Thursday, September 04, 2008

Sarah America Delivers

A brilliant speech, brilliantly delivered. So many good lines. Sarah Palin shows us all that she is a superb communicator, which of course is so essential to a successful politician. Obviously, I think of Reagan. Personally, I loved the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull: lipstick. With a smile and a great quip, she signaled to her opponents that she is tough. Don't tread on me. I'm here now. I'm serious. I'm purposeful. I have strong convictions and you're not going to intimidate me. Nor will you push this lady around. A Western frontier version of Thatcher? Gosh, does the Republican Party need her.

Overall, I think she connected really well with middle class working folk in cultural and social terms. This is no small feat. Very important. Values matter. Dems are in trouble here, big-time. The more they go after her culturally, as they have already, the more trouble they'll fall into.

Gov. Palin did mention oil and gas drilling, and she effectively connected her Alaskan natural gas pipeline to Tsar Putin's global aim of energy blackmail. The lady knows a bit more about high table geopolitics than her critics think. Alaskans know a lot about Russian territorial ambitions, which are just across the pond from them.

But I do not think she connected with folks on the economic slump, nor did she present an economic growth recovery plan. Rudy Giuliani made the first foray into that area in his speech when he talked about restoring economic growth through tax cuts and drilling. But he did not get to gas pump prices and the oil shock-driven consumer shortfall in real purchasing power, or the threat of more job losses and higher unemployment which casts a shadow over public confidence and the investor class stock market.

Palin, however, can expand her oil and gas drill, drill drill to get to gas prices and the economy. She laid the groundwork tonight. It's only a short stone's throw from tonight's speech to an effectively fleshed out message. She did finger Obama as a tax and spend liberal. Good.

Wouldn't it be great if she and McCain adopted a strong pro-growth tax reform plan to reduce tax-rates across the board, get rid of the corrupt loopholes and tax earmarks defended by the old order in Washington, and combine their ethical corruption cause with prosperity tax cuts? Even a currency reform to restore King Dollar? Along with America First energy reform, where Palin made such a good start this evening?

Watching her phenomenal communication skill, and her disciplined yet positive style, I can't help but be optimistic. In part because she herself is clearly an optimist. I'm a sucker for optimism. Lord knows this country, and the GOP, needs it. Sarah America. I like it.