Today was suppose to be Mitt Romney's big day. Romney was to command the news cycle by formally declaring his second run for the White House. Instead the top story on Memeorandum today is how Sarah Palin knocked Romney's record on healthcare in his home state of Massachusetts.
MSNBC: In remarks made at Bunker Hill in Massachusetts -- of all places -- Sarah Palin fired a shot at Mitt Romney over the health-care mandate that Romney signed into law in the state in 2006.
The remarks came just before Romney formally announces his presidential bid in nearby New Hampshire, which Palin also plans to visit later today.
"In my opinion, any mandate coming from government is not a good thing, so obviously ... there will be more the explanation coming from former governor, Romney, on his support for government mandates," Palin told reporters today.
When a reporter followed up that Romney has distinguished his state mandate from the federal onePresident Obama signed into law in 2010, Palin responded that even state mandates are problematic.
"He makes a good argument there that it does. States rights and authority and responsibility allowed in our states makes more sense than a big centralized government telling us what to do," she said.
"However, even on a state level and even a local level, mandates coming from a governing body, it's tough for a lot of us independent Americans to accept, because we have great faith in the private sectors and our own families ... and our own businessmen and women making decisions for ourselves. Not any level of government telling us what to do."Sarah did not stop there. Palin is also driving her bus right into New Hampshire to steal even more of Mitts thunder.
Of course Palin claims that her being in New Hampshire at the same time Mitt is making his announcement is strictly coincidental. Nonsense. Palin is very politically shrewd and is hyper aware of the wattage her megaphone carries. She is deliberately raining on Mitt's parade. As to why she is stepping on Mitt's toes, there are two reasons. First, payback. Romney has taken little jabs at Palin in the past and this is the perfect opportunity to give him hell. The second reason might be that Palin (like many TEA Partiers) thinks Romney is an awful candidate and sinking him now would insure a true conservative prevails in 2012.
It is the second reason establishment conservatives should be worried about. If, as the establishment predicts, Palin doesn't run, they still need to be really concerned that she will pick off all the RINO weaklings from the sidelines for not hold true to conservative principles. Either way you slice it, Palin will play a big role in the 2012 nomination.
Via: Memeorandum
Via: Associate Press
Via: MSNBC
Video h/t: Conservatives 4 Palin