So here’s a challenge to the media: if you want to do justice to conservative ideas and find some balance in your coverage tomorrow, book serious Republicans with original ideas on your programs. If you don’t, Palin is giving herself a voice at your expense and through little effort of her own…

This is the reality. Palin has policy credibility problems. Big ones. A few op-eds aren’t going to help her. But if the media treats her as as a legitimate and influential voice today, she won’t need to do the hard work that will result in her learning more about policy and actually becoming conversant in the issues that she, as a potential presidential candidate, will deal with.

If Palin were writing about oil and energy, about her experience in state government on health care, if she were making a new argument — then my umpiric objections would vanish.