The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

‘By Any Means Necessary’

Posted on | November 18, 2010 | 19 Comments

“Willow Palin is a 16 year old girl who, like all 16 year olds is going to make mistakes and say things she shouldn’t have. . . . Apparently, it’s only a ‘homophobic slur’ when it comes from the daughter of a conservative female leader. Make no mistake; this is all about destroying Sarah Palin by any means necessary.”
– Tammy Bruce, GOProud

Having begun to address the matter of Andrew Sullivan, let me turn to the important question of motive.

Why did Sully become so obsessed with destroying Sarah Palin that, within four days of her announcement as John McCain’s 2008 running mate, he posted nine times in regard to the Trig Truther rumors? Occam’s Razor directs us to the simplest answer: Pure politics.

What you see here is the chart of the Real Clear Politics poll average for the 2008 presidential campaign, showing that by Sept. 8, the McCain-Palin ticket was leading by 2.9 points — with the RCP average for the Republican ticket (48.3) on that date being the highest poll showing of McCain vs. Obama at any point during the entire campaign, even before either candidate had won his party’s nomination.

When Sarah Palin’s name was announced as the GOP vice-presidential candidate on Sept. 29, Andrew Sullivan saw what everyone saw: Here was a potential game-changer.

John McCain was the worst Republican presidential nominee since Gerald Ford. Old, short, bald and grumpy are not high on the list of characteristics any consultant would cherish a presidential candidate.

Sure, he had that Vietnam POW thing going for him, but (a) that was more than three decades ago, (b) the “Republican war-hero” factor hadn’t helped Bob Dole in ’96 or Bush Sr. in ’92, (c) Bush Jr. had mopped the floor with McCain in 2000, and (d) hey, did I mention old, short, bald and grumpy?

With one decision, however, McCain changed the calculus of the campaign. Everybody understood the dynamic: In defeating Hillary Clinton, Team Obama had alienated many independent women voters — and not a small number of loyal Democrats who continued to oppose Obama under the PUMA (“Party Unity, My Ass”) banner.

One of those PUMAs was my lesbian friend Cynthia Yockey. Her last hope as a feminist Democrat was that Obama would pick Hillary as his running mate. Instead, the nod went to Joe Biden and when McCain picked Palin — well, Sarah had Cynthia at “hello.”

And, mirable dictu, the same was true of the Republican Party’s conservative base, which had hitherto been less than enthusiastic. As I reported, Sarah Palin instantly became the “Sweetheart of the Heartland“:

LEBANON, Ohio — Janet Stefanopoulos drove 30 miles from Cincinnati to attend yesterday’s presidential campaign rally here, but it wasn’t the man at the top of the ticket that brought her out on a rainy Tuesday morning.
“I want to see Sarah Palin,” said Stefanopoulos, a retired nurse and staunch Republican who had favored Fred Thompson in the primaries. “I was a lukewarm McCain [supporter] until he picked her. I mean, I would have voted for him, but now I’m fired up. . . . She is what I would like my children to be.” . . .

Oh, yes, I remember the cheering crowd of thousands who turned out on that rainy Tuesday morning in Ohio:



Sarah Palin was a role model who inspired the dreams of millions and, by the week after the Republican convention, she had boosted the GOP ticket to a 10-point advantage among like voters in a Gallup poll.

Sarah Palin’s potential to change the dynamic of the 2008 campaign was, as I say, obvious from the moment her name was announced.  And so, for purely political reasons, Andrew Sullivan set out to destroy her.

“By Any Means Necessary.”

UPDATE: It’s those “bitter clingers,” you see, who are shooting up their TV sets in Wisconsin. But Jimmie Bise makes an important point here:

I mean, he could have gotten just as enraged had be seen any spoiled politician’s daughter who had wrangled her way into a position that she would never have earned save for her last name.

Hmmmmm. Who could he mean by that? Never mind. Fingers Malloy attempts an intervention:

Listen, this whole Bristol Palin on Dancing with the Stars thing – yeah we need to talk.

(Via Amato Activists Daily.)

Bookmark and Share
Category: Andrew Sullivan, Cynthia Yockey, Ohio, Polls, Sarah Palin

Comments

  • Pingback: Andrew Sullivan: Does the Phrase ‘And the Horse You Rode In On’ Ring a Bell? : The Other McCain

  • http://theothermccain.com smitty

    Willow’s mistake was forgetting to ensure the terminology was directed at Andrew Breitbart. That would have made everything tidy.

  • Anonymous

    I’ve got to disagree with your takeaway. Andrew Sullivan hates Sarah Palin because she was born with the one thing he desperately wishes he had been born with: a vagina.

  • http://maggiesnotebook.blogspot.com Maggie @ Maggie’s Notebook

    The photo above, Sarah Palin U R my role model, is exactly what drives these progressives insane. One more young principled woman who clearly recognizes others with principals. The principled win out every time, no matter what Sullivan and his ilk do.

    McCain is everything you said, and I remember almost every word he spewed about those of us who were not buying his, and Kennedy’s immigration plan. In summer 2007 I said I would never forget or forgive.

    I had to vote for him but it hurt. I believe McCain and Huck joined forces to get Romney out. Romney probably won’t be my enthusiastic choice in 2012, but I certainly preferred him to McCain.

    I have a brother 12 years younger. I have many pics of him on my shoulder and me patting his little back. At Bristol age I was still carrying him around on my hip. Wonderful memories!

    As for the “vile bigot” remark, you have dismantled Sullivan handily. Just keep on doing it.

  • Joe

    I was following things fairly closely and unlike you Stacy, I did not vote for Bob Barr in the general election (yes I voted for McCain Palin because I knew Obama Biden would be very very bad).

    Yes, that was one of the driving forces. What I can’t get is how vicious the attacks on her were. Absolutely no benefit of doubt and it is has never let up.

  • Anonymous

    You will know what they fear most by what they attack the most savagely.

  • http://twitter.com/RightKlik RightKlik

    These people with their faux outrage… they’re the ones who constantly use the derogatory term “teabagger” and they referred to Van Tran supporters as “trannies.” Sorry, I can’t take those folks seriously.

  • Pingback: Fingers Malloy » Blog Archive » A Letter To America-Stop The Bristol Palin Rage

  • Anonymous

    As I said in the earlier thread, George Washington was NEVER referred to as “The Father of his Country” in Lord Cornwallis’ officers mess.

  • http://www.ldjackson.net LD Jackson

    Okay, I don’t even like Sarah Palin all that much, although I think she is a good person. I just don’t think she would make a good President. Having said that, there is no excuse whatsoever for the tirade that has been aimed at her daughter. She is just a kid and kids will be what they will be. Not that big of a deal and I dare say, if it had been Obama’s daughter, or that of another liberal, nothing much would have been made of the comment. These people need to get a life.

  • Pingback: Roundup « Eternity Matters

  • Pingback: Teenagers are teenagers … [Darleen Click]

  • Pingback: Some of the headlines you may have missed… « Cubachi

  • Pingback: Bristol and the Haters : The Other McCain

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Chuck-Coffer/1296650908 Chuck Coffer

    I for one would expect the Obamas daughters to be a couple of little assholes just like their parents.

  • Anonymous

    The sad thing is those are the same insults my brother and I still sling at each other (in jest). Nice to know we’re as mature as a 16 year old girl.

  • Anonymous

    We’ll get a do over in 2012. This time, we’re onto the media. They won’t do Palin like that again. Andrew Sullivan is a moron. The American people are not. They realize they were duped and it sure as hell won’t happen again.

  • Pingback: “Liberals will tell you who they fear”… « Da Techguy's Blog

  • Pingback: ‘The Weekly Sarah Palin Segment . . .’ : The Other McCain

Performance Optimization WordPress Plugins by W3 EDGE