GOP Strategists on Palin's White House Chances in 2012
Sarah Palin probably hates you, me, and basically the entire idea of Princeton. As Comedy Central's John Oliver told us at his show in Richardson a few weeks ago, we're probably her biggest nightmare. But she has been back in the news, and if you follow her on Twitter like I do, her tweets have gotten more frequent and ever more nonsensical (she "appreciates u hearty souls" who came to her book signings!).Nevertheless, there's a good chance that she'll run for president, and there was rampant speculation after she abruptly resigned the governorship over the summer. While toiling away as an intern this summer, I had a chance to interview several prominent Republican strategists. I asked them what advice they would give Palin if she wants to run in 2012. My reporting didn't end up getting used, so I thought I'd share some of the more interesting/funny quotes with our dear readers.Mary Matalin (adviser to George W. Bush and Dick Cheney; married to James Carville): Matalin said she thinks Palin has a good chance, but she should first take time off and not even think about the presidency until the midterm elections in 2010. Her initial reaction upon hearing about Palin’s resignation? “What? WTF?”Roger Stone (self-styled "GOP hitman"): After a brief cooling off period, Stone would recommend Palin do a TV show for 2010 and maybe half of 2011 on either CNN or Fox. On Palin's reputation as an intellectual lightweight, Stone said, “Joe Biden is a fucking moron. Just hold everyone to the same standards. He’s a nut, a whack job. But you don’t hear about that in the liberal media.”More hilarious comments after the jump!Mark McKinnon (adviser to George W. Bush and McCain): “My advice would be to take a pass on 2012. She needs to build some credibility and prove the she represents something other than naked ambition.”Mike Murphy (chief strategist for Romney and McCain): Murphy doesn’t think Palin is a viable candidate for 2012, though he says it’s too speculative to determine whether she is irreparably damaged. “I mean, if Napoleon had nuclear subs would we all be speaking French?”Scott Reed (Dole’s 1996 campaign manager): Reed believes Palin has a “very, very, very remote” chance of winning the Republican nomination. “I think she needs to read The Wall Street Journal everyday, same day delivery to Alaska.”Fred Malek (George H.W. Bush’s campaign co-chair and leading Palin defender): “I don’t think she’s going to run.”Dan Schnur (Communications Director for McCain 2000): “Her best bet is to attempt to cast her resignation as the ultimate ‘us versus them’ challenge—‘us’ as in decent, hardworking, outside-the-beltway Americans versus the media and political elites.”Dick Wadhams (SD Sen. John Thune’s 2004 campaign manager): “She’s still the most exciting figure in our party… She doesn’t need to run around the country with her head cut off.”(image source: facebook.com/sarahpalin)