New School Politics

By early this morning conventional picks, including Pawlenty and Romney, have all admitted that they have not been tapped to run with John McCain on the GOP ticket.

In light of this news, word broke early this morning that an unidentified private plane arived in Ohio this morning from Anchorage, AK from which a woman and two teenagers were reported exiting.

Now CNBC and the Chicago Tribune are confirming that it was Palin according to their Republican source.

By all means this is a surprising and historic pick, that actually should please reform-minded conservatives. Palin is an outsider in every way imaginable. She took on the Stevens-Murkowski-Young-style Alaska political machine, defeated the incumbent GOP governor in the 2006 primary, took on all sorts of ethics reform, and has an approval rating around 80%. She has made some of the biggest budget cuts in her state’s history and has presided over a historic fiscal surplus (that must foremost be credited to the boom in oil prices).

She is also, of course, a woman. A 44-year-old mother of five, she is three years younger than Barack Obama and has four more children than Hillary Clinton. She is a self-proclaimed soccer mom, life-time NRA member, and pro-lifer. She has been friendly to gay rights in maverick-fashion while remaining against gay marriage.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, 24 years ago she won second place in the Miss Alaska beauty pageant and, if I do say so myself, remains quite attractive today.

So, in light of this historic moment, let me be the first to coin the term: V.P.I.L.F. (if not culturally deft, heres a hint)

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