Sarah Palin officially announced yesterday that she was not running for President of the United States. This was a surprise to all 12 people out there that still believed she was qualified and just didn’t get a fair shake from the press. Palin’s announcement yesterday was less a sign of her decision to not run, something that was obvious months ago, but more a sign of her diminishing influence in the Republican Party and increasingly poor management of her brand.
If Palin was smart she should have announced that she was running for president a la The Producers. Make a big splash that she was running, show up at some debates and then drop out after a disappointing 3rd place finish in the first GOP primary. She would have maintained credibility as a political insider – but, at the same time, had an easy excuse to get out because she really doesn’t want to be president of the United States.
Instead Sarah Palin has been like that former football star that’s in college, but keeps popping up around his old high-school. The first few times it’s cool, but after awhile even the cheerleaders are whispering: “What’s he still DOING around here anyway?”
Palin hovers around Straw Polls and primaries but doesn’t do anything. She took pot shots at people who were actually running (but couldn’t get their names right). And then, in the end, she announces that she’s NOT running for president the day AFTER Chris Christie backs out, which only highlights the fact that she was no longer the GOP’s shining hope. I wish her the best of luck trying to find a relevant career once the election starts. Her speaking fees will dry up, Michelle Bachman has taken her crown as Queen Bee of the Tea Party and she’s not on anyone’s short list for VP.
This article originally appeared on Politic365.com.
