Jed Gladstein: The Palin Palimpsest

Jed Gladstein at the American Thinker has written an article today in which he argues that Governor Palin is the one candidate who can reinvigorate the Republican Party and, in so doing, renew the American people's connection with their out of touch governing class. It's a good article with a few qualifications which I'll get into momentarily. Gladstein begins his piece with the following:

Sarah Palin is an authentic American phenomenon. She resonates with a majority of the American people as authentic -- because she is authentic. She is a no-BS, stand-for-the-truth, take-a-licking-and-keep-on-ticking kind of gal. In other words, she is not like the ordinary, everyday, go-along-to-get-along professional politicians who control our national political parties. And it is precisely for that reason that she can now spearhead an American political renaissance.

Our nation has been buried for decades under political pabulum. The Democrats pretend to represent average Americans, but they are controlled by wealthy elitists who pay lip service to American values while propagating cultural Marxism in every corner of the land.

Gladstein is absolutely correct here. However, he follows with a statement that is a bit confusing:

The Republicans pretend to be the party of fiscal responsibility, but they are more comfortable outsourcing the sinews of American power than building strong the fabric of American society.

"Outsourcing the sinews of American Power" could have one of two meanings. First, given the context of fiscal responsibility, he could be decrying the fact that national Republicans have, particularly during the Bush years, been almost as bad as Democrats in running up the national debt, much of which is held by foreign countries such as China, something Governor Palin has been lamenting ever since her appearance on the national political scene. If we continue on this fiscal path, sooner or later the government will have to inflate the currency, causing a further collapse of the dollar and the serious economic repercussions associated with such a collapse. However, Gladstein could also be making a Buchananite reference to protectionism, which is the antithesis of Governor Palin's limited government philosophy. If it's the former, Gladstein makes a point, if it's the latter, he's wrong. Further on in his piece, Gladstein writes:

It would be comforting to think that an authentic American political phenomenon like Sarah Palin could spearhead a successful third-party movement. But that is wishful thinking. Were she to attempt such a thing, it would almost certainly fragment the huge centrist American vote and result in further radical left victories in the national polls. That would compound the present disaster, and tilt America inexorably in the direction of third-world status and misery.

Here Gladstein, I believe, gives too much credence to the recent meme suggesting that Governor Palin is planning a third party run in 2012. This meme has its origins in her recent interview by Lars Larson which you can listen to here. When I listened to this, I didn't see any indication at all that Governor Palin is seriously contemplating a third party run. Ed Morrissey at Hot Air has more on this here. The real meat of Gladstein's article follows:

Better to heed the words of Shakespeare, who wrote that "There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune." For America, that means Sarah Palin and the Republican Party. Here's why and here's how:

1. The Republican Party is out, and wants in. That means it needs a champion who can generate popular enthusiasm. Sarah Palin is such a champion. Put aside the blithe criticisms of the pundits and naysayers. If an election were held today, Sarah Palin would generate a popular majority greater than the one that swept Ronald Reagan into the White House.

2. The Republican Party is chastened. Its failure under Bush to pare back the scope of federal interference in people's lives resulted in the Devil's bargain with the Democrats to expand federal involvement in mortgage lending, and that led directly to the collapse of the real estate market and then the stock market. That has taken the Republican Party down a couple of pegs, and it is now far more amenable to the common sense values that Sarah Palin embodies.

3. The Republican Party has an existing political infrastructure that can be used to facilitate a national campaign by Sarah Palin, whereas a third party candidacy would need to reinvent the wheel. Time is short, the issues are vital, and the 90% rule applies to the choice of political vehicle.

4. National campaigns require huge amounts of money. Sarah Palin can raise that money directly from the American people by way of the World Wide Web, in exactly the way Obama is alleged to have done. Millions of Americans will donate $5, $10, $20 or $100 to a political renaissance spearheaded by Sarah Palin. They will be glad to do it, because they trust her.

5. The time to begin the political renaissance is now, not in 2011 or 2012. The reason is that Sarah Palin must spearhead more than a personal, political campaign. She must spearhead a political renaissance, and that means taking over the Republican Party. To do that, she will need time and allies and money. She can raise the money, and the allies are ready to hand. But time is remorseless, and assuming power in the Republican Party will be time-consuming, so she must begin that task today.

Gladstein makes many good points but I'm uncomfortable when he decrees what she "must" do. Governor Palin has better political instincts than anyone and has always been successful when she follows those instincts, whether or not they conform to the conventional wisdom of the time. In the 2006 campaign for governor, she ran a campaign which was completely outside the box by anyone's definition and was highly successful. In 2008, conversely, she was boxed in by conventional wisdom as determined by McCain gurus such as Steve Schmidt, and the results were as unhappy as they were predictable. In short, Governor Palin knows exactly what she's doing and it's not productive to have others telling her what she "must" do. All that said, Gladstein's article is a good read. What does Gladstein mean by the term "Palimpsest"? Read the rest of his article to find out.