Republican Governors Association Chooses Leadership -- No Sarah Palin

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin may be the future of the party, but she will not be leading the Republican Governors Association (RGA) into that future. In fact, she wasn't elected to any of the RGA offical positions, according to the Wall Street Journal. The conference elected South Carolina governor Mark Sanford as Chairman. Rick Perry, Governor of Texas, steps down as Chair to take over as Finance Officer. Six more governors make up the executive level of the RGA.

There are 21 Republican governors. Eight positions. All filled. No Sarah Palin. What does this say about the RGA? Are they out of touch with their voting constituency, which reports indicate have a 91% approval rating of Sarah Palin? Or is this a not so subtle way of saying that Palin is not ready to lead anything but her state?

In fact, many political pundits and strategists, like former White House Chief of Staff Karl Rove, suggests that the governor attempt keeping a low profile for a while. Others suggest she bolster her political knowledge, that her ignorance of party policy and the current general political picture was glaring on the campaign trail.

Laying low, however, does not appear to be an option being considered by the former McCain running mate. With the election barely over, she granted an interview to CNN. And then, not a week later, she hit the ground running with a media blitz, appearing in several interviews and press conferences surrounding the Republican Governors Association meeting in Florida.

Some say it is the natural backlash of a strong-willed person kept restrained too long, alluding to the McCain campaign's tight controls over her media exposure - which amounted to very little in terms of interviews and press conferences. And the few Palin did have fell far short of expectations. But what Governor Palin seems to be making up in time is not serving her very well in substance.

Nor is it winning her the support of her fellow Republicans.

As soon as the election ended in Republican defeat and the disgruntled and the disappointed had had their say, many Republicans turned to the task of retaking the White House. Some went to attacking the administration that wasn't, taking speculative and hypothetical potshots at President-Elect Obama's policy ideas and possible political appointees. Some went after the Democrats on hand, such as Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), with a few gratuitous swipes at the incoming Democratic majority in both chambers of Congress. And some went about the rebuilding of the various segments of the conservative movement and the GOP, which had finished the presidential election a barely unified mass of sniping factions.

And rising out of the political dialogue was the common consensus that Governor Sarah Palin, although admittedly a very popular new element with a future in GOP politics, was in dire need of two things: less national media exposure and more education, both in general and politically. Republican political analysts, experts, and strategists were agreeing with the select few that voiced their opinions openly before the election (not counting the horde of Democratic and nonpartisan objections) that Alaska governor Sarah Palin simply was ill-prepared as a person and as a politician to be vice president (and potentially president).

Many had little to say when she struck back at her anonymous detractors - those who called her "diva" and a "whack job" - in the McCain camp. There was nothing wrong with the Governor defending herself. In fact, it was expected.

What was not expected was the incredible amount of time Governor Sarah Palin spent before a camera in the days surrounding the Republican Governors Association conference. She appeared in "The Situation Room" with Wolf Blitzer on CNN. She was interviewed by NBC's Matt Lauer. She sat down with Fox's Greta van Susteren. She appeared on "Larry King Live" (Thursday, November 13).

And there seems to be a growing resentment toward her among those who see themselves as potential candidates for president in 2012.

Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, who was short-listed as a possible McCain vice presidential running mate, believes that Sarah Palin galvanized the far right-wing of the Republican Party, something that John McCain sorely needed to make himself a viable candidate in the election, but that ultimately was not the direction that the Republican Party needed to go. He told CNN that the GOP needed to get back to its principles without alienating everyone else, becoming more inclusive and less polarizing.

Governor Pawlenty also said that Sasah Palin's speech at the RGA was "interesting." MSNBC reported that Pawlenty was careful describing Palin's words. In a speech that many reported was to be about the future of the Republican Party, which Pawlenty said was titled "something about energy," had very little to do with either. She spent most of her time talking about the failed campaign.

Pawlenty told the Los Angeles Timesthat post-election analysis, in particular Sarah Palin's part in the proceedings, was like several individuals attempting to interpret post-modern art - everyone would see it differently. "What you have to look to in the end is the data, an objective measurement of it. And so, politics as post-modern art analysis is fun and interesting but it doesn't get you very far. So I would just steer you to the data."

The data shows her national popularity waning and losing a national election by nearly 8.5 million votes.

Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina was elected Friday as Chairman of the RGA. He has maintained all along that Governor Palin is merely one option for the GOP's future. Sanford himself was once considered as a potential McCain running mate.

Could the undercurrent of jealousy, animosity, and resentment have been the cause of the awkward press conference on Thursday? Governor Rick Perry said that the ahort 4-question press conference, which wss originally scheduled for 20 minutes, was called short because of other scheduling problems. In short - the governors were running behind.

But the row of governors behind Palin on Thursday looked anything but comfortable. And Palin seemed to get lost in her own words at one point. The governors say that they had all agreed earlier for the set-up as a show of unity, although originally Governor Palin was to appear alone. Many of them complained afterward that the press conference looked as if all the governors were supporting Palin as head of the party.

The announcement of the new RGA leadership should change all of that. Shouldn't it?

In the end, the Republican governors who have White House aspirations are going to have to go up against senators and Congressmen and former governors and many others with the same aspirations. But it will come down to a vote of the electorate, just as it always does, in the Republican primaries in 2012, no matter who runs.

So... what about Sarah Palin and her obvious aspirations for a presidential bid in 2012?

It is obvious she will be getting little to no help from her fellow governors.

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Sources:

WSJ.com

MSNBC.msn.com

LATimes.com

CNN.com

Minnesota.publicradio.org