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"Will Sarah Palin have a second chance at attaining the US Presidency?"

That is the question that is being posed.

Let's think about that question.

Then think about it again.

Something sounds wrong with the question. Can you spot the discrepancy?

If it is not immediately apparent, then let's highlight the three main parts of the question: 1) Second chance; 2) Sarah Palin; and 3) Presidency.

Now, let's ask ourselves the following question about what happened in 2008: Did Sarah Palin run for the Presidency in 2008?

If anyone answers with a "Yes", then that person should rethink what universe he or she is living in because in this universe, it was John McCain who ran as the Republican Party's nominee for President. Sarah Palin was his running mate and Vice Presidential nominee.

As such, there is no "second" chance for Governor Palin because she hasn't had her "first" chance. If she makes a run at the Presidency in 2012, it will be her first chance.

The question doesn't seem like such a big deal upon first glance, but upon closer inspection, the fact that people ask this question as if John McCain were her sidekick, instead of the person at the top of the ticket, reveals a lot about the dysfunctionality of the 2008 Republican ticket.

But as to the main point of the question: Will Sarah Palin have a chance at the US Presidency? The answer is, "Of course, she does."

If Cynthia McKinney, a former Democrat Congresswoman, ran for President as a Democrat candidate (2004) and as an Green Party candidate (2008), then Sarah Palin can run for President as well. There is nothing to keep her from running save a career ending scandal or a severe lack of money.

However, her chances of being her party's future Presidential candidate or to have a place at the table of power will depend on her and how she works to improve herself. In 2008, she got by because she was unknown, pretty, expectations were low, and she wasn't running for President. She was able to get away with major gaffes like not knowing the Bush Doctrine, ignoring questions by a moderator in a debate, and getting caught in a prank by a couple of French-Canadian comedians.

It was all very entertaining because she was green, gullible and the VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE.

The entertainment value will be chucked out the window come 2011 when Presidential hopefuls will begin to make their case to a reluctant public. By then, Governor Palin will not be an unknown. She will be older as well. (Yes, the toxic combo of sexism, lookism and ageism is alive and well and if it weren't, Kay Bailey Hutchinson would have been on McCain's ticket rather than Palin. It is unfair but life's unfair.)

And more importantly, the expectations will be higher and the scrutiny even more intense.

My guess is that Sarah Palin will continue to enjoy support among her fans and notoriety from everyone else. She will have a full plate for the next six months. She may even get a book or television contract out of this that will extend her time in the spotlight.

Yet, as we get farther from November 4th, the interest will begin to wane as the country moves on. By 2012, Sarah Palin might be a celebrity of note, but unless she shores up her base of knowledge beyond what pleases her cadre of supporters, she won't have much of a political future.

Learn more about this author, SE Mathews.
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