by Kevin Tetter

Created on: September 09, 2010

To make a clarification, Sarah Palin never got a first chance at the presidency. Assuming John McCain was elected in 2008 and lived to serve at least one full term, Palin would never have been president.

The question is whether Sarah Palin will ever get a chance at the presidency. The problem with Palin, although she enjoys immense popularity with a significant number on the right, is that she is polarizing. Those on the left despise her, and withering personal attacks and misinformation has much to do with that. Some of the charges against her may be accurate, such as her knowledge of international affairs. Her interview with Katie Couric made this painfully clear, although that interview, unlike with most other politicians was not scripted. It is unclear how other mainstream politicians would have fared under the same conditions.

Then there are the flat out untruths that have stuck to Sarah Palin. A few of the more infamous rumors was that she was unaware that Africa was a continent, and that she claimed to be able to see Russia from her front porch. Neither was true, but for those that oppose her, they may as well be true. The irony is that some of the misinformation that the left so gleefully accepted as fact actually came from staffers on the McCain presidential campaign. The fact is that McCain and Palin were never friends; in fact they did not know each other that well, and it showed during the campaign. 

The likelihood that Sarah Palin will be embraced by the GOP for the 2012 campaign is anybody's guess, but the odds are against her. If the GOP wants to run a woman in 2012, someone like Michelle Bachmann would probably be a more palatable choice. She is less divisive than Palin, and has a command over the issues that Palin was lacking in 2008. Not to say that Sarah Palin is without a future in the GOP. In fact, she might be the ideal candidate to head the GOP. The current head, Michael Steele, has shown himself to be an ineffective buffoon, and the poorly hidden secret is that he was chosen for the position solely to be a counterweight to Barack Obama. No, this society is far from color blind, and politicians drive that point home on a regular basis.

So far, the GOP has not produced a clear front runner for the 2012 campaign. That leaves the door open for Sarah Palin, who is free to run in the primary. Whether she is the one that will end the Obama presidency is anybody's guess, but the smart money would be on no. She can bring out the crowds though, and if the GOP can produce a valid candidate, Sarah Palin would be very valuable in getting GOP voters excited enough to go to the polls and cast a vote. 2008 was a tough assignment, even for Palin, and if the GOP stumbles once again with a candidate, her work will be cut out for her once more.

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