A Contrast in Leadership
By Steven Osborne | Friday, February 13th, 2009 | Catch-AllDuring this past election, many conservatives including myself, pointed to the fact that Governor Palin had executive experience, while Barack Obama had none.
This most recent stimulus debate has proven us to be correct in our assesment. President Obama could have prevented much of the pork from being entered into this bill had he simply exercised his power as Chief Legislator and submitted his own draft of the bill. Instead he gave general guidelines, and let Pelosi and Reid have at it. This showed a serious lapse in leadership on the part of President Obama.
Compare that to Governor Palin. While her legislative situation is on a smaller scale, she still runs a microcosm of the federal government. She has developed an energy plan that is one of the boldest in the nation, she has also submitted a fifty year economic diversity plan for Alaska. Her administration developed the plan and then submitted those plans to the Alaska legislature. She did not hand all of the decision making over to the legislative process.
So next time you hear someone talking about how brainy and intelligent President Obama is, while suggesting that Sarah Palin is unintelligent, consider this little compare and contrast session, and you be the judge.
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About the author
Steven Osborne is a grassroots conservative activist from Central Virginia. He is currently furthering his education at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. In addition to writing for Bearing Drift he is also a columnist for the Christian Law Journal.
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14 Responses to "A Contrast in Leadership"
Too funny. The PORK QUEEN (you do know that Alaska under Palin LEADS the nation in PORK PER PERSON, right?) would have kept the pork out.
Seriously, she was dumb, dangerous (remember her little run in with the GOP controlled legislature of Alaska for abuse of power?), uneducated, not intellectually curious, and oh btw had a husband who wanted to seceed from America.
Jeez, you can criticize Obama for not being perfect, you can even criticize the pork in the bill (though you should also note that more GOP amendments to the bill were accepted than Democratic ones) but give me a break. Palin?
Along those lines, you do realize that somewhere between (depending on the poll) 65% – 75% of Americans think he’s doing a great job, right? Thanks W for setting the bar so low…
‘Pork-per-person’? High federal expenditures per person are normal in a state where federal parks are the largest (per person) in the nation, where Native Americans are the highest percentage of the population, where national forests are the largest per person, where the size and amount of defense installation is highest per person.
If you feel the feel government should sell off its parks or national forests, stop recognizing native American status, or cut defense spending more than Obama’s current 11%; step right up and say so. Until then, what you now call “pork” is what you —the left— has been whining for as essential to our nation.
Everyone else except Markon realizes the Governor of a state —Governor Palin in this case— has no force or authority in generating federal pork. Now who looks uneducated? Not the Governor.
But Markon, it was a nice try to deflect from Palin knowing how to control a budget by exersizing “. . . power as Chief Legislator and submitted his [or her] own draft of the bill”.
Obama hasn’t caught on to what Palin knew all along. Thanks for the reminder, Steven.
well said, Steven.
Whatever, your spin is factually incorrect; regardless, it doesn’t change the fact that she was the next Dan Quayle. It seems like the GOP lately either nominates morons (Quayle/ Palin) or cowards (Cheney) to be a VP.
I only hope that y’all on the right do decide to make her the ceterpiece of the con future. Y’all will be wandering alone in the woods for years to come b/c most of sane (non-GOP) America recognized that she (heck, you can throw the GOP in that pot too) was in WAY over her head.
GET OVER IT!
You lost, get over it!
All this whining, all this teeth gnashing, all this childish hang wringing only confirms why the Republicans lost the Presidential election, but more importantly why they lost Virginia.
You Republicans have, by your own doings, made yourselves inconsequential.
I compared what I saw, with my own eyes. Sarah Palin couldn’t do a simple, easy interview with Katie Couric and answer some simple questions, “what newpapers to you read”? Palin “uh, all of them”
Obama ran a nationwide campaign that out-did the Clintons for God’s sake! How much more organized can that be? Then he beat the Republicans very handily.
Yet you want to imply that Obama isn’t “intelligent”????
And PLEASE STOP SAYING YOU’RE A “conservative”. YOU AREN’T.
YOU ARE A REPUBLICAN. The two are as different as night and day.
I am a Virginia Conservative. NOT A REPUBLICAN. I vote for the best candidate, not a party.
This board is infested with juveniles who think they are “conservative” and for some reason, think they speak for “conservatives” when they are neither. Its why you republicans keep losing elections so badly.
GET A GRIP. GET A CLUE. GIMME A BREAK!
Sarah Palin was, and is mentally unprepared for national public office and will sink you republicans. But I also know that you republicans, don’t consider or think anyone elses views have any validity, so you’ll keep losing election after election until you are gone.
DEMOCRATS WILL TAKE THE VIRGINIA HOUSE THIS YEAR AND LOSE THE GOVERNORS RACE. then you’ll be where you belong. The sidelines.
McDonnell supported HB3202 and helped negotiate it. Do you really think real Virginia Conservatives will support this candidate who violated his oath of office by supporting this unconstitutional law?
Just please stop saying you are a “conservative” you aren’t! Its annoying to those of use who really are “conservatives”.
I think it was about 6 and a half years I had to listen to “Bush was selected, not elected”
You lefties can handle a month or two.
As a Libertarian that complains about Republicans not being conservative anymore, I would agree with some of the points that Jim made. There is something about these Anti-Palin posts however, that bothers me though.
Palin lost…..get over it. If you ask me, she was preferable to McCain. McCain was one of the biggest reasons the GOP lost.
But, I’m digressing a bit. Palin lost, why there is still a psychological need to bash Palin….who lost…..is beyond me.
I think there are two processes at work: a) we have individuals like the poster who continue to author pieces defending Palin (which satisfies a separate psycological need), and b) then there is the curiosity of individuals like yourself who claim that she was “preferable to McCain.”
Seriously, I don’t get it and I don’t understand how anyone with the ability to find their way to a computer could author those words. Say what you will about John McCain, he’s a true American hero, he has always acted in what he believed to be the best interests of the nation, and his ethical and moral standards are above reproach. (Confession: I supported Sen. McCain in 1999). Palin reflected none of these qualities, and… well, you get the idea.
“Seriously, I don’t get it and I don’t understand how anyone with the ability to find their way to a computer could author those words.”-Mark
Mark, some people like yourself, find it difficult to imagine that other people might have other preferences and opinions.
I don’t dispute McCain’s being a “war hero” however, it takes more than that to make a strong candidate. McCain alienated a large portion of his base while running to the left. You can’t really dispute that and it is a major reason as to why he went with Palin. That reason was to bring out the disenfranchised “far right” vote. However, we vote for president and not vice president. After the initial euphoria, conservatives had to decide whether they wanted to even bother showing up for McCain. To some, if you’re going to have a liberal in the White House either way, you might as well have one that doesn’t pretend not to be one. Some of us are tired of voting for the “lesser of two evils”.
The fact remains, McCain/Palin lost. At least Cheney made it to office. I don’t get the continuing hatred spewing out at Palin. She lost…..the Dems should just get over it. She’s not even a factor at this point.
I’ll beat the Palin drum all day long. The media let Joe Biden say anything, including his claim that he visits constituents at a restaurant that closed in the 80s.
Palin needed to to know the middle name of every foreign leaders second cousin.
Some have suggested that this post is rehashing the past. It is not. Rather it is pointing to a current event and how the President and the Governor of America’s 49th state are responding to it.
Now, after all of the Palin hating and bashing, calling her “stupid,” “dumb,” and most ridiculously the “pork queen,” the critics still have yet to disprove my point, Governor Palin’s leadership skills are superior to President Obama’s.
Are you kidding? If you count leadership skills as including intimidating state employees, playing games with state per diem rules (so that you can live at home and be paid as if you were traveling), playing games with the state’s travel rules (so that you can take your daughter with you on a junket to NY), lying about selling a jet on e-bay, lying about her clothes, lying about her background…
She’s a friggin mess – I believe the only reason that she has any traction at all with a minority of the GOP base is because the rest of us recognize what a dangerous moron she is – and y’all just want to be contrarians. What else could explain such illogical behavior?
I don’t know, Mark. Obama’s increasing troop levels and cutting taxes – change!
Oh, and appointing a bunch of people with problems paying their taxes (or as you would say, playing games).
Obama’s treasury secretary was such a nothing, that after one speech, the market dropped like a rock.
Mark, you don’t have to be a contrarian. All it takes is honesty. Obama’s flailing so far.
“If you count leadership skills as including intimidating state employees”
Mark, are you talking about the state employee that likes to tazer children?
The Jet Ebay thing wasn’t a complete lie. She did put it on Ebay. I believe it was sold but, not on Ebay. A little license with the truth but, in effect her point was still bonafide. Didn’t keep the jet and sold it. “There is no there there.”
If Palin is breaking laws in travel expense use then bring her up on charges. I said the same thing about “Travel Gate” remember that one?
“I believe the only reason that she has any traction at all with a minority of the GOP base ” – Mark
Seriously Mark. She had clear support in the GOP and not a minority. That is the real reason why she was attacked so viciously eventhough it was actually McCain running for President. Republicans need to just face the fact that McCain wasn’t a good candidate. If the opposition ignores you and continually hammers your VP then you must not be worth the effort.
Ya know, I thought she wasn’t really a big factor now. After all, she was a VP nominee from Alaska that lost. I’m beginning to second guess that opinion. She lost but, she is sstill continually brought up. She must be more than the Governor of Alaska. She must be a true future threat to the Democrats. Otherwise……..why would you bother mentioning her name?
Brian, I’m defending a Republican this time. Do I get credit for that?
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