Saturday 13 August 2011

What's behind Sarah Palin's surprise trip to the Iowa State Fair

DES MOINES -- The GOP presidential debate Thursday night did little to change former Alaska governor Sarah Palin's view there is still room in the Republican field for "a common sense conservative" to enter the race, Palin said here Friday.


"There is still plenty of room in that field for common sense conservatives who have executive experience," she said. "Watching the debate not just last night but watching this whole process over the last year it certainly shows me that yeah, there is plenty of room for more people."


While saying nothing about her presidential ambitions, Palin said she was glad that Texas Gov. Rick Perry was entering the race and said he "adds another choice for Americans to consider heading into 2012."


"I appreciate that he's willing to jump into this arena and be part of this," she said.


Perry is expected to announce he will run for president on Saturday in South Carolina. He will travel to Iowa on Sunday.
Palin also addressed the recent treatment of Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., in the press and in the debate last night.


Asked about the Newsweek cover that showed a wild-eyed Bachmann staring into space with the headline "Queen of Rage," Palin said she was also featured wearing running shorts in a cover on the magazine.


Palin also noted that she’s excited to try some of the Iowa State Fair’s famous fried foods, including fried butter-on-a-stick, fried cheesecake, and so forth. She’ll enjoy them “in honor of those who’d rather make us just ‘eat our peas,’ ” noted Palin, in a not-so-veiled reference to President Obama’s recent statement comparing the hard choices in a debt deal with legume consumption.


Vegetables aside, we’ll say this about that: once again, Sarah Palin has proved that she is the quasi-political attention-getting master of the US media universe.


That’s because there just happens to be a debate in Ames, Iowa tonight among declared GOP presidential contenders. A straw poll follows this weekend. So hundreds of political reporters are already in Iowa – pre-positioned for a Palin drive-by. Pure genius.


Somewhere Rick Santorum is sitting in a hotel room with his face in his hands. It’s the lagging candidates who’ll really feel the tire tracks of the bus tour. If you’re a “Good Morning America” producer, which story would you rather see on the air – Gingrich Campaign Still Dead, or Palin Views a Cow Made Entirely of Butter?


Plus, SarahPAC has posted a new one-minute Palin video that makes pretty much every other Republican contender’s commercials look underproduced.


It’s a paean to small town America, which grows “good people ... with honesty and sincerity and dignity.” It invokes Harry Truman, contains several quick shots of the young Ronald Reagan, and lingers on an Iowa State Fair sign.


The sound track is Palin’s speech at the 2008 GOP convention. The overall impression it leaves is that Michele Bachmann is a good speaker, Michele Bachmann is a former tax attorney, Michele Bachmann is a tea party favorite, but Sarah Palin is still way better at lighting people on fire with words.


Does all this mean Palin is going to run for president? She’s still not saying. But it sure looks like she’s running for something, even if it’s only Queen of the Midway.

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