# Is Sarah Palin dumber than Ronald Reagan? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 21, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453 "2010-11-21T17:10:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Jack\_s\_Smirking\_Revenge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/67e7ee/32.png) [@Jack\_s\_Smirking\_Revenge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_s_Smirking_Revenge)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/181 "2010-11-22T21:17:06Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > No. Not even close. > > Sarah Palin was quite prominent long before the liberal press/media, who was deathly afraid of Palin, began to try to slander her and make fun of her. > > Palin was not only my favorite, Palin was the only VP nominee that McCain could choose that would make me vote Republican/McCain. Many of us, back in the Spring of 2008, strongly urged McCain to choose Palin. > > McCain chose Sarah Palin because Sarah Palin was, outstandingly, the most popular, most liked, the most successful politician in the entire country in the summer of 2008. Deathly afraid of her? Sure, she could not recall by name even one of the several magazines and periodicals she enjoys reading. Its a non-issue and has been made into a joke, but really, it speaks volumes about her as a person. Even if that was a flat out lie and she was unable to read, being so charismatic and charming, she should have been able to spit one title out. That is scary, because that is the real Sarah Palin. Its as if you told me you like to drink beer (several different brands) but when I asked you to name one that you regularly drink, you could not name one. I would think to myself that you are a fraud or extremely challenged. Palin is the best thing that could of happened to the Democrats. As long as she is running, the dems have the election on lockdown. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/182 "2010-11-22T21:17:33Z")
> [@Shade](#): > > Is it true that Bush “told friends the ex-Alaska governor isn’t qualified to be President”? Or a fabrication? > > If true, then I am – again – shocked at how American politics can lurch to the right. I am aware of the tendency to describe increasingly large segments of the political spectrum as “scared-to-death liberal” but I literally never before even imagined that being applied to George W Bush. I don’t agree with him about much, but if \he\ says someone is not qualified to be president, I am in this case inclined to give that some weight… 🙂 It was reported in the [New York Daily News.](http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/11/05/2010-11-05_dubyas_deepest_thoughts_former_prez_happy_to_be_out_of_dc_memoirs_say.html?r=news/politics) Hard to know if it is true. It’s not a secret that [plenty of folks in the GOP are not happy about Palin](http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Election-2010/Vox-News/2010/1106/Republican-establishment-takes-on-Sarah-Palin). And Barbara Bush [would like her to stay in Alaska](http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/11/22/barbara-bush-to-palin-stay-in-alaska/?partner=rss&emc=rss). 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/183 "2010-11-22T21:19:11Z")
> [@Shayna](#): > > Sarah Palin was a virtual unknown. . I think you meant to say that “obama” was, is, a virtual unknown…didnt you? On the other hand, if Sarah runs for president in 2012, 2016, whatever, she will be, undeniably, the most well known candidate to ever run for the Presidency of the United States since George Washington. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/184 "2010-11-22T21:20:42Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > No. Not even close. > > Sarah Palin was quite prominent long before the liberal press/media, who was deathly afraid of Palin, began to try to slander her and make fun of her. I think they did more than try. Remember Tina Fey getting roars of laughter quoting her exactly? > [@](#): > > Palin was not only my favorite, Palin was the only VP nominee that McCain could choose that would make me vote Republican/McCain. Many of us, back in the Spring of 2008, strongly urged McCain to choose Palin. > > McCain chose Sarah Palin because Sarah Palin was, outstandingly, the most popular, most liked, the most successful politician in the entire country in the summer of 2008. > > \*Sarah Palin " for most of her term was very popular with Alaska voters. Polls taken in 2007 showed her with **93% and 89% popularity among all voters** , ,[92] which led some media outlets to call her “ **the most popular governor in America.** ”[84][92]" \* McCain did pick her exactly for people like you. Unluckily for him, her clear lack of qualifications for the job turned off far more people in the center than she got on the right. Pandering to reactionaries is no way of winning a national election. If you read the Newsweek articles/book, you’ll see she was quite clever in inviting the National Review cruise to stop off at the governor’s mansion for lunch. Bill Kristol (ala Wimer the Gunsel) stopped giggling long enough to really get behind her. However if McCain had spent as much time evaluating her as I did evaluating replacement windows, he would have seen how ignorant she was/is. Just curious, do you think she did a good job in the interviews, and do you think the questions were unfair? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/185 "2010-11-22T21:22:26Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > I think you meant to say that “obama” was, is, a virtual unknown…didnt you? Not after the 2004 keynote, no. > [@](#): > > On the other hand, if Sarah runs for president in 2012, 2016, whatever, she will be, undeniably, the most well known candidate to ever run for the Presidency of the United States since George Washington. Better known than Richard Nixon in 1968? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/186 "2010-11-22T21:23:34Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > I dont know what planet you have been living on, but it is no secret that every personality on every network and cable show, except Fox, and except Pat Buchanna, is openly **liberal**. Ed (The Ed Show), Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, RAchel Madow, etc. etc. et al, openly self identify, and say themselves that they are **liberals**. > > Chris Matthews says it is obama who gives him **“a tingle up his leg”** …NOT Sarah. But you do know what planet I’ve been living on. I’ll see your three and raise you Bill O’reiily, Sean Hannity, Ann Coulter, etc, etc, et al. I happen to be one of those “traitors” Coulter liked to bray about back in the day. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/187 "2010-11-22T21:23:46Z")
> [@Meatros](#): > > I find it discouraging that the public wants to vote for someone who is ‘just like them’. I don’t want to vote for someone just like me, I want to vote for someone more intelligent then me, someone who will make better choices, etc. The world would be better place if the people who chose their president that way although chose their surgeons that way. But only if they do so before they reproduce. ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/188 "2010-11-22T21:29:28Z")
Originally Posted by Susanann Palin was not only my favorite, Palin was the only VP nominee that McCain could choose that would make me vote Republican/McCain. Many of us, back in the Spring of 2008, strongly urged McCain to choose Palin. > [@Meatros](#): > > I guess I’m the polar opposite, I was thinking about voting for McCain (I was heavily supportive of him in 2000) and when he picked Palin, a creationist among other things, I simply could not vote for that ticket. Sounds like maybe YOU are a Republican? I am not a Republican. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/189 "2010-11-22T21:30:56Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > Sounds like maybe YOU are a Republican? I am not a Republican. One of the few saving graces of the current Republican party, to be sure. ---
**Author:** ![Meatros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Meatros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meatros)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/190 "2010-11-22T21:31:51Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > Originally Posted by Susanann > Sounds like maybe YOU are a Republican? I am not a Republican. ? Relevance? I’m not a Republican, btw. I was just pointing out that I cannot support someone who blatantly denies reality (a creationist, for example), such as Sarah Palin. How can you? ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/191 "2010-11-22T21:32:29Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > Sounds like maybe YOU are a Republican? I am not a Republican. Lemme guess. You’re a maverick, right? ---
**Author:** ![Susanann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/7ab992/32.png) [@Susanann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Susanann)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/192 "2010-11-22T21:33:52Z")
Originally Posted by Susanann Chris Matthews says it is obama who gives him “a tingle up his leg”…NOT Sarah. > [@Meatros](#): > > Is this a suggestion that Chris Matthew’s is gay? What are you asking “me” for? Ask Chris Matthews. He is the one who said it. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/193 "2010-11-22T21:34:09Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > Originally Posted by Susanann > Palin was not only my favorite, Palin was the only VP nominee that McCain could choose that would make me vote Republican/McCain. Many of us, back in the Spring of 2008, strongly urged McCain to choose Palin. > > Sounds like maybe YOU are a Republican? I am not a Republican. Perhaps not, but you’re a Palin-bot who can’t recognize her for what she is: an opportunist, plain and simple. She’s not an average joe nor just a homebody nor just folks, and certainly not the guiding light you seem to think she is. She’s a phony, and has been since I first became aware of her in the late 90s. But perhaps that dovetails nicely with your personal lifestyle. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/194 "2010-11-22T21:36:06Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > I think you meant to say that “obama” was, is, a virtual unknown…didnt you? > On the other hand, if Sarah runs for president in 2012, 2016, whatever, she will be, undeniably, the most well known candidate to ever run for the Presidency of the United States since George Washington. Why do you insist on spelling Obama’s name with a “little o”?😕 ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/195 "2010-11-22T21:39:29Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > I dont know what planet you have been living on, but it is no secret that every personality on every network and cable show, except Fox, and except Pat Buchanna, is openly **liberal**. Ed (The Ed Show), Chris Matthews, Keith Olbermann, RAchel Madow, etc. etc. et al, openly self identify, and say themselves that they are **liberals**. Joe Scarborough? Elizabeth Hasselbeck? > [@Susanann](#): > > I think you meant to say that “obama” was, is, a virtual unknown…didnt you? Here ya go, champ: [http://www.google.com/trends?q=obama%2C+palin&ctab=0&geo=all&date=2008&sort=0](http://www.google.com/trends?q=obama%2C+palin&ctab=0&geo=all&date=2008&sort=0) You will notice, prior to her selection, she does not even register. Even as far back as 2006 Obama had 5-times the internet buzz Palin did. > [@](#): > > On the other hand, if Sarah runs for president in 2012, 2016, whatever, she will be, undeniably, the most well known candidate to ever run for the Presidency of the United States since George Washington. Dwight Eisenhower won WWII. Do you even think before you post? ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/196 "2010-11-22T21:39:59Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > The Palin family has taken over your television, between “Sarah Palin’s Alaska” on TLC, Sarah Palin’s political commentaries on the Fox News channel, and Bristol Palin dancing up a storm on “Dancing With the Stars.” You’re also seeing Palin on the cover of People and other non-political magazines. You’ve managed to list three television shows that I wouldn’t watch on a bet and one magazine that I wouldn’t pay a dime for, much less the listed price. What you apparently consider to be recommendations for Palin, aren’t. ---
**Author:** ![irae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f0a364/32.png) [@irae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irae)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/197 "2010-11-22T21:43:06Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > Consider this: > Obama is said to be a top graduate of the Harvard Law School (he was editor of the law review). > Curiously, no one seems to have any record of anything he authored while on the review. > As for his professional career-he was a “community organizer”-can someone define what he did in that capacity? > Aside from a part-term Illinois senator, what elective office did he hold? > I remember his pronouncements upon the “57 US states”-perhaps his grasp of US geography is not too great? > He does read well (from a teleprompter)-I’ll grant you that! Well done, Ralph. Did Glenn order you to say anything else? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/198 "2010-11-22T21:45:20Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > On the other hand, if Sarah runs for president in 2012, 2016, whatever, she will be, undeniably, the most well known candidate to ever run for the Presidency of the United States since George Washington. Whoa, hold on. You think she’s better known than Dwight Eisenhower or Ulysses S. Grant were? ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/199 "2010-11-22T21:45:38Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > On the other hand, if Sarah runs for president in 2012, 2016, whatever, she will be, undeniably, the most well known candidate to ever run for the Presidency of the United States since George Washington. Believe it or not, the world existed before you came along, and it exists beyond your tiny self-limiting domain. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2010, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453/200 "2010-11-22T21:45:44Z")
> [@Susanann](#): > > Originally Posted by Susanann > Chris Matthews says it is obama who gives him “a tingle up his leg”…NOT Sarah. > > What are you asking “me” for? > > Ask Chris Matthews. He is the one who said it. So one time a few years ago a commentator made a silly statement about Obama’s promise as a potential President. What point do you believe you are making here? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-sarah-palin-dumber-than-ronald-reagan/561453.md?page=11)