WHY IS SHE SO WELL LIKED?

Surely you, too, are as sick and tired of this torturous political campaign that just seems to never end. We still have about two full months to be bombarded with exaggerated campaign rhetoric. If you think either party will raise the bar and become honest, objective, and layout a specific plan of action, then I want to suggest you buy the Brooklyn Bridge from me.

Every day the airwaves blast the results of the latest poll and those numbers jump around frequently. The latest word indicates that the Republican Party received a substantial bounce from their recent St. Paul Convention, because they selected Sarah Palin as their Vice-Presidential candidate. Only time will tell us if that poll result has long lasting legs.

The Democratic Party received a bounce from their Denver Convention too, but it was not as significant and it did not last very long. Apparently, the bitter fight that took place between Obama and the Clinton machine caused a lasting fracture in their faithful. While the pundits have spieled their positions loudly and frequently on the baggage that Hillary Clinton would bring into a ticket of Obama/Clinton, I think the issue is deeper. Hillary Clinton’s negative poll numbers were always a problem and some voters just would never accept her on the ticket.

Why Sarah Palin has caught the attention and voter awareness is a very interesting development in this hectic campaign. Yes, her resume is much thinner than some other candidates and her name awareness was somewhat of a secret. It is my position that Sara Palin is catching the imagination and following of voters, because she is different and not like all the other political candidates. SARAH PALIN SEEMS TO BE LIKE THE REST OF US.

A percentage of my readers will take serious objection to my thesis, but that is fine with the Commander. The recent comment from Pastor Rick Warren of the Saddleback Community Church applies to your Commander and I quote: “I prefer neither the left wing nor the right wing, because I like the whole bird."

I want you to think about this Palin development, and the fact that Americans are sick and tired of our professional politicians. Clearly our current leaders and political professionals cannot, and are not doing the job. Many segments of our electorate do not trust our political establishment or leadership.

Really, I do not care who you vote for in this election, but it is vital that you do vote. Some consider Obama, Biden and even Hillary Clinton are all old school political machine figures. While McCain is a long serving politician too, he has long been considered a maverick and frequently has gone against his party and George Bush’s positions. Palin may answer the average Joe’s concerns that there is no one in Washington that understands their needs, positions and desires. It is very possible that America thinks she is not pandering, but leading.

Palin appears to be like you and me more than any of the other candidates and maybe that is the answer to her appeal. I also believe that American voters do not like any candidate to even imply they are smarter than them, because they obviously are not. The pros have not done a good job, so maybe it is time for a maverick and an amateur. Like most other voters your Commander is looking for the right voting answer, too. Time will tell…It always does.

COMMANDER GRANGER