The GOP’s rockstar diva puts her support behind the “hockey dad.” Will her last minute endorsement score or just put Tom Emmer in the penalty box?
On the eve of the Minnesota GOP’s two-man dialogue for governor being pared down to a monologue, 2008 Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin has injected herself into the contest with the political equivalent of a powerplay goal for her self-described “hockey dad” candidate of choice, Tom Emmer:
A family man who wants to leave his kids a better future, a “hockey dad” who once played for the University of Alaska-Fairbanks Nanooks, a patriotic commonsense conservative who wishes to serve for the right reasons – that’s Tom Emmer, and I ask you to join me in supporting him for governor of Minnesota.
John “Policy Guy” La Plante asks the 60% question of the evening – is Palin’s endorsement worth having?:
So Sarah Palin has endorsed Tom Emmer. Is this good news for Team Emmer? I’m not convinced.
Why? Because, I suspect, most Palin fans are likely sympathetic to Tom Emmer anyway. But a Republican candidate must appeal to more than Republican voters to win in the general election.
For a good chunk of independents and Democrats open to voting for a Republican candidate, an endorsement by Sarah Palin is the kiss of death. They’re the mirror image of Republicans who disdain a candidate who
gets endorsed by the Star-Tribune .
Much like Emmer’s somewhat questionable choice of Annette Meeks as his runningmate earlier this week, the backing of Sarah Palin makes terrific sense in the context of a political universe that’s set to expire in an endorsement supernova sometime Friday afternoon or evening. As the adage goes that there’s no bad press as long as they spell your name right, so goes the same logic for the choices that have defined Tom Emmer’s final week before the gubernatorial endorsement. While picking a highly partisan activist to share the ticket and garnering the endorsement of a polarizing but beloved conservative politician are potential risks come November, they’ve ensured that for better or worse, everyone is talking about Tom Emmer less than 24 hours from what could be the pinacle or nadir of his political career.
But La Plante’s analysis is also spot-on. Palin remains as much of a potential liability in the general as she is an asset in the endorsement. And Emmer’s camp must be prepared, should he raise his arms in victory on Friday, to find his win credited to Palin’s involvement by the media in a pre-emptive strike to paint the Delano rep into the far-right corner of the electorate. Such an outcome likely sounds fine to many on Team Emmer given that the alternative is a long fall and summer on the political bench.
Oh my. As a wannabe delegate over the years that was never an actual delegate because I never chanted the “PRO-LIFE AT ALL COSTS AND ABOVE ALL OTHER ISSUES!!!” I must ask the delegates what the hell are they thinking?!?!?!?!!???
This is certainly another problem with the MNGOP!!! Stop putting all your eggs in the abortion basket and DON’T put an Alasker Govner into the headlines in front of the issues that affect Minnesotans!!!
If you don’t know why you tend to drive away conservatives, get a clue!
Now I hope the GOP delegates can put on their thinking caps and figure out what the issues are and why they should decide on Tom or Marty.
Issues people, issues!
Focus people, focus!!!
I don’t think we should fear the “far-right” label. It’s going to be plastered all over us anyway. I agree with Tom (I actually prefer to think of it as him agreeing with me) that independent voters are not moderates; many of them are disillusioned by what they perceive to be pandering ,and want to back true believers rather than pragmatic politicians. The independent vote swings wildly from election to election, almost always favoring of the candidate taking a firm ideological stance.
There’s been lots of talk of pragmatism versus principle as this endorsement battle crescendos. I believe you need to be pragmatic within your principles. What that means is, you do everything you can to win without becoming something you wouldn’t vote for. It means skirting an invisible line between appealing to where voters are at, and leading them to where you are. We don’t want to just win the election; we also want to win hearts and minds over to the ideas we represent. For better or worse, Palin represents some fairly specific ideas. I don’t know if she helps win the election. But she helps define the choice.
Reality check: the DFL & friends like Strib will brand whoever goes up against DFL as far-right, even a Norm Coleman. They have to in order to provide enough spread against their “moderate” candidate, even if clearly far left like MAK.
I have to say I wish Palin had kept quiet until after the endorsement. We don’t have a Crist / Rubio kind of race here. We have two fine candidates that will necessarily win or lose on relatively small differences.
I also have to say that candidates of either party shouldn’t even look seriously at LtGov picks until nomination secured. Passing on Runbeck just to please MCCL for candidate who has no role or authority on abortion looks weak. On the other hand, that makes Runbeck more available for his administration, no Molnau nonsense.
FYI,
Linda Runbeck is running for the House in 53A against a highly vulnerable incumbent, Paul Gardner. That seat used to be Phil Krinkie’s seat so she should have an excellent chance.
I posted about Gardner’s survey he sent to some 35A constituents.
Here SRS and here G.O.M.
I still have not heard back from him on how he actually stands on those issues.
Q: What is the only place larger than the amount of area befouled by the gulf oil spill?
A: The territory Sarah Palin occupies in the minds of Liberals.
For a person they describe as a dumb-ass, know-nothing, unelectable, snowbilly, she has really gotten into their heads and OWNS them! Honestly, Liberal you are PWN3D!!
Is it wrong that I think it’s fun to watch them get all twisted up about her?