Sarah has indicated we soon may see just that:
Palin tells National Review Online that she’s looking into it.
“She suggests, meanwhile, that there might be encouraging news coming Marco Rubio’s way. She says she’s had a chance to look at the Crist-Rubio race ‘just on the surface.’ But she adds, ‘I’m just being asked about it really in the last week or two, so I’ll dig more into it. I’ll find out what the guys are holding in terms of positions and see where maybe I can help.’”
Marco Rubio has already said he would love to have Palin’s endorsement, and earlier in the interview Palin says, “What I love about the Republican party is how we invite — or at least we should be inviting — healthy competition in our primaries.”
So it seems that a Rubio endorsement is much more likely than a Crist endorsement.
An endorsement of Marco would certainly prompt the media to blare headlines of a McCain (who has endorsed Crist) vs. Palin squabble symbolizing the greater “struggle” between moderates and Tea Partiers for control of the GOP. On the positive side, the endorsement would boost Rubio’s profile even more and probably help him in primary polls.
November 18th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Do it, Sarah
November 18th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
“On the positive side, the endorsement would boost Rubio’s profile even more…”
How so? Isn’t his profile already pretty high? Hey I’m living in Nevada, so I really don’t have a handle on what’s happening in Florida, but from 3000 miles away, I really don’t see how Rubio’s profile could get any higher.
“…and probably help him in primary polls.” Very likely. Palin is very popular with the conservative crowd.
Hmmm, I just had an interesting vision pop into my head. Huckabee has been endorsing and thumping for Rubio for months now, and Marco still trails by double digits. Wouldn’t it be a kick if an endorsement from Sarah places Rubio well within striking range? I wonder what Huckabee’s reaction would be to that?
November 18th, 2009 at 2:59 pm
If it helps Rubio (and it will)
the more united we are, the better.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
AND we do welcome Romney’s support, too
Wake up Mitt!
November 18th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Well, I am for Mr. Rubio, but it does not matter to me much what Mrs. Palin does in FL. This is not NY-23.. I fear if Mrs. Palin endorses Mr. Rubio officially, it will all of a sudden be difficult to keep a few of our camp members on the reservation.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:05 pm
#5.OHIO,
How so?
November 18th, 2009 at 3:10 pm
MarK, I am not going to spell it out for you. I think you guys have a clue about what I mean.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Lorelli, for example. Actually, I think you’ve already pretty much lost him. He’s just weighing his alternatives now.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:14 pm
Actually, OHIO, I don’t. I frankly do not see it. Rubio is supposed to be the most conservative guy in the race. Palin’s support is supposed to come mainly from conservatives. So why would her endorsing Rubio cause problems in your camp? Is her support that shallow? I just don’t see it.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Moderates v. Tea Partiers = false choice. You can have a Republican Party that’s conservative but that still functions in the real world.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
“You can have a Republican Party that’s conservative but that still functions in the real world.”
Which may be true Dave, but you have to be more specific than that – some of the stuff that gets pushed on here makes me think many have no interest in tackling the major issues, particularly those of a social nature.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
“Rubio is supposed to be the most conservative guy in the race. Palin’s support is supposed to come mainly from conservatives. So why would her endorsing Rubio cause problems in your camp? Is her support that shallow? I just don’t see it.” True, but we do have a few Moderates. If you truly do not get the inside joke, I am sure one of our friends will eventually chime in.
“Moderates v. Tea Partiers = false choice. You can have a Republican Party that’s conservative but that still functions in the real world.” Tea Partiers can function in the “REAL World” at least as well as anybody else.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
DaveG,
I agree with you. I just meant that the media would play up the false dichotomy.
And marK,
Sure, Rubio has plenty of name recognition and notability among us political junkies, but I think we can safely say a large number of Floridians have very little, if any, knowledge of him. They do know Palin, though, so the endorsement would raise his profile among them.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:47 pm
I find it almost amazing how people like not many of Mitt’s supporters are tea party going. Sure, he appeals to others also based on competency, but if you go to committedtoromney.com, you’ll find that near every single poster and commenter there has gone to one or more tea parties this year.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:00 pm
Am I the only one that thinks a Palin endorsement is somewhat risky for a candidate?
Her power seems to work both ways.
I think the NJ, VA approach is probably a good model, but then I don’t know much of anything about FL voters.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
“I find it almost amazing how people like not many of Mitt’s supporters are tea party going.”
Uh…come again?
November 18th, 2009 at 4:05 pm
She’s endorsing in a primary, not general. This way she can limit the damage (if any) to Rubio, but still makes her kingmaker.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:13 pm
marK,
I don’t know that Rubio has that high of a profile yet, among non-political dorks. You like 3000 miles away, but you are a junkie. What about your workaday folks in Pensacola? I don’t know, but last I saw, I think Rubio’s ID was still pretty low.
But a Palin endorsement would do a few huge things:
1. Open up the fundraising floodgates.
2. Make it safer for others to endorse him, thus legitimizing him even more (so he’s not just a “Tea-Party Palin hack”)
3. It brands him as the guy that “real” conservatives are supposed to support.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
My thoughts on the NRO interview:
How many times is Palin going to invoke RR before 2012?
She keeps talking about commonsense conservatism, yet hasn’t really defined it.
She wrote that McCain charged her for vetting, but now she gives him the benefit of the doubt that he did not? Which is is, Sarah? If she was charged, she should produce the bill.
The GOP “political machine” is purposed with electing Republicans, Sarah.
She considers the Hoffman fiasco a success.
Both are into porn, yet she defends Carrie PreJean, and slams the father of her grandchild.
The McCain campaign staffers are not hiding in anonymity, but are speaking out about what they consider outright lies, and other misrepresentations.
She calls herself an average everyday American, but she is not. She is a famous politician.
The reason her kids are not allowed on FaceBook probably has more to do with their less-than-helpful past MySpace pages which were scrubbed from the site after she was nominated, than the negativity on Facebook.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
MarK said “I wonder what Huckabee’s reaction would be to that?”
While you may not believe this, Huckabee would be glad to see that Palin brought additional support and funding to Rubio. Afterall the goal is to get good conservatives elected.
Huckabee was interviewed the other day, while in Florida, about the Rubio vs Crist race. He described Rubio as the future of the Republican party and said that he thought Rubio would be president some day.
So again, Huckabee would be glad that Palin jumped on board. Maybe Palin and Huckabee could even talk Mitt into endorsing Rubio.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Martha,
“How many times is Palin going to invoke RR before 2012?”
Are you referring to Ronald Reagan?
November 18th, 2009 at 4:34 pm
Wasn’t Romney against RR before he was for RR? And then at the Reagan library debate Romney talked about how Reagan would endorse him.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:43 pm
Somone needs to make a list of the contradictions between the McCain campaign, and the Palin book.
Another one just popped up. Schmidt says they DID NOT know about Bristol’s pregnancy before they selected her.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
23. Misprint alert – I meant to write before they vetted her, rather than selected.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Wow Schmidt has a problem with lying…I’m sure he’s probably just trying to save his political career.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Apparently the line in Michigan is continuing to grow. I think it’s a couple thousand strong.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
22. Yes, he said he thought Reagan would endorse him, when asked the specific question. He did not produce the notion out of thin air.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
How do you know who is lying, Jersey? If Palin has the bill for the vetting she should put up or retract her accusation.
Maybe she’s the one lying to save her political career.
The problem I have with the idea that the entire McCain staff is lying is lack of motive. They have no incentive to “make stuff up” about Palin.
They have already admitted that McCain could not have won due to the economy. To my knowledge, they have not blamed Palin for the loss.
November 18th, 2009 at 4:56 pm
A friend of mine just sent this article to me from DailyKos, and I wondered how our most frequent posters would respond:
Each time I read a diary or a comment that wonders out loud how someone as “stupid” as Sarah Palin could be appealing to anyone, I shake my head in disbelief.
In 2004, this website was clogged up with comments and diaries about another politician most people believed to be “too stupid,” to succeed. “How can anyone be a supporter of someone so stupid? Someone who sounds so dumb and has done so many stupid things?”
Then, after that “stupid” guy was re-elected, the Democratic Party went into an identity crisis tail spin.
Have we forgotten all this? Apparently we have.
Still don’t get Sarah Palin’s appeal? Try a little harder and you will.
Jeffrey Feldman’s diary :: ::
“Elites”
Most people who like Sarah Palin have a very strong and well-developed story in their heads about “elites” ruining their lives.
These people see the country as being run by powerful, wealthy, Liberals who maintain their power by giving away opportunity and resources for free to lazy people, poor people and foreigners. According to the story in their heads, these people are “hard working” and “normal,” but they have not found success or happiness because the rewards they deserve have been given to someone else.
When these people with this story in their heads hear Sarah Palin they react positively.
When they hear Sarah Palin stumble on her words, botch a policy statement, or otherwise sound unprepared, they do not hear “stupid,” they hear “normal.”
When they hear Sarah Palin complain about being trashed by the elite liberal media, they do not hear complaining, they hear their own story of being defrauded of their success by powerful people.
These people see Sarah as the kind of person they want to be–a person who is just normal and trying to succeed. And the more Palin gets attacked, the more they feel she understands them and speaks for them.
“Stupid”
Most of the people who flock to Sarah Palin view outward signs of education or intelligence from politicians as weapons used to victimize and defraud them. They do not respect or admire well-spoken Senators, Governors or Presidents–they resent them.
These kinds of people do not follow, understand, nor are they interested in the kind of complexity or subtlety required to discuss policy issues, either domestic or foreign–but not because they do not care about policy. The issue is simply that these kinds of Americans view well-spoken people as manipulators, tricksters, hucksters. When they hear an intelligent elected official, they feel angry, not assured–they feel judged, not informed.
Sarah Palin makes them feel the opposite. When she speaks, she makes them feel included, welcome, accepted.
By speaking as an uneducated policy outsider, Sarah Palin reassures these people that speaking with authority on issues is just a gimmick. What matters–what’s really important–is that our leaders do not act like they know more or are better than us.
“Common Sense”
When Sarah Palin says that she believes in “common sense” policy, her supporters hear someone saying that she would do things for the country the way they do things for their family.
“Common sense” to these people is code for “like I do it.” What they hear is someone who is against the overly complicated, overly intellectualized ways that Liberal elites force on them. To these people, the reason elected leaders sound complicated when they talk is not to explain complex issues, but to hide the truth.
What is the truth powerful elites are trying to hide that Sarah Palin reveals? The truth is that powerful elites are against them–normal people who work hard–and they are for lazy people, poor people, and foreigners. When Palin talks “common sense,” she is saying that she is form the normal people–the people who see themselves as victimized by elites.
Influence
Now, this exact formula was used successfully by George W. Bush to win a governorship and two presidential elections. Sarah Palin has used it, so far, to turn a VP spot on one of the worst GOP Presidential tickets of all time into an A-List political celebrity status.
Whether or not Palin is able to use this formula to win another elections is doubtful, but she can use it to become influential.
While Palin’s controversial status makes it very difficult for her to build the coalitions she would need to win an election, she can use her status and her ability to communicate effectively to people in order to endorse or anoint less controversial candidates.
And that is why we cannot afford to waste any more time forgetting what we learned from almost two decades of George W. Bush style communications and electioneering.
If you are one of the people obsessing over how “stupid” Sarah Palin is and how “dumb” her supporters are, then take a step back and force yourself to remember the lessons of 2000 and 2004.
Remember,in particular, that there is a large swath of the American public who sees themselves as victims of the very kind of force you embody when you attack Sarah Palin for lacking intelligence. And those people have money to spend and votes to give.
Sarah Palin probably won’t win another election, but we cannot let her lull us into amnesia and forget the kind of political success a person with her attributes and skill set can achieve.
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2009/11/18/805704/-Dont-Get-Palins-Appeal-Try-a-Little-Harder
November 18th, 2009 at 5:00 pm
Just as I do not know who is lying, Martha…neither do you, yet you try to convince others that Palin is the liar. It isn’t about who would win or lose it’s about how they played the game…which was horrific. Palin actually has taken a lot of responsibility and has apologized if she was the reason they lost. Yet Schmidt and Wallace continue to berate her to save their own asses. It was obvious they were the ones who tried to sell the idea that she didn’t know that Africa was a continent and now that they’re ineptitude is coming to light…they are reaching for anything that will keep them from drowning.
November 18th, 2009 at 5:06 pm
29 – I am not surprised at all. At this point, nothing they say surprises me, but how would I know I am just not smarts enoughs to understood them fancy words that Corey Feldman guy wroten down.
November 18th, 2009 at 5:25 pm
The last thing Rubio needs is Palin’s endorsement. Conservatives already support him en masse, this will galvanize his opposition and strengthen Crist’s position (and Meek in the generals). If he gets it, that’s fine, but he needs to remind people very clearly he’s not about Palin’s identity politics. If that’s all conservatism is about the American right is going to go the way of the European right in a hurry.
I support Rubio but I really don’t like how the Erickson’s of the party are using him as a tool to carry on their crusade.
As for Palin, she’s not dumb nor is she a bad person and shouldn’t be treated with personal disdain like she is, but her identity politics will absolutely destroy the party if allowed to continue. That’s the reason purist conservatism must be defeated – it is inherently suspicious, a perpetual victim (ie loser ideology), anti-intellectual, moblike, and nativist. It’s a brand of conservatism we’ve never welcomed here especially not at the forefront, and it’s the quickest, straightest road to a castrated conservative party if there ever was one.
Sure, people feel shafted by our government. When we have bad leaders, we should throw them out and find better ones. But angry mob tactics will never, ever set things right.
November 18th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
What poll shows Rubio winning conservatives in a 1-on-1 against Crist in a primary?
November 18th, 2009 at 5:35 pm
Jersey, I’m just saying that it’s her word against numerous people who have little motive to diminish her. What do they get out or it? It will not save their careers, it likely damages them.
Palin has a huge motive to paint the picture more favorably to herself. Why did she need to publish any of it, if – as you say, she is taking responsibility for her failures? She should have steered clear, and taken the high road. Of course, that would make her book far less interesting.
November 18th, 2009 at 5:36 pm
TB,
But based on Palin’s popularity, isn’t she as liable to weaken Rubio as to strengthen him?
November 18th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
#35? She’s likely more popular with the people who will voting in the Florida GOP primary than either Rubio or Crist.
The last poll I saw showed Crist beating Rubio handily among Florida conservatives. Most Florida Republicans don’t seem to have formed an opinion on Rubio yet from all the polling available.
November 18th, 2009 at 6:01 pm
#35 As for her popularity overall, SurveyUSA did show her with higher net favorables than the President in Fresno and Louisville, both cities that are in counties won by Obama (the latter won by Obama and Kerry).
November 18th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
To those of you saying McCain’s aides have “little motive to diminsh her.” These would be the same McCain aides who spent the last month of the campaign and weeks after trashing her, anonymously, to every reporter who would listen, calling her names, trying to make her look stupid, blaming her as much as possible for the loss, and in general trying to save their own asses and reputations.
And you expect her to just remain silent after that and not try to put out her story?
November 18th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Rubio would round out an historic ticket if Governor Palin decided to nab Marco to fill her veep slot.
November 18th, 2009 at 7:07 pm
First CFG, now Palin. It’s starting to look ominous for Rubio.
November 18th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
38. Yes. She should have remained silent and let them look bad.
That’s what real leaders do. They don’t get into fights with 2-bit players. They rise above.
November 18th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
Martha,
So why was Romney constantly cat-fighting with somebody during the Republican debates? It was really embarrassing. First it was Guiliani, I think, then McCain.
November 19th, 2009 at 5:54 am
It would be a disaster for Marc – just when he was starting to grow on Heath (and the Floridian Republicans) a bit.
She will soon be known as the kiss of death!
November 19th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
Christ has his FINGERS CROSSED!
Her endorsement of Rubio might be enough to put Christ over the top!