The Popularity of Sarah Palin

sarah-palin

With her new book out, and a whirlwind speaking tour, Sarah Palin is on the media front lines this month. She’s talking about John McCain, her bad interview, what she did right, and what she did wrong. Now, I’m not here to promote Sarah Palin. In fact, I didn’t vote for her. And, I hope the country isn’t in such a mess that Sarah Palin gets the Republican nomination. The Republicans are stupid, but only something truly horrible in the bowels of the Obama Administration would permit them to put her front and center. While an Obama Presidency imploding would be terribly entertaining, it would sort of be like hoping a serial killer stays on the loose to prolong the tension. Breaking a tooth and continuing to stick your tongue in the hole. You get the point. Not real healthy.

That said, what my column is really about is all the Heavy Breathing every time her name comes up. And, quite honestly, all the puffed up, soft sexism, and the pretense that everyone shares the same notion about this political figure are really grating. The hatred and vehemence that springs from fear about a strong female candidate and that her popularity may make it more difficult to spread your victimology, government dependency dogma really just wants to make me puke. Some reality for ya.

She’s polling 40-44% nationally, depending on what poll you read. That’s the same place Obama was in September, 2006. Now, I’m no tea leaf reader, but by January when Health Care is locked up in the Senate, she may have better numbers than our ELECTED leader. I’ll do a Snoopy jig that day.

Now, if you’re revelling in only 40% like Sarah Palin, fine. But let’s just see where popular leftist and progressive viewpoints lay among Americans as a whole.

If you oppose the death penalty?  35% of Americans agree with you.

Support special rights to homosexuals to an exclusionary definition of marriage? One third of americans agree with you.

Atheist? You have 15% of the American people with you.

My favorite. Avoid church? 58% of you support the rights of terrorists over Americans. Somehow, I wouldn’t be overjoyed at finally being in the majority of your fellow like-minded citizens if I were you.

In 2006, Barack Obama was polling 17% among likely Democratic primary voters.

Sarah Palin polls at 29% this far out.

Somehow, it doesn’t look like conservatives are the ones who have to worry about being out of touch.


About Terry Crowley