Daniel M. Ryan: Let Palin be Palin

Trust her, and run guard for her if needed
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Here are some excerpts from another must-read at Enter Stage Right:

Republican charismatics like Ronald Reagan or Sarah Palin are often sized up as if there's something wrong about them. Democrat charismatics never attract self-appointed handlers, while Republicans often do. Any advice-giver to a Democrat charismatic is likely to cover up said advice in a protective coat of fawning. On the other hand, Republican charismatics attract unsolicited advice like gold does gold-diggers. You don't have to wait long for some pundit or operative to write about what Mrs. Palin is doing wrong, and why she should change her ways. Strangely, some of them come from liberals trying to cultivate disinterestedness. President Reagan faced the same thing, not only before he became President but afterwards. There have been enough of them to rate a new term: "concern trolls."

A concern troll is the type of character that used to be known as a "buttinsky." The fact that Republican charismatics attract them, but not Democrats, says something about the tilted playing field of politics.

[...]

Republican charismatics tend to be out-of-the-box campaigners while Democrat charismatics are not. The Republican breed seems riskier. Democrats follow a stable pattern: they're excellent speechifiers and charming face-to-face campaigners. Other than that, they're system people. They don't mind being handled, and work well with handlers for that reason. They're dependent upon the staff, and they mostly don't mind being so. President Obama's now-notorious gaffeing without teleprompter clearly indicates his dependency.

On the other hand, a Republican charismatic is more independent of his or her handlers. It's charisma that comes from the base up, by direct bonding with ordinary people... Consequently, the former are more independent of their handlers than the latter. Professional handlers, including the Republican variety, tend to be put ajar by such people... It's a shame that this trust barrier exists, because Sarah Palin is easygoing; she wears her authority lightly. She tends to wield authority like a teacher, the kind who lets all students have their say if need be. Let me be the first to say it: should Sarah Palin become President, diligent members of her Cabinet who liked school will find her a pleasant boss. She'll be very unlike Bill Clinton, who needed George Stephanopoulos as his morning punching bag.

Once again, Republicans need to hear it: let Palin be Palin... The way to handle a charismatic like Sarah Palin is to trust her, and run guard for her if needed.

[More]

Read.The.Whole.Thing.

Best advice we've ever heard. Too bad the GOP won't take it, much less even listen to it.

- JP