Just admit you blew it

Sarah Palin hasnโt really been relevant as a political player in over a decade – even if her template has been used for the GOP to elect even more and more incompetent politicians. Neary 15 years after she resigned the governorship of Alaska because she couldnโt be bothered to actually do her job, she decided to run for federal office for the first time since seeking the vice presidency, only to lose in embarrassing fashion. It marked the first time that Democrats won a congressional race in Alaska in 50 years.
Rather than try and analyze what went wrong, Palin is reacting with outrage that she wasnโt chosen – saying that America should join her in being outraged at the ranked choice voting system that Republicans once cheerfully supported as a way of pushing their political rivals out of office. She was even more insulted that the Republican rival she ultimately beat out didnโt drop out of the race and back her. While it all sounds preposterous, this is essentially what Republicans are saying when they talk about the 2020 election being rigged.
They know they lost – so any amount of explaining that wonโt make a difference – theyโre outraged that they were rejected by the majority of the American people – particularly in Palinโs case where sheโs enraged that the other Republican in the race didnโt help her win. The fact is that itโs always about their lack of power and nothing else – and when they find themselves powerless, they ramble endlessly about how itโs everyone elseโs fault. This rant is a sign that things are where they should be – Palin was beaten before and can be beaten again, as can the rest of the GOP that we spent much of the last six years pushing back.
James Sullivan is the assistant editor of Brain World Magazine and an advocate of science-based policy making