From Free Republic;
The Case for Sarah Palin as Trump's Running Mate
04/03/2016 | Brices Crossroads
Posted on 4/4/2016, by Brices Crossroads
As I watched Sarah Palin deliver a speech on behalf of Donald Trump the other day before an GOP establishment fundraiser in Wisconsin, I was struck by the enthusiastic response of the crowd. She received a standing ovation at the end. Ted Cruz, who followed her on the dais, received only light and intermittent applause. The contrast in their political skills was stark. Palin was the star who knew how to connect with, and hold, her audience. Cruz, not so much...
Let me say at the outset that I am analyzing this from a purely utilitarian and political point of view. Anyone with a white hot, visceral dislike of Sarah Palin or anyone who has swallowed the MSM narrative that she is a stupid, inarticulate rube is not likely to be voting for Donald Trump anyway. Trump obviously holds Palin in high regard and says so quite often, calling her an "amazing woman" and a "special person." If he did not consider her a genuine asset, why in the world would he have her campaigning with him all over the country?
Putting Palin on the ticket would have obvious advantages and disadvantages. The case for Palin as Trump's running mate boils down to six factors
I. The Trust Factor
First, there is an obvious chemistry between Trump and Palin that would be rare for two national candidates on the same ticket. They obviously like and respect each other immensely. And Trump obviously trusts her, which is so important. He cannot have a running mate who is apologizing for him or damning him with faint praise. Trump values loyalty and Sarah Palin is loyal to a fault, as is the
Donald.
II. The Deflection Factor
The second advantage, which I would call the "deflection" factor, centers around the collective star power that a Trump/Palin ticket would embody. Both are media superstars of the first order. Having either one on a national ticket would draw disproportionate media interest and coverage for that ticket. Together, however, they would dominate every news cycle, pushing the Democrat candidates into oblivion. The Main Stream Media and the Establishment smear machine intends to try to destroy Donald Trump in the November Election. However, like Pavlov's dog, it simply cannot resist the urge to savage Sarah Palin. Palin's presence on the ticket would deflect much of the media onslaught away from Trump and would stretch the capacities of the smear machine to the breaking point.
III. The Woman Thing
The Democrat nominee is going to be a woman. Trump needs help with women. So isn't it logical to put a woman on the ticket? It is certainly not absolutely necessary but it would help. Palin brings several things to the ticket that a more conventional female politician would not bring. Let me concede at the outset that the majority of professional women (not all by any means) dislike Palin intensely. The majority of professional women also despise Trump. Most such women are likely not "getable" for
Trump, not matter who he picks. However, a much larger swath of married women, evangelical women and working class women--the hair dressers, secretaries, waitresses and factory workers--ARE available, and Palin relates very well to this group. Palin's presence on the ticket can help to persuade, and to turn out, such voters.
Even more important, though, Palin's presence on the ticket would give Trump a unique opportunity to defend her against the inevitable and savage attacks by the elitist Establishment and the MSM. In so doing, Trump would give the lie to the baseless charge that he hates women. His actions in defending his running mate would speak much louder than any platitudes about taking care of women.
IV. The Insurance Policy
In a very important sense, Palin provides an insurance policy for Trump. When he is sworn into office, he will likely face a hostile Congress and Senate, with relatively few allies. Should Congress or the Establishment ever be tempted to impeach, or otherwise to remove, Trump the specter of Sarah Palin as President of the United States would surely represent a massive deterrent to such a scheme. If Trump's removal would yield a John Kasich or even a Ted Cruz, it would embolden the Establishment to try to get rid of Trump before his term ended.
V. The Geographic factor
The next advantage is geographic. Palin is a Westerner, with ties to North Dakota, Alaska and Arizona. Trump's weakest region, according to polls, is the mountain west. Putting her on the ticket would provide geographic balance.The counter-argument is that, in spite of her endorsement, Trump lost Alaska. My reply to that is that Palin has never been beloved by the Alaska GOP Establishment, ever since she took out its darling, Frank Murkowski, in 2006 and stopped the gravy train up there. And Alaska was a closed caucus, where the GOP Establishment would be its most powerful. Her appeal in Arizona and Nevada (and Florida) was quite evident in the Trump landslides there.
VI. The Vetting Factor
Finally, Palin has been vetted to a fare the well. No politician, and few public figures have been so thoroughly scrutinized. Trump does not need to suffer any distractions or surprises coming out this fall about a less thoroughly examined candidate.
Let me just say a word about her resignation as Governor in 2009 and her decision not to seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2012. Many of her supporters were disappointed in her decisions, especially in 2012. But I remember her appealing publicly to the Establishment in 2011 to be open to her candidacy as a vehicle to unseat Obama and repair the damage he had done to the country. I think her appeal fell on deaf ears, and she realized what many of us did not. She could not seize the nomination in the face of united Establishment opposition. Trump's difficulties with the Establishment, in spite of his far greater advantages, shows that she was more than likely right.
Ultimately, any voters Palin would lose for Trump would be more than offset by some of the voters she would take from Hillary Clinton, especially lower to middle income blue collar women and housewives. In essence, though, anyone who is dissuaded from voting for Donald Trump by Sarah Palin's presence on the ticket would likely not be voting for Trump in the first place. As I heard someone say recently, Palin is the female counterpart of Trump. If you really dislike the one, you almost certainly do not like the other.
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