Craig Fehrman: Reagan is Sarah Palin's Crutch
[Craig Fehrman is at work on a book about presidents and their books.]
"Sarah Palin's Alaska" didn't debut until Sunday night, but the former governor has been defending it for weeks. After Karl Rove wondered how a reality show fit "the American calculus of 'that helps me see you in the Oval Office,'" Fox News gave Palin a chance to respond. "You know, I agree with that," she said. "Those standards have to be high for someone who would ever want to run for president, like, um, wasn't Ronald Reagan an actor? Wasn't he in 'Bedtimes for Bonzo,' 'Bozo' or something?"
The movie was "Bedtime for Bonzo," but no matter: What Palin should have mentioned was " General Electric Theater," the television show Reagan hosted and occasionally starred in from 1954 to 1962. It would have made Palin's point nicely. Instead, her comment hinted at a different one altogether: that Palin has an appallingly and disturbingly superficial knowledge of Reagan's career and principles.
Yet Palin keeps waving Reagan's name around as a promotional brand -- and, even worse, as a substitute for her own policies. Indeed, "Reagan" provides Palin with an all-purpose analogy, an analogy that allows her to avoid discussing particulars or advancing new ideas...
Read entire article at LA Times
"Sarah Palin's Alaska" didn't debut until Sunday night, but the former governor has been defending it for weeks. After Karl Rove wondered how a reality show fit "the American calculus of 'that helps me see you in the Oval Office,'" Fox News gave Palin a chance to respond. "You know, I agree with that," she said. "Those standards have to be high for someone who would ever want to run for president, like, um, wasn't Ronald Reagan an actor? Wasn't he in 'Bedtimes for Bonzo,' 'Bozo' or something?"
The movie was "Bedtime for Bonzo," but no matter: What Palin should have mentioned was " General Electric Theater," the television show Reagan hosted and occasionally starred in from 1954 to 1962. It would have made Palin's point nicely. Instead, her comment hinted at a different one altogether: that Palin has an appallingly and disturbingly superficial knowledge of Reagan's career and principles.
Yet Palin keeps waving Reagan's name around as a promotional brand -- and, even worse, as a substitute for her own policies. Indeed, "Reagan" provides Palin with an all-purpose analogy, an analogy that allows her to avoid discussing particulars or advancing new ideas...