# Palin says she has "Fire In the Belly." Is it just gas? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [May 20, 2011, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614 "2011-05-20T20:07:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/81 "2011-05-27T19:54:11Z")
> [@SaharaTea](#): > > I don’t think she’s running. She couldn’t even handle being governor of Alaska, for chrissake. There’s no way she has the stomach for a demanding presidential campaign and the accompanying media scrutiny. This bus tour is nothing more than a lame attempt to stay relevant. By now she’s convinced herself that the governorship was not a big enough job for her, and it cramped her style in too many ways. I thinks she loves the idea of her own fleet of limos, planes and helicopters. Plus a nice house to redecorate. I think the most frightening possibility about her is that she thinks it will be easy to be president, and if she can skin a moose she can handle the Chinese. You just gotta be “tough” enough, :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/82 "2011-05-27T19:55:03Z")
He has said he wouldn’t want the cut in pay. Really, he said that. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/83 "2011-05-27T20:21:51Z")
Curious: does anybody think these new books about Sarah Palin are going to hurt her or not make any difference? I speak of [The Lies of Sarah Palin: The Untold Story Behind Her Relentless Quest for Power by Geoffrey Dunn](http://amzn.com/0312601867) [Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin: A Memoir of Our Tumultuous Years by Frank Bailey](http://amzn.com/1451654405) and [The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin by Joe McGinniss](http://amzn.com/0307718921) Would any of her fans pick up one of these and have their eyes opened? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/84 "2011-05-27T20:28:38Z")
a3562: I suspect they will make little difference to her hardcore followers. After all, they were produced by members of the “lamestream media,” cowardly Communist Nazi faggot traitors who hate all real Americans like Palin and her adorers. Rush, Savage, et al. will be working overtime to assure their listeners all is lies and Sarah is just wonderful. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/85 "2011-05-27T21:00:00Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > Curious: does anybody think these new books about Sarah Palin are going to hurt her or not make any difference? > > I speak of > > [The Lies of Sarah Palin: The Untold Story Behind Her Relentless Quest for Power by Geoffrey Dunn](http://amzn.com/0312601867) > > [Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin: A Memoir of Our Tumultuous Years by Frank Bailey](http://amzn.com/1451654405) and > > [The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin by Joe McGinniss](http://amzn.com/0307718921) > > Would any of her fans pick up one of these and have their eyes opened? No. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/86 "2011-05-27T21:03:39Z")
> [@a35362](#): > > Would any of her fans pick up one of these and have their eyes opened? Of course not. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/87 "2011-05-27T21:26:40Z")
> [@Budget\_Player\_Cadet](#): > > Is anyone else hoping she gets the nomination? Because it really seems that she should be unelectable. I’m a big no on that for two reasons: First, I remember all too well sitting around when Lil Georgie got the nomination, being smug with fellow liberals about how the meant a Democratic landslide. And second because I actually want a GOP without the hatred for certain groups, and particularly without the mistrust of intellectuals that Palin and her ilk represent. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/88 "2011-05-27T21:40:08Z")
> [@villa](#): > > I’m a big no on that for two reasons: > > First, I remember all too well sitting around when Lil Georgie got the nomination, being smug with fellow liberals about how the meant a Democratic landslide. And second because I actually want a GOP without the hatred for certain groups, and particularly without the mistrust of intellectuals that Palin and her ilk represent. I agree with your first point, because I remember feeling the same before Ronald Reagan’s election. OTOH, Reagan was a trained actor and could stay on message and deflect dangerous questions smoothly. Palin is far more likely to self-destruct, very publicly and loudly. As to your second point – the GOP hate stuff will be there with or without her. And maybe the only way it gets purged (or put back in a closet, more likely) is if her or someone like her is nominated and crushed so thoroughly that the party actually learns from it. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2011, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/89 "2011-05-27T22:29:46Z")
I actually don’t think Palin will run. That said, I really hope she does. If she gets the nomination, I see one of two possible scenarios: 1. Obama beats her so badly that the GOP retools; best choice for the country as well as the Republicans, although they don’t see it. 2. Palin beats Obama; highly unlikely in my opinion. However, if Obama is unable to beat a simpleton like Palin, I’d say he doesn’t deserve to be president anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/90 "2011-05-28T02:06:20Z")
She hasn’t even started her bus tour and she’s already annoying people. She’s starting her tour at the Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Rally in DC, but the organizer says she’s not an official invited guest and certainly not a speaker, but she’s invited to attend as a participant. He is unhappy with her politicizing his rally which he says in for POW/MIA and military service member support, not politics. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/91 "2011-05-28T02:51:35Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > Well, I guess she’s getting all mavericky and doing things her own way- you know, “shakin’ things up”! I’m sure she thinks she is bypassing the establishment and taking her case directly to the ‘real Americans’ that are her base. > > It will be interesting to see how a Presidential campaign consisting of a movie and a road trip in a bus will pan out. I think it will look a lot like the “Atlas Shrugged” movie. I think she’s secretly a Ken Keasy fan and trying to remake the Merry Pranksters complete with a new koolaid acid test. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/92 "2011-05-28T03:03:03Z")
I’ll bet the bus is going to shuttle her between events, hotels, and airports. She will fly a nice charter plane from city to city, and the bus is just there to provide a “just plain folk” touch. She is not going to travel cross country on a bus. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tooth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c67d28/32.png) [@The\_Tooth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tooth)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/93 "2011-05-28T03:33:33Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > As to your second point – the GOP hate stuff will be there with or without her. And maybe the only way it gets purged (or put back in a closet, more likely) is if her or someone like her is nominated and crushed so thoroughly that the party actually learns from it. Doubtful. She made the McCain campaign a farce, and what did the party learn from that? Be crazier, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/94 "2011-05-28T03:45:42Z")
Frankly, the McCain loss will look like a triumph compared with what a Palin loss will be. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/95 "2011-05-28T05:28:40Z")
We’re all overlooking a giant boon that a Palin nomination will bring. We’ll get to watch her in _three_ Presidential debates. Remember how funny she was when Biden debated her (and by that I mean stepped back and gave her enough rope)? We’ll get to watch all of that again. ---
**Author:** ![Ca3799](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9f8e36/32.png) [@Ca3799](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ca3799)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/96 "2011-05-28T13:07:54Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > We’re all overlooking a giant boon that a Palin nomination will bring. We’ll get to watch her in _three_ Presidential debates. Remember how funny she was when Biden debated her (and by that I mean stepped back and gave her enough rope)? We’ll get to watch all of that again. I dunno. Is participating in the debates a **required** activity? ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/97 "2011-05-28T13:14:43Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > I dunno. Is participating in the debates a **required** activity? I see Palin as re-defining “campaigning.” No debates, no hand-shaking and schmoozing tours of Iowa. Just Facebook, twitter, Fox soundbites, and if she gets her clock cleaned, she goes “The lamestream media wouldn’t cover me because I refused to play their game, so I’m quitting. Still undefeated, btw. See ya.” ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/98 "2011-05-28T14:59:17Z")
I can see her in a debate. Some question comes up that she is totally clueless about (very likely the first question), and she rants for a bit about the unfair nature of the arrangements and the bias of the moderators, storms off the stage, and Tweets about her “triumph”. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/99 "2011-05-28T16:34:50Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > We’re all overlooking a giant boon that a Palin nomination will bring. We’ll get to watch her in _three_ Presidential debates. Remember how funny she was when Biden debated her (and by that I mean stepped back and gave her enough rope)? We’ll get to watch all of that again. I dunno. What if she does a lot better this time? ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614/100 "2011-05-28T17:10:40Z")
> [@Ca3799](#): > > I dunno. Is participating in the debates a **required** activity? No, but she’ll look like a fool if she does blow them off. Don’t you remember how when McCain tried to halt campaigns to deal with the financial crash, one of the big criticisms leveled against him was that he was trying to protect Palin from the VP debate? And that was only the VP debate, which isn’t a big deal. Blowing off the Presidential debate wouldn’t alienate her hardcore base, but it would offend a lot of moderates and centrists who haven’t made up their minds yet. > [@Knorf](#): > > I dunno. What if she does a lot better this time? While I grant you that there’s room for improvement, her soundbite populism probably won’t translate well to a long-form debate. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/palin-says-she-has-fire-in-the-belly-is-it-just-gas/582614.md?page=6)