The XX Factor: What women really think.

Déjà Vu

Seems to me, Juliet, that it's not just sexism that is driving conservatives away from Sarah Palin in droves. It's déjà vu. I write here as one who heard President Bush speak a few times during his first trip to Europe in the summer of 2001 and was impressed: He didn't sound as stupid as one had been led to believe; he seemed to have a feel for history; one was inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt—and what a mistake that was.

I was also inclined to give Palin the benefit of the doubt for a few days—until she opened her mouth and started babbling about Putin coming into our airspace. This time I'm not giving her an extra year to get her talking points straight. Once burned, twice shy: Personally, I've had it with politicians from "the heartland" who haven't ever thought much about foreign countries or national issues. I don't care how good their "instincts" are or how "authentic" their political experience: If that experience doesn't include a large dose of foreign travel and a long acquaintance with the history of health care and Social Security reform, then they aren't qualified for the White House.   

Besides, a few years spent writing about Congress taught me to be wary of allegedly "conservative" politicians who talk very loudly about "getting the government off our backs" but scramble for subsidies on behalf of their constituents at every opportunity. There is some evidence that Palin falls into this subgroup as well, or has at times. Haven't we been there, done that, already, too?