Tim Rutten on Sarah Palin: Cunning, off the charts

In our pages, the L.A. Times' Tim Rutten reviews Sarah Palin's "America by Heart: Reflections on Family, Faith, and Flag," giving her high marks for cunning, if not sincerity.

Two interesting things stand out in this latest manifesto (and, make no mistake, that's what it is): One is that Palin clearly has widened her circle of advisors, at least when it comes to her uncredited ghost writers, who have stitched a veritable laundry list of current conservative preoccupations into "America by Heart," along with extended quotations from an array of figures, including Margaret Thatcher, James Q. Wilson, poet Karl Shapiro and all the requisite Founders and Framers (De Tocqueville too, of course). The other -- and perhaps most instructive -- thing to be gleaned from this book is just how shrewd a politician Palin is. Professional political consultants sometimes like to talk about a candidate's "RLC quotient." The acronym stands for Rat-Like Cunning -- and it's meant to be a compliment indicating not only a deep instinctual shrewdness but also a willingness to fight ruthlessly when forced.

Off the evidence in "America by Heart," Palin's RLC quotient is off the charts...

When Palin resigned as governor of Alaska, a number of experienced pundits firmly opined that she'd committed political suicide. They didn't reckon on her shrewd political instincts, which were telling her — correctly, as it turns out — how much easier it would be to seek the presidency as the unaccountable symbol of a populist upwelling than it would be from the statehouse.

Is anyone likely to pick up Sarah Palin's "America by Heart" who isn't already in her corner? Perhaps -- if there is anyone left in the country who hasn't yet decided what they think of the polarizing, highly visible former governor of Alaska.

-- Carolyn Kellogg

Photo: Sarah Palin speaks at an Iowa Republican Party fundraising dinner in September. Credit: Steve Post / EPA

Comments

[Katie]

Cunning is as cunning does. Sarah Palin has yet to show the slightest interest in the hard work, commitment, and most importantly, the ability to take responsibility that goes along with being POTUS. Sure, she's pretty, and you betcha, she's learned how to tap the anger of many Americans and turn it into something that works for her, but she has no credible accomplishments to show she is worthy of being POTUS. Getting someone to research DeToqueville, constantly showing her blatant disrespect for the current president, refusing to let ANY kind of real or imagined rebuke slide by her, and making piles of money off all the free publicity she gets may be cunning, but it certainly isn't presidential. I'm willing to bet she'll never put herself in the running - she gets a lot more attention and a lot more money being the celebrity mouth she is right now, and she doesn't have anyone to be accountable to.

[idesign]

Be afraid libs, very afraid.....

[sodakhic]

Sarah's timing, instincts, and cunning are uncanny. If she hadn't resigned she would just be coming out of the state house broke, depressed and ready to stay home and live her life. She would just be starting to write Going Rogue. She couldn't do any politicing in Alaska or the haters would whip out a complaint. As it is she has all that behind her, free as a bird and 20 million richer, The question is does she want to sit in a stuffy government office all day or be free. I think her sacrafice for the great US of A will overwhelm the life of ease and she will jump in either Feb or Mar

[Amy]

It isn't just the "libs" who should be afraid, my friend. This woman is a fruitcake. She may sure be purty on the outside, but on the inside she positively stinks.

A Palin presidency would either: 1) Start a civil war (and I for one would be on the FRONT LINES); or 2) Cause a mass exodus (and I for one would be first on board), leaving the rest of the idiots behind to split into tiny little pockets of lunatics and put up little gated communities.

Think it couldn't happen?

[Willard]

Oh I can hardly wait for her to run. Polarizing? This will divide the Repuglican Party like no tomorrow. Yee Ha! Wait until she has media interviews and those DEBATES! The presidential campaign will coincide about the time when her perimenopause kicks in. Comedy just doesn't get any better than this.

[Radiance]

As fabulous writer Tammy Bruce says: "I follow the Mayan calendar. The world will end for liberals in 2012 with two words: President. Palin. "

:)

[Jilly]

Sarah isn't polarizing - she was polarized by the media who spent all their effort trying to destroy her so their pet - the unvetted 1/2 black community organizer teleprompter reader - would be elected. If they had done their job, as anticipated by our Constitution and founders - who believed that a free and honest press were fundamental to a democracy, then we would have known a lot more about who got elected instead of, as Tom Brokaw and Charlie Rose lamented after the election, "we don't really know much about him".

To me there is nothing polarizing about being pro-American and anti-corruption no matter which side of the aisle is corrupt, and living within your means. But that's just old fashioned me, who grew up in an age before we elected our first Anti-American POTUS.

[John Skookum]

Love this lady and cannot wait to call her Madam President. She'll be fantastic.

[sandra]

Just let her keep on doing what she is doing. Book sales and adoring fans aside, she is well on her way to doing herself in. It's pure entertainment from here on out.

[James]

I have said this since the very first day that Sarah Palin walked onto the world stage: "She will be the first female President of the United States." Everyone who thinks because they feel she is in-artful, dumb as a brick, or annoying, that she won't be elected, is kidding themselves. I have to say that I am a huge fan. She is consistently conservative. She is fiercely independent. She also is privately surrounding herself with great conservative, political intellectuals. She's no dummy. She might sound like one, but rest assured America, her policies will be right on target. She's smart enough to know that if you want to be great, then you must surround yourself with advisers that you feel are more intelligent than you are. Obama was a Harvard professor: apparently ivy-league schools don't good leaders make. Go Sarah, Go!

[Katie]

Amazing she has any fans at all, let alone people who really think this woman is capable of leading this great nation of ours. Maybe, maybe if she went back to school and learned about the constitution, American history, world geography, and economics, and maybe if she took her communication degree seriously and learned how to articulate a coherent sentence, and maybe if she learned a little diplomacy and humility, and maybe if she understood that there are a lot more people in this country than those she smugly deems "real Americans"....

[Matt]

Question: do you think she actually believes half the things she says? Her inflection is filled with so many gaffes and discrepancies, her track record, politically, is on rock grounds at the best of times, and when she speaks, she doesn't exactly say anything.

Palin may say she's interested in being President of the United States, but I don't think she actually wants that. The more and more she appears on TV, the more and more I think she realizes that she wields stronger influence by rattling off her talking points and brewing in the misguided anger of her followers than if she were actually a leader, among many other leaders.

[Ed]

I agree Palin was nowhere near as qualified as Obama to be President. I mean Obama was a successful mayor and chief executive of a U.S. city prior to running for president! Oh wait, I think that was Sarah. I’m sorry. Well at least Obama was Governor and Chief Executive Officer of the largest State in the union. Oh wait, I think that was Sarah again. I’m sorry. Well at least Obama was Commander in Chief of the men and women of the National Guard of his State. Oh wait I think that was Sarah again. I’m sorry. Well at least Obama ran a successful family fishing business and all that entailed which included employing others and meeting payroll. Oh wait on I think that was Sarah again. It’s fun and rather disturbing to watch you Liberals having uncontrollable convulsions over all things Sarah Palin. It's Palin Derangement Syndrome in all its Glory. Love It!!! I hope the liberal media along with all you detractors and haters continue to attack and under-estimate the admiration, love and power real America has for Gov. Sarah Palin and her family. So be afraid. Be very afraid and continue to throw your tantrums. You idiots got spanked at the midterms and you'll be spanked again in 2012. RUN SARAH RUN!!!

[carolinem]

Retract your claws, Tim. There must have been plenty of eye rolling when you got the Palin book review assignment, the book subject lacking the erudite geological and climatological university degrees of Al Gore, the open minded multi-racial embracing of Al Sharpton, the high moral standards of Bill Clinton, or the theological sophistication of Rev. Jeremiah Wright. That Rutten finds Palin a threat to the digestion of the wine-and-brie and NPR crowd is without doubt, but it’s a bit funny to find the former Alaska governor such a bête noir for the hypersensitive Left.

[laughwell]

Who care if she is cunning or shrewd political instincts, She is an empty airhead that is a puppet to her advisors. It dosn't take much IQ to be a narcissistic sociopath and feed the ignorance masses. She is a master manipulator
and a person that is quite scary with a mental disorder and is so delusional to want to be the first woman president and doesn't even care what it intails for the american people/