Out of Nowhere: Who really chose Palin?

Originally posted by pavil
She was already on the horizon as a possible rising star in the GOP when she defeated the incumbent Gov. Murkowski in the Rep. Gubernatorial primary.

It may be interesting to read the "arc" of that particular election, when you have two candidates from the same party. I wonder how "connected" Murkowski was to the party machine, and to what extent that contest may have been her first "serious" test--to see if she could oust an apparachnik with stronger/older connections than her own.

Thanks to everyone for all your excellent ideas!!

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I know little about Palin, but I know something about someone else who was considered for a VP role, and I can tell you that these people do not come out of nowhere. What I witnessed was a concerted, organized campaign which flew under the radar of the media but was all about regional influence and special interest donors. Millions were spent trying to get this person the nomination.

You can be sure that Sarah Palin and her supporters have been working very hard for this, and she is not there because of some impulsive decision-making.

www.telegraph.co.uk... reign-policy.html

Sources in the McCain camp, the Republican Party and Washington think tanks say Mrs Palin was identified as a potential future leader of the neoconservative cause in June 2007. That was when the annual summer cruise organised by the right-of-centre Weekly Standard magazine docked in Juneau, the Alaskan state capital, and the pundits on board took tea with Governor Palin.

Her case as John McCain's running mate was later advanced vociferously by William Kristol, the magazine's editor, who is widely seen as one of the founding fathers of American neoconservative thought - including the robust approach to foreign policy which spurred American intervention in Iraq….

In the two weeks since she was named as Mr McCain's running mate that is just what has happened. While Mr McCain was publicly distancing himself from the policies and personalities of the Bush administration, Mrs Palin was sequestered with a series of former aides to George W. Bush.
Mr McCain's chief foreign policy adviser, Randy Scheunemann, an influential neoconservative, wasted no time in briefing Mrs Palin. He quickly made Steve Biegun, a former number three on the National Security Council, her chief foreign policy adviser.

Steven Clemons, of the New American Foundation think tank in Washington, a chronicler of the ebb and flow of neocon power in the White House, bemoaned the appointment, saying Mr Biegun "will turn her into an advocate of Cheneyism and Cheney's view of national-security issues."

As a frequent listener to both Larry Kudlow and John Batchelor's shows on WABC radio in New York they I recall first hearing her name in early 2008, perhaps March or April at the latest.

Larry Kudlow frequently mentioned that he often spoke with John McCain and relayed that he frequently admonished him to select Governor Palin as his running mate.

This sentiment was also held by Bill Krystol who spoke on both of the aforementioned programs and also advocated her selection.

I don't know about you but I think the best thing about Palin is that she is neither a member of Congress or the Senate.

Something to be said about a US political virgin.

[edit on 4-10-2008 by Alxandro]