ColumnTea Party champion. That’s the title news outlets are bestowing on Sarah Palin, the Alaskan politician who, in our opinion, has questionable opinions.
On Tuesday, January 19, 2016, Palin endorsed Donald Trump for president during an Iowa speech/Trump rally event. Palin’s endorsement isn’t a surprise. The politician has a record of supporting whoever is popular in the party and holds extreme views — that’s her job. But when you really examine Palin’s recent endorsement, it’s hard not to step back and wonder just what the heck is she thinking?
First, let’s look at what has happened through the last few days. According to The New York Times, the 2008 vice-presidential nominee’s endorsement could give Trump a “significant boost just 13 days before the state’s [Iowa] caucuses.”
The Times reports that the former Alaska governor’s endorsement “is the highest-profile backing for a Republican so far.” The February 1st Iowa caucuses are quite important and are currently considered a “must-win” for Senator Ted Cruz, who is considered Trump’s biggest competition in Iowa.
Now, let’s get into Palin’s speech…
While speaking to Trump’s supporters, Palin praised Trump for “going rogue left and right,” and for tearing “the veil off this idea of the system…” Really? Has Trump really torn the veil off the American political process? From where I’m sitting, it appears that Trump is just more of the same: a supposedly angry white man who has a ton of money, which has allowed him to fund the majority of his own campaign, and he uses inflammatory and derogatory words to put down minorities, women, democrats, and people who don’t support him.
Now, Palin is known for her less-than-conventional opinions, political stance, and awkward speeches. And the speech Palin made on Tuesday was no different, Buzzfeed contends.
It was filled with awkward jumps:
“I am here because like you I know that it is now or never. I’m in it to win it because we believe in America, and we love our freedom. And if you love your freedom, thank a vet.”
OK, sure. I’m all for thanking vets, but from what I can gather, Palin is only asking people to “support the vets” to strengthen her case for electing Trump as president because president Obama is weak and left American in disarray, duh:
“I’m in it, because just last week, we’re watching our sailors suffer and be humiliated on a world stage at the hands of Iranian captors in violation of international law, because a weak-kneed, capitulator-in-chief has decided America will lead from behind. And he, who would negotiate deals, kind of with the skills of a community organizer maybe organizing a neighborhood tea, well, he deciding that, no, America would apologize as part of the deal, as the enemy sends a message to the rest of the world that they capture and we kowtow, and we apologize, and then, we bend over and say, thank you, enemy.”
Well, OK.
Palin goes on and says that Trump is the “master of the art of the deal” and that because he is from the private sector and is not a politician, he will make a great commander in chief. Yes, because what we need is a leader who will yell insults at people rather than negotiate.
If you want to watch the entire speech, here it is.
Sure, Palin may be jumping on the Trump bandwagon because she wants to be in the spotlight. Or maybe it’s because she genuinely thinks Trump has great ideas — who knows. However, what remains is that Palin, a woman with a brain, is actually endorsing a man who outwardly disrespects women and minorities. How can anyone want to help elect someone who doesn’t respect a huge portion of the United States’ population?
So, we get it Palin — you want to be in the political spotlight again. Who could blame you? That’s your job. But it’s also your job to analyze who you give your support to while keeping the greater good and mind. Perhaps it’s time to rethink that endorsement…
Related on EcoSalon
‘Selfie’ Is Our Word of the Year: That Happened
‘The Mommy Wars’ are Less a Matter of Choice Than of Selective Sacrifice
Miss Representation: An Interview with Writer/Producer Jennifer Siebel Newsom