August 30, 2008 at 12:34:34

Working the Sarah Palin Puzzle

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By Mary Shaw (about the author) Page 1 of 2 page(s)

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For OpEdNews: Mary Shaw - Writer

On August 29, John McCain surprised many of us when he named first-term Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Most people I've spoken with had, like me, never heard of her.

And the theories on why McCain picked her were diverse.

Many people I spoke with saw it as an attempt to lure disgruntled Hillary supporters into the McCain camp.

Others saw it as an attempt to appeal to the religious conservative base and/or the gun lobby.

Some called it a Hail Mary pass.

Some speculated that the other possibilities on the short list had declined the offer.

And some saw it as a sign that McCain knows that he is the captain of a sinking ship and has stopped trying. And now he can at least spend the next few months of this campaign hanging out with a very attractive female running mate. (I wonder what Cindy thinks.)

While I disagree with that last theory, the others all seem plausible, as does a combination of any or all of the above.

But will this strategy work, whatever the reasons behind it?

That depends on how the McCain campaign will portray Palin, and how the Obama campaign will respond over time.

There are plenty of things about Gov. Palin that may appeal to right-wing voters, but there are also some drawbacks.

First let's look at the plusses.

Conservatives might support her, and vote for her, because she is staunchly anti-choice, anti-gay, pro-gun, pro-homeschooling, supports Big Oil to the detriment of the environment and the polar bears, and believes that creationism should be taught in schools alongside evolution.

She will also enable the McCain campaign to play another sympathy card. Palin has an infant with Down Syndrome, which they can use along with McCain's POW experience to win some sympathy votes that have nothing to do with the real issues that affect us.

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http://www.maryshawonline.com

Mary Shaw is a Philadelphia-based writer and activist, with a focus on politics, human rights, and social justice. She is a former Philadelphia Area Coordinator for the Nobel-Prize-winning human rights group Amnesty International, and her views (more...)

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