Going Rouge (10 page)

The not-so-glamorous return to work, her unwillingness and inability to use diplomacy to solve problems and heal campaign-inflicted wounds, and the lure of a lucrative book deal were among the factors that led to her shocking announcement on the Friday of Fourth of July weekend. She stood in front of her house, on the shore of Lake Lucille, in front of the media and a raft of honking waterfowl, and she quit. She stepped down from the governorship of the state, leaving in her wake a long list of people who were on the receiving end of blame, vitriol, and accusation—not just the two “rogue” cops but citizens who had filed ethics complaints against her administration, Democratic legislators who had helped her in the past, the father of her grandchild, political bloggers on both sides of the aisle who had written about her unfavorably, Republican critics, and of course the media in general. And finally, after months of watching her approval ratings sink and her disapproval ratings rise, the lines crossed. Once the most popular governor in America, she was now viewed unfavorably by the majority of people in her own state.

But that was then, and this is now. A new day is dawning for ex-governor Palin. She is reinventing herself, and her career in the national political sphere is just beginning. Outfitted with handlers, writers, and editors, she’s ready to take on the world. And by titling her new book
Going Rogue
, she hopes to transform the term. Now it’s reframed and repackaged to be impish and endearing. But it wasn’t endearing when it was used as a finely sharpened tool to malign those who stood in the way of her power scramble to become the vice president of the United States.

Her ghostwriter, her book publisher, and those in the Lower 48 who buy and read her book may never learn her full story. But the very fact that the title of the book made it past Palin herself is illustrative of her own gaping disconnect with how she is perceived, the consequences of her actions, and the indifference with which she regards those who have been ground up in the gears of her political aspirations. And those qualities are the very ones that lost her the title of America’s Most Popular Governor.
Rogue
has gone from a lie of desperation to a slab of red meat tossed out to a pack of starving, starry-eyed Republican lions.

3/ PALINTOLOGY

Selected Palinisms

Compiled by Sebastian Jones

PIT BULLS AND HOCKEY MOMS

From Sarah Palin’s September 3, 2008, Republican National Convention speech

Sarah Palin
I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small town. I was just your average hockey mom and signed up for the PTA.

Audience
Hockey moms! Hockey moms! Hockey moms!

SP:
I love those hockey moms. You know, they say the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull: lipstick.… Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska I was mayor of my hometown. And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves. I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a community organizer, except that you have actual responsibilities.

GOD AND THE IRAQ WAR—THE GRAND PLAN

From ABC News transcript of Palin’s interview with
World News Tonight
anchor Charles Gibson, September 11, 2008

Charles Gibson
You said recently, in your old church, “Our national leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God.” Are we fighting a holy war?

SP:
You know, I don’t know if that was my exact quote.

CG:
Exact words.

SP:
But the reference there is a repeat of Abraham Lincoln’s words.... I would never presume to know God’s will or to speak God’s words.... I do believe, though, that this war against extreme Islamic terrorists is the right thing. It’s an unfortunate thing, because war is hell and I hate war, and, Charlie, today is the day that I send my first born, my son, my teenage son overseas with his Stryker brigade, 4,000 other wonderful American men and women, to fight for our country, for democracy, for our freedoms…

CG:
I take your point about Lincoln’s words, but you went on and said, “There is a plan and it is God’s plan.”

SP:
I believe that there is a plan for this world and that plan for this world is for good. I believe that there is great hope and great potential for every country to be able to live and be protected with inalienable rights that I believe are God-given, Charlie, and I believe that those are the rights to life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

That, in my world view, is a grand—the grand plan.

CRISIS MODE—PALIN’S ECONOMIC SOLUTION

From CBS News transcript of Palin’s interview with
Evening News
anchor Katie Couric, September 24, 2008

Katie Couric
If [the $700 billion government bailout] doesn’t pass, do you think there’s a risk of another Great Depression?

Sarah Palin
Unfortunately, that is the road that America may find itself on. Not necessarily this, as it’s been proposed, has to pass or we’re going to find ourselves in another Great Depression. But, there has got to be action—bipartisan effort—Congress not pointing fingers at one another but finding the solution to this, taking action, and being serious about the reforms on Wall Street that are needed.

KC:
Would you support a moratorium on foreclosures to help average Americans keep their homes?

SP:
That’s something that John McCain and I have both been discussing—whether that... is part of the solution or not. You know, it’s going to be a multifaceted solution that has to be found here.

KC:
So you haven’t decided whether you’ll support it or not?

SP:
I have not.

KC:
What are the pros and cons of it, do you think?

SP:
Oh, well, some decisions that have been made poorly should not be rewarded, of course.

KC:
By consumers, you’re saying?

SP:
Consumers—and those who were predator lenders also. That’s, you know, that has to be considered also. But again, it’s got to be a comprehensive, long-term solution found... for this problem that America is facing today. As I say, we are getting into crisis mode here.

PUTIN REARS HIS HEAD

From CBS News transcript of Palin’s interview with
Evening News
anchor Katie Couric, September 25, 2008

KC:
You’ve cited Alaska’s proximity to Russia as part of your foreign policy experience. What did you mean by that?

SP:
That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and, on our other side, the land boundary that we have with Canada. It’s funny that a comment like that was kinda made to... I don’t know, you know... reporters.

KC:
Mocked?

SP:
Yeah, mocked, I guess that’s the word, yeah.

KC:
Well, explain to me why that enhances your foreign-policy credentials.

SP:
Well, it certainly does, because our, our next-door neighbors are foreign countries, there in the state that I am the executive of. And there…

KC:
Have you ever been involved in any negotiations, for example, with the Russians?

SP:
We have trade missions back and forth, we do. It’s very important when you consider even national security issues with Russia. As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where do they go? It’s Alaska. It’s just right over the border. It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right there, they are right next to our state.

WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR NEWS?

From CBS News transcript of Palin’s interview with
Evening News
anchor Katie Couric, September 30, 2008

KC:
And when it comes to establishing your worldview, I was curious, what newspapers and magazines did you regularly read before you were tapped for this to stay informed and to understand the world?

SP:
I’ve read most of them, again with a great appreciation for the press, for the media.

KC:
What, specifically?

SP:
Um, all of them, any of them that have been in front of me all these years.

KC:
Can you name a few?

SP:
I have a vast variety of sources where we get our news, too. Alaska isn’t a foreign country, where it’s kind of suggested, “Wow, how could you keep in touch with what the rest of Washington, D.C., may be thinking when you live up there in Alaska?” Believe me, Alaska is like a microcosm of America.

ON ABORTION AND CONTRACEPTION

From CBS News transcript of Palin’s interview with
Evening News
anchor Katie Couric, September 30, 2008

KC:
If a 15-year-old is raped by her father, do you believe it should be illegal for her to get an abortion, and why?

SP:
I am pro-life. And I’m unapologetic in my position that I am pro-life. And I understand there are good people on both sides of the abortion debate. In fact, good people in my own family have differing views on abortion, and when it should be allowed. [I do] respect people’s opinions on this. Now, I would counsel to choose life. I would also like to see a culture of life in this country. But I would also like to take it one step further. Not just saying I am pro-life and I want fewer and fewer abortions in this country, but I want them, those women who find themselves in circumstances that are absolutely less than ideal, for them to be supported, and adoptions made easier.

KC:
But ideally, you think it should be illegal for a girl who was raped or the victim of incest to get an abortion?

SP:
I’m saying that, personally, I would counsel the person to choose life, despite horrific, horrific circumstances that this person would find themselves in. And, um, if you’re asking, though, kind of foundationally here, should anyone end up in jail for having an... abortion, absolutely not. That’s nothing I would ever support.

KC:
Some people have credited the morning-after pill for decreasing the number of abortions. How do you feel about the morning-after pill?

SP:
Well, I am all for contraception. And I am all for preventative measures that are legal and safe, and should be taken, but Katie, again, I am one to believe that life starts at the moment of conception. And I would like to see...

KC:
And so you don’t believe in the morning-after pill?

SP:
... I would like to see fewer and fewer abortions in this world. And again, I haven’t spoken with anyone who disagrees with my position on that.

KC:
I’m sorry, I just want to ask you again. Do you not support or do you condone or condemn the morning-after pill?

SP:
Personally, and this isn’t McCain/Palin policy …

KC:
No, that’s OK, I’m just asking you.

SP:
But personally, I would not choose to participate in that kind of contraception.

DRED SCOTT V. SANDFORD,
ANYONE?

From CBS News transcript of Palin’s interview with
Evening News
anchor Katie Couric, October 1, 2008

KC:
What other Supreme Court decisions do you disagree with?

SP:
Well, let’s see. There’s, of course in the great history of America there have been rulings, that’s never going to be absolute consensus by every American. And there are those issues, again, like
Roe v. Wade
, where I believe are best held on a state level and addressed there. So you know, going through the history of America, there would be others, but …

KC:
Can you think of any?

SP:
Well, I could think of... any, again, that could be best dealt with on a more local level, maybe I would take issue with. But, you know, as mayor, and then as governor and even as a vice president, if I’m so privileged to serve, [I] wouldn’t be in a position of changing those things but in supporting the law of the land as it reads today.

CANDIDATE’S PREROGATIVE

From the vice presidential debate, October 2, 2008

I may not answer the questions that either the moderator or you want to hear, but I’m going to talk straight to the American people and let them know my track record also.

PALIN AROUND WITH TERRORISTS

Palin on the stump, as quoted by the
New York Times,
October 4, 2008

There is a lot of interest, I guess, in what I read and what I’ve read lately. Well, I was reading my copy of today’s New York Times and I was interested to read about Barack’s friends from Chicago.

I get to bring this up not to pick a fight, but it was there in the
New York Times
, so we are gonna talk about it. Turns out one of Barack’s earliest supporters is a man who, according to the
New York Times
, and they are hardly ever wrong, was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that, quote, launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and U.S. Capitol. Wow. These are the same guys who think patriotism is paying higher taxes.