Is Palin causing a schism in the GOP?

[KSigkid]

This has been something I've thought about quite a bit, and I briefly posted on it in another thread. As most people on the board know, I'm a Republican with many conservative beliefs (mostly economics) and some liberal leanings (pro-choice, anti-death penalty).

My biggest fear coming out of this election, besides the issues I have with Obama's platform, is that Palin will somehow take center stage within the party. I've had an inkling that the anti-intellectual wing of the party has grown; it hasn't just been Palin, but if you listen to commentators like Hannity, it's suddenly become a bad thing to be intelligent. There seems to be a feeling among many within the party that education does not equal conservatism. Never mind people like Romney, Jindal, Scalia, etc...

I'll make no bones about it - my ideal ticket in 2012 would be Romney-Jindal, as I'm a big fan of both. While my interest in Jindal may fade in 4 years, whatever happens, I want Romney to be the 2012 nominee. I'm afraid, though, that there will be enough support among the far right and the "base," so to speak for Palin, and that she will gain so much steam in that time, that she could be the presumptive nominee. Again, it's 4 years, and 4 years is a long time, but I still am afraid of that possibility.

I think there is a place for intellectuals within the Republican party. I think it is possible to have boatloads of education and still be a tried and true Conservative. I believe the party can overcome this loss and come back stronger than ever. But, I have a fear that Palin and others will lead the party down the wrong road.

[TonyB06]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

This has been something I've thought about quite a bit, and I briefly posted on it in another thread. As most people on the board know, I'm a Republican with many conservative beliefs (mostly economics) and some liberal leanings (pro-choice, anti-death penalty).

My biggest fear coming out of this election, besides the issues I have with Obama's platform, is that Palin will somehow take center stage within the party. I've had an inkling that the anti-intellectual wing of the party has grown; it hasn't just been Palin, but if you listen to commentators like Hannity, it's suddenly become a bad thing to be intelligent. There seems to be a feeling among many within the party that education does not equal conservatism. Never mind people like Romney, Jindal, Scalia, etc...

I'll make no bones about it - my ideal ticket in 2012 would be Romney-Jindal, as I'm a big fan of both. While my interest in Jindal may fade in 4 years, whatever happens, I want Romney to be the 2012 nominee. I'm afraid, though, that there will be enough support among the far right and the "base," so to speak for Palin, and that she will gain so much steam in that time, that she could be the presumptive nominee. Again, it's 4 years, and 4 years is a long time, but I still am afraid of that possibility.

I think there is a place for intellectuals within the Republican party. I think it is possible to have boatloads of education and still be a tried and true Conservative. I believe the party can overcome this loss and come back stronger than ever. But, I have a fear that Palin and others will lead the party down the wrong road.

While Republican orthodoxy/strategy may be shaped out of whatever new convictions emerge, some weight has to be given to what happens in the initial 18-month window of an Obama Administration (being presumptious for a monent.)

(I say 18 months because the partisan posturing leading up to the 2010 midterms will probably render any serious policy advancement moot after that.) An effective 18 months (health care reform, or signals of an economic recovery) will likely point to which Republican faction takes charge of the party.


Right now, Palin is clearly a stalking horse for the social conservatives, even ahead of Huckabee. Whether she wants to be anything more than that will be shown by her actions and what steps she takes to "emerge" as it were. I agree, Romney, et. al. won't just let her have the stage to herself, either.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

My biggest fear coming out of this election, besides the issues I have with Obama's platform, is that Palin will somehow take center stage within the party. I've had an inkling that the anti-intellectual wing of the party has grown; it hasn't just been Palin, but if you listen to commentators like Hannity, it's suddenly become a bad thing to be intelligent. There seems to be a feeling among many within the party that education does not equal conservatism. Never mind people like Romney, Jindal, Scalia, etc...

I think there is a place for intellectuals within the Republican party. I think it is possible to have boatloads of education and still be a tried and true Conservative. I believe the party can overcome this loss and come back stronger than ever. But, I have a fear that Palin and others will lead the party down the wrong road.

I think you have good company in David Brooks, George Will and David Frum.

[KSUViolet06]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

I've had an inkling that the anti-intellectual wing of the party has grown; it hasn't just been Palin, but if you listen to commentators like Hannity, it's suddenly become a bad thing to be intelligent. There seems to be a feeling among many within the party that education does not equal conservatism. Never mind people like Romney, Jindal, Scalia, etc...

Thanks for this post. I've been trying to put my finger on this for awhile, but had trouble articulating it.

I don't know, I feel like if they really wanted a woman, there were so many better choices (I can think of Kay Hutchison off the top of my head).

[DaemonSeid]

Originally Posted by KSUViolet06

I don't know, I feel like if they really wanted a woman, there were so many better choices (I can think of Kay Hutchison off the top of my head).

Damn, that sounds familiar....

[UGAalum94]

Originally Posted by KSigkid

This has been something I've thought about quite a bit, and I briefly posted on it in another thread. As most people on the board know, I'm a Republican with many conservative beliefs (mostly economics) and some liberal leanings (pro-choice, anti-death penalty).

My biggest fear coming out of this election, besides the issues I have with Obama's platform, is that Palin will somehow take center stage within the party. I've had an inkling that the anti-intellectual wing of the party has grown; it hasn't just been Palin, but if you listen to commentators like Hannity, it's suddenly become a bad thing to be intelligent. There seems to be a feeling among many within the party that education does not equal conservatism. Never mind people like Romney, Jindal, Scalia, etc...

I'll make no bones about it - my ideal ticket in 2012 would be Romney-Jindal, as I'm a big fan of both. While my interest in Jindal may fade in 4 years, whatever happens, I want Romney to be the 2012 nominee. I'm afraid, though, that there will be enough support among the far right and the "base," so to speak for Palin, and that she will gain so much steam in that time, that she could be the presumptive nominee. Again, it's 4 years, and 4 years is a long time, but I still am afraid of that possibility.

I think there is a place for intellectuals within the Republican party. I think it is possible to have boatloads of education and still be a tried and true Conservative. I believe the party can overcome this loss and come back stronger than ever. But, I have a fear that Palin and others will lead the party down the wrong road.

I do understand what you mean about the party. I've been troubled by the image of conservatives in public life and this was one of the reasons that WF Buckley dying bummed me out so much.

But I don't think Palin herself should necessarily be the center of your fears. I'm not sure that Palin is truly anti-intellect. If you are running against an academic and maybe overly-cerebral seeming ticket (although Biden does his best to mitigate this with some of the dumb stuff he says), you may want to emphasize your common touch, but I don't see in her past governance any anti-intellectual behavior.

Sure, the image the party projects is important and Palin may be overplaying g-dropping-everyman. She also may have debuted on the national stage before she was ready, but I think she's intelligent enough to grow and recognize what the party needs to have as its foundation and I don't see her espoused beliefs about policy being very different than Romney's on the issues that appeal to the base that you fear. And honestly, Jindal is further to the right of Palin if you look at "evangelical" issues.

Personally, I hope that we get more Fred Thompson type conservatism and I was reading some righty blog that was discussing his maybe taking a leadership role in the RNC. But Palin can play a successful role in the party and I don't think it's an anti-intellectual one.

ETA: I don't think most republicans are saying it's bad to be intelligent; I think they are trying to suggests it's bad to be overly academic. And you know this is one of those recurring issues that plays well at the image based level: define yourself as plain spoken vs. nuanced. (Think about the Romantic poets resolution to express themselves in the language of the common man. Was it anti-intellectual or a recognition that artificial and elevated expression only takes you so far to the truth?) I want some smart Republicans to take the stage, but I don't accept that academic accolades are necessarily what matters.