Sarah for President: Palin Gets Ready

Ultraconservative Sarah Palin is grabbing the spotlight. Will she take on Obama in 2012? That would probably suit Democrats just fine.

Sarah Palin doesn’t have to say much; just going on stage is enough to fire up speculation. She’s been barnstorming the country for weeks, giving speeches and collecting campaign contributions. Her constant theme is: “It’s time to take our country back.” Her appearance in Iowa is enough to cause unrest in Washington. Republicans as well as opponents are asking themselves whether the 46-year-old Republican populist would be able to capture the pole position to run against the Democrats in 2012.

The waves caused by Palin, as attractive as she is controversial, are being felt all the way to the White House. Even Press Secretary Robert Gibbs says of the ex-Governor of Alaska, “But I have no doubt that she is a formidable force in the Republican Party, and may well be, in all honesty, the most formidable force in the Republican Party right now.” That’s subtly poisonous praise, as everyone in Washington was immediately well aware.

Democrats sincerely hope that Palin will be the Republican choice in 2012 — they consider the archconservative, who has already suffered one crushing defeat in 2008 as the Republican vice-presidential candidate, the easiest to run against.

Palin mentioned nothing concrete about her political future while speaking in Des Moines on Friday. A couple of broadsides against taxes, too much government, the Washington political establishment in general and President Obama in particular — the usual garden-variety lineup, in other words.

But Iowa is the traditional starting point for the presidential primaries. It’s where those who plan to run make their initial bids. Obama notched his first primary victory here in January 2008 and one year later he was moving into the White House.

Even the New York Times put Palin’s supposedly meaningful and symbolic Iowa appearance on the front page and took part in the “Will she or won’t she?” speculations. But there’s nothing new there — the conservative Palin has never tried to hide her ambitions for higher office.

“It’s the voters who will stop these leftist policies,” Palin said in reference to President Obama. But, in actuality, opinion polls consistently show people think the outspoken populist’s ill-considered statements tend to divide voters more than unite them. Insiders believe John McCain’s 2008 choice of a running mate who was so polarizing and simplistic was principally responsible for his loss on election day.

Meanwhile, Palin has become a party rebel and symbolic figurehead of the ultraconservative tea party movement that is currently co-opting the traditional Republican Party. Tea party candidates have convincingly won in several congressional primaries over the past couple of weeks, where they brushed off several well-known and successful politicians.

The elections on Nov. 2 will decide Obama’s congressional majority. Democrats have feared losses, but the tea party’s successes have given them renewed hope. Obama’s people are betting that Republicans will flounder with their ultraconservative candidates and that Democrats will be able to succeed. The congressional elections will therefore be a test case of just how dangerous Palin is for Democrats — or just how harmless.