One of the things that drove supporters crazy about George W. Bush was his reluctance to fight back against all sorts of lunatic rhetoric directed at him. He saw the Presidency as a position from which one does not descend to engage in fisticuffs with critics.
As Governor Palin exits her state job in Alaska she shows that her nature is, um, somewhat different. In the 24 hours after her announcement a great deal of unresearched speculation went out over the air and Internet. Her attorney has told an Alaskan left wing blogger, The NYTimes, MSNBC, The WashPost and Puffington Host that they are on notice and will be subject to legal action for defamation. The four page letter is here.
Some people called her a "quitter."
Amusing.
Imagine for a moment that you knew you could make in one night, giving a 45 minute speech in Houston, what you made in an entire year as governor. Now imagine that, when your children are attacked by pundits and comedians you can make such speech actionable as a private citizen. You might not win any lawsuits, but then the lefties who have filed more than a dozen harassing suits against you in the past year haven't won either. The payback might be too sweet and way too lucrative to pass up.
Is she running for president? Probably. Some day. But first it's time for fun and profit. Lots of profit. There are opinion-shapers in America who make many millions a year through radio, books, TV, and speeches. None of them would take the pay cut to run for public office. Sarah Palin found herself on the other side of that equation: working for chump change when there are tens of millions of dollars on the table.
