Saw the headline below and clicked wondering how they would be in conflict. The article doesn’t talk about that, but skimming through it got me thinking.
I haven’t thought about it except for the few minutes since I skimmed the article, will leave it to the experts here. I have never thought about Palin as a historically important person.
This could be an entirely different thread, but what Trump shoiuld do right now is announce a Trump/Palin ticket. He could rake in tens of millions in contributions.
I think Palin did energize and bring legitimacy to a certain faction on the right. I was not really aware how many people were on board with that “take no prisoners, no compromises!” style of politics until she emerged as McCain’s running mate. The fact that she said a lot of stupid stuff only endeared her more to that demographic, and evidently exposed the beginning of the deep rift we have today. TFG is riding the same wave Palin and the Tea Party movement rode.
I’d give the right-wing talk bubble more credit. They’ve been spouting insanity for decades, long before Palin. That makes Palin an early symptom rather than a cause.
Trump/Palin: If Palin wins the House seat in AK, she could then quit again on live TV in a rambling incoherent speech and then announce that she’s running as Trump’s VP, thereby once again fucking over the Alaska electorate which never seems to learn from these mistakes. It’s a state with a long history of charlatans, grifters and downright criminals, either home-grown, or carpetbaggers trying to escape their fates in the great 48 by fleeing to The Frozen North.
I think Sarah Palin was ahead of her time in that America is now ready to embrace her level of idiocy.
Trump existed long before Palin. And I think the notion of Donald Trump as President of the United States has existed for nearly as long. At least as long as Rage Against the Machine’s 2000 “Killing in the Name” video. Mostly as parody or an ironic symbol of a dystopian America run by capitalist greed (which are basically the same thing).
Don’t forget - while Sarah Palin was in the spotlight running for Vice President, Donald Trump was leading the charge that Obama wasn’t born in the United States.
The Drive-By Truckers wrote a song “Sarah’s Flame” suggesting this same thing. Not a good source, but a good song:
Sarah memorized every bumper sticker
On the back of every pickup with a rebel flag
…
She made it look so easy, all fat Donny had to do was wear the pants
…
What’s a girl gotta do to get a little bit of credit in a place like this
…
Tiki’s (torches) would’ve never hit the streets if it weren’t for Sarah’s flame
If anything, I think Ross Perot was the predecessor for Trump. A businessman who had no political experience and campaigned on a simple slogan (“Just fix it!”) What Perot lacked was Trump’s media savvy and utter lack of morals.
Yes, this. Palin was definitely ahead of her time. A visionary pioneer in idiocy and tribalism. But I don’t see anything playing out differently without her.
Trump is trump – see the central park 5 and birthirism thing.
And fox news and the republican party was on its way in this direction for a long time – recall the “American taliban” list of quotes that went round in the 2000s and the various racist memes about Obama. (NB: I visit Trumpist forums, and they’ve largely moved on from trying to criticize Obama…even they realize the futility of trying to suggest he demeaned the office or was stupid after Trump. In fact, the rhetoric now is that Obama’s not really black, he’s only half black…because the racists just can’t accept a black man being this intelligent and having this level of integrity).
A lot of factors have come together in making this mess, and to be honest I think Palin’s role was relatively small.