Ann Coulter: Palin Has More Influence than a President
Sarah Palin said this week that she could potentially jump into the 2012 presidential race if no other good Republican candidate steps up. But conservative political commentator Ann Coulter said this morning that she doesn't think Palin will run and that her remarks were probably intended to influence other Republicans.
"It's kind of a threat to Republican presidential candidates: 'You better be saying the right things or maybe I will get in,'" Coulter said on the CBS "Early Show" this morning. "But to give up what she has now and run for president would be like Rush [Limbaugh] giving it up and running for president. She has more influence than a president does."
By keeping open the possibility of running for president, Palin can potentially persuade candidates to stay true to conservative values, Coulter said: "No more John McCains, no more Bob Doles."
While Coulter may think Palin has more influence than the president, Democratic strategist Maria Cardona told "Early Show" anchor Harry Smith that President Obama remains a "huge asset" for Democrats running for re-election this November. However, she added, Democrats would be wise to focus on their own districts and draw a distinction between the Democratic and Republican parties.
"It would behoove Democrats to make that distinction between what the Democrats would... continue to offer in terms of the change that everybody voted for, and everybody's frustration has been that that change has not come fast enough," she said. "If Republicans come into power, we are clearly seeing from this 'Pledge to America' they would put the insurance industry back in power, Wall Street back in power, and, frankly, middle-class families and working-class families would, once again, go to the back burner."
The "Pledge to America" is the legislative agenda unveiled by House Republicans yesterday. Coulter added that the "Pledge" is made up of "common-sense proposals" -- some that are so fundamental, "you can't believe this isn't already the case."
