Palin’s Start in Alaska: Not Politics as Usual

[RamboLiberal]

Source: NY Times

The world arrived here more than a century ago with the gold rush and later the railroad. Yet one aspect of American life did not come to town until 1996, the year Sarah Palin ran for mayor and Wasilla got its first local lesson in wedge politics.

The traditional turning points that had decided municipal elections in this town of less than 7,000 people — Should we pave the dirt roads? Put in sewers? Which candidate is your hunting buddy? — seemed all but obsolete the year Ms. Palin, then 32, challenged the three-term incumbent, John C. Stein.

Anti-abortion fliers circulated. Ms. Palin played up her church work and her membership in the National Rifle Association. The state Republican Party, never involved before because city elections are nonpartisan, ran advertisements on Ms. Palin’s behalf.

Two years after Representative Newt Gingrich helped draft the Contract With America to advance Republican positions, Ms. Palin and her passion for Republican ideology and religious faith overtook a town known for a wide libertarian streak and for helping start the Iditarod dog sled race.

“Sarah comes in with all this ideological stuff, and I was like, ‘Whoa,’ ” said Mr. Stein, who lost the election. “But that got her elected: abortion, gun rights, term limits and the religious born-again thing. I’m not a churchgoing guy, and that was another issue: ‘We will have our first Christian mayor.’ ”



Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/03/us/politics/03wasilla.html?_r=1&hp=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1220415162-uGBff4Kg03SG7f71ZX7ffQ

[RamboLiberal]

1. Wanted to add this from OP article

Ms. Palin also upended the town’s traditional ways with a surprise edict: No employee was to talk to the news media without her permission.

This woman is a frickin nightmare! She scares me as much if not more than Cheney!

[sadbear]

2. Great! Just like *

She rode in on the coattails of the 1994 "republican revolution". She's just another one of those hyper-partisan con-artists.

[Frank Booth]

3. Frightening stuff.

[NM Independent]

4. Evidence enough to not underestimate her ability to...

bring out the wingnut fundies.

I can't even imagine the vile things she will attempt to do by abuse of power once in office. This woman is a TRUE fascist.

[uberllama42]

5. That title is disingenuous

She didn't practice municipal politics as usual, but the rub is that politics in Alaska were not like Washington politics. She took that pristine political environment and injected modern partisanship into it.

I'm not trying to say that Alaska was some utopian land of integrity before she came on the scene, but she is precisely the opposite of how they are trying to sell her.

[Anticon]

6. Now I know why she scares me,

SHE IS JUST BUSH WITH A VAGINA!!!! (It is scary if you ignore the pun, really).

The only thing she has is conservative values with absolutely no substance, just like Bush in 2000. :hide:

[progressoid]

7. Hi Anticon

Welcome to DU! :hug:

[progressoid]

8. Yikes.