Palin Unites the Right

Okay, I’ve watched the Palin Pick play out a little bit.

Let me go ahead and say that my original concerns from this morning remain. I really truly think Sarah Palin is awesome, but she doesn’t seem to fit into the theme of the campaign. If you’re going to seriously consider for Vice-President a former beauty queen with only slightly less than 2 years as governor, running a campaign calling your opponent a celebrity and whether he’s ready to lead and taking knocks at experience.

That said, what I think I failed to do this morning was that I underestimated how it would galvanize the right.

Mike Huckabee says, it’s good and so does the Club for Growth. That in itself is like the Hatfields and McCoys agreeing, and the e-mails pouring into the Corner are overwhelmingly positive. Joe Carter is pumped.

Here, though, is the big deal. It’s not just though. Several people I’ve considered hard cases who I could never imagine voting for McCain or thought it was incredibly unlikely would support McCain seem to have come around. Mark Levin is a hold out no more. Bill at Free In Idaho has come around. Cat from Cathouse Chat who switched from Republican to Independent is on board and even sent a donation.  Michelle Malkin has been one of McCain’s harshest critics on the right, but she’s singing a different tune today and 92% of her readers say they are onboard with McCain/Palin.

Geraldine Ferraro was talking up the Palin nomination on Fox and she may have a shot with a lot of Hillary Supporters who do not think women’s rights begin and end with abortion:

(Hat Tip: Hot Air.)

And you have to think that the Obama campaign totally botched their first response to Sarah Palin by going on the attack immediately against Palin. That came off really poorly after McCain’s gracious ad during the convention.

Plus Biden’s mouth could really come into play here in a debate against Sarah Palin.

The experience issue looms and McCain may have overplayed Obama’s inexperience if he was going to pick Palin, but in the long-term, the President is not the Vice-President, and I think you can make a case on Palin’s experience as well. Though her character is entirely different, it’s comparable to that of Spiro Agnew who had served several years in local office and was less than halfway through his first pic as Governor.  In addition, Palin’s experience is mostly executive experience: Mayor and Governor compared to Obama’s legislative resumes.

McCain took a risk, and it’s still open as to whether it will work out in the long run, but today in one decisive move, John McCain brought the Republican Party as close to unity as it gets. I’ve not seen Conservatives so jazzed since 2004.

Heretofore what McCain has offered conservatives is, “I’m not Obama.” There was nothing to vote for. Now there is. Sarah Palin has brought the party together. I’m no McCain fan, but despite my reservations I think the pick worked.

UPDATE:

Speaking of hard cases, David @ Third World Country is on board with “Palin and Whatshisname” and the Ultimate hard case Richard Viguerie  is on board.