I have written about her in 42 columns since Sen. John McCain picked her as his vice-presidential running mate in 2008. I've mentioned her in dozens more blog posts, Web chats, and TV and radio appearances. I feel powerless to control my obsession, even though it cheapens and demeans me.
The woman has a serious problem.
The leftist media has a serious problem, too. If they try to ignore her, Palin will be able to say whatever she wants through Fox, Twitter, talk radio and other outlets, and will go unchecked. Palin wins either way.
Palin's disapproval numbers went up after she made her "blood libel" speech, which the media is attributing to her use of the term. Actually it's probably the media repeating the "anti-semitic" mantra that drove up Palin's negatives, and she's probably learned from that.
As one columnist said yesterday, she's a contender for 2012, but she doesn't have to run in 2012. She has a very loyal base, a media presence that won't likely go away if she plays it right, and her youth will allow her to wait until 2016 or even 2020 if she wants. She can play the game just as Reagan did. All she has to do is acquire the command of the issues that Reagan had, which is not impossible.
Reagan, too, had high negatives going into the 1980 election cycle, made high primarily by the media's repetition of "Reagan is a dumb actor".
