Well here we go.... We have moved the site!

http://thepalination.wordpress.com/


I have exported all of what I could to a new Wordpress format, due to a fault in which I can not fix nor can anyone else who is HTML literate. Google Blogger just decided to crap out on us. I will be tweaking the new blog as I can and will be letting you know now that you can head over there and enjoy easier commenting, access and better layouts.

Please let me know what you think about it and I hope it will be more to everyone's liking!

upinak

Our Layout

Well it seems to be all quirky.  I will be changing it as I can to get it back to "normal" so expect some changes.

FYI for you all.... don't want you to think I am deleting things you enjoy!

upinak

Governor Palin and the Constitution

A couple of weeks ago I received a mailing from SarahPAC with the following text:

Dear Whitney,

I am inspired by the American patriots across our nation who want to bring Congress back to the ideals of our Founding Fathers.


The White House and Congress need to hear that Americans don't want cradle-to-grave government control of our lives. We don't want government bureaucrats deciding what kind of light bulbs we should use, what kind of cars we should drive, and which doctors can and can't care for us and our families.


Liberal politicians should not be trying to re-write the U.S. Constitution. Our Constitution is a centuries-old gift from our steadfast Founding Fathers. We cannot sell out our sovereignty, surrender our God-given rights, or falter in the War on Terror.


Republicans recently took victory away from liberals in three states and sent a message to Congress and the White House that Americans are fed up with politicians trying to impose more big-government policies on our nation.

Now I'm asking for your help to carry that momentum across the country.


What Americans want is a return to the values our Founding Fathers fought and died for. Government should get out of our way so we can raise our families, run our businesses, and keep more of our hard-earned money.


So many people have asked me what can we do to save our country from politicians who want to take away our basic rights. What we can do, Whitney, is join the effort and help send pro-family, pro-American patriots who share our beliefs to Congress.


If you're ready to join the movement, please use the enclosed reply form to send your best gift possible to SarahPAC today. We'll use it to change our nation to the ideals that matter to all of us. Thank you for joining me to keep America the country we know and love!

With an Alaskan heart,
Sarah Palin

Emphasis mine.

I was particularly struck by her emphasis on the words "Founding Fathers" and "Constitution". While the current administration is operating with the goal of fundamentally transforming our nation, through her endorsements and her voice, Governor Palin is operating with the goal of fundamentally restoring our nation to the principles it was founded upon.

Our Constitution has three main themes woven throughout its text:a limited federal government, appropriate powers given to states, and emphasis on individual freedoms. These are all themes upon which Governor Palin has build her political philosophy. Governor Palin is a very strong advocate for 2nd amendment and 10th amendment rights. She believes that the branches of government must not be twisted. In her speech at the Southern Republican Leadership Convention, she has called out the EPA, an agency of unelected bureaucrats housed executive branch, for legislating from the executive branch. She does not believe judicial officials should legislate from the bench. She does not believe the federal government should go beyond its powers to infringe upon states' powers. However, she is not only going to speak out when the federal government overreaches, she is also going to speak out when the federal government is not fulfilling one of its Constitutional roles, as she has done by standing with Governor Brewer with regards to border insecurity in Arizona.

If one examines the premise of the writing of the Constitution--the Preamble--one can see that Governor Palin is lock step with every principle in that famed, beautifully simple paragraph. Governor Palin believes that it is "we the people", not the "we the governing authorities" that make have founded and maintain this country. Governor Palin believes that justice must be established and domestic tranquility ensured by properly prosecuting terrorists, securing our border, and taking our enemies seriously. She believes that the common defense must be provided for. She has spoken out against the President for drawing back nuclear weapons and cutting funds for missile defense.Governor Palin believes in promoting the general welfare, not by creating and perpetuating entitlement programs, but by removing burdensome regulations and taxation from businesses, families, and individuals so that they have the opportunity to better provide for their own welfare. Governor Palin supports securing the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. She understands that in order to have such liberty, government must not impinge upon individual freedoms, nor should our nation become beholden to foreign countries because of a dependency upon foreign fossil fuels, when America has abundant sources here. She sees that the current trajectory of our nation's spending puts us on a path towards insolvency,and she has even called such spending generational theft. Blessings of liberty will not be passed on to our posterity if our nation is drowning in debt.

I support Governor Palin because she stand for the Constitution and the principles of the Founders, and she supports candidates who do the same. While time will tell if she runs for President, she has my support if she does. There is no one else out there who, upon taking the oath of office to uphold and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic, will mean every word of that oath and will not risk perjuring herself by uttering those words. For those reasons alone, she has my support.

Governor Palin: Tim Scott for South Carolina’s 1st District

via Facebook:

I’m very proud to add my support to Tim Scott’s campaign to represent South Carolina’s 1st congressional district. Tim has a remarkable success story. He grew up in poverty and was raised by a single-mom who struggled to provide. With help from a mentor and his brave mom, Tim learned to appreciate the value of hard work and American opportunity. He went on to become a business owner and has served in public office with integrity on the county and state level.

Tim is a pro-life, pro-2nd Amendment, pro-development, Commonsense Conservative who’s been endorsed by the Club for Growth because of his solid commitment to the principles of limited government and fiscal responsibility.

He will represent the Palmetto State with distinction in DC, so I encourage you to vote for Tim in his run-off election next Tuesday, June 22nd. Please visit Tim’s website at www.votetimscott.com and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

- Sarah Palin

Like 1998, only in Reverse

Andrew Sullivan, Geoffrey Dunn, Joe McGinniss and the rest of the writers in the universe of Palin Hate are preaching to an ever-smaller choir.

As a Republican, I have been here before.

In 1998, we were almost dead certain that Bill Clinton's sexual dalliances with Monica Lewinsky were going to be his undoing. Movement Conservatives had been looking for the Magic Bullet that would be Clinton's undoing since shortly after his inaugural in what is now regarded by most conservatives as a myopic, personalised campaign that played into Clinton's hands. By the time the Midterm election rolled around, the idea of impeachment was so unpopular that Republicans actually lost seats that year and Newt Gingrich, the House Speaker, was forced to turn in his resignation as Speaker. Clinton had won.

Andrew Sullivan and other subscribers to Barack Obama's Cult of Personality are pursuing the same campaign of personal annihilation against Sarah Palin. Their problem, of course, is that they are preaching to an ever narrowing universe of liberal believers in Obama's version of the Radiant Future. They have bought so far into Obama politically and psychologically that they can't let go, and they have decided that they must destroy this woman, her family, and her career to protect Obama.

The Nation, however, is making its' own judgements about Obama. During his speech to the nation about the BP Crisis, the President rolled out, once again, his desire to pass the Cap and Trade tax regime. Subsequent to his speech, reports began to circulate that Obama was intent on passing the deeply unpopular bill during the Lame Duck session of Congress. Normally a resolute supporter of the Administration, even Professor Robert Reich is beginning to show some misgivings:

Furthermore, given the unprecedented power of large corporations to call the shots in Washington aided by unlimited campaign contributions and platoons of lobbyists, surely the only way to advance the public interest these days is to rally Americans to a cause. Closed-door conference committees, back-room deals, and lame-duck sessions keep the public out. And when the public is shut out, the big guys have even more clout.

Yet hard-boiled Washington hands I talk with disagree. They point to the $80 billion back-room deal that bought off Big Pharma for health care. They claim there’s no other way to do business in Washington now because public opinion is too easily manipulated.

They say Machiavellian (more accurately, Emanuelian) deal-making behind closed doors ain’t pretty but the public can’t be counted on. The only way to get close to a carbon tax or anything else that’s good for America is to buy the bums off.

The picture that Reich paints is of a Democratic Political Class that is divorced from the concerns of average working people and will force their desires upon the country come hell or high water. Palin has been going across the country painting this picture of a Regime in power, cut loose from any accountability to the electorate, bound and determined to do as it wishes. The Left hates Palin because the picture she paints of Washington now, like the picture she painted of a corrupt Juneau and Anchorage before it, is both troubling and accurate. And the people are catching on.

The always brilliant Jay Cost brings down the hammer in this post in his Horse Race Blog. Paydirt graphs here:

For somebody who seems detached from the details of policy and largely uninterested in legislative wrangling, Barack Obama sure does come across sometimes like a political bully. But this is not bullying some obstinate backbench legislator. Instead, this is bullying the American people. With health care reform, he basically told the country that he didn't care what it thought. The fact that people opposed the bill was proof they didn't know what they were talking about. Now, apparently, the evolving strategy on energy is the same. Don't like cap-and-trade? That's your problem, not his. Plan to vote out Democrats in favor of the idea? Like he cares. He'll pass it anyway.

The President had better tread carefully here. There are political issues that divide the parties, then there are "valence" issues that cut across party lines. Bill Clinton's sexual indiscretions became a valence issue in 2000, sufficient to prompt Al Gore to nominate Joe Lieberman for the vice-presidency. It didn't matter what party you belonged to, what Clinton had done was wrong and gross. Ditto Republican chicanery with Jack Abramoff. It didn't matter what your politics were, you thought that had to stop. The Foley scandal went hand-in-glove with Abramoff. It crystallized the sense back in 2006 that there was something deeply dysfunctional about the Republican caucus.

Passing health care reform over howls of popular protest then jamming energy reform through a lame duck Congress might solidify the impression that this President is a bully who doesn't care what the people think. That would hand the Republicans a great valence issue for 2012. Nobody likes a bully, after all. And just as the Democrats worked hard to connect Abramoff and Foley to enhance the impression of a broken GOP, Republicans will try to make these connections for the voters, too.

One of the reasons that the attacks by Sullivan, McGinniss and others on Palin are not resonating with voters is that registered voters are looking at Obama and seeing what Jay Cost and Robert Reich are seeing: bullying mixed with incompetence and Second Raterism. Aside from the fact that the attacks on Palin are obsessed and overwrought, voters don't care about Palin's uterus and what she did as Mayor of Wasilla. Voters want to know why the stimulus bill failed to stimulate, why Obama passed National Socialist Health Care over the objections of voters, and why he wants to raise taxes in the middle of a Depression. They are uneasy that Obama is all about Centralized Power in the hands of the Democratic Party and Benefits for him and his Democratic cronies and patrons (such as his political godfather, George Soros). It is in this obsession that today's Palin-hating left, led by the likes of Sullivan, Geoffrey Dunn, and Joe McGinniss most resemble people like Linda Tripp, the old American Spectator staff who sponsored the Arkansas Project, and Lucianne Goldberg.

Or as Marx is said to have remarked, "History repeats itself; the first time as tragedy, the second time as farce."

The Left who obsessively attack Palin are akin to King Canute in their attempts to turn back the tide. Palin's popularity rating remains low, but all of the potential Republican 2012 candidates are polling low right now. It is enough for Palin that Obama's failure as a leader and as a man are now beginning to be recognized by the American people.

There is nothing the Left can do to stop that. That is a failure of Obama's character. That was built in from the beginning. Palin herself tried to warn the nation in 2008 about Obama, but the nation wasn't in a mood to listen. Now, things have changed, and that is why the Left is more and more frightened of Palin. There is this yawning notion in the back of their minds that the people could decide that she was right all along, and they were all terribly, terribly wrong that motivates their anger and their hate.

That is why they will fail. Conservatism works. Like Reagan before her, Palin knows this. And in the deepest, darkest recesses of their minds, so do the people who hate her.

Above all things, the Left hates Sarah Palin because they fear that she could be right. But there's one problem: Hate doesn't win Presidential Elections in this country. That is why the Left will fail.

Governor Palin: The Nature of Those Tough, Self-Sufficient Bears

Via Facebook:

Last summer I stood on the grassy bank of an Alaskan waterway that was teeming with salmon to watch part of Alaska’s brown bear population forage, fight, feed, and fend off enemies to survive. I joined Fish and Game biologists to observe 42 of these majestic wild animals all within eyesight, all at once. Even though I’ve lived all my life in the “Last Frontier,” I still find days like that absolutely fascinating! And I swear the hardest workers on the water were those “mama bears.”

Obviously not waiting for another bear to do the work for them, the mama bears not only foraged for themselves to prepare for winter, but they worked twice as hard to slay salmon for their cubs, too, making sure the future of the population was ready for the season ahead. She would instinctively rear up on hind legs when her cubs were threatened – you don’t mess with her cubs. And most importantly, just as the well known modern proverb expresses, she didn’t just hand over a free fish for the day – she taught young ones how to fish for a lifetime. (There’s no shortage of life lessons learned while scanning our great outdoors!)

Now, scanning the political landscape, here’s a new “Mama Grizzlies” field report! There are great guys running for office all over the place, but I hope you will join me in supporting three more bold Commonsense Conservative women who are willing to put it all the line to get our country back on track: Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Star Parker, and Mary Fallin.

Cathy McMorris Rodgers is running for reelection to serve in Congress. She knows the value of hard work. She grew up as a farmer’s daughter and was the first in her family to attend and graduate from college. Her roots in eastern Washington go back generations. Cathy is a pro-family, pro-business fiscal conservative who has an honest, direct plan for action in Congress, which she calls her “Patriot Pledge.” It’s a 10-point agenda focused on fiscal health, tax reform, and other common sense solutions. Further, I have deep respect for Cathy’s strong voice for families who are touched by those with special needs. She formed the Congressional Down Syndrome Caucus which promotes research, education, and treatment to help improve the quality of life for those with Down syndrome and other challenges. Cathy and I share a personal bond as proud moms who’ve both been blessed with sweet sons born with extra chromosomes. Perhaps it’s because we learn so much from these children and can see how they make the world a better place that I am confident that Cathy’s respect for life, and her commitment to protecting America’s Constitution, truly benefits all Americans. We need her in Congress, so please visit her website at www.cathyforcongress.com, follow her on Facebook and Twitter, and please support her campaign.

I’m proud to endorse Star Parker for California’s 37th Congressional District. Star has an incredible story and a passionate commitment to her community and our great nation. Rising up from being a single mom on welfare, Star worked hard to build a non-profit network that seeks to reduce poverty and create a brighter future for America by promoting free market solutions and personal responsibility. There is no doubt that she will bring a new level of enthusiasm and energy to Washington for American values, limited government, and economic growth. She’s a dynamic leader who is committed to building a more prosperous environment for the families in her district and ushering in positive change. Please join me in supporting Star and her message of hope, opportunity, and self-reliance. Visit her website at www.StarParkerforCongress.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

Mary Fallin is another strong, smart conservative who I am proud to support. Mary is running for Governor of Oklahoma, and the Sooner State is fortunate to have her offer to serve in this new capacity. Mary’s another fiscal conservative with policy experience, political backbone, and real world knowledge that will serve the entire state well as she proves her mettle as Oklahoma’s next CEO. Her personal, professional, and political background gives her a healthy perspective on the challenges facing so many of our families and businesses. Mary truly understands public service, and she served her state with distinction in Congress and as the first Republican and first female lieutenant governor in Oklahoma history. Sharing the aforementioned foundational values of Cathy and Star and so many other Americans, Mary also understands the complexities of our domestic energy policy and has been a consistent voice for energy independence. Please visit Mary’s website at www.maryfallin.org and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

I heartily endorse these liberty-loving “Mama Grizzlies.” They’ll do more than just growl about our challenges because they know how to work hard and protect America’s future by ushering a new era of prosperity and security. How? By proving their selfless service, common sense, and respect for the will of the people.

- Sarah Palin

DRILL BABY, DRILL?

Why not?

What follows is strictly the opinion of the author.

When the twin towers were destroyed by terrorists flying commercial aircraft into them, air traffic across the US was halted.

Why? To prevent other flights being used in a similar fashion. However, the removal of all commercial planes in the US airspace lasted only two days, not SIX MONTHS.

When a major airline is involved in a horrendous accident and the blame is placed on equipment not serviced appropriately or not installed, the result may be a cessation of all flights of that particular airline or model of plane until investigators are satisfied that each plane can pass inspection.

Yes, the explosion at the deepwater well cost 11 lives. The families will never see their father, brother or son again. Nothing can ever bring those souls back. However for there to be a moratorium on drilling for at least 6 months is sheer stupidity.

All current wells should be inspected by people who know what they are doing, not a political appointee who hasn't a clue. Once a well has passed inspection get the well back online.

There is no need, in this economy, to deprive workers of an honest wage for very hard work.

There is no need, in this economy, to further burden the American people with higher costs of gas and oil.

BP did not create the moratorium, BP should not have to pay those lost wages.

To say the mess in the Gulf of Mexico is the president's Katrina is false. The mess in the Gulf of Mexico is this president's 9/11. His decisions and so called 'solutions' are an epic failure.

Evidently, the teleprompter does not have correct answers.

Get on with it, Mr. President. Step aside. Let folks smarter than you make decisions. This is obviously beyond your paygrade.

Let us "DRILL, BABY DRILL!"

"Gather Your Armies"

This political commercial is currently causing the lame-stream media crybabies to engage in another round of bed-wetting and name-calling. I love it!

GOP women: Some tough mothers

Russ Vaughn:AmericanThinker

I am one of those conservatives who has pretty much maintained an arm's length from Sarah Palin since Mc Lame first brought her to the forefront of the political scene. Although initially wary, but admittedly impressed with her performance in the 2008 campaign, which in my opinion was the only bright spot of said campaign, I have begun to pay more attention to this irrepressible, remarkable woman and I must confess: I'm impressed.

I just watched her vis a vis Bill O'Reilly following the One's pronouncements on the oil spill, you know, where the Big O addresses the Big O, and let me tell you my immediate impression. Put aside Greta Van Susteren's recent impertinent question to the governor as to whether she's had breast implants. What is overwhelmingly obvious is that this is a woman who possesses a more common-sense intellect and bigger cojones than O'Reilly, Obama and any other male power figure I can name.

Actually, I've been intrigued ever since I read the characterization during the past presidential campaign by some liberal twit who referred to Ms. Palin as every schoolboy's fantasy of the naughty librarian. Now I gotta tell you, I'm a few decades beyond schoolboy fantasies but that observation did inspire a few old codger fantasies around the country, Take it from one.

My wife, reading over my shoulder, just accused me of being sexist. Hogwash! I'm saying our conservative women seeking political office not only tend to be one helluva lot better looking than the broad-beamed, thunder-thighed feminist candidates the Dems, Libs and Fems put forth, they're tougher than the Democrat's male candidates as well.

In this increasingly feminized, liberal society, I have a suggested slogan for the Republican National Committee:

Republican Women: some tough mothers who know what asses to kick!

Governor Palin: Restoring Honor Rally and Charity Auction with Glenn Beck

Via Facebook:

I am so excited about the upcoming Restoring Honor rally with Glenn Beck on August 28th in Washington, D.C., right on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Glenn and I will be speaking at the rally, and I hope you’ll be able to join us. You can visit the Restoring Honor Facebook page here for all updates.

You can also help us raise funds for some amazing true American heroes by joining me and Glenn for breakfast on August 28th before the rally. Visit this website to bid on a fun morning with both of us, and remember all proceeds from this auction go to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, a non-profit charity serving the children of our fallen heroes.

Bid on the auction! Come with an appetite! And see you in D.C.!

- Sarah Palin

The Malaise Speech

Barack Obama doesn't know it yet, but he just heralded the end of his Presidency last night.

As most of you are aware, the first two thirds of the President's speech to the Nation was long on generalities, and short on specifics of what the U.S. Government, in concert with BP, was going to do to stop the Deepwater Horizon oil leak. There was lots of mambo mojo about punishing BP and going Medieval on BP's executives, as well as some BOOOOOSH Bashing.

Because there has never been a leak this size at this depth, stopping it has tested the limits of human technology. That's why just after the rig sank, I assembled a team of our nation's best scientists and engineers to tackle this challenge -- a team led by Dr. Steven Chu, a Nobel Prize-winning physicist and our nation's Secretary of Energy. Scientists at our national labs and experts from academia and other oil companies have also provided ideas and advice.

As a result of these efforts, we've directed BP to mobilize additional equipment and technology. And in the coming weeks and days, these efforts should capture up to 90 percent of the oil leaking out of the well. This is until the company finishes drilling a relief well later in the summer that's expected to stop the leak completely.

But that's not quite what's going on. If one reads from one of the professional blogs, The Oil Drum (no friends of Palin, by the way) what is actually going on is a race against time. Erosion caused by the high pressure movement of hydrocarbon product, sand and silt up the shaft and through the Blowout Preventer system is creating instability up and down the entire shaft system. BP knows this, apparently, as does the Administration. Money section:

Contrary to what most of us would think as logical to stop the oil mess, actually opening up the gushing well and making it gush more became direction BP took after confirming that there was a leak. In fact if you note their actions, that should become clear. They have shifted from stopping or restricting the gusher to opening it up and catching it. This only makes sense if they want to relieve pressure at the leak hidden down below the seabed.....and that sort of leak is one of the most dangerous and potentially damaging kind of leak there could be. It is also inaccessible which compounds our problems. There is no way to stop that leak from above, all they can do is relieve the pressure on it and the only way to do that right now is to open up the nozzle above and gush more oil into the gulf and hopefully catch it, which they have done, they just neglected to tell us why, gee thanks.

A down hole leak is dangerous and damaging for several reasons.
There will be erosion throughout the entire beat up, beat on and beat down remainder of the "system" including that inaccessible leak. The same erosion I spoke about in the first post is still present and has never stopped, cannot be stopped, is impossible to stop and will always be present in and acting on anything that is left which has crude oil "Product" rushing through it. There are abrasives still present, swirling flow will create hot spots of wear and this erosion is relentless and will always be present until eventually it wears away enough material to break it's way out. It will slowly eat the bop away especially at the now pinched off riser head and it will flow more and more. Perhaps BP can outrun or keep up with that out flow with various suckage methods for a period of time, but eventually the well will win that race, just how long that race will be?...no one really knows....However now?...there are other problems that a down hole leak will and must produce that will compound this already bad situation.

This down hole leak will undermine the foundation of the seabed in and around the well area. It also weakens the only thing holding up the massive Blow Out Preventer's immense bulk of 450 tons. In fact?...we are beginning to the results of the well's total integrity beginning to fail due to the undermining being caused by the leaking well bore.

The first layer of the sea floor in the gulf is mostly lose material of sand and silt. It doesn't hold up anything and isn't meant to, what holds the entire subsea system of the Bop in place is the well itself. The very large steel connectors of the initial well head "spud" stabbed in to the sea floor. The Bop literally sits on top of the pipe and never touches the sea bed, it wouldn't do anything in way of support if it did. After several tens of feet the seabed does begin to support the well connection laterally (side to side) you couldn't put a 450 ton piece of machinery on top of a 100' tall pipe "in the air" and subject it to the side loads caused by the ocean currents and expect it not to bend over...unless that pipe was very much larger than the machine itself, which you all can see it is not. The well's piping in comparison is actually very much smaller than the Blow Out Preventer and strong as it may be, it relies on some support from the seabed to function and not literally fall over...and it is now showing signs of doing just that....falling over.

One of the things you did not see from Obama is an actual plan from him, and BP, to actually STOP the leak, pending the digging and execution of the two relief wells. The poster at the Oil Drum is indicating that we may run out of time and that the pressure of the oil from the chamber below ground may tip over the BOP before the relief wells kill the leaky well.

In that eventuality, we may have no choice but to seal the well using a tactical nuclear warhead. Matt Simmons, deep ocean oil expert on Youtube, lays it all out.

Matthew Simmons, founder of the Ocean Energy Institute, talks with Bloomberg’s Lori Rothman about BP Plc’s oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico and his view that the use of a “small-bore nuclear device” is now the “only option” to stop the flow of oil.

The Nation, and indeed the Caribbean community, simply cannot tolerate a massive amount of oil leaking into the Gulf for the next thirty years. The President simply hasn't made up his mind what to do yet. That is something that came across last night, in spades, to the American people. There's no hand at the tiller.

In the last third of the speech, Obama rolled out Cap and Trade again, in the hopes that public outrage over the BP and its malfeasance would have the public clamor for higher gas prices at the pump, but I suspect that that's a misreading of the public mood. Palin's response was brutal, and to the point.

I kind of have a big beef with you too though, Bill, if you don't acknowledge that President Obama is wrong on his call for a need for energy policy. Certainly we need that, but he is wrong not to acknowledge that we still need on a three-legged stool the conventional sources of energy to be drilled here. Otherwise, Bill, we are going to be dropped to our knees and bowing to the Saudis and Venezuela and places like Russia that will keep producing oil and petroleum products, and we will have to ask them to produce for us because we will still be dependent upon these sources of energy.

In addition though, too, shifting more towards the renewables which, of course, we need. And the other leg of that stool is conservation. President Obama, it scares me, it saddens me that the CEO of our nation does not understand that inherent link between the conventional sources of energy that we're dependent upon and our security, our prosperity, our freedom.

Palin is a realist. But she also understands that Obama operates within the political environment of the Left Wing of the Democratic Party, and that Obama's aims run counter to the long term best interests of this country. Most of the Green Energy scams being pushed by Obama, so far, have proven to be of little investment value, else they would have attracted investment dollars from capital markets. But Obama and the Left are pushing this nonsense because of their belief in Green Energy, and partly as a payoff to George Soros and his people, who have huge longs in Petrobras and other overseas petroleum interests.

Their interests rise in value if US production declines.

What Palin gets is that with Obama, all one has to do is follow the money. The country is getting this, too, despite the smoke and mirrors that went into electing him, I think that the voters are catching on to the fact that they elected a phony and a con man. I also believe, as I suspect does Palin, that it's all beginning to unravel.

A lot of the liberal anger with Obama's speech that people saw last night was a reflection of the fact that the Left is beginning to know the meaning of fear.

Governor Palin's Response to President Obama's Oil Spill Address

President Obama gave a speech tonight from the oval office to discuss his response to the oil spill. You can read what the President read off of his teleprompter here. While President Obama has been trying to determine whose @$$ to kick regarding the oil spill, Governor Palin kicked his in her response to President Obama's speech tonight on The O'Reilly Factor:

H/T @Jenfidel

Governor Palin, the Principled Pragmatist

Yesterday the AP released a story with the title, "Palin more pragmatic than friends and foes expect". The story was pretty balanced and fair. Considering the AP's usual treatment of the Governor in their stories, it could be seen as a glowing piece about Palin. The article focused on the variety of candidates that Governor Palin has endorsed and the subsequent responses by some conservatives who have either been enthused or disappointed by Governor Palin's endorsements.

Governor Palin's endorsements have been both pragmatic and extremely influential. She has aimed at supporting the conservative who is most likely to win. This is pragmatic. When Governor Palin endorsed California Senatorial candidate, Carly Fiorina, Governor Palin said:

Please consider that Carly is the conservative who has the potential to beat California’s liberal senator, Barbara Boxer, in November. I’m a huge proponent of contested primaries, so I’m glad to see the contest in California’s GOP, but I support Carly as she fights through a tough primary against a liberal member of the GOP who seems to bear almost no difference to Boxer, one of the most leftwing members of the Senate. Carly needs our support in this crucial election year when we have a real chance of putting an end to the Pelosi/Reid “Big Government” agenda.

Many conservatives bemoaned the fact that Governor Palin supported Fiorina rather than Chuck DeVore. However, Fiorina has the best opportunity to defeat "Ma'am" Boxer in the general election. Governor Palin's endorsements are indeed also quite influential. When Governor Palin endorsed Carly Fiorina, she was trailing in the polls, she ended up winning by 34 points over Tom Campbell, the nearest opponent. When Governor Palin endorsed and stood by (not "four square behind", whatever that means, like Governor Romney) Nikki Haley, Haley went from trailing in the race to garnering 27% more votes than the nearest opponent and will handily win an upcoming runoff for the Republican gubernatorial nomination in South Carolina.

Governor Palin's pragmatism does not only lie in her endorsements, but also in her governing ability. The most vivid example of this was when Governor Palin had to choose between two moderate to liberal potential Alaskan supreme court justices in March of 2009. Governor Palin chose Morgan Christen, a more moderate justice who had some ties to Planned Parenthood over the other potential justice who was extremely Left on environmental issues. The way that Alaskan justices must be selected forced Governor Palin to choose one of these far less-than-ideal candidates. Rather than crucify herself on the altar of rigid principled action, Governor Palin chose principled pragmatism. About the justice selection, Governor Palin said:

My job is to follow the Constitution. I try to appoint the nominee that is able to approach every case with an open mind and the best knowledge, skills, and ability to analyze the legal issues and apply the law to the facts of the case. It is often a difficult decision to make. In the instance of the most recent Supreme Court seat, both candidates had a wealth of legal experience to offer the state.

There are numerous other examples. Governor Palin approved benefits for same sex couples on the grounds of Constitutionality, even though the perception by many is that she wouldn't approve of such a measure. Governor Palin created a Climate Change subcabinet because she wanted to monitor the effects of "climate change", rather than except the snake oil science of "green profiteers".

Governor Palin has a rare ability to marry principles with pragmatism without abandoning principle. Governor Palin thinks, speaks, and acts not with rigid dogmatic ideology, but with practical principles with the Constitution and a conservative blueprint as her guide. G.K. Chesterton once said, " compromise used to mean that half a loaf was better than no bread. Among modern statesmen it really seems to mean that half a loaf is better than a whole loaf". Governor Palin encapsulates the picture of the former person in Chesterton's quote. She understands what pragmatism, and sometimes even compromise, is. For those who want to claim that Governor Palin is a Far Right nutcase who is far too polarizing, the principled pragmatism of her rhetoric, record, and endorsements speak for themselves, even if the press claims that such pragmatism is unexpected.

Governor Palin:Concerning a Possible Trip to the United Kingdom

Via Facebook:

Following an article in a British publication on Sunday, I’ve received questions about a possible trip to the United Kingdom. I have received an invitation for a visit to London, and part of that invitation included the offer of arranging a meeting between myself and one of my political heroines, the “Iron Lady,” Margaret Thatcher. I would love to meet her and hope I’ll be able to arrange the trip in the future.

As I wrote last year when I offered her birthday wishes, Baroness Thatcher’s life and career serve as a blueprint for overcoming the odds and challenging the “status quo.” She started life as a grocer’s daughter from Grantham and rose to become Prime Minister – all by her own merit and hard work. I cherish her example and will always count her as one of my role models. Her friendship with my other political hero, Ronald Reagan, exemplified the Special Relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom.

- Sarah Palin