David

Karki

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December 24, 2008

Sarah Palin: A Voice in the Wilderness

With President-elect Barack Obama's inauguration imminent, and Republican power and influence at an historical nadir, the two stories below won't receive much attention outside of Alaska. But they should, especially within GOP circles, as the debate of how to get out of the cellar and climb back to the penthouse begins in earnest, for they show precisely the route that must be taken.

Item: Palin Proposes 7 Percent Cut in State Spending

As Alaska's coffers are filled mostly by oil revenues, the recent drop in prices has caused revenues to slow. In response, Governor Sarah Palin's $4.9 billion budget calls for a 7 percent cut in overall state spending, mostly in capital projects. Combined with a modest 2 percent increase in the operating budget for state agencies, the budget outline would result in a $388 million surplus in 2010 if projections hold.

"We of course are going to be prudent," Palin said. "We're going to live within our means. We don't want any Alaskans to assume that government is the answer to all of the challenges and issues and problems that any individual faces."

Item: Palin Rejects Proposed Pay Increase

The Alaska Legislature recently passed a law requiring that a State Officers Compensation Commission review top level salaries, and they recommended the governor's salary be increased from $125,000 per year to $150,000. Governor Palin said that she didn't ask for and wouldn't accept a raise were the Legislature to pass one. She would instead donate the $25,000 difference to charity or otherwise re-direct it to benefit others.

Imagine that – keeping spending to less than available revenues and refusing a pay raise. Politicians across the nation are scratching their heads, asking themselves: “You mean you can really do that?”

Common sense and humility – two things in very scarce supply in politics, and Sarah Palin has them in spades. Perhaps that’s why Sen. John McCain's selection of her as a running mate drove the political establishment, particularly the liberal side thereof, so crazy. By her very persona and existence on the scene, the comparison exposes them for the corrupt liars and out-of-control egomaniacs they are, obsessed with staying in power.

Then factor in that this is coming from a woman, and an attractive one at that. No wonder the marching orders went out to destroy her the moment she walked out on stage with McCain that August morning in Ohio. From the trumped-up charges regarding the firing of a rogue state trooper (for which she was subsequently cleared), to targeting her pregnant (and engaged) 17-year-old daughter, nothing was too low for a media shilling for Obama.

Luckily, none of that proved to have any merit. Nor was her brief attachment to the veritable Hindenburg and Titanic of presidential campaigns fatal to her future chances. And with the above, she shows both the substance and the style that can restore the GOP, presuming that it wishes to be at all conservative rather than the tiny-bit-less liberal party.

Palin's budget quote is pure gold: Conservative principle, simply and concisely put. It's hard not to think of Reagan's first inaugural address: “Government isn't the solution to our problems. Government is the problem.”

Don't spend more than you have, and don't expect government to be a first responder. How hard is that to figure out? Too hard for most politicians these days. Why? Because they don't believe in it. Or have become so corrupted by power that they're irredeemable.

The pay raise shows how to prevent this corruption: Don't allow yourself to even take one hit, because the drug that is power is that addictive. Practice principle in small things, and when the big ones come around, it'll be that much easier to resist temptation then.

Lastly, communication must be plain and forthright. Between the media propagandizing for the opposition and many of the voters that need to be reached being so ignorant they can't tell what Palin really said from what Tina Fey parodied on Saturday Night Live, the only chance is to keep things easy to understand and hard to spin.

So, to sum up: Be conservative, believe in and stand on principle, say why plainly, and walk the talk. Then have the courage and preparedness to withstand the furious attacks that are sure to come.

If done consistently over time, this will also go a long way to restoring the credibility that the Republican Congress and President Bush combined to destroy.

Other than perhaps Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal, no other star shines as bright (or at all) on the right-hand side of the aisle than the one from the far north. And the reason should be a lesson for others, if enough of them have the conviction and courage to do likewise.

© 2008 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

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