Politicalamity

After more and more questionable practices arise to complicate the “reform” image of Sarah Palin, I began to wonder if the McCain campaign forgot to check their dictionaries. By that I mean that Palin isn’t really a maverick, but a bit more of a renegade.

maverick: an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party

renegade: an individual who rejects lawful or conventional behavior

As was reported in the New York Times, Palin practiced an amzing amount of cronyism once becoming Governor and allegedly abused her executive position to punish those that did not bend to her political will. So in this she may not be too far removed from the current administration, but introducing such activity en masse into an already overspent and questionable government system, doesn’t make you a maverick.  It would be fair to say that it doesn’t make you a renegade either, but when a politician runs on a platform or reform and moral veracity; actions such as these show your character as nothing more than a thin veil of campaign rhetoric.

Economically speaking, Palin and the McCain campaign continue to uphold the fully debunked story of the “Bridge to Nowhere.”  They also continue to tout her “sweeping” cuts of the budget, including the elimination of wasteful earmarks previously requested by her predecessors.  Where it may be true that she eliminated a number of wasteful line items, Alaska remains what some would call a Welfare state.  For a population so small (less than 700k people) they receive an unbalanced amount of funding.  So much so, that the government routinely supplies over $3500 worth of federal aid per capita, making Alaska number one in government handouts.  So once again, perpetuating this type of government sponsored handout system doesn’t make her a maverick of the Republicans, but more of a Renegade Republican (some would even call a Democrat).

So we are back to weighing her “maverick” status when it comes to transparent government.  Something that fueled her motives regarding earmarks and to begin the slow rise of the new Populist-right rhetoric.  Before she was a VP candidate, Palin was already under investigation for allegations of political bullying and misuse of power.  When confronted about this investigation, Palin assured the public that she would cooperate with the non-partisan committee to settle this issue.  However, the political machine that is the McCain campaign has declared this state sponsored investigation “tainted” and stated that Palin will not answer their questions.  So much for good will and transparent government.  Then again I guess you don’t have to worry about transparent statements if you refuse to speak at all.  It seems I have heard this dance before.  As this fiasco continues, Palin has even gone so far as to point the finger at Barrack Obama for contaminating her pristine political refuge.  Scary how this “maverick” continues to go along with the paranoid Right wing conservative stance that the world is out to get us.  One would think the conventional behavior in being investigated would be to cooperate and prove your innocence.  To obstruct that process by misleading the public and parlor theatrics is not only unethical and par for this administration’s course, but dare I say it being a renegade against law abiding citizen standards.

I could continue, but writing this is making me almost as depressed as realizing how many in the public seem to be ignoring the facts laid out before them.  Being a tough talking mom, who goes to church and can memorize a series of carefully crafted scripts doesn’t qualify you for that “new reform candidate”; it makes you the lead in a community theater production of the King and I.    Let’s face it, if she was ready to lead would the campaign be so keen on hiding her from the public?