Quotes of the day

“‘I’m sure at some point I will be going to Iowa,’ Palin said during a visit to Fort McHenry in Baltimore. ‘At some point.’…

“Palin and her family were mobbed by television cameras after her arrival at Fort McHenry, the fort that famously defended Baltimore from a British assault during the War of 1812. The battle served as the inspiration for the national anthem, Francis Scott Key’s ‘Star Spangled Banner.’…

“While she declared herself ‘satisfied” with the Republicans who are already in the process of campaigning, she said the field ‘is going to change up a lot.’”

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“Palin gets mad when the ‘media’ cover bloopers she makes, like her coinage of the word ‘refudiate.’ The press–as distinct from the partisan media–-incorporates these errors into its lack-of-readiness narrative. Palin does not make a distinction between a political press corps that thinks she’s not ready and a tribal belief among some Democrats that she is not smart. She does not distinguish TMZ from PBS. In her world, Bill Maher is Katie Couric. The New York Times is Daily Kos. Palin seems to genuinely believe that the press is unremittingly hostile to her. She believes that her children have been subject to humiliation and harassment.

“Palin says that the people who cover politics for a living have a negative disposition toward her because of her faith. Plenty of evangelical candidates are given a fair shake by the press. Mike Huckabee’s candidacy was boosted because the press corps actively liked him. Tim Pawlenty holds nearly every position ascribed to Sarah Palin and is not mistreated by the press, nor is he ridiculed for his beliefs. And the media that allegedly mistreats Palin somehow remains obsessed with anything she does. Every utterance is a national news story; every tweet triggers news cycles full of analysis. Palin has redefined what it means to get ‘free media.’

“On the campaign trail, she can be incredibly compelling. She forges an emotional bond with her audience, the type of bond that Mitt Romney has not managed to achieve. But until Palin figures out how to cross the plausibility threshold among the press and the Republican elites, she will remain at a disadvantage.”

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“Is she giving a press conference today? or giving another interview? I don’t think so. She can’t – or at least as far as I know she can’t. She works for Fox, and just as with any employee or someone on contract with another network, she is contractually obliged NOT to speak to others. For instance, when I was in Haiti, I could not interview CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta or when I want to talk politics, I can’t interview CNN’s Donna Brazile. They work for another network. As far as I know, her contract is like every other media contract and that means it would be a breach of contract to speak to other media outlets. ** I have not seen her contract but assume it is the routine media contract. She is in an unusual situation in that we in the media have made her into a media topic by virtue of us always talking about her. She, of course, contributes to that intense interest by painting a bus and taking a tour and taking a tour to historic sites.

Where is her bus tour going ? You got me. My producer who talked to someone who works with her in order to set up the interview told me last night that he would not tell her. We were told to check their website for any information they are releasing. He said they don’t want the media following them and that includes us. Well…with the intense interest in her by everyone (almost everyone) in the media, that is, I suspect, going to happen. The media will probably be in hot pursuit.”

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Via the Daily Beast.

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