Does Sarah Palin care more about her image than the issues?
FROM CNN's Jack Cafferty:
A disgruntled former aide to Sarah Palin has written a scathing political tell-all in which he suggests she is more concerned with her image than she is about the issues. Shocking.
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Former aide Frank Bailey, who joined Palin's political team during her 2006 gubernatorial campaign and stayed on through her resignation in 2009, based his memoir around some 60,000 e-mails he sent to or received from Palin during that time.The book was leaked to several media outlets in Alaska and Washington over the weekend.
Among the claims in the book:
Palin allegedly sent phony letters to the editor when she was running for Alaska governor, supporting herself but signed with fake names. She allegedly rigged her staff's computers so they could unfairly influence an Anchorage new station's online poll about her refusal of federal stimulus dollars. And, according to Bailey, Palin refused to appear on any network other than Fox News, referring to the rest as "the bad guys."
Also in the book, Bailey claims that just months after the McCain-Palin ticket lost the presidential race, then-governor Palin seemed focused more on her national image than on what was going on in the state of Alaska, telling Bailey and another colleague in a Spring 2009 e-mail: "I hate this damn job."
Bailey has reportedly been shopping around the book since fall 2009 and has yet to sell it to a publisher.
There's been no response from the former governor on the book, but a spokesman for Palin's PAC told the Anchorage Daily News she did not expect Palin would have anything to say about "this kind of untruth."
Here’s my question to you: Does Sarah Palin care more about her image than the issues?
Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Carla:
Obviously, the woman doesn’t care about either, Jack. If she cared about the issues, she’d educate herself. If she cared about her image, she’d avoid the media till she acquires that education and stops demonstrating her appalling ignorance at every turn.
Bonnie in New Jersey:
I don't think you can pin this one on her exclusively. What politician cares about the issues? Their image and/or how much money they can collect for their next campaign is what they are thinking about, not the issues!
Dee:
I would normally consider this question to be a no-brainer, pardon the pun. Of course, image is more important than those testy, fact-filled issues. But given her recent responses from the Arizona shootings, to the State of the Union and her relative silence during the unprecedented events in the Middle East, I'm thinking perhaps she doesn't care much anymore about her image either.
Tim in Clinton, Oklahoma:
Get off Palin, Jack. You have become more boring than she is. Talk about something important.
Roger:
Are you kidding? Oh, sure cares about issues: her hair, her TV show, her celebrity status. She has the depth of a paper towel.
Cathy:
Jack, Does a bear – well you know…?
@jackcafferty on Twitter
Well since she can only make a living off of her image and not by actually offering solutions for issues, the answer is obvious.
Really, do you even need to ask this question, quite frankly I don't believe she is bright enough to care about issues. Hmmmm, image (beauty pagents) or issues (I can see Russia)
Kylene, Watson MN
Jack! You're just now figuring this out? Palin is in it for Palin.
Jack,
Sarah Palin is as phoney as a three dollar bill...all image and no substance. Many Americans have fallen for this con artist whose track record of accomplishment falls two standard deviations below the mean of most politicians. But she is a pretty face and you press hounds just can't stop feeding into the public's need for something about this self-promoting bimbo who is a political disaster. She blew John McCain's campaign. She blew the governorship of Alaska and she wants to blow herself up into something she's not...any kind of a proven leader. Enough already. Send her and her family back to Alaska...enough already...
Is this even a question? She is a bomb thrower, a provocative disher of snark, a Queen Bee who adores attention. She is not a student of anything. She is absolutely perfect in the Anne Coulter, pundit role - and she has absolutely nothing substantive to offer.
Maybe if she cared anything about the issues she might have actually addressed them by now. I haven't heard a solution from Palin yet.
You're asking the wrong question. it should be – Does ANY POLITICIAN care more about his or her image than the issues.
Palin understands her Christian fundamentalist followers. Look at the women of televangelist TV the past three decades and you tell me if it's image or issues? That's all Palin is, a cross between a political entertainer and a televangelist. As an entertainer the only thing she needs to do (and does) is get the Christian Right to like her, and spit out a scud directed at the President here and there.
Here's A Hint Jack-Yes! Of Course She Does She Proved That All Throughout The 2008 Campaign And All The Way Up Till Now Why Do You Think She Had Her Own Reality Show? To Try To Boost Her Ratings So That When She Runs For President Then She Thinks Maybe Just Maybe That She Can Beat President Obama, Fat Chance Sarah!
Scott Stodden (Freeport,Illinois)
I am still very surprised that she is still getting press coverage. Everything that comes out of her mouth are just untruths and rubbish.
Stop giving her any press.
Public Image is important to Ms. Palin – that's obvious – but with the 1/2 Term Governor, it's always been about the money.
Is this a trick question? She doesn't even Understand the issues!
You're kidding, right?
Of course she does........does a woodchuck chuck wood?!?!
Issues?!? She isn't smart enough (read witless) to understand meaningful issues in any depth.
When image is all you have...
She is about nothing!!!
Lets move on with more pewssing issues than Palin.
Give her time, and she will shoot herself in the foot. The Hell with the america people. She is in it for the money, and her trying to patten her namesake, its the money. The american people are hoping for more from her, but if the money dries up, look out all you alaskain moose. She is going to get you!
You're kidding, right? She doesn't even know what the issues ARE. I long for the day when we never have to hear her worthless name again.
To care about issues one has to have brains and thinking power. Unfortunately Palin comes across uninformed and ignoramous on issues except for some conservative ramblings she often blurts out as a speaker. So far as we ahve seen she seems to care about image and more about money. Pathetic for some one who aspires to lead the nation
Do you really have to ask? Of course she does.
Yes. Next question.
Palin is about ignorance! ,Jack. Why don't you 'get that'?
Anyone caring about national issues would present his/her opinions and way-ahead in a deliberate, factual manner. Palin does not meet this criteria. She is among far too many politicians, aspiring politicians, and pundits who deliberately employ disinformation, half-truths, and an appeal to peoples' base fears to market themselves and their political agenda. Such leadership is not needed by our nation and constitutes a threat to domestic political stability and whatever credibility we have within the foreign community of nations.
If Sarah Palin was more concerned about issues than image, she would know that Africa was a continent.
Ever since Caribou Barbie (aka Sarah Palin) emerged on the national scene, everything she does and says has always been about her and her image. She cares zip about the average, hard-working people and their issues in the country.
Moss Beach, CA
Jack, seems like a rhetorical question to me.
And it's been no mystery for awhile now that she quit her job as Governor early so she could cash in on the millions out there waiting for her.
All anyone had to do was open their eyes and pay attention to her actions after they lost the election to see what she was really all about.
Issues? The only issue she cares about is how she can make even more money off these poor conservative suckers who still love her for some unknown reason.
An old girlfriend once told me how painful it was to be beautiful. Can Sarah Palin really remain so beautiful with enduring the required pain?
She is all image and no substance. The only people who don't believe that are the ones that are unwilling to think for themselves and allow other media outlets think for them.
"This kind of untruth?" So we are to believe then she was lying in those 60k emails??? Nice to get an glimpse at the woman behind the curtain. I can't say I'm shocked nor surprised however;, Ms. Palin has all the intellectual gravitas of a pack of Twinkies.
RW Kerr Powell Butte, Oregon
Sarah Palin very seldom discuss the issues. It very difficult to determine what her views are on basic political issues. She however takes every opportunity to respond negatively to her critics. Her use of bad language is hardly the kind of public figure to influence our children. Palin is only out to protect her image.
With all the headlines today, your question is about Sara Palin???
We get it... you do not like her, now let it go!!!!!!
She is the most shallow, uninformed, ignorant, and incompetent politician I have seen since..... bush.
Sarah Palin remains one of the most dangerous individuals in this country. Her ignorance, incompetence and lack of awareness is absolutely appalling. She doesn't care (or understand) this country, it's people or it's problems. She cares about one thing and one thing only...Sarah Palin!
Please, just go away Sarah, Please!
Neither. She cares only for Sarah.
If she cared more about the issues than her image, she'd be governing Alaska instead of a reality show.
Rick
Denver, CO
Gotta be the image thing since she doesn't seem to have a handle on any the important issues.
Toronto, Ontario
Jack, why are you wasting your time and ours on this nitwit?
Does Sarah Palin care more about her image than the issues?
Is snow cold?
Is the ocean deep?
Does the obvious really need to be asked?
Jack,
A more relevant question would be, “On what date will Palin announce she is not running for president in 2012 and who/what will she use as the scapegoat?” My guess is mid to late December, 2011 and she will use her youngest child as the reason. I am hopeful we won’t hear from her for a while after that. At least until she starts hocking polyester pant suits for Kmart… Her true destiny.
Jack.....
She's a vile, disgusting, attention seeking blabbermouth with no interest in anything but publicity and...money.
How could she be concerned with outside interests when she refuses to confront her own.
I wanna hear her comment on it.
Jack, Mrs. Palin has made it abundantly clear that she does not understand the issues. And if she cared about image, she would not say the absurd things she does. So your question can't really be quantified. Her only saving grace is that Michelle Bachmann feels empowered by Palin's triumphs, and thus places herself in a subordinate position to Palin herself.
Glad you're back, Jack.
It's always been about Sarah. Everyone knows it. But Fox news thinks not and so will drench its viewers in denial. I thought when her ticket lost, that she would vanish. No such luck! We are accursed with her snarky presence. Thank all the Gods that McCain lost. Can u imagine having to hear that hag's voice as VP? Perish the thought!
By merely sending a tweet she can get everybody's attention. Sarah Palin cares about getting under the skin of people like you Jack. The media is her sworn enemy. She loves to get your goat. It would seem to be working.
it's time the governor defends her record. if she has any plans for a 2012 bid then she should do some rebuttal (pre-buttal) to prove her critics are wrong. if she fails to do so then it will make her ex aide's claims to be more truthful than her claims of clean and small government in alaska.
She is an idiot. Dangerous for this country, dumb as a stone except when it comes to polishing her image. I believe the facts are coming out and will speak for themselves. How anyone can be persuaded she is intellectually able to run this country is beyond me.
Palin cares more about Palin than any issue. She's more about the spotlight and the money than she is about running for president in 2012. She quit the governor's job for more money, why should anyone think she would stick around the oval office for 10 percent of what the president's office pays.
This shouldn't surprise anyone, its clear that she is in it for the money and not for the people. If she was a serious political candidate she would not be afraid of all the news media. Those that wish to be president must be president to all the American people, not just the small Fox News Group.
Wayne
Fitzgerald, GA
Tucson, AZ – What can one expect from a former beauty queen with a degree in communications earned in five years at three third rate schools? Sarah Palin is ALL message, NO substance. A serious politician does not resign halfway through a term of executive office In order to become a news commentator. Why does anyone take this mountebank seriously anymore?
No doubt about it.
Please keep her opinions off national TV. The simpletons just hang on her like lapdogs. And look where that has got us. Dumb, Dumb, Dumb. I don't care how much money she makes just keep her opinions away from the political arena,
Her own party doesn't think she knows anything about the issues so that leaves her image. Honestly, it is high time we quit wasting valuable time even discussing Palin. Please, quit serving her cause by shining the national media light upon her. We need to let her fade into nothingness.
Sarah Palin cares more about her image than serving the people as a civil servant. She would not have resigned as Governor of Alaska if she gave a hoot about her state or its citizens. Look for her to run for President of The United States. If elected,Sarah would give American citizens the same respect as she gave her fellow Alaskans. Look for lots of negative comments from her and very little knowledge of the issues and few if any solutions to the problems Americans face.
Sarah Palin has only cared about one thing and that is Sarah plain. Everything Sarah has ever done in her life has been done to benefit herself. The people of American have been nothing more to her then a minor inconvenience. It is time to put Mrs. Palin out to pasture with all the rest of the old cows. She isn't even News any more. Just an after thought.
$arah Palin is simply about money, hate, and first and foremost $arah Palin. Only in America could you use hate and divisiveness to get rich.
Hello! Dah! Ahaaa Yeah! she knows more about her image than she does about the issues!
Her image of course! With "Mama Grizzly" it's all about her! Talk about self importance!
Let's see, does the Sun have rays? Do the beaches have sand? Does the wind blow air? Do oceans have have waves? Are the Ruskies a stones throw from Alaska? And does the round Earth circle the Sun? Does Palin the Political Parih care more about image? Really, do you have to ask?
Dan from Monterey
She quit as a the governor of a state with less than half a term, and then started her own reality TV show.....money and fame must be more improtant than a complete job. if she can't handle the stress of the 2nd smallest state in population in the country, how can I trust her as President? She is the primary reason why McCain lost the election to begin with.
Yes, Palin is more interested in her image than being a functional politician. I want to read to book about her. Hope there is a publisher out there and my wish is that Sarah Palin would fade into obscurity.
What a revelation!I really dont think she has the capacity to deal with other isuses.I mean its hard for her to talk and walk at the same time... Is there anything to lern from that book?
She has cared about her image ever since she was chosen as VP candidate The way she exposed her family was not a way of viewing her thoughts of issues facing our country. It was look at me, me, me!!!!
The only thing that Sara Palin cares about are her fees. Issues? She might know what they are, but she certainly doesn't understand them. She has a list of "fear" words, and simply waits for the opportunity to use those words to draw attention to herself. She is the ultimate opportunist. She does have talent, but the talent has nothing to do with the people.
The real question should be is, "Does anyone really care about Sarah Palin" ???
In a word: yes. Since we were first introduced to Sarah "what does the vice president do?" Palin it has been constantly and painfully obvious that she is a woman of no substance. Had she been male-or even an unattractive female-she would still be failing in obscurity as the Governor of Alaska.
Yes on Palin.
Without a doubt. There's only one thing bigger than Palin's ego. That's her vanity. She's a true money grubbing political hack.
One has to understand and be knowledgeable about the issues in order to begin to care. She does however understand her shallow ego, so I would have to say yes, she cares more of herself and feeding her ego, than she can ever care about people or their issues.
When she said she wanted to increase the Vice President's power in the Senate proved two things. She was totally ignorant of the U.S Constitutiion and she was a power hungry vixen. She is totally ignorant of national and international affairs. She just wants regal powers which is anathema to our country's well being.
Palin cares about Palin and what makes her popular to the most people. It amazes me she has been riding so high for so long. This is just another chink is her armor exposed. No one who loves her will see it. How long can they continue to be so blind. Of course her biggest supporters are tea party women who are used to being told what to think by their lords and masters.
Is a bluebird blue? Let's move past the Sarah Palin drama. She's "old" news; we have have bigger mountains to climb.
Yes, Sarah Palin cares more about her image than the issues and
facts-especially facts! She has become a cartoon character.
Jerry Roberts
Do you even need to ask? Actually, she's more about MONEY than anything else.
Sarah Palin and her family should kiss the ground John McCain walks on, before he chose her for VP no one new her and since then she and her family have made millions so go shopping and go away.
Jack, this is liking asking if Paris Hilton hates the limelight. The Palins, living a middle class life, finally found the golden fleece and continue to fill their coffers will ill-gotten gains by fooling the fools and garnishing her image. It's all a facade to steal money from her blind followers who fall under her spell. If she hated being governor, how long would it take to crack under the enormous pressures of the presidency?
Jack its all about the image because Sarah Palin talking about the issue equates to Mickey Mouse explaining the internal workings of the space station.
Ms. Palin seems to be an egomaniac, that is, to be after everything and anything that will keep her in the public eye .It seems that she wants to make as much money, as fast as possible, selling everything she can & then she will disappear from the scene. We hope !!
She is a perfect example of the school girls who spent more time in front of a mirror than in the library. She is nothing but fluff.
Appears to be so. If she cared to learn more about the world in which we live, that would be a plus. She is challenging to try to listen to for the majority of us Americans. Never heard her say anything more than sound bites and no real solutions. Bored with her and her self promotion. Good night.
it's all about the controversy and the MONEY it brings. image is everything as long as it PAYS well. for someone who so sadly lacks the personal integrity to complete a sworn oath to the governor's office and elect instead to pursue a path to personal enrichment by creating destructive controversy is beyond pathetic. no amount of image control can hide that kind profound incompetence .
She is about nothing!!!
Lets move on with more pressing issues than Palin.
You care about issues when you understand them. Palin cannot define any issue in the American polity therefore it is an understatement to ask whether she cares about her image more than the issues. What do you expect from somebody who thinks she is versed in foreign policy because she can see Russia from her backyard window?
Ohh cut her some slack... Image is how you get elected now a days. Once she is elected then she can worry about the issues.
Steve Harris,
Charlotte NC
Jack........all she has is her IMAGE.......she doesn't know enough about
issues to qualify for anything other than the village idiot!!!!
Of course. That is probably the only trait that qualifies her for national political prominence.
Of course Palin cares more about herself then the politics she claims to know. Lets see where is Russia, out her front door of course. She knows nothing and she can prove it. Just ask her
Not sure you would have to be "disgruntled" to write that book. Have any of you listened to her speak? Or should we say, tried to understand her point of view? Its all populist blather with no backing and no track record (other than quitting)...
She has to care about her image, someone has too, and she is confused about the issues, or is it that she just can not articulate. Who can tell!
According to the Peter Principle "In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence." Sarah Palin reached it when she became mayor. All image, very little substance to the important issues.
I actually had a high opinion of her during the Presidential race. I admired what she had done for Alaska. Since the conclusion of the Presidential race I have heard nothing but whining about who did what to her and how she was mistreated, and of course she needed to get a book out! I think she needs to quit whining, ignore the name calling, and get back to doing her job! Lord knows it wasn't always fair and easy for Hilary Clinton, but I don't hear her crying about anything! So take the bottle out of your mouth, Mrs. Palin, and get to work or get out.
Sarah is not smart enough to care truely about anything, she may think she has a certain image but the truth is, she is just too simple minded to really underdstand anything to do with politics. She was not qualified to be a govenor of anything much less a state and as far as her becoming president, if you think they are having civil unrest in Africa and the middle east, put Sarah in as president of this country and we will be in much more stress than just civil unrest, we would be sitting ducks for any and every nut case in the world!
Jack, you forgot your usual HINT "yes"
Seriously JacK?? Do you think anybody really cares.
Palin has demonstrated numerous times that she hasn't a clue about real issues. Her attacks on Michelle Obama's efforts to promote healthy eating habits are an example. Bimbo's ususally only care about their image.
I think Sarah Palin would care more about the issues if she were intelligent enough to understand them. As it is, she yaks on about how much she disapproves of the left, but doesn't offer any real solutions to the country's problems. She goes on about activist judges legislating from the bench, but can't name any particular cases when asked for specifics in an interview with Katie Couric. As far as I can tell, Palin is a loud-mouth without any real substance.
Oh, and by the way, I'm on the republican side of the great divide.
Jack,
Sarah cares about money.
All publicity increases her market for lectures, books and her wish for power. Her image is enhanced by any, and all media coverage. She will keep up the show and the media will confuse it for news. She would not recognize an issue if you gave her any newspaper or magazine.
Cincinnat, OH
Palin who?
Probably, but she's not very good with either. Everytime she opens her mouth she demonstrates her ignorance and inability to grasp even the simplest of issues. I never understood why she chose politics; she's only usefull as a pawn. She should have been an actress. That way someone could tell her how to pronounce words over 2 syllables and she'd get all the ego stroking she so obviously requires.
Really? Do we even need to ask this question Jack? Of course she is more concerned with her image. She still has not given a satisfactory reason for quitting as governor, and that is her biggest fault in my opinion. Although I disagree with almost every policy she believes in, if she had stayed and finished her term in Alaska I could at least respect her as someone who finishes the job.
Of course Jack it’s the reason why she doesn't except "off-the-cuff" questions in her interviews. She’s afraid that everyone will find out the obvious… That she just doesn’t' have a clue. Image is everything in her arena. It’s the pageant model. No pun intended.
Let's see...A reality show about Alaska, a Fox "news" commentator, shilling her daughter on DWTS? Nope, don't see any issues there. Of course it's all image.
Sarah Palin loves to hear her own voice, she is all about Sarah...as long as she keeps getting noticed she will keep coming back...the Media needs to ignore her, period..maybe then she get the hint, but then again maybe not.
Sarah Palin follows the money. Her positions, like her employment record, have nothing to do with the public good.
Has to be image , she knows nothing about issues.....I hate to tell you but Palin has NO intention of holding public office its too hard.....she is nothing more than a "troll", she just stirs the base with ridiculous statements and then when the going gets tough she retreats to Alaska, taking with her lots of money.....she licks her feathers and comes again....over and over and over........BTW welcome back Jack.....its been lively out here....
I just want her to go away, and for all the TV reporting about her to stop.
Please, Sarah, liston to Barbara Bush and just go back to Alaska.
Sarah is a classic beauty and no brains! You have to have brains to understand the issues!
Sarah Palin cares about nothing but herself and her popularity. She just wants to be the center of attention and have the crowds cheer and clap for her. If she's ever elected, will she resign in mid term for something better???? I'd rather vote for the guy or gal down the street than for Palin.
Palin cares about neither image nor issues. Her image is comparable to Snooki [at best] and she has nothing intelligent to offer in regards to the most pressing issues. She merely cares about catering to the extremist right and about inciting fear, hate, and misinformation against all the rest. However, Palin would make an excellent leader for Libya, Iran, North Korea, WWII Germany, and Cold War Russia. But not America.
The answer is writen on her hand, it says it all.
Jack:
I am not a mind reader but I would have a better clue about this image thing when the Palin-Lohan ticket is announced.
She has shown signs of boarderline personality for a long time. So of course everything is about her and how it makes her look.
A politician being concerned about his/her image?? Surprise, Surprise!!! I am thinking that is the name of the game. If they aren’t concerned about their image they are certainly concerned about the next election. “Playing to their base” I think is the popular term. Who cares about issues except during a speech? So why should Sarah Palin be held to a different standard?
caribou barbie – thats awesome
Sarah Palin's image is all she has because her personality and intellect are in the basement. Sarah Palin is a megalomaniac, I thought we all knew that. If you need to, consult your dictionary.
By asking question Jack, you are implying that Sarah Palin knows the issues. She might have an aid that reads magazines and newspapers for her and gives her a briefing every morning and a script to act like she knows something. But we all know the truth. For her there is nothing to fear but knowledge it's self. Oh and the liberal media agenda. But hey she would look dumb if she was the only person wearing a tin foil hat so unfortunately she has a few fans.
Absolutely. If she cared about the issues, she'd never have quit her job as governor. You ran for it, you got elected, do the job, good or bad.
Jack, You are a generous man. Your question assumes that the AirHead from Alaska knows what an "issue" is. In my view Saint Sarah is certainly one of the ethically challenged and definitely one of the intellectually disabled. God help us if she is elected President!
She has to be concerned about her image because she doesn't understand the issues.
Well, DUH!!! Tell me something I DON'T know! Sarah Palin has, is and always will be concerned with appearance over substance in an effort to amass more riches! Shame on John McCain for opening Pandora's box in a futile attempt to upstage Hillary Clinton in the last election cycle.
haha! is this really a serious question jack?
i think we all know the answer...
Mitch, Iowa
No, because Sarah Palin would have to understand the issues to care about them. She uses well-known issues to support her image but does not offer any original or serious solutions. I am not sure she really cares about her image either, other than to promote personal financial gain from the endless media attention.
Palin is entirely about her image and the ability to maintain a sense of "star power". Unfortunately, Palin does not really have a lot of sellable talent beyond stirring things up so as soon as she becomes politically unimportant her days in the media spotlight will come to an end. As for real concerns of her "image" in regards to the press that she pretends to hate so much, it is little more than a game. In truth Palin needs the media, especially the liberal media, more than she needs anyone else in her career life. For Palin negative coverage is the best coverage... it brings the money in. When the media starts to look away she stirs the pot to get a continued reaction. In this aspect, Palin and Ann Coulter are very much the one and the same. Beyond the claims of hating the liberal side of America with a passion both would be utterly lost (and without a job) without the opposing voice. The opposing voice writes their checks and keeps them in the spotlight and thus employed. Of course, fully admitting that would be potentially career shattering.
Since the election Palin has consistently worked on presenting an image of a positive, intelligent leader. Fortunately everyone has seen through the mist and found the truth. An angry, deceitful woman.
All she cares about are the Benjamins
Obviously, the understanding of anything is not in her little empty brains (AKA as her toe-nails), so, she concentrates on image.
Jack you know the answer to that question. Palin is a glorified cheerleader for Palin, Inc. She is extremely ignorant on the issues and current events if you ask me. Her focus is purely on Sarah and the amount of drama she can generate to stoke her personal stimulus package. If she cared about the issues she would talk about the issues and present some ideas and possibly even a solution or two.