Life of Her Party

Please enjoy MoDo on Palin.

For many years, reality was out of vogue with Republicans. They ignored the reality of Iraq and Katrina, of Pakistan and Osama bin Laden.

When confronted with their colossal carelessness around the globe and here at home, their mantra was, as Rummy put it, “Stuff happens.”

Now reality, in all its messy, crazy, funky glory, has flooded the party, in the comely, crackling form of Sarah Palin.

Unable to stop the onslaught of wild soap opera storylines erupting from the Palin family and the Alaska wilderness, McCain campaign adviser Steve Schmidt offered caterwauling reporters a new mantra: “Life happens.”

Indeed, it does. [...]

It seems like a long time since Vice President Dan Quayle denounced Murphy Brown for having a baby out of wedlock, bemoaning a “poverty of values.” It also seems like a long time — and another McCain ago — that Republicans supporting W. smeared the old John McCain by spreading rumors that he had fathered an illegitimate black child.

This week, the anti-abortion forces celebrated the news of Bristol’s pregnancy, using it as further proof that their beloved Governor Palin — who will no more support sex education than polar bears — was committed to the cause.

The political unknowns, of course, want that tantalizing brass ring, so they’re not always completely forthcoming about their skeletons, if they’re lucky enough to be ineptly vetted. This is ironic, since the nominee who gets blindsided with these crises — Did McCain really know that this Palin reality show was about to pop and swallow his convention — is presenting them to voters as the most trustworthy people to inherit the nuclear codes.

Hillary cried sexism to cover up her incompetent management of her campaign, and now Republicans have picked up that trick. But when you use sexism as an across-the-board shield for any legitimate question, you only hurt women. And that’s just another splash of reality.

The social conservatives/fundie whackjobs, AKA the Repug Base, are so desperate to see someone as hypocritical as they are on the ticket (as hypocritical as McCain is, he's not near hypocritical enough for them, oh nosiree!), and as desperate as McCain is to solidify them behind him, Palin is what got coughed up like a hairball to fill the need.

Here's something none of them seem to be taking into account: more and more Americans are sick and tired of the religious right thinking they own the joint. They don't. Bush and Rove treated these people like kings because they wanted their votes, then shit on 'em and told 'em it was manna from the Lord.

It's not going to work this time. I think she's the best choice McCain's handlers could have had him make to ensure his own defeat. They got nothin' but fear & smear and a whackjob nobody. It plays well to the wingnut base in the XCel Center, but the base ain't as big or as important as it used to be and it ain't gonna be near enough to elect the old fool.