Donald Trump is talking to Sarah Palin tonight on the One America News network, Ms. Palin announced today on her Facebook page. Hmm, might this be an important meeting of the maverick minds? Is it possible Trump could even sound out Palin on the prospect of running as his VP?
We can’t predict things will go that far. But it’s clear The Donald and Mama Grizzly are mutual fans. They share a disdain for the GOP establishment and the mainstream media. Both are born performers with fervent political bases.
“She really is somebody who knows what’s happening and she’s a special person,” Mr. Trump said of Palin during a talk radio appearance last month.
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One America News Network is a small conservative cable/digital news outlet that’s been around since 2013. Among its offerings is a political show called “On Point” that currently features Palin as a weekday host.
Trump’s a great get for Palin in her journalistic role, of course. He’s the hugest story in politics at the moment and sure to draw attention and ratings. (Whatever happened to her "Amazing America" series, anyway?)
Palin is also supposed to separately interview Jeb Bush, by the way. Maybe Scott Walker will be next.
For Trump, the interview highlights his campaign style. Not for him the diner-to-diner slog through New Hampshire, à la Bernie Sanders. His idea of the campaign trail is the ride from Trump Tower to a New York sound studio. His many, many interviews have made him inescapable on the airwaves. And they’ve allowed him to sleep in his own bed.
Even his highly visible trips, such as his appearance at the Iowa State Fair with his own copter, have been day excursions. You can do that when your primary mode of transport is a personal Boeing.
“Trump has run a political campaign essentially without ever having left home,” writes Philip Bump at The Washington Post’s Fix political blog.
And the fact is that Trump and Palin have long had a “political love affair," in the words of CNN. That’s what lends some credence to the occasional chatter that if Trump actually wins, Palin might ride along as his VP nominee.
New York, Alaska. Times Square, fresh air. That’s old school geographical ticket balance.
Palin’s backed Trump’s immigration proposals as “common sense." When Trump got in trouble for declining to recognize Sen. John McCain as a hero, due to the fact he was shot and imprisoned by the North Vietnamese, Palin tried to serve as a peacemaker. While her old running mate McCain had dedicated his life to serving his country, Trump was “a hero in another arena," she said.
Trump’s called her a “strong person” and said he’d love to have her serve in his Cabinet. He’s also hired a former Palin aide as his national political director.
Asked directly, Palin has said she’d leave the door open to running as Trump’s VP. But really, would she put herself through that again? (That is, assuming Trump wins the nomination.) A second tour as VP nominee seems unlikely, given the difficulties Palin experienced the first time around
By Peter Grier, Staff writer
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