palinoconservative

Governor Palin seems to be a novice in a lot of things, a necessity which she has turned into virtue. Ou la chevre est lie e faut qu'elle broute. It makes her a maverick by default. In other words, factual ignorance is political bliss; grammatical errors and tortured syntax are actually representations of the righteous rage of the Sixpack demographic, which will not be fooled again by predatory lenders or the intellectual elite. Not knowing something makes her an outsider to people who do know something. And this is a good thing.

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Peggy Noonan issued a warning about the response to criticism of Palin in today's Wall Street Journal:

We saw last week, too, a turn in the McCain campaign's response to criticisms of Mrs. Palin. I find obnoxious the political game in which if you expressed doubts about the vice presidential nominee, or criticized her, you were treated as if you were knocking the real America -- small towns, sound values. 'It's time that normal Joe Six-Pack American is finally represented in the position of vice presidency,' Mrs. Palin told talk-show host Hugh Hewitt. This left me trying to imagine Abe Lincoln saying he represents 'backwoods types,' or FDR announcing that the fading New York aristocracy deserves another moment in the sun. I'm not sure the McCain campaign is aware of it -- it's possible they are -- but this is subtly divisive. As for the dismissal of conservative critics of Mrs. Palin as 'Georgetown cocktail party types' (that was Mr. McCain), well, my goodness. That is the authentic sound of the aggression, and phony populism, of the Bush White House. Good move. That ended well.

This leads me to wonder whether Peggy Noonan has missed the point, that a new formation of conservatism has coalesced around Sarah Palin. Who are the Palinoconservatives moved by the Governor's candidacy? No doubt they aren't part of Noonan's social circle. Palinoconservatives are beer drinkers (e.g., Coors) and Alaskan mothers who schlepp hockey equipment and children (e.g., decent, law-abiding people). Palinoconservatives are self-styled mavericks. They don't put much stock in book learning or polished speech. Above all, Palinoconservatives oppose the three Gs of evil: government, gay marriage, and gun control. While other conservatives identify with Teddy Roosevelt (e.g., John McCain), Palinoconservatives would rather field dress a bull moose than vote for one. Palinoconservatives aren't Neo- or Paleo-; they have little use for think-tanks or position papers. They would rather look at Salma Hayek than read Friedrich Hayek. They are the new face of the Republican party, post-Reagan, post-Gingrich, post-Bush.