I gather from reader feedback that this week's Green-Sullivan contretemps over Sarah Palin's presidential prospects (or lack thereof) were among the big events at TheAtlantic.com. To review, I wrote that I don't think she'll run in 2012. Andrew took issue with this. We traded blows, here, here, here and here; Tim Heffernan over at Esquire weighed in here and here; and Time magazine supplied the Howard Cosell ringside commentary here. This was great fun and, for me, thought-inducing. But I'm afraid it's left some readers with the impression that Andrew and I are mortal enemies. Nothing could be further from the truth.
While we disagree about the severity of the threat and the media's performance, neither of us is eager for a Palin presidency. In fact, she'd have a hard time garnering any votes from the Atlantic's blog roster. To end the week on a collegial note, let me add that my nonchalance about Palin derives in part from the fact that Andrew and his readers are so vigilant in documenting her many shortcomings, a sort of blogospheric rampart against the possibility of a Palin presidency. Maybe I just can't handle the truth. But I do appreciate Andrew's efforts. You might even say that deep down in places that my elite Washington friends and I don't talk about at parties, I want Andrew on that wall--I need him on that wall. And I faithfully read his blog to reassure myself the world is safe for another day. When it comes to Palin, I think of Andrew--and you should, too--as my very own Col. Nathan Jessup: