A reader writes:
Your points about the weakness of the political party system, and the enabling behavior of the conservative media apparatus, are well taken. But the comparison of her and Obama as transformational political figures is off-base.
Palin has none of Obama's perseverance, none of his capacity to shrug off personal attacks, and none of his capacity for long-term strategic thinking. Fox News may give her a nice safe haven for softball interviews, but they can't shield her from the bruising, think-on-your-feet rough-and-tumble of a presidential campaign. Running for president is hard fucking work -- especially when there's good money to be made doing something else.
I have no doubt she'd love to be president. But she has no stick. She'd dump the campaign the moment someone dangled a sufficiently tempting media gig. And her slavering followers would love her for it all the more.