The Democrats Have Their Own "Hillary Clinton" Now

I'll admit that I panicked when Sarah Palin came on the scene. I saw her introductory speech the Friday after the end of the Democratic nominating convention and was duly impressed. She had formidable skills connecting with her audience and a biography as a woman governor, mother of five, and a solid conservative that gave me pause if not outright fear that she could be the one to suck the oxygen out of the Obama campaign. In fact, that's just what happened for two weeks or so following the Republican convention, where Gov. Palin wowed the crowd even as the press was digging trying to find out who she was.

But now a Washington Post/ABC poll shows that Palin is a bigger drag on McCain's ticket than even President Bush! (Remind you of any particular democrat who is popular with the base but not the rest of the country?) I guess serving as the McCain campaign's attack dog drove up Palin's negatives with independents even as the Republican base gobbled up the red meat she was serving. Although there is still talk of what Sarah Palin will do after the campaign ends and whether she'll be back in 2012, there is no doubt that Democrats would take great pleasure in working to defeat her. Just as Republicans recoiled at the thought of a President Hillary Clinton and would surely have mobilized like never before to defeat her, Sarah Palin now serves the same function for the Democrats. She causes a gag reflex among most liberals and Democrats alike. The idea that McCain thought that Democrats would trade Hillary Clinton for Sarah Palin was insulting enough, but now she's getting so much negative media coverage that it will be hard for her to recover the middle ground where many women's politics lie.

Personally I'm hoping that a few years in the wilderness will force Republicans to come back with a more inclusive message. Perhaps the country is not so center right after all. And besides, Mitt Romney, Tom Ridge, Bobby Jhindal, and who knows who else might have something very forceful to say about Palin trying to win the Republican nomination for the presidency in 4 years even as many hard core Republicans view Palin as the future of their party. But wouldn't that be a fascinating race to watch? Palin will have more experience governing Alaska (assuming she can get re-elected) as well as the invaluable experience of having been part of a national campaign. And she certainly knows how to eviscerate her opponents with a wink and a smile! Sarah Barracuda is not going away, but we Democrats are hopeful that other Republicans who praise her now will take her down just as Republicans were grateful that Barack Obama took Hillary out of the game.

And just like with Hillary, the media have found a new figure with whom the public is fascinated--by her marriage, her political machinations, and of course her personal style. If John McCain loses (let alone should he win) the media will happily speculate about what Sarah Palin will be doing the next four years. We have already seen the beginnings of the pack journalism mentality going after the next new thing!