O’Donnell, Paladino, Angle, et al will make Sarah Palin (with some makeover) look like a sane and moderate politician in 2012.
Having lived through O’Donnell, Paladino, Angle, et al in 2010, Sarah Palin (with some makeover) will look like a sane and moderate politician in 2012.
We talk a lot about the crazy Tea Party types running for the Senate and for Governor in 2010. Indeed, they are extreme and dangerous for the country. However, they are lowering the bar for qualifications for high offices. Even if these unconventional politicians don’t win in 2010 many of them are likely to lose close elections. When you combine the lower standards for public offices and emotional state of the voters, presidential candidates may be measured by completely new criteria in 2012.
Sarah Palin, deservedly, looked ill-informed and inept in 2008. Most people thought she didn’t qualify to be the president. But, she will run for the Republican nomination under more favorable circumstances in 2012. Unless the current wave of conservatism in the Republican Party is reversed, she could easily win the nomination. For the general election, independents and moderates would compare Sarah to Christine, Carl, and Sharron and find her to be a reasonable and a central-right candidate. So her chances of defeating Obama have gone up significantly due to 2010 election. Of course a lot may and will change between now and then. The economy may improve, Iran war, if it happens, may help Obama, and Obama may find Osama. But, if conditions don’t change much by 2012, mid-term elections have increased Sarah Plain’s chances to be the first female president of the United States significantly.
The way things are, and the direction the country is moving politically, we should replace "God bless America" with "God help America."