Even Local Republicans Say Palin is a Ploy

This from Saul in St. Paul:

"Alaska Governor Sarah Palin is the talk of the GOP Convention. She has reinvigorated the campaign and we need to keep this energy going in Michigan. Please help me tell our Republican activists about Governor Palin by making an online contribution today.

"I have never seen so much excitement around a candidate’s pick of running mate that (sic) what’s going on here at in St. Paul over Senator McCain’s selection of Governor Palin."

I'll bet there's a lot of talk in St. Paul about Palin. And I wonder if Saul Anuzis, the chair of the Michigan Republican Party, is confusing "reinvigoration" with turmoil and screams of dismay with "excitement."

How do I know Republicans might be a little upset with McCain's surprise decision to put Palin on the ticket? Livinston County Republicans were bold enough to put the statement in print, via the Livingston Press and Argus on Sunday (August 31, 2008):

"Bill Rogers, chairman of the Livingston County Board of Commissioners and a Republican candidate for the state House, was skeptical of the pick and would have preferred someone with more of a business background, such as former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

"'To me, this is all a political ploy,' Rogers said. 'They're going to say she's a novice, which then we ... see that the (Democratic) presidential hopeful is a novice, so it kind of killed that argument.'"

Yes, it certainly did. When the person your party wants to put a heartbeat away from the presidency was mayor of a town less than half the size of Brighton 18 months ago, it really kills the argument that a U.S. senator is a novice.

For another local view of the pick, check out Conservative Media's piece.

But the really interesting thing about Anuzis' statement is the comment that Palin's pick has "reinvigorated" the campaign. I didn't know it was in need of reinvigorating. According to Saul, things have been going swimmingly all along, except for that need to pay "volunteers" 10 percent of the money they raise for McCain that he floated a few weeks ago. And I really doubt people in Michigan are all that fired up for a mayor from Alaska when they could have had the Romney name on the ticket.

Speaking of Romney, I would like to have been a fly on the wall when Romney got the call that it wasn't him and it was Palin instead.

At this point, no one should say that Palin is another Dan Quayle. We don't know enough about her. I'm sure she is a loving mother to her five children and that she is rapidly learning how to be the governor of a small state. But the way this decision was made -- after meeting McCain casually once at a meeting and then receiving a phone call on Sunday in which she was offered the job -- says a lot about the random way McCain makes decisions. You can't get hired at most jobs after just one interview.

P.S. Thanks to the friend who let me know about Anuzis' email.