I Can See Victory From My House
November 7, 2009
Sometimes you have to strike while the iron is hot.
Barack Obama understood this. After he captured the imagination of progressives with his dynamic 2004 speech at the Democratic National Convention, he realized that the momentum he had generated would only last for a short period of time. He capitalized on that momentum well in advance of its cutoff date, releasing a bestselling book, The Audacity of Hope, in the fall of 2006 and launching his Presidential bid shortly thereafter. Fortune favors the bold, and fortune certainly blessed Obama’s boldness a year ago this week.
Now, Sarah Palin has to follow that path. She must take advantage of this unique moment. After her tour to promote Going Rogue: An American Life concludes, and after she does her part to help conservative Republicans secure House and Senate victories in the 2010 midterms, she must commit to a 2012 Presidential run.
Palin will shatter the hearts of her supporters if she declares, a la Colin Powell, that a bid for the White House is a calling she does not yet hear. Millions of Americans now see her as the only person that can turn around the turmoil, the only political figure who can bring limited-government conservatism back to its rightful place in the US. To pass up this opportunity with so much momentum behind her is to act stupidly.
Palin will never have another real chance to run if she forfeits a 2012 bid. Pro-Palin sentiment is intense on the American right, but it cannot, and will not, last forever. If she fails to seize this moment, she will drive her devotees into doubt. Yes, her admirers can look past her July 2009 decision to resign as governor of Alaska, but if she says no to a 2012 bid, her supporters will naturally start to wonder if she’s all hype with no hope.
Can Palin actually defeat President Obama? In the eyes of her strongest supporters, she has to. If Palin runs, she will have scores of volunteers who will go without sleep or comfort to ensure that she becomes the 45th President. To many conservatives, libertarians and independents, Palin is the literal embodiment of truth, justice and the American way—and they will do whatever it takes to support their superhero.
Palin cannot disappoint these people. She must know that they view her as the epitome of what makes America great—and, more importantly, as the ultimate repudiation of American liberalism. In Palin, they see a woman who rejects in toto progressive elitism and secular humanism. The more the left looks down upon her, the more these supporters will lift her up.
In Palin, they see hope—hope that Washington’s mistakes will finally be corrected, hope that the American progressive establishment will finally get its comeuppance, hope that the average man and woman will finally have someone in power who will represent their interests and concerns. In their eyes, Palin is the ultimate patriot—the symbol of something better, something greater, something purer.
The strength of the bond that has formed between Palin and her supporters cannot be overstated. Palin is the ordinary person who just happens to be extraordinary—the person who had big dreams and the courage to purse those dreams until they became real. In their view, America was created so that people like Palin could rise to prominence; in her, they see evidence that America has no caste system, no guaranteed privileges due to birth or station. Anybody can be somebody in this country, and she’s living proof.
Palin’s rise is a testament to her sheer force of will, her determination to make her mark upon this land. Palin’s supporters live vicariously through her—and why not? Don’t Obama’s supporters live vicariously through him?
Palin cannot disappoint the people who have made such a great emotional and intellectual investment in her. She must bring this dream to reality.
Millions of Americans want to see Sarah Palin take that oath on January 20, 2013. They want to be there for that moment—that moment when any dream can come true, when any goal can be accomplished, when any medal can be won. Across America, people are calling on Palin to run. She must answer “Yes”—or, even better, “You betcha!”
