Video: Palin Pella Premiere

She says she is planning on coming back to Iowa
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Video courtesy of WHO-TV

- JP

Caffeinated Thoughts: Palin Documentary Sets the Record Straight

"It was well done, and worth the watch."
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Our friend in Iowa Shane Vander Hart was one of the 300 who filled the Pella Opera House for the world premiere of "The Undefeated" while some 700 more people outside made their way to the Molengracht for the post-screening BBQ dinner so well organized by Organize 4 Palin. Here's an excerpt from his review:

I was struck by my emotional reaction to the opening scene. I was angry. I was angry at how Governor Palin and her family was treated. I was angry about how many in the Republican establishment remained silent while she was savaged. I’m not talking about pointing out policy differences or criticizing her record, but rather the personal attacks that she experienced day in and day out after she picked as Senator John McCain’s running mate.

It drove a narrative which in turn distorted her record. That is what this movie is trying to correct. Most of the movie is about her time as Mayor of Wasilla, how she helped to bolster the infrastructure and in doing so, helped to create an environment where small businesses could develop jobs. She did this while cutting taxes.

It showed her as a reformer, unafraid of standing up to Big Oil, and corruption within her own party. She resigned as a oil and gas commissioner out of principle in order to stand up to ethics violations which then Governor Frank Murkowski turned a blind eye to. When she ran for Governor, she not only beat an incumbent Governor in the primary, she then went on to beat former Alaska Governor Tony Knowles.

The movie did a great job pointing out her legislative accomplishments...

[More]

Shane also had the presence of mind to capture most of Gov. Palin's impromptu remarks inside the Opera House as the closing credits rolled by on the screen. You can view that video and read his full review at Caffeinated Thoughts.

- JP

Day By Day (June 29, 2011)

Trials
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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 (June 28, 2011)

‘Run Sarah, Run!’
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John Nolte, at Big Hollywood:

“There’s a lot of good people already running for the GOP nomination, most especially Herman Cain and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, but I would love to see Governor Palin throw her hat in the ring. No one better understands that the MSM is the real opponent in 2012 and no one is better prepared — through her own experience and social media savvy — to defeat them. She was also one helluva chief executive of Alaska and happens to be right on almost every issue. Can I get a … Run Sarah, run!”

- JP

Fox News Video: Palin Undecided and 'Undefeated'

"This film transcends politics..."
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Here's the Fox News package that aired on Greta Van Susteren's "On the Record" Tuesday night:


- JP

Journal-Express: Rave reviews for 'The Undefeated' in Pella

"I think it's something the average American needs to see."
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Steve Woodhouse of Knoxville, Iowa's Journal-Express reports that many of those who viewed the world premiere showing of "The Undefeated" emerged from the Pella Opera House with rave reviews of the documentary:

"The Undefeated," a documentary chronicling the political career of former Alaska Governor and Vice Presidential Nominee Sarah Palin recently finished its premiere at the Pella Opera House. Those in attendance, most of whom are Republican supporters, enjoyed the film.

"I thought it was just great," Mike Olson of Pella said. He called Palin courageous and worthy of a second look for a potential presidential run by Republicans and the country.

"I thought it was a great infomercial," says Pella resident Barb Kniff. She said the film lets the audience know who Palin is. Kniff views Palin as someone who is for the people, someone who puts God first. All of the hype surrounding Palin, is warranted, she added.

Kniff reports that Palin spoke to the crowd. During that speech, one in which he audience had hoped would include a candidacy declaration, Palin appeared to be a Ronald Reagan Republican who wants America to return to its founding principles.

As for the film itself, non-Pella residents made the trip to see it. They, too, had positive things to say.

[More]

In my review of "The Undefeated," I concluded that the film has the potential to change a lot of minds and thus change the game. Game On! Changes ahead...

- JP

Gov. Palin at the BarBQ in Pella

A good listener can go a long way in politics...
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Many more Pella photos at Politicons

- JP

Scott Conroy: Palin Vows '110 Percent' Commitment To Iowa

"What is talked about on the fishing boat stays on the fishing boat."
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Reporter Scott Conroy is in Pella, Iowa, where he caught up with Sarah Palin and asked her if she would fully commit to traditional retail politicking in the key early primary state should she get into the 2012 presidential contest:

"110 percent," Palin told RealClearPolitics before entering the premiere of a documentary that extols her accomplishments in office. "Doing as much as I can to garner that support. It's necessary."

Dressed down in blue jeans, Palin strolled through the center of this picturesque town with her husband Todd and greeted supporters who gathered to cheer her on outside the screening of filmmaker Steven K. Bannon's "The Undefeated" at the 110-year-old Pella Opera House.

Asked about her daughter Bristol's pronouncement during an appearance on Fox News on Tuesday morning that her mother "definitely knows" whether she intends to launch a White House bid, Palin said that she texted Bristol after hearing about the remark.

"I said, ‘What did you say this morning, honey?'" Palin said with a smile. "I told Bristol, too, what is talked about on the fishing boat stays on the fishing boat."

[...]

As Palin finally made her way to the entrance of the opera house, she greeted Bannon with a hug.

"I'm very grateful that someone would bother to go to these efforts to make a documentary about the record of my team in Alaska that worked so hard for energy security and ethics reform and privatizing businesses that should never be in government's hands," Palin said. "This film really is a great illustration of what it is that you can accomplish as a team, a bipartisan approach, just commonsense solutions to some tough issues. We tackled it, we succeeded, and someone went to the trouble of documenting what it was that we accomplished. I appreciate that, so that brings me to Iowa."

[More]

If Bristol is correct that her mother has made a decision, Gov. Palin is clearly not yet ready to announce it.

- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention Part 321

“Take a Stand” Edition
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Stephen Bannon, in The Arena via CNN:

“One of the central theses of ‘The Undefeated’ is that Governor Palin is an existential threat to the existing political establishment as she proved to be a threat to the Republican establishment in Alaska. At the same time, Governor Palin has succeeded in capturing the American political imagination because her story is a true American success story of someone who, out of her desire to make a difference and her commitment to her values, took a stand and got involved, and was unwavering against any headwinds that she faced in making great change in Alaska and through her involvement with the Tea Party movement.”

Craig Robinson, at The Iowa Republican:

“Todd and Sarah Palin have made their way to Iowa. They were spotted by a loyal TIR reader moments ago at the Panera Bread Store on 86th Street in Urbandale. The Palins were swarmed by lunch patrons.”

Craig Robinson, to The Daily Beast's Shushannah Walshe:

“Is [Palin] going to sit down and meet with the people you would go through if you were going to launch a presidential campaign? No, but I think she will interact with very conservative people, very active Republicans. She will be mingling with caucus-goers... In Iowa, in a caucus state, big-name operatives and consultants are overrated. You need your county GOP chair and people willing to make phone calls and organize your neighbors. That’s what caucuses are about. Those are the most important people she can meet, the people that are really Sarah Palin fans, not a potential campaign manager or potential caucus director. The people she will be mingling with are quite important.”

Jim Hoft, at Gateway Pundit:

“There will be a full house tonight at the premiere of the Sarah Palin movie ‘The Undefeated’ tonight in Pella, Iowa. Sadly, there weren’t enough tickets for all of the media cranks that wanted to attend the premiere.”

Paul Bond, at The Hollywood Reporter:

“Reporters from around the country that have descended upon tiny Pella, Iowa for the premiere of the Sarah Palin documentary ‘The Undefeated’ on Tuesday night are in for a rude awakening: So scarce are the tickets that there’s no room in the theater for journalists... Most of the 340 tickets went to Iowans and some of the commentators featured in the film, like Tammy Bruce and Sonnie Johnson. The most controversial cast member – not including Palin herself – is Andrew Breitbart, who is expected to be a last-minute arrival on Tuesday. ‘I didn’t invite all my right-wing Hollywood friends,’ Bannon said. ‘Jon Voight, Dennis Miller, I’ll have a screening for those guys later. I’d actually like them to buy a ticket, but they’re so tight… And you can quote me on that,’ he joked.”

Sheila Marikar, of ABC News:

“The new documentary about Sarah Palin has yet to debut, and already, it's caused more of a stir than most Hollywood summer blockbusters. ”

Shane Vander Hart, at Caffeinated Thoughts:

“There is rarely an event I go to where Peter Singleton and Organize 4 Palin is not. I can’t say the same about the other campaigns. So if she gets in she’ll be able to hit the ground running. I’m looking forward to seeing her politic at the cook off that will be held after the movie premiere at the Pella Opera House tonight, she will definitely be in her element there. She has the ability more than any other candidate, I believe, to enter this race late and still be competitive in Iowa.”

This Just In Blog, at CNN:

“Tuesday's live video events... 8:30 pm ET - Sarah Palin in Iowa - Following the premiere of a movie about her political career, former Alaska governor Sarah Palin will address supporters and reporters in Pella, Iowa.”

Patrick S. Adams, at Patrick's World USA:

“They had her dead when they were filing frivolous ethics complaints. They had her dead when she resigned as governor. They had her dead when the tabloids (and by tabloids, I mean the LA Times, the Washington Post and Politico) were passing around rumors about divorce, Trig's birth, mental instability and hair loss. They had her dead when they accused her of pulling the trigger in the Arizona murders. Joe McGinness moved next door and wrote a hit book that failed. Frank Bailey's book failed. Those books were supposed to be the final acts of a well orchestrated three year smear campaign. Then came ‘The Undefeated.’ The smear campaign was a vicious air and ground assault on Palin. The daily shelling of vitriol and hit pieces was relentless. It was the Left's Vietnam. They napalmed Governor Palin incessantly. They leveled villages of conservative thought. They sent ground troops of writers like Andrew Sullivan and Jeanne Devon. They bombed from the air with the likes of Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann and Joe Scarborough. All it took to defeat these smear merchants was one nuclear weapon: ‘The Undefeated.’ ... At any time, Sarah Palin could announce her candidacy for the presidency and step right into the top tier of candidates in as competitive a position as they are. That's not bad for someone who should have been politically dead after the beatings she has taken from the media and the establishment.”

Bill, at BBCW:

“Sarah Palin in Iowa: Ready to Show Bachmann What a Real Conservative Looks Like...”

Pat Caddell,former Democrat pollster, to Neil Cavuto:

“They like to make her out to be an idiot, and she’s not. She’s a very smart woman... If you’re her, or Sarah Palin, or someone [the media] doesn’t like, any mistake you make is blown up.... People better start pushing back, and Chris Christie (R-NJ) proves that when you do, the people love it.”

Michele Bachmann, (R-MN), to David Brody:

“I like her a lot. We’re friends. I have great admiration for her, great respect for her, and we’ve never had a cross word between us.”

Donna Brazile, Democrat operative, via John Scotus at The Tree of Mamre:

“Palin is the candidate with the most crossover appeal between groups. She can talk to the tea partiers, the radicals — even the nearly extinct moderates. When scripted, she can be rather convincing, especially compared to other candidates. The others are too drab — in policy, in convictions, in media smarts. They just can’t compete with her star power. From here, 2012 looks like a slam-dunk for Sarah Palin.”

Lars Larson, at Oregon Catalyst:

“President Obama’s famous ‘Yes, we can’ victory speech... came in with a writing level of 7.4. Sarah Palin’s emails come in at 8.5, when you grade them according to the rules of the English language. Take that left-wing media.”

Noel Sheppard, at NewsBusters:

“It seems no matter what Sarah Palin does or doesn't do, she's going to be lambasted by America's press - even the supposedly ‘conservative’ ones. On Tuesday's ‘Morning Joe,’ co-host Joe Scarborough used Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann's successful campaign launch as a means of bashing the former Alaska governor... People all throughout the liberal press were blaming the former vice presidential candidate for Giffords' shooting. Should she really have stayed quiet and not defended herself? The idea that Palin's response to that incident hurt her is largely in the minds of her detractors who will attack her no matter what she says or does. At this point in time, is there really anything this woman could do that would get the approval of folks like Scarborough and his colleagues?”

Exit Quote: Peter Marshall, Presbyterian pastor and US Senate Chaplain (1947):

“Give us clear vision, that we may know where to stand and what to stand for - because unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything.”

- JP

Gov. Palin is in Iowa and on her way to Pella

Sounds like she and Todd are taking the bus
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Just tweeted by @SarahPalinUSA:

Beautiful drive from MN yesterday, breathtaking scenic run along Des Moines Rvr, coffee w/great Iowans, head to Pella for "The Undefeated"!

Game on!

- JP

Craig Robinson: More Than A Movie Debut?

"I think it’s time to take her seriously."
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The Iowa Republican's Craig Robinson has said that he would take Sarah Palin seriously as a presidential candidate when she took Iowa seriously. Today, when Gov. Palin arrives in the key early primary state for the premiere of a major documentary film about her, she will not only set foot on Iowa ground, but also "place her toes directly into Iowa’s presidential waters." As the world watches her at the Pella Opera House, searching for any sign that she may enter the 2012 Republican presidential race, Robinson now believes it's time to take Governor Palin seriously:

To many, Palin’s visit to Pella seems too late to signal that she may enter the presidential race. Even though Palin hasn’t been to Iowa since last November, she’s had an unofficial presence in the state for months now. Led by Peter Singleton, a California native, a group of Palin supporters have traveled all across the state meeting with county Republican officials and other GOP activists.

Singleton insists that he has no connection to Palin, but one cannot overlook what he and the others who are touting Palin across the state have done for her in Iowa. Singleton has crisscrossed the state meeting with activists and operatives alike. I chatted with him months ago and came away impressed. His understanding of Iowa and the caucus process here is impressive for an outsider.

Singleton and his team of Palin organizers have personally met with most of the county GOP chairs across the state. That is something that none of the current presidential campaigns can say that they have done. Instead of selling Iowa activists on Palin, they instead make sure that people understand that there is a possibility that Palin will run.

[...]

Even though Sarah Palin doesn’t play by the same rules that seem to govern the rest of the field of Republican candidates, she has developed an extensive ground game in Iowa, even if it’s not being officially coordinated by her or her advisors. In many ways, I think that Palin is probably more organized in Iowa in terms of grassroots communication than most of the current field.

[More]

While no one outside of Gov. Palin’s inner circle is certain that her Iowa visit today is the prelude to a presidential campaign, Robinson says he would not be surprised if that is what it turns out to be. He says one thing he's learned in a political career which includes over eight years of fundraising experience and a year as political director of the Republican Party of Iowa, is that there are no coincidences in politics. After summing it all up, including the grassroots organizers, the movie premiere, and Sarah Palin's first visit to his state in seven months, Robinson gets the feeling that today is more like the start of presidential campaign than just a random visit.

- JP

Bristol says her mom has decided about a 2012 run (Updated)

"She definitely knows."
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According to her daughter Bristol, Sarah Palin has reached a decision about whether to seek the presidency in 2012, writes Michael O'Brien at The Hill's Blog Briefing Room:

Bristol Palin, the eldest daughter of the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, said that she would like to see her mother run for president.

As to whether Sarah Palin had already made up her mind? "She definitely knows," Bristol Palin said during an appearance on Fox News.

That's a provocative answer, especially as Sarah Palin heads on Tuesday to Iowa, the key 2012 stomping grounds for Republican candidates, for a screening of a biopic about her, "The Undefeated."

[More]

After tonight's activities in Pella, Iowa, Gov. Palin's next stop is the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, where she will join her daughter at a book signing for Bristol's new book Not Afraid of Life. After that, jury duty calls, so it's back to Alaska.

Update: From Byron York, via Twitter:

Bristol Palin on @IngrahamAngle: 'I think that we all have an idea of what she wants to do, but still there's been no final call on that.'

- JP

Pella Prepares for a Palinfest

“It will be unlike anything Pella, the area of Pella, has ever experienced.”
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Sarah Palin returns to Iowa for the first time in seven months today as she and husband Todd will be at the Pella Opera House for the world premiere of the documentary film “The Undefeated”. KCCI-TV's Emily Price reports:

Management at the Pella Opera House found out just four days ago that they were chosen as the venue to host the premiere. The theater only seats 324 people, but it's about to have millions of eyes watching.

“It will be unlike anything Pella, the area of Pella, has ever experienced,” said Pella Opera House board president Larry Peterson.

[...]

“I think it's gotten a lot of attention. Not just national media will be here but a lot of international media as well,” said filmmaker Steve Bannon.

Bannon told News Channel 8 that before the sun comes up on Tuesday the major network morning news shows will be in front of the Opera House doing live reports. By sundown, he said, more than 50 media outlets will have written, broadcast or posted online about what happened in Pella.

“Well, we're very proud to show it off,” said Pella Opera House Interim Director Beth Hill.

After the movie premiere, 1,000 people will attend a barbecue with Palin. Filmmakers said it's exactly what Palin wanted.

“I told the team I think that it was in Pella and at the Pella Opera House that really, I think, grabbed her imagination,” Bannon said.

The former candidate for vice president will sit several rows back with her husband, Todd.

There are, of course, no tickets available for the movie or for the barbecue. Bannon and his team selected the historic Pella Opera House over some 200 other venues across the state to be the site of the world premiere of their film. Opera House management didn't even know that their theater was being considered for such an event because the filmmakers kept it a secret.

h/t: M. Joseph Sheppard

- JP

Day By Day (June 28, 2011)

Order Up
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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 (June 27, 2011)

Michele Bachmann is being used as a pawn
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Bill, at NJ for Palin:

“This week the false mainstream media narrative was how much [Bachmann] was ‘surging’ in the polling after her debate performance in New Hampshire and how she's usurped Palin's place in the race. To create this narrative prominent pollsters from Dick Morris to Scott Rasmussen have decided to exclude Governor Palin from polling entirely... So they remove Palin completely, and then they feign surprise when, lo and behold, the polling shows Bachmann surging into a statistical tie with Mitt Romney... So desperate are the media folks to deny Palin a shot at the presidency that they will stop at nothing to undermine her.”

- JP

More Quote of the Day Honorable Mention Part 320

“Experience” Edition
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James Tuggle, at The Constitution Club:

“It still amazes me how the media beat up on Sarah Palin for her lack of experience back in 2008, when in reality, she had more experience at running a government, making budgets and other administrative experience than Obama did. She had as much experience as Bill Clinton, I mean, my gosh, he was Arkansas’ governor. Sarah had as much experience as Jimmy Carter governor of a progressive southern state. G. W. Bush, at least he had some experience in professional baseball other than being governor of Texas. She had as much experience as FDR and Ronald Reagan though Reagan ran the Actors Guild for years. Their basic experience was being governors of a state. Sarah was a governor of a state but she had absolutely no experience at running a government according to the liberal media. Barack H. Obama had no experience at running any type of government. His experience was being a state [Senator] and a freshman [U.S.] Senator with his father‘s dreams. That is not much experience... Man, all his experience that Sarah Palin didn’t have has really paid off for America.”

Don Surber, at the Charleston Daily Mail:

“Sarah Palin’s favorability among Republicans is higher than Mitt Romney’s or Michele Bachmann’s. Of course, you have to read the 20th paragraph of the Associated Press story on its own poll to find that out.”

Stephen K. Bannon, Director of “The Undefeated,” to Shane Vander Hart:

“When you come away from this film you come away and say, you may not agree with her politics. You may not like her personally, but you can not, I think, come away from this film and not think that she is... sitting at the same table talking about leadership as with gentlemen like Governor Pawlenty and Governor Romney. In fact, I think there is a very powerful case made that if you take the last three Presidents of the United States -- President Clinton in Arkansas, Governor Bush in Texas, and President Obama when he was a state senator in Illinois, and a Senator in Washington, a U.S. Senator -- that her record of accomplishments and achievements as an executive certainly compares very favorably, I think, certainly even better than those three gentlemen at the time they ran for the presidency.”

Andrew Malcolm, at Top of the Ticket:

“Sarah Palin in Iowa for premiere of ‘The Undefeated,’ a new chapter in the politics of documentaries...”

America's Second Revolution:

“I saw the preview of the documentary, ‘The Undefeated,’ and walked away with the strong feeling that this documentary, while being about Sarah Palin, is really a story about us. It’s about what has happened to many of us who have stood for freedom. You get viciously attacked. And if you’re tough enough and smart enough you can use it to advance your cause... ‘The Undefeated’ shows us how Sarah Palin did it. Kudos to Stephen Bannon.”

Allahpundit, at Hot Air:

“If she’d refused, I would have taken it as the most compelling sign yet that she’s not running. It’s simply too golden an opportunity to make a splash in a key primary state to pass up. *Splash*”

TWB, at The POH Diaries:

“I’ve talked about the timing of a Palin run before, and while it would be fatal for most candidates to wait until the fall to announce, Palin isn’t like most candidates. If Rick Perry is going to run, he has to announce soon. If Palin is going to run, she almost certainly could afford to wait longer than most. Not taking anything away from Michele Bachmann, but you see the immediate surge she got from merely confirming that she was getting in. Palin’s bounce, whenever she jumped in, would be astronomical.”

Susan Duclos, at Wake up America:

“Novel idea to the media, confirm, verify THEN write up the story.”

Kunta Evans, at Random Alien Musings:

“Exposure is tricky and big media wields it like a weapon. But unwittingly, they have participated in their own undoing, especially in the last few years coinciding with the rise of a relative unknown from a little town in Alaska... What an interesting piece of irony that the increased exposure of Sarah Palin during the last few months is creating momentum for her that defies the concerted smear campaign waged by the MSM, the very same MSM who's being exposed for forsaking, among other things, fundamental American decency.”

Ron Ross:

“In the end the Palin e-mails revealed her to be a competent and levelheaded governor, while the way the BM covered the story revealed its bias once again.”

Donald R. McClarey, at The American Catholic:

“Gary McCarthy is a newcomer to Chicago, but he already has the Chicago political game down pat. Appeal to racial paranoia? Check. Toss in some irrelevant political red meat? Check, by his summoning up of Palin Derangement Syndrome. His laughable attempt to chalk up concern for Second Amendment rights to racism was truly perverse. Under slavery most slave states forbade slaves or freed blacks from possessing firearms, and, after the Civil War, prime goals of the white ‘Redeemer Governments’ after Reconstruction were to impose bans on blacks, many of whom had fought in the Union army and knew how to use firearms, from possessing firearms by the use of Black Codes that effectively rendered black populations defenseless from armed violence. You know, I do wonder what the reaction would have been if Gary McCarthy had decided to talk about the real causes of crime in inner city Chicago?”

The Editors, of Investor's Business Daily:

“Top Chicago Cop Targets Palin... Sarah Palin was not at that crime scene because she had nothing to do with the crime.”

Sheya, at the Daily Caller:

“What I have learned in the past week is that Ziegler is obsessed with attention. My dealings with him have shown to me why Governor Palin had little patience for this loser. Ziegler had no problem publishing private emails and conversations, as was evidenced by his reporting of a private conversation he had with Rebecca Mansour (something he probably took out of context or made up completely) and where he claimed that Todd Palin offered him a job on a campaign. I don’t know whether that is true, but one thing I’m quite confident of is that Todd Palin did not authorize him to go public with that information.”

John Sexton, at Verum Serum:

“Bristol was not at all critical of her mother and supports her candidacy...”

David Limbaugh:

“Bachmann and Palin are panned as inexperienced and lacking gravitas despite their records and accomplishments, and Obama is treated as a heavyweight despite his miserable record and voluminous verbal blunders. But much bigger factors driving the media narrative against Palin and Bachmann than their female attractiveness are their common personal and ideological characteristics. They are both fearless, combative, energizing and unqualified conservatives. Don't get me wrong; they are two very different people, but these shared qualities make them especially contemptible to the left and to certain elitists on the right. Bachmann and Palin happen to be among the most conservative of the GOP field, and leftists and elitists routinely cast conservatives as a dozen fries short of a Happy Meal. They consider Reagan conservatives -- just as they regarded Reagan in his day -- dangerous extremists and insufficiently nuanced for prime time. Those who pull no punches in challenging the Beltway dogma that got us into this calamity are quickly shunted aside by the elites. But they are adored by mainstream Americans, who are unencumbered by the numbing realities of Washington that prevent far too many career politicians from taking immediate action to reverse our nationally suicidal course.”

Exit Quote: Aldous Huxley:

“Experience teaches only the teachable.”

- JP

SarahPAC - Setting the Record Straight: Here We Go Again

"Basic fact-checking is your friend, media. Try it some time."
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SarahPAC sets the record straight one more time:

Wouldn’t it be nice if Beltway gossip magazines did some rudimentary fact-checking before they ran with stories? That is, of course, assuming that they’re not just making stories up out of thin air.

Take, for example, a Politico story out today alleging that Governor Palin’s “Team” is contacting a “list” of Iowa politicos for meetings. The story even quotes one such person who is purported to be on that list for a meeting. Only one problem: it’s not true. Real Clear Politics debunked Politico’s trumped up story:

Politico reported on Monday that Palin aides were reaching out to Iowa operatives and activists to set up meetings during her visit, citing Chuck Laudner, a former Iowa GOP executive director. But Laudner told RCP that he did not have a private meeting scheduled with Palin and that no one who works for the former governor had made contact with him.

Laudner said that he received an invitation to attend the festivities surrounding the movie premiere from Peter Singleton, a California native who moved to Iowa several months ago to help organize in the state in advance of a possible Palin presidential run. Singleton is acting on his own and is not a Palin aide but has often been confused for one as he has made his presence known across the state.

So basically we have a story that is completely bogus. Basic fact-checking is your friend, media. Try it some time.

In the meantime, Governor Palin looks forward to spending time tomorrow with the people of Pella, Iowa, and enjoying the premiere of Stephen K. Bannon’s new film, “The Undefeated.” After that, she heads to Minnesota to join her daughter Bristol at a book signing for Bristol's new book "Not Afraid of Life" at the Mall of America. Then back to Alaska for jury duty.

- JP

Conroy: Palin Not Reaching Out to Key Iowans Ahead of Visit

Keeping it "as low key as possible"
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Contradicting an earlier Politico report that Team Palin was setting up meeting with Iowa activists, Scott Conroy says at RealClearPolitics that Gov. Palin is instead taking a low-key approach with her Tuesday visit to the first-in-the-nation primary state:

The former Alaska governor is slated to arrive in the small Iowa town of Pella on Tuesday to attend the premiere of "The Undefeated" -- a flattering documentary that highlights her accomplishments in office and bangs the drum for a potential insurgent campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Though she is never lacking for attention, Palin's trip figures to be scrutinized especially closely, since it will mark her first appearance this year in the nation's first voting state.

Politico reported on Monday that Palin aides were reaching out to Iowa operatives and activists to set up meetings during her visit, citing Chuck Laudner, a former Iowa GOP executive director. But Laudner told RCP that he did not have a private meeting scheduled with Palin and that no one who works for the former governor had made contact with him.

Laudner said that he received an invitation to attend the festivities surrounding the movie premiere from Peter Singleton, a California native who moved to Iowa several months ago to help organize in the state in advance of a possible Palin presidential run. Singleton is acting on his own and is not a Palin aide but has often been confused for one as he has made his presence known across the state.

"Putting me on this list doesn't really mean much to me," Laudner told RCP. "I'm on a list to go to this event, but I didn't expect there was going to be high drama... He just said be there, and I said OK."

For his part, Singleton confirmed to RCP that he has not been working with the Palin camp.

"If Governor Palin was setting up meetings, she wouldn't set them up with me," Singleton said. "Not a single activist I've talked with has said anything about that. . . . I'm not affiliated with the Palin organization. I invited Chuck because he's a really great friend and a really nice guy."

[More]

After Politico's erroneous story, Sarah Palin tweeted:

*sigh* media making things up again MT @POLITICO2012: Sarah Palin reaching out to IOWA operatives http://politi.co/j9kQko by@maghabepolitico

Several other key GOP operatives in Iowa -- including state GOP Chairman Matt Strawn, Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition President Steve Scheffler and aides to Gov. Terry Branstad -- informed RCP that they had not been contacted by Gov. Palin's team in advance of Tuesday's visit.

- JP

Politico: Team Palin reaching out to Iowa activists... or not (Updated)

"They said I was on the list."
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Politico's Maggie Haberman reported that the Palin camp is reaching out to political activists in Iowa with offers of meetings while she's in the early primary state Tuesday for the premiere of "The Undefeated" documentary. One of those activists is former state GOP executive director Chuck Laudner, a prominent Iowa conservative:

Laudner confirmed to POLITICO he'd gotten a call from Palin's advisers either Friday or over the weekend asking about meeting with him while she's in Pella for the screening of "The Undefeated."

"They said I was on the list" for people she wanted to get together with, said Laudner, who has ties to staunch conservative Rep. Steve King - who, in congress, has formed an alliance with Rep. Michele Bachmann.

Laudner sounded a skeptical note about whether Palin is truly serious, or, as he said, "dancing around."

"I'd be interested to see if she's serious about a run," he said. "That'd be (question) A, and B, would it be too late. That's what it feels like, anyway. It's not too late now, (but if you) dance around until fall" it will be.

Nonetheless, he said, many conservatives are waiting to see what happens with Palin and Rick Perry, he said - discounting Tim Pawlenty as a "dead stick" and Herman Cain and Rick Santorum as "cruising along." He did not mention Newt Gingrich.

The meetings are the first sign of what Haberman calls "actual political activity" by Gov. Palin in Iowa. Haberman discounts the One Nation tour as "opaque in purpose," but the 2008 GOP vice presidential candidate did break the ice with a select group of mostly conservative New Hampshire Republicans at a seaside clambake at the end of the first leg of her bus tour early this month.

Although Laudner said Bachmann's campaign kickoff was well-timed, now expectations have been raised for the congresswoman, "and you almost have to be perfect from here to the straw poll."

h/t: Henry D'Andrea

Updates...

According to a tweet from RealClearPolitics' Scott Conroy, Chuck Laudner told Scott that Palin aides did NOT reach out to him about getting together in Iowa. Scott says it was Peter Singleton, who's not a Palin aide, who contacted Laudner. It would not be the first time the media has mistaken Singleton, an O4P volunteer, for a member of the official Palin team. It also would not be the first time that Politico completely made up what it presented as a direct quote, either.

Politico now has now added a "clarification" to its post:

An earlier version of this post, based on an interview with Laudner, described "meetings" with Palin, which he later emailed to say was a post-film meet-and-greet with her, put together by an Iowa-based backer of the former Alaska governor.

- JP

John Andrews: A Lioness in the White House?

"Lady Liberty could do a lot worse than Bachmann or Palin."
*
John Andrews, director of Colorado Christian University's Centennial Institute, suggests that Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann are present day conservative lionesses, who are on parallel paths which could lead them "in a decade" to stature comparable to that of Margaret and Golda Meir:

“The best man in the cabinet.” That’s how Golda Meir was described by her colleague, David Ben-Gurion. She went on to lead Israel to victory in one of its darkest hours, the Yom Kippur War of 1973. People in Denver, my hometown, are proud that Meir went to a local high school; her girlhood home is now a museum here.

The little grandmother was revered as “the Iron Lady,” before Britons conferred the title on Margaret Thatcher. The grocer’s daughter was not one to shrink from the sound of the guns either. She vanquished Argentina in the Falklands and helped stiffen George H. W. Bush’s spine (when they were together in Aspen, as it happened) after Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait.

[...]

Palin was... impressive as she used a speech at CCU on May 2, the day after our forces killed Bin Laden, to spell out a statesmanlike doctrine for the use of U.S. military power.

After some banter about basketball and bear hunting, the alleged airhead from Wasilla (perpetually underestimated, like a certain B-movie actor who won 49 states and took down the USSR) deftly zinged Pakistan’s double-dealing and Obama’s “ill-defined” Libyan folly. Then with Reaganesque toughness she set forth five principles for the American way of war:

(1) “Commit our forces only when clear and vital American interests are at stake.”

(2) “If we have to fight, fight to win. Use overwhelming force. Defeat the enemy as quickly as possible. Nation-building is not the main purpose of our armed forces.”

(3) “Have clearly defined goals and objectives before sending in troops. If you can’t explain the mission to the American people clearly and concisely,” stay out.

(4) “American soldiers must never be put under foreign command.”

(5) “Sending our armed forces should be the last resort. We don’t go looking for dragons to slay.”

Neither of the Bushes, nor Clinton, nor Obama, ever put it so well.

[More]

Both Great Britain and Israel have been ably led by lionesses in times which challenged the great ladies at the helm of those two nations. Andrews predicts that America’s day will come when a lioness will guide and protect the pride. Gov. Palin and Rep. Bachmann, two alpha females, are likely contenders for 2012.

- JP