British paper: McCain to put Palin in charge of energy independence as president

A cost-free way to bolster her credibility on policy. Why didn’t they leak it to the Times instead?

John McCain wants to put Sarah Palin in charge of US oil and energy policy if he becomes president, The Sunday Telegraph has learned…

Mr McCain, whose selection of Mrs Palin has electrified Republican supporters, wants to capitalise on her expertise in the oil and gas sector while governor of Alaska. He believes that her record of taking on oil company chiefs will help convince the public that his government would not be in the pocket of energy fat cats, a perception that has damaged George W.Bush’s poll ratings…

Mr McCain discussed the role Mrs Palin would play in government as well as the election campaign when he held a three-hour getting-to-know-you session two weeks ago.

To assuage angry green activists, the prospective vice president will also be charged with overseeing a dramatic increase in federal support for the development of clean coal and electric car technology, as well as the spread of wind and solar power.

Another scooplet that’s not much of a scoop: Supposedly he’s already pencilled in Lieberman for State or Defense, and might announce that before the election to push his maverick bona fides. As for the ‘Cuda, you can anticipate the left’s response: Why not make her Secretary of Energy rather than VP? A fair point. Now if they’ll only tell me who McCain should have named as VP instead who would have catalyzed conservatives and threatened Obama’s lock on the woman vote the way she has, then they’ll have an actual argument.

Exit question: How important to McCain’s VP reasoning was Palin’s background in energy? I’m trying to imagine her as governor of Nevada, say; same compelling narrative, same cowboy appeal, same experience in managing an economy, but no expertise with any hot-button issue. Was her oil cred the deciding factor? McCain’s already got Obama beat on that point, but this puts an exclamation point on it.

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