Sarah Palin has been called many things over the past three years since the country got to know her a little better — then a lot better — with her nomination for the vice presidency in Sen. John McCain’s failed 2008 presidential bid. She’s been called a “rogue,” a “diva” and a “quitter” by political pundits, insiders and the press. She’s been described with sycophantic superlatives by her supporters and unprintable derogations by her detractors. “Maverick” and “Mama Grizzly” are terms she has used to describe herself. But — with a nod to President George W. Bush’s self-proclaimed descriptive and apologies to grammarians everywhere — “undecider” may be the most accurate label that can be applied to former Alaska governor.
To the point: Palin is running out of time for a decision on a possible presidential candidacy. Applications to be included on the caucus and primary ballots all have deadlines beginning in October, which means that Palin will undoubtedly make an announcement sometime before that. In fact, she has said on several recent occasions that her decision would be made in August or September, with her last comment noting that it would most probably be in September.
But it will not be on Sept. 3 — perhaps. A recent word war erupted between Palin and former White House political adviser Karl Rove over a statement he made predicting Palin would announce either by Sept. 3 (where she will be the keynote speaker at a tea party event) or closely thereafter. The former governor’s camp posted on the SarahPAC website that those claiming to know the mind of Palin were simply playing the same “tire establishment political games.” The post did not rule out a decision; it simply castigated Rove and other speculators for speculating.
However, it is also doubtful if Palin does not take full advantage of announcing her candidacy on Labor Day weekend, especially given the available symbolic power of introducing a presidential contender so diametrically opposed to the so-called “jobs-killing” president, that she will announce running for president around September 11. She presumably would not wish to be seen as crassly opportunistic or emotionally manipulative, garnering attention on a day of national remembrance.
Still, talk of a presidential run began even before Americans went to the polls in November 2008 (as indicators were showing an Obama victory prior to the election). Palin has milked the attention but never quite crossed the line into committing herself to an actual run. She has remained consistently undecided. Rove noted when he made his vague prediction that the decision teasing would soon have to end (insinuating that sooner might be better than later).
But all the maybes and maybe-nots, the still-considerings, and the non-decisions may have ultimately worked against Palin. A recent Pew Research survey showed that 67 percent of the voting electorate responded that there was no chance they would vote for the tea party favorite. To make matters worse, 41 percent of Republican voters said the same thing.
And the attempt to stay all mavericky and rogue by admonishing Rove and others for speculating on a future announcement day only seemed to highlight the Palin camp’s need to be seen as “outsiders” in the political arena. It also made it appear as if she might not announce just for the contrariness of the act. But, then, the possible 2012 candidate did tell CNN when asked at the Iowa State Fair about her running plans that she doubted she would declare by Labor Day.
All in all, months of reading articles and viewing soundbites that posit Palin as considering her options has served to only make her look for the most part indecisive.
Making Sarah Palin the “rogue” (or Sarah Palin the “maverick, if preferred) something else as well — the “undecider.”