Campaign Spot:

"Palin Isn’t the ‘Through’ CNN Might Want You to Believe"

Poll Insider:

"There are 5 major issues that will win or lose the 2012 Election for someone, if they can handle those issues correctly... and Palin is on the right side of all of them. She can be on the offensive on every one, as Obama is left defensively responding or flat-out lying (but, alas, he has a record now!). She can go after spending, healthcare, jobs, energy, and immigration. Where she can succeed, the others will stumble. Romney’s big skeleton is Healthcare. Sure, he can say it was different because it was a state issue. But, alas, the principles of his state law were liberal. Gingrich loses on immigration and energy. Huckabee loses on immigration and spending... Not only is Sarah Palin the only major candidate that is completely tuned-in to public opinion on the big 5 issues, but she is also the only candidates who can put together all of the necessary components to win against the $1 billion candidate."

ZIP at Weasel Zippers:

"Sarah Palin Hits Back at 'Annoying Little Mosquito' Bill Maher… He’s more of a cockroach, but annoying little mosquito will do."

Lori Ziganto at NewsReal Blog:

"Women don’t need the likes of NOW 'defending' them. Sarah Palin knows this. She is often accused of 'playing the victim' too often, and the reason given is that she stands up for herself and issues her own statements in lieu of waiting for others to do so. That is the opposite of victimhood. She is not relying on the likes of N.O.W. or other faux women’s groups to 'defend' her. She has come a long way, baby. It’s far past time that we all do. The first step is hammering the final nail in N.O.W.’s coffin... They should be marginalized as the group full of useful idiots that they are."

Ann Althouse:

"Sarah Palin's joke writers are better than Bill Maher's."

Star Parker via Scripps Howard News Service:

"Slaves who had the temerity to run away from their plantation 'home' paid dearly if they were caught and returned. Measures were taken to make them an example to others who might harbor similar thoughts about freedom... Such is the fate today of those uppity souls who choose to challenge the authority and legitimacy of our inexorably growing government plantation. Those with interests for the care and feeding of this plantation cannot physically punish these rebels with the whip. Their whip is the mainstream media and the means of punishment of this virtual whip is not beating of a physical body but assassination of character. This perspective helps us understand the ongoing liberal obsession with destroying Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and former Alaska governor Sarah Palin... But it is brave individuals like this, in public and private life, upon whom our future depends."

- JP

Day By Day (March 26, 2011)

Rats
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Good morning! It's a wonderful life if we just take it Day By Day:


Please support Chris Muir's pro-Palin Day By Day.

- JP

Quote of the Day (March 25, 2011)

Palin Scores on the World Stage
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Sheldon Filger, author of an apocalyptic novel about Gov. Palin:

"If Sarah Palin should declare her candidacy for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, the past few days may be looked back at by political historians as an important marker... The dual visits to India and Israel within such a compressed period of time showed Sarah Palin as not only comfortable but even self-confident on the world stage... It seems clear that Sarah Palin has been working hard on buttressing her knowledge of foreign policy issues, and her facility in discussing international affairs in a public setting. Critics on the left, and even within the establishment of the Republican Party, will argue that this is merely for the purpose of increasing her marketability and fees as a celebrity speaker. I think these critics do not fully comprehend the objectives and political ambitions of Sarah Palin, and her determination and focus in pursuing them."

- JP

Video: Sarah Palin interviewed in India by Koel Purie Rinchet

From Headlines Today
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Part 1:

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Part 2:


h/t: Ian and Ron

- JP