Barbara Bush's Gift to Sarah Palin
(and America)

During her recent interview with Larry King, former First Lady and “First Mother” Barbara Bush was asked what she thought of Sarah Palin, and replied that she had sat next to Governor Palin once, thought she was beautiful, and (snark, snark) hoped she would stay in Alaska. Her husband, Bush 41, chipped in with his endorsement of Mitt Romney as the Presidential candidate he most favors in 2012.

These unscripted moments are tremendous gifts to the American people, because they crystallize what Americans feel but cannot always put into words. They present ‘aha!’ revelations, when critical pieces of brush are removed from a path that is becoming ever so clear.

In Mrs. Bush’s case (with help from George H.W.), she has just given the American tea party movement invaluable confirmation of the nature of the real problem facing America: a ruling class elitism that needs a radical purging if America is to get back on track with America’s heritage of God-given exceptionalism. The Bushes, whatever their virtues, absolutely epitomize this elitism—and Barbara Bush has just confirmed this in a 10-second exchange that a thousand essays couldn’t match.

Sarah Palin is a one-woman wrecking ball unleashed on the entire edifice of elitism. It is just stunning the way she gets under the skin of elites of every flavor. We wrote of this phenomenon over a year ago in relation to National Review’s Rich Lowry and his scorn over Palin’s decision to resign the Alaskan governorship. But while Lowry represented a lot of conventional wisdom, we wrote at the time:

For our part, having watched and listened to Governor Palin’s announcement, we can understand why the entire elite Political Class—Democrat, RINO and Northeastern Republican—are scared to death of her and of what she represents. She connects with real people—with normal people who work hard, love their families, do not worship celebrities, do not see elected officials as an anointed ‘ruling class’; who spot lies and liars from a mile away; and for whom a half million dollars in legal fees is real money. She is grounded in everything good and right about America, and she makes elitism quiver with the sheer substance of her presence.

We won’t add to the speculation as to whether or when she will or will not run for President. But having listened to her actual announcement, the one thing we know we did not hear was a message of quit or of retreat. We sense a plan to take dead aim at the personal destruction machine that has been attacking her, and deliver a slap upside the head they won’t be able to deal with. …

Again, for our part, we believe a revolution is coming, and while it may have some left-right dimensions to it, the bigger driver may be the wholesale rejection of elitism. What the elitists don’t understand is that the opposition to them is not comprised of hayseed hicks and rednecks—the opposition covers the full spectrum of humanity, including many who are among the best educated, affluent, well-read and articulate members of society. Their unifying characteristic is not education level or net worth, but a sense of faith, gratitude and humility before God, and love for the idea of America. The founding fathers had this characteristic, and every one of them towers over the midgets of modern punditry. But the kindred spirit of the founding fathers is found in Sarah Palin.

We mentioned ‘the midgets of modern punditry’. George Will certainly wouldn’t identify himself that way, but he is just as eager as Lowry and other elitists to drive Palin out of the political scene. In the latest round of Sunday news shows, he was happy to pronounce his considered view that Palin wouldn’t run for President because, in his worldview, it is the all-important ‘independents’ who decide elections, and these all-important independents have made up their mind that Sarah Palin should not be President.

We think Will’s read of ‘independents’ is shaped by an outdated Pravda playbook that places independents in the ‘bipartisan’ middle that is believed by Pravda and the Beltway elites to exist between Democrats and Republicans. We think the truth, as the tea party movement has revealed, is that the prevailing mindset of ‘independents’ is much more closely aligned with the America of the founding. In today’s politics, that makes them to the right of the Republican establishment, not in between the Democrat and Republican establishments.

And as for Will’s notion that these independents ‘have made up their mind’ on Sarah Palin as President, there is really one simple response: no, they haven’t, because Sarah Palin has never run for President. If and when she decides to run, she will be presenting herself in a different setting and a different time than has ever been presented before. They will take a fresh look because she will force them to take a fresh look.

We’re ‘all-in’ for Sarah Palin as the right person at the right time to lead a restoration of the America of the founding. We think there never has been a better time to present a stark contrast between godless intellectualism/elitism and the more humble and reverential American spirit and normalcy that she embodies. She is the only visible leader with both the intelligence and guts to call Obamacare’s end-of-life counseling committees the ‘death panels’ that they are; to call the media not only the ‘lamestream media’ but also ‘corrupt bastards’ when they engage in conduct that deserves that label; and she is the only visible leader who will step up and say American airport security ought to profile Muslim terrorists and screen for them.

A lot of conventional wisdom says that these are the words of a leader who is too outspoken and controversial and ‘unelectable’. We think they are the words of 65%-70% of Americans.

Shakespeare coined the phrase ‘truth will out’. He was right, and it is a beautiful thing to watch. Barbara Bush is a good and decent person who unwittingly has served as the latest validation for Shakespeare’s phrase, though not with the impact Mrs. Bush intended.

Ruling class elitism is the disease afflicting America (and Barbara Bush). Sarah Palin is the antidote.

Paul Gable

November 24, 2010