Although the Republican National Convention is right around the corner, one conservative icon has yet to receive her invitation: Sarah Palin.
According to Newsweek, the former Alaska governor and 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee says that she has yet to receive an invite to the nominating convention.
“I’m sure I’m not the only one accepting consequences for calling out both sides of the aisle for spending too much money, putting us on the road to bankruptcy, and engaging in crony capitalism,” said Ms. Palin in an email response to Newsweek. “In accepting those consequences, one must remember this isn’t Sadie Hawkins and you don’t invite yourself and a date to the Big Dance.”
The Romney and Palin camps have never been natural allies. Ms. Palin stole the spotlight from Mr. Romney in New Hampshire early in the primary election battle, when the latter was still considered a possible 2012 presidential candidate. Newsweek points out that some of the GOP strategists who came out against Ms. Palin in 2008 now work for Mr. Romney, including Kevin Madden, who openly laughed at Ms. Palin’s inexperience during a CNN interview after the 2008 election. Today, Mr. Madden is a key spokesman for the Romney campaign.
When asked about Mr. Madden by Newsweek, Ms. Palin said that although she doesn’t know him personally, “I assume he didn’t do his homework and his disparaging remarks were due to him actually believing the BS reporting on my record and reputation that began the day I was tapped to run for VP. I’ll assume and hope he’s evolved since then, perhaps understanding now the leftist media’s agenda against candidates they oppose.”
The rocky relationship between Mr. Romney and Ms. Palin, including the lack of an invite to the convention, is not merely a difference in style or personalities. Rather, it is indicative of deeper divisions within the Republican Party. Mr. Romney represents the GOP establishment that is more at ease with the political system and their Democratic opponents. Ms. Palin represents an insurgent Tea Party that is far more adamant and enthusiastic about its policy positions and is less willing to make compromises. That tension was played out during the unusually long and acrimonious GOP primary battle.
However, Mr. Romney’s clinching of the nomination in May has not ended the tension between the GOP establishment and the Tea Party. Mr. Romney’s policy positions are not well-aligned with the Tea Party’s and his attempts to reconcile them have often resulted in accusations of inconsistency. The Tea Party movement remains unenthusiastic about Mr. Romney, says Newsweek citing a recent Washington Post poll. Ms. Palin herself has implored Mr. Romney to “light” the base’s “hair on fire”.
Mr. Romney may be avoiding engagement with Ms. Palin in order to avoid associating himself with someone who has been known for making hasty comments, but that will not likely help heal the ideological and tactical divisions within the GOP, as it moves into the general election.
Despite the absence of an invitation, the former reality TV star has been doing her part to defend Mr. Romney against the media’s “manipulation.” Speaking with Fox News’ Sean Hannity last week, Ms. Palin said that ”we are going to see the same tactics this go around. I think voters, though, are wiser, perhaps, this go-around in understanding that the media does manipulate information.”
One expert argues that Ms. Palin already plays a role, albeit an indirect one, in the upcoming GOP convention. Jennifer Lawless, director of American University’s Women and Politics Institute, says that Mr. Romney won’t pick a female VP candidate because of Ms. Palin’s legacy.
“Whoever Romney picks, if she’s a woman, would have to first demonstrate how much better than Sarah Palin she actually is, and that’s not necessarily a good use of the campaign’s time,” Ms. Lawless said, according to U.S. News & World Report.
Regardless of whether or not Ms. Palin receives an invitation to the Republican convention, the Alaska Republican is likely to stand behind the Michigan native as the general election approaches. Without a sense of unity, the Republican Party doesn’t stand a chance against President Obama in November.
