I attended CPAC again this past weekend, and there is no question who stole the show: Sarah Palin brought the house down. Her reception was far and above even the Presidential field in attendance of Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich. I happened to be innocently walking through the lobby of the Marriott Wardsman in Washingtion, DC, where the event took place, and saw a large scrum forming to my front. I wondered what in the world was causing the frenzy, and ever-growing crowd: Sarah Palin, of course. CPAC also included a screening of the political documentary Undefeated, which chronicles her rise to political power in Alaska, her fall from the auspicious heights of America’s most popular governor and the Wonder Woman of the 2008 GOP Convention, and her phoenix-like resurrection during the 2010 mid-term elections and beyond.
I had the opportunity to meet the former Governor, while I was working on the Joe Miller for U.S. Senate campaign in the Last Frontier in 2010, and I have to say I was impressed. I guess I had a mixed view that had been formed, in part, by the media coverage of her during the 2008 Presidential campaign. My takeaway prior to meeting her (and something I’d heard from several others) was she’s right on the issues and has wonderful enthusiasm for the cause, but lacks the gravitas, experience, and depth of knowledge of the issues to effectively govern. What my time in Alaska, as well as seeing her incredible influence in 2010 election cycle, and now all reaffirmed at CPAC is that what she does have is the ability to connect with people and influence them to act. In this noisy age in which we live, that talent/gift is not something I’ve seen since Ronald Reagan occupied the White House.
During her CPAC address, she demonstrated the right combination of raw enthusiasm and righteous indignation that made her 2008 GOP Convention speech so compelling. Addresses before large crowds of conservative voters are clearly her strength. The line she delivered that brought the audience to its feet with the longest sustained applause was, “The Tea Party rose up because Americans woke up…We aren’t red Americans, we’re not blue Americans. We’re Red, White, and Blue and President Obama we’re through with you!” Another potent one-liner, “This government isn’t too big to fail. It’s too big to succeed.” That is the Tea Party encapsulated in a sentence and that is her gift: the ability to articulate what the crowd is thinking, and do it in a way that engenders an emotional response. Of course that emotion gets stirred both ways. A few minutes into the address, a handful of Occupy protestors started sounding off and were quickly drowned out by the crowd, and Sarah with joining in, “USA, USA..” The people then switched to, “Sarah, Sarah, Sarah…” Security escorted the protestors and a gaggle of reporters and photographers right in front of me, and in fact a reporter fell right on my feet.
My other Sarah Palin moment at CPAC was watching the documentary Undefeated, which was like seeing a prequel to my experience on the Joe Miller U.S. Senate campaign in the Great White North. Many of the same actors in the media, government and the Party leadership were still in place. I was given a front row seat to how character assassination works, Alaskan-style. What Palin faced in the months following her return to the 49th state after the 2008 campaign were a series of ethics complaints, which she had to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars of her family’s money (and they were not wealthy) and hundreds of staff hours defending against. Undefeated relates how the ethics complaints would often make front page news and lead stories on the evening news; and when she was cleared of each complaint, interestingly it never seemed nearly as newsworthy. The accusation is more exciting and titillating than the truth.
We experienced this in spades on the Miller campaign with many media outlets chomping at the bit to force us to deny whatever accusation this or that blog put out. The most astounding incident of all involving the media, was a producer from the Anchorage CBS news affiliate accidentally leaving a voice message on my phone literally plotting how they could manufacture an incident at a Sarah Palin rally for Joe, as well as the need to look for a child molester among Joe’s campaign staff. Palin talked about the incident on Fox News Sunday. By-the-way, the anchor for that affiliate was hired by Lisa Murkowski, Joe’s opponent, as her Communications Director a few months after the election. 
I could go on-and-on. The not too former news director and anchor for the Anchorage – Juneau NBC affiliate was a paid media consultant for the Murkowski campaign. That affiliate saw fit to run a “bio piece” 3 days before the election with the brand new false accusation that Joe Miller may have committed “felonious” acts over two-and-a-half years earlier while working as a part-time Fairbanks borough attorney. (Just this week, the Borough Attorney, when forced to testify under oath in litigation stemming from these false allegations, conceded that Joe had committed absolutely no such criminal acts.) Interestingly, this new accusation came after Miller had weathered a tremendous storm of negative press about the most manufactured and sensationalized topics one can imagine and he was starting to see a rise again in the polls. Many Alaskans were beginning to see through the dust cloud created by certain members of the press and the political establishment and realize these people were trying to bamboozle them about Miller, who had served his nation and state with distinction, both as an officer in war and as a state and federal magistrate judge in peace.. Joe ultimately was not able to overcome these negative forces and came up short by a few percentage points in 2010.
Less than one year after her loss in the 2008 Presidential race, Sarah Palin stepped down as Alaska’s governor amidst the same sort of media/political establishment toxic cocktail. Many seemed to think that was the end of her. Ah, but then came SarahPAC and her incredible success endorsing winning candidates in the 2010 election cycle. Playing off the Tina Fey jab during the 2008 Presidential campaign, Palin quipped during the spring of 2010, “I can see November from my house.” Based on the reception she received at CPAC, I think she can see this November too, and wield just as much influence over its outcome.
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Josh Holloway says,
And her endorsement of Newt Gingrich confirmed what I feared would happen to her.. she’s sold out to the establishment.
on 16 February 2012 / 9:21 PM
Akabosan says,
That comment represents exactly the kind of mini misinformation to which the article points and alludes.
Mrs. Palin, to date: 01172012 has not endorsed any candidate. She has said repeatedly that she hopes the GOP primaries last a long time and that when the selection is made she will endorse whomever the GOP selects.
Her husband, Mr. Palin did endorse Mr. Gingrich. Possibly that is what confused you. When he did that Mrs. Palin even said; “Yeah, the First Dude went rogue.” OWTTE.
GB
on 17 February 2012 / 6:39 AM
Akabosan says,
I apologize, typo: 02172012 not 01172012.
GB
on 17 February 2012 / 6:40 AM
Josh Holloway says,
I beg your pardon. I was wrong about that. She did say she would vote for him in the SC primary but when put on the spot for an “endorsement” she bobbled around like, well, like a politician.
While I was (so far) wrong about her endorsement of Gingrich I believe my point will stand correct: That she has sold out to the establishment. Any endorsement other than for Ron Paul is an endorsement for the status quo. The other candidates represent simply a different conduit to the same big government as we see in the incumbent. Right boot, left boot, but always marching in the same direction.
When she endorses any of the other three I’ll be saying to you, “I told you so”.
on 17 February 2012 / 11:35 PM
Mary says,
An endorsement for Ron Paul…you must be joking. Ron Paul is a joke! He is NOT a Republican. He is a Libertarian trying to take over the GOP!
on 18 February 2012 / 3:06 PM
Rw says,
A Paul bot spreading misinformation, what a surprise! What next the normal death threats? Sorry you hitched your wagon to a nutty star, but she Said” Vote for Newt to make sure this process goes on, so basically we can fully vet these guys, you get an Obama if you don’t
on 18 February 2012 / 3:18 PM
william legge says,
She did not endorse Newt. Are you deaf. She has not endorsed anyone.
on 17 February 2012 / 7:15 PM
Minuteman83 says,
When she condemns the Patriot Act and unconstitutional undeclared illegal war I will take her seriously. Until then I see her as another sound bite opportunist using the tea party and general discontent to gain power!
on 16 February 2012 / 9:31 PM
Laurie says,
What unconstitutional, undeclared war?? You mean that Patriot act that the majority of dems and repos voted for after 9/11? You are not only bigotted, but ridiculous.
on 17 February 2012 / 4:06 PM
Ron says,
This lady is a force to be reckoned with. Why she is not running?
on 16 February 2012 / 10:32 PM
wagerwiththe wind says,
She should have run. Randy was correct. The media in Alaska and all the Sarah watches were vile and often wrong. And the ethics complaints proved wrong too. But at the time her family could not afford the lawyer’s bills and it was hurting the State of Alaska to have all the people who feared her fire continue the unrelenting attack. She is the most stirring orator in a long time whose ability, as Randy described, to condense political ideas into emotional mortars is unequalled. Sarah didn’t quit. She just reloaded.
on 22 February 2012 / 4:05 AM
Wilian says,
Well, as the MRC notes, if Couric, et. al. were equally toacnieus with Biden, there would be less of an issue here. And I find that many of you are suspecting these things of her because of the drumbeat from the press of what they think she might do, in spite of evidence to the contrary in Alaska that she didn’t force her views on the state. Suggestion, innuendo, and reading her mind have been the reporting of the day from a press that’s supposed to deal in facts. The whole paying for rape kits by the victim nuttiness keeps coming from the press that you seem to mostly trust, and has to be beaten back by the righty blogs. Unfortunately, newspapers and TV broadcasts are still viewed by more folks than blogs, so the Left gets its message out unfiltered by those very editors that journalists claim make blogs unreliable.There is a leftward tilt in the press, and it matters. Maybe that just the reality conservatives have to live with, rather than point it out over and over, as . Pointing it out hasn’t changed anything; we’re still getting a moderator on Thursday for the VP debate that has a fawning book about Obama coming out on inauguration day. They’ve even given up the pretense of objectivity.If most of your information is coming from the mainstream media, you’re being ill-served.
on 18 March 2012 / 2:51 AM
John h says,
Randy, she may have that Reagan magnetisim and charisma of Reagan, but endorsement of Big Politicians like Newt and silence on critical issues like patriot act raise some critical doubts regarding her credibility as a genuine conservative. Star Power is one thing..However, if I want this power to include a consistent conservative constitutional voting record, integrity, true defender of family values and willingness to confront the true demons of our financial demise (Owners of Federal Reserves), I’d spend my time posturing & sharing the truth about the real deal…Ron Paul!
on 16 February 2012 / 11:13 PM
Jerry Fogg says,
Run Sarah Run
on 17 February 2012 / 12:00 AM
Connie Durvin says,
Just keep telling the truth, Joe! I hope you haven’t given up on possibly running to hopefully defeat mr B when that comes up.
on 17 February 2012 / 2:59 PM
siteunseen says,
Ron Paul is the ONLY Candidate running who hasn’t accepted MONEY from the Lobbyists. He’s not a Millionaire. Sarah didn’t run because it would have been too tough on her. She quit the Governorship because it was too tough on her. She didn’t want to bankrupt Alaska, but if she got a good lawyer could have countered those lawsuits. A woman, and yes I’m bigoted, couldn’t handle this problem in the USA right now. It would take a man, and a tough one, not a Lobbyist Crony Corporatist who doesn’t know the difference between taking money from Lobbyists and pretending he’s getting paid for advice. Who pays anyone $1.8 Million for advice? Please…excuse me??? Sarah is sort of a celebrity figure. I like her, and think she’d do well in any administration, but not as President.
on 17 February 2012 / 11:51 PM
Barbara J Struble says,
Pa;in would be the best president America has had since, well, at least Thomas Jefferson, but since she is not running, I vote for Dr. Paul. And I will – whether his name is on the ballot or not.
True the vote, or it won’t be an election – it will be a fraud – just like 2008, 2010, and the current Republican caucuses/primaries.
Joe, I hope you attend the convention as a delegate for Dr. Paul.
Peace,
on 18 February 2012 / 2:37 AM
Blackwater says,
Ron Paul supporters are incredibly ignorant and uninformed.
There is no “illegal war” no matter how many times Herr Doktor says there is. Congress APPROVED action in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Period, end of story.
BTW, Ronulans, Sarah has nothing but positive things to say about Herr Doktor [except for his suicidal foreign policy] You’d be well served to remember this.
Oh, and Sarah Palin is an actual libertarian, and a true fiscal Conservative, who actually balanced budgets and left alaska a $12 billion surplus. Thanks to her, Alaska has the highest credit rating available to a state.
On the other hand, Herr Doktor Paul is a phony. He claims to be fiscally responsible while loading up on pork. In fact, he’s one of the biggest porkers in Congress. Last year after the GOP agreed to a voluntary ban on earmarks, Herr Doktor was only 1 of 3 who still demanded them.
Herr Doktor is a sneaky one. He puts his earmarks in bills he knows will pass by a huge margin, then votes against the bill, just so he can say he never votes for spending. Then he collects his pork.
He’s a total fraud. Just another member of the permanent political class who has stayed WELL past his “sell by” date. He is the poster child for TERM LIMITS!
on 18 February 2012 / 3:04 AM
Josh Holloway says,
Not that anyone will see this but I am back to say, “I TOLD YOU SO”.
http://dailycaller.com/2012/03/06/sarah-palin-i-voted-for-newt-gingrich/
SELL OUT to the establishment.
on 07 March 2012 / 12:17 AM