Palin, McCain, and the Difference between Support and Agreement

Yesterday Governor Palin penned a post on her Facebook page expressing her support of Senator McCain in the face of censure by his own party in Arizona.  In many ways, it echoed the op-ed she wrote for the Arizona Central when she endorsed Senator McCain's re-election nearly four years ago. Governor Palin's support of Senator McCain shows far more of her character than of his merit. As Governor Palin wrote last night:

We live in a time of diminishing virtues because of societal influence towards total self-centeredness. This is unfortunate and makes raising families, conducting business, and governing that much more challenging. I know how important the virtue of loyalty is because in politics it’s pretty much nonexistent. I stand on that most important virtue and answer those asking today: “Yes, I am proud to have been asked to run with him in 2008, and he is my friend.”

If loyalty is essentially nonexistent in politics as Governor Palin notes, how would anyone know what it looks like? One needs to look no further than Governor Palin's own character and action over the years. Governor Palin has stood by Senator McCain's side since 2008, in spite of his often tepid support for her and his nonexistent defense of her when she was more or less accused of murdering his Arizona constituents in Tucson three years ago. Governor Palin's loyalty has been noted by many. For example, Governor Nikki Haley noted in her book about Governor Palin's continued support in the midst of allegations during Haley's gubernatorial campaign that she had an affair:

When allegations from Folks first surfaced, Haley remembers having Palin in her corner after just one phone call – a contrast to the way another supporter, Romney, had handled the news. “Sarah goes with her gut, and I love her for that,” she writes. “Mitt’s team [said] they were going to have a ‘Nikki Haley meeting’ the next morning to decide what to do next.”

Governor Palin again stood with Haley in May of 2012 when a South Carolina union leader beat a pinata with a picture of Governor Haley's face on it. This came even after Haley's silence when Governor Palin and the Tea Party was blamed for the Tucson shooting. Suffice it to say, Governor Palin's loyalty is because of who she is (her character), not because of who the others are. Support differs from complete agreement, however. Governor Palin has expressed disagreement with McCain either implicitly or explicitly multiple times. As she noted in her Facebook post,  Governor Palin parts ways with Senator McCain on ANWR and immigration. She has parted ways with him implicitly too. Her "Let Allah sort it out" approach to Syria is 180 degrees different than Senator McCain's neocon approach to Syria. In her vintage speech to a Tea Party rally in Iowa in September 2011, Governor Palin mocked Senator McCain, although not in name, for his reference to Tea Partiers as hobbits. To be sure, Governor Palin has her share of disagreements with Senator McCain, just as some supporters may disagree with her for supporting Senator McCain in this manner. That is the beauty of independence of thought--difference of opinion does negate support. As Governor Palin's brother Chuck Heath Jr. noted on his Facebook page today:

Post by Chuck Heath, Jr.

It can't be said much better than that. We don't have to always agree, but we all can learn a lesson in loyalty from the one political figure who personifies it.

Crossposted here, here, and here.

Congressional Candidate Erika Harold Must Be Over the Target

Erika Harold, Republican candidate for the 13th Congressional district, is being described as "a glimmer of hope for the Illinois GOP" and "a formidable candidate". Those very reasons just may be why, months before the 2014 GOP primary, Harold is already being attacked.

Harold has a compelling background. She is multi-racial woman in her early thirties and a Harvard educated lawyer. Harold is also a former Miss America. She won the coveted crown in 2003 and used the scholarship money she won to pay for law school. Harold is challenging an incumbent Congressman, Rodney Davis, who just took office earlier this year. In 2012, shortly after the GOP primary, Congressman Tim Johnson retired. The Republican party in the 13th district was tasked with finding someone to take Johnson's place on the November ballot. Candidates were asked to put for their names if they were interested in being considered. From those names, four preliminary candidates were chosen. Both Rodney Davis and Erika Harold were among these candidates. A series of forums were held where these potential candidates shared their views. GOP chairs from the counties represented in this district were then charged with the task of choosing the candidate to represent the party in November's election. Davis, a longtime Congressional aide and the interim executive director of the Illinois GOP, ultimately became the choice of the county chairs. The voters of 13th district were never given a choice. That, in part, is why Harold is running. Harold told the Washington Examiner in an interview earlier this month, " I think it’s important for the party that the primary voters within the district have the final say on who represents them going forward".

In that same interview, Harold also spoke about oft-spoken political "war on women":

“If I thought that the Republican Party wasn’t a welcoming place for women, I wouldn’t run, because making sure that women have the ability to pursue their aspirations both professionally and within their families is something that’s very important to me,” Harold replied when The Washington Examiner raised the topic during a phone interview conducted in two parts on Thursday and Friday. 

Harold added that she wants “to show that principles of economic freedom and limited government are not part of the ‘war on women’ but can actually empower women.”To that end, she suggested that “it’s important for our party that we do promote strong women in the Republican Party, because that’s a great way of showing that, not only is there no war, but that we support women that want to stand for conservative principles.”

Harold articulates a clear message about the empowerment that the free market can bring women and her belief that the Republican party is welcoming to women. Unfortunately, Harold has been targeted by people within her own party. On Wednesday, the Montgomery county GOP chair, Jim Allen, a supporter of Davis, launched a sexist and racially charged attack on Harold through an email, saying:

Rodney Davis will win, and the love child of the DNC will be back in Chicago by May working for some law firm that needs to meet their quota for minority hires. ...The little queen touts her abstinence. Now, Miss Queen is being used like a street walker and her pimps are the Democrat Party. These pimps want something they can't get.

Allen's attack is not only vile and absurd; it is demonstrably false. Harold got to where she is on her own merits, not as a result of a law firm's need to fulfill quotas. As someone who was a delegate to the 2004 RNC convention and who strongly espouses conservative principles, she is hardly a "love child" of the DNC. Harold responded by noting that such comments had "no place in the public discourse" and that she wanted to remain focused on a positive campaign. Sadly, sexually charged attacks are common place when conservative (and minority) women take on the establishments of their own party. Sarah Palin has been referred to as the " supreme commander of MILF-istan" by pundit Tucker Carlson and referred to as a Spice Girl during her mayoral campaign in the mid 1990s.  Indian American South Carolina governor Nikki Haley was called a "raghead" and  was hit with allegations of an affair by men within her own party during her 2010 gubernatorial run. 

The Davis campaign and RNC chair Reince Prebius rightfully called for Allen's resignation, and on Thursday, Allen resigned from his chair. To borrow from a World War II term, if Erika Harold is taking flak; she must be over the target. Flight crews knew that if they were taking flak from the enemy, they must be over their target (doing their job effectively). Those who choose to take on the establishment of their own party are often attacked. Women like Sarah Palin and Nikki Haley especially can attest to that, but that puts Harold in pretty good company.

Crossposted from the New Agenda.

Four Palin Endorsed Candidates Make Time's Top 40 under 40 List

Four candidates endorsed by Governor Palin in the upcoming 2010 elections have made Time Magazine's top 40 under 40 list in their "new civic leaders" category. These candidates include Sean Duffy, Nikki Haley, Adam Kinzinger, and Marco Rubio. The article profiles each candidate individually. Here's what they had to say:

Sean Duffy:

Duffy, 39, may be best known for his turn on MTV's The Real World or perhaps as a five-time world-champion log climber. But in northwestern Wisconsin, the Republican is thought of as the district attorney who cracked down on child sex crimes. That law-and-order rep has made him the front runner for the state's 7th Congressional District seat. And his clever television commercials, in which he out-lumberjacks his rivals, have gone viral.

Who is your political hero/inspiration?
Ronald Reagan

What's your go-to political blog?
Real Clear Politics and Redstate.com

If you weren't working in politics, what would you be doing?
I loved my job as a prosecutor. If I wasn't running for Congress I'd still be a DA and a lumberjack competitor.

What's the most overlooked issue facing America these days?
The most overlooked issue facing America is the economic nuclear bomb we have given to China thanks to Washington's inability to reign in spending. Our reliance on China to fund projects we can't afford does not come without serious national security implications.

Where do you see yourself professionally in five years?
I'm a father and a husband first. In five years, I hope representing Wisconsin's 7th District will also be on that list.

Nikki Haley:

Haley, the daughter of Indian immigrants, may seem an unlikely figure to lead the rebirth of South Carolina's Republican Party. But when the stiletto-heeled 38-year-old bested three white men to win its gubernatorial nomination in June, she proved that the good-ol'-boy culture of Southern politics is no match for a charismatic conservative newcomer who promises to shake up the Palmetto State.

Who is your political hero/inspiration?
Margaret Thatcher.

What's your go-to political blog?
Redstate.

If you weren't working in politics, what would you be doing?
I'd be back to my roots in small business.

What's the most overlooked issue facing America these days?
Understanding that tax dollars don't belong to government, that people pay this money in and how elected officials spend it matters.

Where do you see yourself professionally in five years?
Continuing to remind people the power of their voice and that elected officials work for the people, not the other way around.

Adam Kinzinger:

As a sophomore in college, Kinzinger beat a three-term incumbent for a seat on the McLean County, Illinois, board of supervisors. Now, after a stint in Iraq with the Air Force, the 32-year-old Republican is taking on another Democratic incumbent, in the state's 11th Congressional District.

Who is your political hero/inspiration?
I consider both Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan to be amazing political figures. During times of great national distress, both men saw beyond the current difficulties the Union was facing and knew that the American spirit would prevail. When I toured the Lincoln Library in Springfield, IL, I noticed something never before pointed out to me — the rapid aging of President Lincoln during his time in office, and the great stress his eyes showed during the height of the war. He made the difficult decision of leading a nation to unity, when he could have instead ended the war in quickly by simply accepting a divided Union. Similarly, President Reagan took over a nation overwhelmed by malaise, a stagnant economy, and an imposing Soviet power. He would not accept the status quo, and instead led the nation with a clear vision of where America could once again return.

What's your go-to political blog?
Politico.com and realclearpolitics.com

If you weren't working in politics, what would you be doing?
Flying planes for the Air Force. I still fly as a reservist, but had I not been running for Congress, I would be flying full time. It's quite a job!

What's the most overlooked issue facing America these days?
Education. As we have seen, students are turning less and less to STEM areas of study (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics). While it is good to have a wide variety of educated students, those core proficiencies are essential for us to maintain our technological edge and our manufacturing superpower status. America has the strongest economy in the world — bar none, but we must continue investing in our future in order to maintain that.

Where do you see yourself professionally in five years?
That is not an easy question to answer. I hope to earn the trust of voters in November and am passionate about serving my District in Congress for a period of time — but only as long as that passion stays alive. I am committed to public service in some form, and whether that means holding elected office or not remains to be seen.

Marco Rubio:

When he became Florida's youngest House Speaker, Rubio received a golden sword from then governor Jeb Bush — a gift that confirmed Rubio, now 39, as Bush's political heir. If the son of Cuban exiles can win the state's open Senate seat, he'll go from prodigy to bona fide conservative hero.

Who is your political hero/inspiration?
Ronald Reagan

What's your go-to political blog?
Red State

If you weren't working in politics, what would you be doing?
Practicing law, teaching and trying to land an NFL front office job.

What's the most overlooked issue facing America these days?
The national security component of our federal debt.

Where do you see yourself professionally in five years?
Hopefully in the U.S. Senate working to protect America's exceptionalism.

Crossposted here and here.
To support these or other Palin endorsed candidate, please visit Organize4Palin.