The Empire Page

When I first heard Senator McCain selected Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his choice for Vice President, I immediately thought of Clarence Thomas. Palin in my book is a reactionary social conservative as is Thomas albeit probably far less intelligent than Thomas. They also shared coming in a package liberals or progressives would find difficult to reject. Thomas was put forward to have an African American on the Supreme Court even though it would be hard to image an African American less willing to advance African American interests on the Court.

Just when the calls for a woman on a national ticket for the highest offices in the land reached a high level, McCain offers up a woman in Palin who is not likely to act in the interests of women, or at least middle of the road to liberal women. Both are the result of cynical moves by the Republicans. Thomas worked and so may Palin who, if elected Vice President, would appear given McCain's age likely to become President. Like the 2nd Bush she could easily become a tool of neo conservatives.

I have not seen anything about the Thomas connection spoken or written in the media. Am I wrong about what seems an obvious cynical gesture?

Now I am seeing something else about Palin that while still insidious may be more benign than the Thomas parallel. Could Palin be a clone of George Pataki, I thought, after reading a front-page story on her in the NY Times?

The story in the NY Times described the political career of Sarah Palin including her year and a half as Governor. At first I was aghast as I read about her pattern of hiring friends and family for high administration positions and her vindictiveness towards anyone who crossed her. How horrible this would be if she became the leader of the free world (assuming that after Bush’s world war on terrorism there is much free world left).

It all came back to me, I thought of the early years of the George Pataki administration. I remembered the firings including firing former Rockefeller Republicans who somehow survived 20 years of Democratic administrations, the hiring of family and friends and, yes when it comes to vindictiveness, Zenia Mucha, a queen of vindictiveness. After awhile and when the time for re-election came up, the worst of Pataki's ways mellowed and he settled into the banal presence he became during his last 8 years in office.

Perhaps that is all we will have to suffer with a President Palin who may be nothing more or less than an ambitious politician over her head. Palin's vindictiveness may be no greater than Pataki's was and it may fade as the larger purpose of staying in office for a second term is front and center. After all Palin will still have to deal with a Congress that might have a veto proof majority especially after the first mid-term elections when enough of the public wakes up to what has befallen the republic with her as President. And the media, not a great force for reasoned reporting and discourse, still has pit bull tendencies when it smells blood. It could easily turn a Palin presidency into an ongoing soap opera.

Whatever happens, it is sad that John McCain would stoop so low with his pick of Palin when so much is a stake.