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I was there. I witnessed an obscure governor from Alaska electrify not only republicans gathered at the Excel Center in St. Paul, but those on national political stage as well. She was terrific, undeniably eloquent, certainly attractive and even folksy with what I described at the time as "mom moments." Remember when your mom would put her hands on her hips, look you in the eye, call you by your full name and there was no doubt, things were serious? Palin actually pulled that off. What happened?
With every step following the convention, the shine tarnished. Some blame the merciless focus of the media, some point to the late night comics and others blame those wily, insidious democrats. There's truth to all of the above but the bottom line is this, Sarah Palin simply wasn't ready. It's as if a shining star in the minors was brought to the "Big Show" too soon. In the first game, she knocked it out of the park, but then, the pressure, the expectations and the scrutiny rattled the rising star. Sadly, we started to witness minor league meltdowns with major league consequences.
Since the startling announcement of July 3rd, all of us have been trying to figure this out. Regardless of the motivation and the "real reason," this is yet another serious misstep underscoring a lack of political maturity. Everyone has their theory, but really—if Sarah Palin is to be considered ready for the "majors" did any of her rambling excuses resonate?
