Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. But let's also not forget that her would-be opponent, Senator Mark Begich, proudly voted for Obamacare -- he’s part of the “own it” crowd, it seems -- and his approval ratings as recently as a few months ago dropped precipitously to 41 percent. Allahpundit argues his numbers will inevitably recover and he’ll be pretty hard to unseat in a general election, but I think he’s vulnerable -- especially now that the president’s already super unpopular health care law is continuing to disappoint. Surprise!
But the real question is how badly does Palin actually want to run when the exact same candidate she endorsed last time around has already entered the race? Hmm. It seems to me she’s not dying to hold elected office again either, and would only declare herself a candidate if -- and only if -- she felt she could somehow (in her words) "help the cause"(via The Hill):
Sarah Palin is considering challenging Alaska Sen. Mark Begich (D) in 2014 for the state’s open Senate seat.
Speaking Tuesday on Sean Hannity’s radio show, the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate said it’s an option she’s “considered.”
“I’ve considered it because people have requested me considering it,” she said. “But I’m still waiting to see what the lineup will be and hoping that…there will be some new blood, new energy, not just kind of picking from the same old politicians in the state.”
Palin said she has a “heart for service” and would consider returning to politics if she could “help the cause.”
Well, I’d be the first to say we could definitely use some more conservative women in the upper chamber these days, right? The Republican Party is sorely lacking in that department. But more importantly, she is an experienced, passionate and outspoken defender of conservative principles, and along with Messrs. Cruz, Lee, Paul, Rand and Rubio, could really help develop a sizable and perhaps influential conservative coalition in the United States Senate. And that, of course, would be fun to watch.
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On the other hand, it’s also worth mentioning that Palin hasn’t always seen eye-to-eye with the Republican Party. In fact, she threatened to leave the GOP just last month:
Last month, Palin drew attention for threatening to leave the Republican Party for the Freedom Party, saying Republican leadership had alienated some in the GOP by straying from conservative principles.
“I love the name of that party — the Freedom Party,” Palin said. “And if the GOP continues to back away from the planks in our platform, from the principles that built this party of Lincoln and Reagan, then yeah, more and more of us are going to start saying, ‘You know, what’s wrong with being independent,’ kind of with that libertarian streak that much of us have.”
“I think there will be a lot of us who start saying GOP, if you abandon us, we have nowhere else to go except to become more independent and not enlisted in a one or the other private majority parties that rule in our nation, either a Democrat or a Republican,” she added. “Remember these are private parties, and you know, no one forces us to be enlisted in either party.”
Perhaps the best way to stop GOP politicians in Washington from abandoning conservative principles is for voters to send her there -- as a Republican. For what it's worth, she would be a powerful voice for "the cause" in that prestigious chamber and, best of all, the elite media would go absolutely ballistic.
UPDATE: What do you think? Should Sarah Palin run for Senate in 2014? VOTE NOW!
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