Sarah Palin Is Not Running For President

Sarah Palin is out for 2012

As many have long suspected, Sarah Palin officially announced today that she is not running for President in 2012. The news was first reported by talk show host Mark Levin, who apparently received the news first, but it’s now spreading out to the rest of the media.

Via ABC News, here’s a letter that Palin has sent out this afternoon:

October 5, 2011
Wasilla, Alaska
After much prayer and serious consideration, I have decided that I will not be seeking the 2012 GOP nomination for President of the United States. As always, my family comes first and obviously Todd and I put great consideration into family life before making this decision. When we serve, we devote ourselves to God, family and country. My decision maintains this order.

My decision is based upon a review of what common sense Conservatives and Independents have accomplished, especially over the last year. I believe that at this time I can be more effective in a decisive role to help elect other true public servants to office – from the nation’s governors to Congressional seats and the Presidency. We need to continue to actively and aggressively help those who will stop the “fundamental transformation” of our nation and instead seek the restoration of our greatness, our goodness and our constitutional republic based on the rule of law.

From the bottom of my heart I thank those who have supported me and defended my record throughout the years, and encouraged me to run for President. Know that by working together we can bring this country back – and as I’ve always said, one doesn’t need a title to help do it.

I will continue driving the discussion for freedom and free markets, including in the race for President where our candidates must embrace immediate action toward energy independence through domestic resource developments of conventional energy sources, along with renewables. We must reduce tax burdens and onerous regulations that kill American industry, and our candidates must always push to minimize government to strengthen the economy and allow the private sector to create jobs.

Those will be our priorities so Americans can be confident that a smaller, smarter government that is truly of the people, by the people, and for the people can better serve this most exceptional nation.

In the coming weeks I will help coordinate strategies to assist in replacing the President, re-taking the Senate, and maintaining the House.

Thank you again for all your support. Let’s unite to restore this country!

God bless America.

– Sarah Palin

As I said, this doesn’t really come as a surprise. Palin has done little to form a campaign organization, and has fallen back in the polls as Republican voters have paid attention to the candidates who are actually running.

Palin’s endorsement will be sought after, no doubt, if only because of the loyal following she still seems to maintain among a certain segment of the Republican Party. In the end, though, this pretty much means the end of any idea that Sarah Palin as a major force in American politics. More importantly, though, this confirms once and for all that the 2012 GOP field is set in stone. There may be subtractions to come, in fact there inevitably will be, but there will be no more additions.

From Politico: “Sarah Palin Won’t Run”:

The former Alaska governor and 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee announced the news to conservative radio talk show host Mark Levin on Wednesday evening, “I have decided that I will not be seeking the 2012 GOP nomination for President of the United States. As always, my family comes first and obviously Todd and I put great consideration into family life before making this decision. When we serve, we devote ourselves to God, family and country. My decision maintains this order.”

Palin did not explicitly rule out a third-party run for the White House, though she said, “I would assume that a third party would guarantee” President Barack Obama’s re-election.

Asked if she will support the GOP nominee, Palin told Levin: “I have confidence in that. I look forward to supporting our nominee. … The right candidate will be elevated that will be our nominee. We’ll be able to get behind that person and make sure that Barack Obama is replaced.”

The idea of Palin running as an independent was recently floated by a pro-Palin blogger and by Christian Heinze at The Hill. As Ed Morrissey said earlier today before Palin’s announcement, the idea is silly:

The Tea Party didn’t come into existence to back Palin; its main purpose was to defeat Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Harry Reid, and their disastrous policies.  Palin is an important leader in that movement, but it’s not a Palin movement.  If Palin launches an independent bid, the most likely outcome would be either having no impact at all, or to hand the election to Obama by splitting the vote on the Right.

How many Tea Party activists will want that outcome, or would be willing to risk it just to make a point about being anti-establishment?  Some might, and the degree to which those activists might be tempted to do so would depend on the outcome of the Republican primary, too.  However, when the dust settles next summer, Republicans and conservatives who want to see ObamaCare and Dodd-Frank repealed will know that the only path to that end will be to defeat Obama.  If Palin interferes with that, the damage to her standing will be significantly higher than she will suffer by not running at all. She needs to either get into the GOP primary or dedicate herself to activism over the next four years.

Of course, there is another point to think about. Let’s say a Republican wins in 2012. Unless Palin is made part of the Administration, which seems ridiculously improbable, she’s going to be on the outside, constantly criticizing, constantly being a thorn in the side of President Romney, or Perry. That could be interesting.

FILED UNDER: 2012 Election, US Politics, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Doug Mataconis
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

  1. Jay Tea says:

    In the end, though, this pretty much means the end of any idea that Sarah Palin as a major force in American politics.

    This has been “Doug Pronounces Sarah Palin’s Political Career Dead, Part 254” in an ongoing irregular series. Please join us for “Doug Pronounces Sarah Palin’s Political Career Dead, Part 255” at some point in the next week or so.

    J.

  2. Tlaloc says:

    is anyone actually surprised?

  3. anjin-san says:

    Was that thud I just heard bitheads body hitting the sidewalk?

  4. Jay Tea says:

    On a semi-serious note… this presumption of Doug’s is based on a few flawed assumptions.

    1) Palin’s popularity is contingent on whatever title she holds or seeks.

    2) Palin’s popularity is contingent on what establishment GOP folks like Doug think.

    3) Palin’s power in politics is contingent upon the traditional power brokers and their definitions of “relevance.”

    J.

  5. @Jay Tea:

    She’s going to be eclipsed by whoever the GOP nominee is

  6. ernieyeball says:

    I remember to this day where I was in 1968 when President Lyndon Johnson announced he would not run for reelection.
    I am sure that 5 minutes from now I will forget where I was when Caribou Barbie…wait, who, what did she say?

  7. Jay Tea says:

    @Doug Mataconis: Oh, absolutely. I never said she holds “absolute power.” But until there’s a nominee (or a runaway winner), she will still wield as much influence as she likes.

    Palin doesn’t fit the conventional mold, the old rules simply don’t apply to her, and your constant pronouncements of her being politically finished are based on those rules.

    J.

  8. john personna says:

    This is worse than I’ve seen.

    Q&A with Palin Advisor-Turned-Novelist Nicolle Wallace

    That first hand account makes Doug seem positively kind.

  9. Dave Schuler says:

    There is a special prrovidence for fools, drunkards, and the United States of America.

  10. anjin-san says:

    So what’s the over/under on the number of Palin apologia comments we can expect to see from Jay Tea in the next week? I think I am in for 100+

  11. Nikki says:

    NOOOOO!! Now the campaign season won’t be nearly as much fun… 🙁

    Why, God…why?!

  12. Jay Tea says:

    @anjin-san: “Apologia?” Meh. (Dogbert-style dismissive wave.)

    As I’ve noted before, Doug probably does more Palin posts in a month than I have in my entire blogging career at Wizbang.

    J.

  13. samwide says:

    @john personna: “This is worse than I’ve seen.”

    Jesus Christ. Speaking of her new book, Ms. Wallace says:

    The idea of a mentally ill vice president who suffers in complete isolation was obviously sparked by the behaviors I witnessed by Sarah Palin. What if somebody who was ill-equipped for the office were to ascend to the presidency or vice presidency? What would they do? How long would it take for people to figure it out? I became consumed by this question.

    Yikes.

  14. Jay Tea says:

    @john personna:
    There ain’t no rest for the wicked
    Money don’t grow on trees
    I got bills to pay
    I got mouths to feed
    Ain’t nothing in this world for free
    No I can’t slow down
    I can’t hold back
    Though you know I wish I could
    No there ain’t no rest for the wicked
    Until we close our eyes for good

    J.

  15. James Joyner says:

    Jim Henley tweeted, “Fair to say God answered MANY prayers in addition to Sarah and Todd’s.”

  16. Jay Tea says:

    @samwide: Had she revealed all this at the time, she would (arguably) have been doing the nation a huge service.

    Now, though, she’s certainly selling books.

    J.

  17. anjin-san says:

    Jay – Sorry you can’t pull Dogbert off, it requires a personality. Why don’t you tell us again how Palin is really not very important to you? And again.. And again… And again…

  18. trizzlor says:

    Jay Tea, is Palin’s decision not to run for the leadership of her party evidence for or against “Doug Pronounces Sarah Palin’s Political Career Dead″?

  19. Jay Tea says:

    @anjin-san: anjin, the vast majority of my Palin writings is here, when I see folks saying things that just ain’t so. As I noted, I hardly discuss her at Wizbang.

    To me, that says I care more about you folks than her…

    J.

  20. john personna says:

    @Jay Tea:

    I’ve seen Wallace off and on, in TV talk shows. Her discomfort with Palin, but her reluctance to speak ill, were both evident. It was clear she had problems with Palin but wasn’t interested (at that point) in a cat fight.

    So, I’d say she’s processed it. Perhaps she feels the statute of limitations has run out. Or whatever.

  21. Jay Tea says:

    @trizzlor: You don’t make it clear if you mean GOP chair or the presidential nomination, but you’d have to dig through Doug’s archives to see whether he said she was finished then, too.

    The smart money is he did — he does that an awful lot.

    J.

  22. Fiona says:

    Palin’s announcement translated: “I’m not gonna run cause I’m not gonna win. But if I did win, it would be an awful lotta work, far more work than being governor of Alaska, which was much too much work for me. It’s much easier to have someone ghostwrite another book for me, go on lucrative speaking tours, and be one of Fox New’s designated hotties, um I mean political analysts. Plus, I can still cause a lotta trouble for Republicans by shootin’ from the hip. Yee-hah. Best of all worlds. Eat my dust, rubes.”

  23. anjin-san says:

    Of course Jay, people are always making things up about Palin. Like the one about how she could not produce a coherent answer to the question “what newspapers do you read?” it’s a good thing you are setting the record straight.

  24. Hey Norm says:

    JTea blogs somewhere???
    That must be an amazing site.
    By amazing I mean not even the least bit readable.

    I’m bummed about Palin.
    I was looking forward to living in Canada for half-a-term.

  25. Jay Tea says:

    @Hey Norm: Oh, Norm, you poor, clueless soul. Let me enlighten you:

    If you click on my name where it says “Jay Tea says,” it’s a link to where I blog. Oh, and it’s “Jay Tea,” a phonetic of my initials, not “JTea.”

    Always glad to help out the… challenged.

    J.

  26. samwide says:
  27. Jay Tea says:

    I have to say, though, this caught me by surprise. I don’t see any political advantage in announcing it today versus, say, in a week or two, closer to the filing deadlines. Note James’ piece earlier today:

    https://www.outsidethebeltway.com/sarah-palins-law-firm-checking-primary-deadlines/

    But then I remembered my own advice: just listen to what she says. She said she’d announce it when she made up her mind. The implication that she wouldn’t rush it, nor would she drag it out after she’d come to her decision. And this seems to indicate that she did exactly that.

    J.

  28. Hey Norm says:

    Steve Jobs died.

  29. Jay Tea says:

    @Hey Norm: I disagree with your emphasis, Norm:

    Steve Jobs lived. His death was one of the least significant things he did. He lived a hell of a lot more than most people.

    J.

  30. Hey Norm says:

    What happens if I don’t click where it says JTea sez??? I think I’ll find out.

  31. Hey Norm says:

    @ Jay Tea…
    Well said.

  32. Hey Norm says:
  33. Jay Tea says:

    @Hey Norm: That’s the kind of thing I occasionally write over at “click on my name.” You don’t think I waste my best material here, do you?

    Well, actually, sometimes I do… but let’s not go there.

    J.

  34. Pete says:

    @anjin-san: Anjin, This is not the thread to revisit your disagreement with me from yesterday, but I don’t know how to reach you otherwise. You told me to read history books to better understand whether we are in a depression. Take a look at this, if you would: http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/%E2%80%9C-prevailing-debate-among-economists-and-historians-whether-world-economy-faces-%E2%80%98great%E2%80%99-

  35. ponce says:

    However, when the dust settles next summer, Republicans and conservatives who want to see ObamaCare and Dodd-Frank repealed…

    I must say Special Ed, a guy who just a few years ago was a $9/ hour call center employee, has got me intrigued.

    Are the rank and file wingnuts really that upset about Dodd-Frank, or is he just another working class Republican toady giving voice to his wealthy masters’ fantasy?

  36. anjin-san says:

    Pete… I am on the run at the moment. A quick read indicates economist think there is a real risk of a depression. I don’t disagree.

  37. anjin-san says:

    You don’t think I waste my best material here

    Yes, you are a legend in your own mind. How rare…

  38. Jay Tea says:

    @anjin-san: “My best,” anjin, only means my opinion of my own comparative quality. I make no claims other than “my material over there is better than my material is here.” I leave it up to others to rate them for actual quality.

    Although I have to say that, in my opinion, my most important trait is tenaciousness…

    J.

  39. mantis says:

    1) 3) Palin’s power in politics is contingent upon the traditional power brokers and their definitions of “relevance.”

    Palin’s power in politics is contingent only on her favor with Roger Ailes and Rupert Murdoch. Once they are done with her, she’s done.

  40. Neill Fendly says:

    This is a surprise? Palin has known all along she is neither electable or qualified but did a great job of milking it for every dollar she could get her arms around.

  41. Jay Tea says:

    @mantis: Oddly enough, her actual on-air participation at Fox is dwarfed by her Facebook postings. Oh, and the rush of coverage when someone does something insanely stupid in going after her, like Joe McGinniss.

    Hmm… this definitely frees her up to pursue that lawsuit now…

    J.

  42. WR says:

    @Jay Tea: I love the way Jay insists on taking every drool-flicked syllable from Palin’s lips as gospel truth. Every one else he parses in his unique way — that is, with a complete lack of understanding of the language or human behavior — but La Sarah’s words are holy writ that can only be understood by bathing in the glow of their glorious truth.

    So you’ve got Jay saying we need to listen to Palin because angels dance on her every word. And Roger Ailes pointing out he hired her to give his trailer trash audience the occasional stiffie.

    Gosh, who to believe here. It’s so hard.

  43. WR says:

    @anjin-san: I think Jay wastes his best material while holding a picture of Sarah Palin in one hand….

  44. mantis says:

    Oddly enough, her actual on-air participation at Fox is dwarfed by her Facebook postings.

    I have no doubt she will continue to pay someone to post things on Facebook for her, for a while.

  45. mantis says:

    I think Jay wastes his best material while holding a picture of Sarah Palin in one hand….

    Wins the thread.

  46. michael reynolds says:

    We lose Steve Jobs and we keep this waste of oxygen.

  47. Fiona says:

    @Jay Tea:

    Oh, and the rush of coverage when someone does something insanely stupid in going after her, like Joe McGinniss.

    Hmm… this definitely frees her up to pursue that lawsuit now…

    Yeah, good luck with that. It’s not libel if it’s true. Despite what the mainstream media has been saying, the book is pretty well sourced. Your little angel ain’t no angel.

  48. Kristy McHearn says:

    Well I know a lot of libs are going to be relieved about that! Vawncast or swapcast now they’ll be pointing fingers at Ron Paul, their number one repub hero.

  49. An Interested Party says:

    Well I know a lot of libs are going to be relieved disappointed about that!

    Happy to be of help…

  50. BleevK says:

    Jay Tea, I used to think you were a bad human being but I now realize you’re just an idiot.

  51. Am I the only person that read through all these comments just to see how Jay Tea would spin Palin’s announcement?

  52. michael reynolds says:

    @Timothy Watson:
    Look, what you don’t seem to understand is that this just proves her maverickiness. Totally rogue. So, um, not lamestream. Who needs the presidency when it’s all shackl-y? She has Facebook and Twitter.

  53. anjin-san says:

    all shackl-y

    I think the shackly thing really raised Jay Tea’s blood pressure. He is positively giddy about that gal 🙂

  54. Jay Tea says:

    @Fiona: Yeah, but you gotta be able to prove it. McGinniss already confirmed the “actual malice”/”reckless disregard” and waived his lawyer-client privilege with Random House’s lawyers in that e-mail to Jesse Griffin, and Griffin confirmed the e-mail was legit. That simplifies the matter tremendously.

    Plus, Palin has another option. Her brother has stated that he never said the things McGinniss quoted him on, and he’s not a public figure. (I didn’t even know she had a brother.) So he could sue a lot more easily than she can.

    J.

  55. Jay Tea says:

    “with a picture of Sarah Palin…”

    “…shackly thing…”

    How amazingly astonishing. Criticism of Palin devolves into crude references to sex. Why, it’s almost as if liberals can’t handle conservative women without sexualizing them. Palin, Bachmann, Haley…

    Good thing that liberals are, by (their) definition, incapable of being sexists. ‘Cuz otherwise, it would look seriously misogynistic.

    J.

  56. samwide says:

    @Jay Tea:

    Although I have to say that, in my opinion, my most important trait is tenaciousness

    Tenacious T and the Nosepick of Destiny….

    (Dude, it was irresistible)

  57. samwide says:

    BTW, anybody know if the logorrheic and well-known allcaps freak Sam has been banned? I’d like my old handle back.

  58. Hey Norm says:

    JTea…
    Talk to Fox News…who only hired her because she was hot. Those f’ing liberal media types ya know.

  59. Hey Norm says:

    JTea…you need to forget about the McGuinnis lawsuits.
    One…any attacks are just free publicity for the book.
    And two…by all accounts it’s the most fact-checked book ever written…well besides the bible. I’m willing to bet Palins brother is spooked by the vengeance seeking sister.

  60. Jay Tea says:

    @Hey Norm: Dude, in what universe do you live in?

    McGinniss’ book could use the publicity — its first-week sales were somewhere between “dismal” and “pathetic.”

    And “most fact-checked?” McGinniss was in touch with one of the most rabid Palin-haters in Alaska, and admitted that Random House’s lawyers said they couldn’t prove the most lurid stories about Palin, and needed actual sources. And all but one of those made it into the book anyway.

    That letter was several of the dumbest things ever done. McGinniss admitted he knew his own book’s weaknesses and threw away the lawyer-client privilege, and Griffin — in his outrage at it being released — acknowledged that it was valid.

    Yeah, Palin’s a moron. In fact, she’s so stupid that it’s contagious. It makes her haters do even more stupid things as they blow their own dicks off.

    J.

  61. Hey Norm says:

    @ MD….
    “…We lose Steve Jobs and we keep this waste of oxygen…”
    Palin or JTea????

  62. Jay Tea says:

    @Hey Norm: Doesn’t matter. Wishing death on one’s political foes is standard fare from your side.

    Fortunately, no one takes you folks at all seriously.

    J.

  63. john personna says:

    @Jay Tea:

    How amazingly astonishing. Criticism of Palin devolves into crude references to sex.

    I’ll be generous. It is probably less sex, than “love is blind.”

  64. bandit says:

    Sad news for the lunatic lefty h8rs

  65. bandit says:

    We lose Steve Jobs and we keep this waste of oxygen.

    The usual ignorant h8

  66. Neil Hudelson says:

    I thought I heard a loud popping noise last night. I realize now it was Z-Dorf’s entire world imploding.

  67. john personna says:

    @bandit:

    I agree that was totally out of line

  68. Jay Tea says:

    @john personna: (shrug) It’s michael reynolds. It’s what he does. It’s all he can do. You learn to ignore it after a while.

    J.

  69. WR says:

    @Jay Tea: Jay, Jay, Jay. I wasn’t criticizing Palin. I was making fun of you. Really, I know that you think she and you are soulmates, but it’s really not true.

  70. Jay Tea says:

    @WR: Stupid Person Is Stupid. Clueless Person Misses Clue.

    Back to your kennel, lickspittle.

    J.

  71. Neil Hudelson says:

    Stupid Person Is Stupid. Clueless Person Misses Clue.

    ZING!

  72. mattb says:

    @SarahPalin wrote:

    When we serve, we devote ourselves to God, family and country. My decision maintains this order.

    Question: Does the fact that she listed God first and country last, and the emphasized “this order” in the last sentence mean that SP is a Christian before she is an American? And should that be interpreted that, if push came to shove, she would stand with Christians against the US?

  73. anjin-san says:

    before she is an American

    Well, her husband was involved with a succession movement…

  74. jukeboxgrad says:

    doug:

    You said she wouldn’t run, I said she would. You were right, I was wrong.

    this pretty much means the end of any idea that Sarah Palin as a major force in American politics

    I agree.

  75. samwide says:

    @bandit:

    Sad news for the lunatic lefty h8rs

    Show of hands? How many think that deepthinker bandit is oblivious to the ambiguity in that?

  76. Alanmt says:

    Yay!

    Yeah, I know analysis is a lacking in this post. Sometimes mere exuberance is worth expression.

    Yay!

  77. Fiona says:

    @Jay Tea:

    Yeah, but you gotta be able to prove it. McGinniss already confirmed the “actual malice”/”reckless disregard” and waived his lawyer-client privilege with Random House’s lawyers in that e-mail to Jesse Griffin, and Griffin confirmed the e-mail was legit. That simplifies the matter tremendously.

    Dude, there’s no evidence that the email in question is even legitimate. Hard to believe someone like McGinniss, who’s written several controversial books, would admit to malice and waive lawyer-client privilege in an email to some crackpot. I’m sure he’s much better versed in what constitutes libel than to be so careless. He’s not about to leave a smoking gun that could cost him and his publisher millions.

  78. jukeboxgrad says:

    jay tea:

    McGinniss already confirmed the “actual malice”/”reckless disregard”

    You’ve “already confirmed” that when it comes to the law of defamation, you have no idea what you’re talking about. This is the definition you offered for “actual malice:”

    Actual Malice: It’s tremendously helpful if you can show that the alleged libeler really, really didn’t like the subject, and was interested in doing them harm.

    As one of your commenters tried to tell you, that’s not that “actual malice” means (link):

    In a legal sense, “actual malice” has nothing to do with ill will or disliking someone and wishing him harm. Rather, courts have defined “actual malice” in the defamation context as publishing a statement while either

    knowing that it is false; or

    acting with reckless disregard for the statement’s truth or falsity.

    But of course you’re going to ignore this and not correct your post, because you’ve already decided to ignore your commenter who tried to tell you what I am now telling you.

  79. Jay Tea says:

    @Fiona: Sorry, Fiona. The recipient — Jesse Griffin — has confirmed that it’s legit. He was so outraged that it became public, he howled in protest about what a gross violation it was to have it out there. So that’s settled.

    J.

  80. Jay Tea says:

    @jukeboxgrad: Sometimes I’m resistant to certain things. Such as remembering that the legal system has so perverted the language that the phrase “actual malice” doesn’t necessarily involve in the least what most people consider “malice.” When I have a dictionary definition drilled into my head, that’s a hard thing to get past.

    1. desire to inflict injury, harm, or suffering on another, either because of a hostile impulse or out of deep-seated meanness: the malice and spite of a lifelong enemy.
    2. Law . evil intent on the part of a person who commits a wrongful act injurious to others.

    That’s from dictionary.com, and damn if they don’t include “ill will” even in the “legal context” definition.

    So thanks for the correction, but the bigger point remains: the McGinniss e-mail to Griffin pretty much proves that point, as he says he can’t verify the most salacious stuff sufficienctly to satisfy Random House’s lawyers (if I sprayed on all those S’s, I apologize — I really normally don’t go so alliterative), but all but one of them made it into the book anyway. And there was not sufficient time between the e-mail and publication to find solid sources (there I go again) to verify them.

    And that’s not even touching on the use of quotes from Chuck Heath Jr. (Sarah Palin’s brother) who has absolutely denied saying what McGinniss has him saying. My own hunch is that he — a bona fide private citizen — will be the nominal plaintiff should a lawsuit be filed. It could be easier, and it leaves Sarah’s options open. (Pardon the familiarity, but when dealing with family members, sometimes a first-name reference simplifies things.) Plus, if he wins, it would likely establish certain facts as legally proven, making her case simpler.

    Oh, and by the way: on Amazon, this book is #414 on their best-seller list, while J. Christian Adams’ book exposing the Obama’s politicizing and corrupting of the Justice Department is #46. And while Adams’ book is just out, McGinniss’ has only been out for 3 weeks — meaning that it’s dropping like a stone.

    And no, it’s not just the timing — I did a spot-check of other non-fiction books in the top 100. #13 has been out for almost two years, #25 came out two weeks prior to McGinniss’, and #28 one week prior.

    It seems like books that smear Sarah Palin have a horribly short shelf life…

    J.

  81. anjin-san says:

    Gee Jay, you should probably be telling us how Doug is obsessed with Palin right about now…

  82. Jay Tea says:

    @anjin-san: I stand by my earlier statement: I would gladly wager that Doug posts more about Palin in any single month than I have in my entire blogging career.

    J.

  83. WR says:

    @Jay Tea: Could be, but I doubt he knows the exact number of commas in McGinniss’ book the way you do.

  84. mantis says:

    And there was not sufficient time between the e-mail and publication to find solid sources (there I go again) to verify them.

    The email was sent in January. The book was published in September. As McGinniss told Dave Weigel, he continued reporting for the book into June. Do you really think six months is not sufficient time? Please explain.

    You may want to read that link above. You might learn something about journalism.

  85. jukeboxgrad says:

    jay tea:

    thanks for the correction

    You’re welcome. You should correct your post, especially since you’re pretending to actually know what you’re talking about (“I once had good reason to know a bit about libel laws”).

  86. john personna says:

    Marginal Revolution points to a David Frum editorial just for jay.

    Actually, it is for Jay in a bad way, and for Doug in a good way. He says the GOP needs more “antibodies” to act quickly, and prevent this sort of thing from happening again.

  87. Jay Tea says:

    @john personna: Same ol’ same ol’. Frum is trying like hell to assert his relevancy for years, but stomping his feet and yelling “I’m important, dammit!” doesn’t work very well.

    J.