Hey, Who Is Up For Some More Sarah Palin Talk? MORE: Some Sort Of Announcement Today. UPDATE 2- CNN Reporting She Won't Run For Reelection

Quick above the post note...various commenters have tipped that she has scheduled some sort of announcement for 3pm eastern.

Not running for another term as Governor?

Strange day for it but stay tuned.

Cockholster Rick Sanchez on CNN (you know the guy who killed a man in a DUI incident) says she isn't running for reelection. Of course they are spinning it as she's too afraid to run again. More likely, it's a way to set up a run in '12 like Mitt. She can't travel as much and get the coverage out there in the middle of nowhere. Plus, her term runs through December 2010, so it's not like she's out of there tomorrow (in fairness Candy Crowley just made these points to Dirty Sanchez).

Original post:

Slow holidayish day but thankfully Jonah Goldberg fills the void by becoming the latest pundit to play a round of "I really like you Sarah but..."

You’re blowing it.

We haven’t met, but you might remember I was one of the first columnists to tout you for John McCain’s running mate. I cheered you mightily when Senator McCain selected you, and I still believe that you were the smartest choice he could have made given the obstacles before him. I’m also assuming you want to run for president some day.

...For starters, every time I see you on TV, you’re whining about unfair press coverage. Don’t get me wrong: Much of it is unfair, and some of it deserves a response. But it’s not presidential. It’s not even gubernatorial. You are constantly taking the bait, taking up the fights your biggest fans want you to take up.

But here’s the thing: Don’t listen to your biggest fans. Don’t alienate them either, but don’t think that because the Palin4Pres crowd cheers, you’re making progress. Politics is ultimately about persuasion, and you seem entirely uninterested in that, preferring instead to play the victim. Well, victims don’t get elected president. Ronald Reagan was a laughingstock for liberals and despised by the press. But he didn’t whine or take the bait.

Second, peddling a few platitudes and truisms about free markets and limited government is no substitute for really knowing what you’re talking about. Yes, you can talk well about the stuff you know — oil drilling, energy, etc. — but beyond your comfort zone, you fall back on bumper-sticker language that sounds fine to the people who already agree with you but is useless in winning over skeptics.

There's obviously more and Goldberg does take on the idiocy of the McCain people, the press and goes into detail about her abundant strengths. If you are going to beat him up for this column (and I have a feeling more than a few will) do him and yourself the courtesy of reading the whole thing.

I agree with Goldberg and Krauthammer before him (how brave of me, I know).

Palin is a tremendous political talent with skills that can't be taught and seems to have all the right conservative policy instincts. As Goldberg notes, she's great on issues she's comfortable with (energy, oil, values) but not so great in expressing herself in depth on a host of other issues a viable presidential candidate has to deal with.

I want to see her be able to talk more in depth about foreign affairs, immigration and economics. As I've said, it seems she has the right instincts but that's not enough.

Bush did to on some issues (taxes come to mind) but he could never quite explain them. I want Palin (or any GOP nominee) to be able to really explain to people why conservative policies are the right way to go.

Of course, as you all know, I also want to meet Judy Greer. Given the recent history of the GOP, I'm not sure which is more likely.

The simple fact is based on the candidate we saw last fall she's not electable as President. As everyone keeps saying, the good news is that's not an issue for another 3+ years. There's plenty of time for her to improve as a candidate so she capitalize on what she already has going for her. I don't know why pointing that out in a constructive way is tantamount to treason, yet for some it is.

(FTR-It's impossible to rewrite everything in every post, here are some more thoughts I had on her earlier this week.)

posted by DrewM. at 01:32 PM

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