Tuesday: The Way

Ahh, now come the investigations.  Who knew what when?  Adam Nagourney of the NYTimes is on it.  Apparently, Sarah Palin came right out of the blue.  Funny, *we’ve* known she was on the event horizon for several months now.  She’s been vetted enough.  Did anyone know about Bristol Palin’s situation before yesterday?   Probably.  It’s hard to keep it a secret at 5 months.  Three?  Maybe.  But five is when things start to pop.  But what does Bristol’s situation have to do with being VP?  Nada.  It’s a private, family matter. ( In contrast, Time is oddly sanguine about the whole Bristol Palin thing. It’s apparently NOT news in Wasilla, Alaska, not that it’s anyone’s business anyway. H/T BernieO)

Troopergate?  Probably not a big deal.  Not like taking bribes or putting additions on your house with campaign contributions.

No, it looks like Palin’s nomination has caught the Democrats completely off guard.  And now they’re looking for some way to neutralize her.  Push her off the ticket.  I think Anglachel is right.  it will just make evangelicals rally behind her:

What too many on the Left see as Palin’s weaknesses will not, repeat, NOT be seen that way by her base. For example, there is an article today in the NYT by Kit Seelye about Bristol Palin’s pregnancy. The headline screams “Palin’s Teen Daughter Is Pregnant; New G.O.P. Tumult,” but the text of the article shows one Republican after another saying some variation on “Stuff like that happens. I wish the family the best.” No tumult at all. Kind of like the Pope approving of Madonna’s song “Papa Don’t Preach.” Also, absolutely do not under any circumstances breathe that Gov. Palin should have to produce medical records related to her reproductive history. Quite aside from that being a HIPAA violation, it is what the Republicans want the power to do, so do not damage your own privacy interests…

To continue to go after Palin as an individual is to put yourself onto Republican turf, engaging in a politics of personal take-down. This is where the Republicans want to fight because it distracts from their policies and practices. Anything you say or do can be turned into a smear – just ask Hillary. This is why both the Clintons in their convention addresses and in their campaign speeches do not bother to talk about the individuals (except to praise them as people), but return over and over to the political acts of the Republican Party that have brought the country to the brink of ruin since 2001.

The Democrats have mistaken winning at all costs for some kind of policy.  We didn’t like that $^*) when the Republicans did it and we like it even less now that Democrats are playing that game.  Sooner or later, you have to start governing and it becomes increasingly more difficult once you start down the path of personal destruction.  It becomes a habit.  Just think of all the people they’re going to have to work with if they win.  Lots of reps and senators and executive branch people who are going to be mistrustful and backstabbing, a government full of intrigue and spite.  Will anything get done?

And what about us?  Suddenly stuck in the middle, shunned by our own party, courted cautiously by the other, holding the power of 18 million voices.  What is the way for us?  It seems clear to me. We do what we’ve always done.  We stick to our principles.  Don’t sink to the level of the gutter.  Hold both parties accountable.  Protect our margins in Congress.  Don’t reward bad behavior.  There is no need to make a decision about who is on top yet.  Let the bad guys hang themselves first.  Anglachel again:

My grim opinion is that the window of opportunity to repair this rift has passed. The party is now stuck with a divided and angry base. The party must be under no illusion about why this has happened: The DNC and the Obama campaign denigrated and dismissed the preferred candidate of more than half the party, using misogyny and false accusations of racism and giving the CDS-afflicted media carte blanche to act out its worst impulses. When the candidate refused to be intimidated out of the race, the smears were aimed at her supporters. These smears continue to this day. These two lines of attack, one aimed at the voters, the other attributed to them, have inflicted damage that the Obamacan faction will not take responsibility for, let alone move to fix.

It doesn’t really matter how much the Adam Nagourney’s of the world throw themselves behind Obama. *WE* aren’t onboard this year because the Democrats have lost their way.