the summer of 1999, a team of elite foreign affairs experts descended upon Austin, Texas. They called themselves “The Vulcans.”
Among them were Condoleezza Rice, Richard Armitage and Stephen Hadley – three global titans of our time. The then-governor of Texas, George W. Bush, was already considered the GOP front-runner for the 2000 presidential election. As a governor, however, he lacked foreign policy credentials. The Vulcans were on a mission to change that. Whether or not one agrees with Governor Bush’s worldview that was cultivated throughout his Vulcan education, he learned, and learned a lot.
After viewing Charles Gibson’s interview of Governor Sarah Palin last week on ABC, my initial reaction was that she did a superb job answering his tough and condescending questions. She hammered home the campaign talking points without veering off message, which would have been disastrous given how rudimentary her knowledge clearly appeared to be regarding the international arena.
Since she will be a heartbeat away from the most powerful post in the world if John McCain wins in November, I sincerely hope that a team of experts are, as I write, giving her a how-the-world-really-works crash course a la the Vulcans in 1999.
It comes as no surprise that Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddox, Roland Martin and other disagreeable and obnoxious elements of the cable news media repeatedly remind us of Sarah Palin’s unworthiness, almost as though their opinions transcend the democratic process.
Although the commentary of these biased talking heads generally does not hold water, some of their questions regarding Palin’s lack of experience are justified. What’s not justified is attacking her pregnant daughter.
The Olbermanns of the world conveniently overlook what I perceive to be the obvious. If McCain is elected, Sarah Palin will be second-string to arguably the most qualified president since Eisenhower. And as long as she remains number two, i.e. McCain’s ticker holds up, she will play only a peripheral role, if any, in the foreign policy process of a McCain administration. Moreover, she’ll have time to develop behind a superstar, much like Aaron Rodgers did while backing up Brett Favre.
On the other hand, in the event of a McCain defeat, a young and charismatic politician – who was debating pothole legislation in the Illinois state legislature a mere four years ago – will assume the role of commander-in-chief of the most powerful military in our dangerous world.
Based on his incorrect and politically expedient judgment call last year for a precipitous troop withdrawal from Iraq about which he was recently pressed to admit “has succeeded beyond our wildest dreams,” I think it’s fair to say that Senator Obama is the one who urgently needs a Vulcan enlightenment.
Chris Barton is a senior political science and finance double major. He can be reached for comment at [email protected].
