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America's Nightmare Scenario

If John McCain dies in office, Sarah Palin becomes president. Worried? You should be.

[Sarah Palin releases her medical records ... Where was John McCain born?]

Americans have a deep sense of fairness. They want to believe that anyone, no matter how ill-equipped, can sidestep all the usual obstacles to greatness -- lack of education and money, lack of powerful contacts, lack of background -- and, if given a shot, prove they are as capable as any man or woman of accomplishing great deeds. People believe in the life-changing big break.

in the words of Eminem, "All I need is one shot, one opportunity", to propel me, Joe Six Pack, from obscurity to fame. That belief fuels shows like American Idol. It fuels millions of kids shooting hoops, writing lyrics, playing the guitar, bashing a drum kit in a garage. That same simple dream is firing up millions of Americans who want to see a hockey mom, an ordinary suburban gal, become the next vice president.

If the President dies in Office, the line of succession is laid out in the Presidential Succession Act of 1947  1) Vice President and President of the Senate, currently Dick Cheney. Will be either Biden or Palin 2) Speaker of the House of Representatives 3) President pro tempore of the Senate 4) Secretary of State 5) Secretary of the Treasury

OK, let's play along with her, let's say she makes it, let's gives her that one shot. Many of us will want her to succeed. We'll want Palin to prove to the world that political greatness does not depend on an Ivy League education, years of Washington experience, and yet more years of back-scratching in the committee rooms and corridors of power. People want to be shown that all it takes is honest hard work, rolling up your sleeves, spitting on yours palms, and announcing, "Let's do it".

Now that we have come this far, let's further assume that John McCain, despite his current good health, falls desperately ill at a time of international crisis. He is no longer able to serve as president. The scenario that even he dreads will play out in all its frightening detail. What might the crisis be? Just take your pick: Israel nukes Iran; Russia invades and occupies Georgia and shows no intention of leaving; Chavez

persuades his buddies to limit oil supplies to the United States; China commits genocide in Tibet; North Korea attacks a neighbor.

The entire world waits in nervous anticipation as President Palin, the former mayor of tiny Wasilla, the hockey mom who has never met a head of state, has visited only four countries, is called upon to lead the West's response. Leaders of the European Union will be on the phone asking her what does the President plan to do? Privately they'll be wondering, "Does this woman have a clue?"

 

We know Palin will be surrounded by wise and experienced chiefs of staff, generals and admirals, elder statesmen, professors of international relations, experts in every realm of public office, but still, she and she alone will be expected to weigh up the evidence and advice, and respond accordingly.  This is a time when simple evangelical zeal is not enough, when the ability to skin a moose is of no use, when it will become glaringly obvious that she cannot speak a foreign language, is totally unfamiliar with foreign customs and cultures, has no understanding of how non-Americans, non-Christians think and view the world. She will, to put it bluntly, be out of her depth. She'll be a drowning woman. Those generals and admirals, the past presidents and vice presidents, the diplomats and professors with years and years of experience will see in an instant that Palin doesn't know what to do, has no idea which words to use, which buttons to press, which ambassadors should be told to do what, which troops should, or should not, be deployed. She'll be like one of the bumbling characters in the Cone brothers latest movie, 'Burn After Reading'.

Palin will read her Bible, she'll pray, she'll huddle with Todd the snowmobile driver, all of which might comfort her, but it will not help her to make an informed decision that calms the world and inspires confidence. How will she keep panic at bay? How can we be sure she is not trigger happy, believing that military might is the only answer to international crisis? How can we trust that she will not abandon diplomacy and the need to build the confidence of friends and allies? What will stop her from throwing up her arms and declaring, "I am only a hockey mom. This wasn't supposed to happen. I wasn't meant to be president. I don't know what to do."

This is the nightmare scenario that terrifies millions of Americans. We want to give Sarah Palin a shot, we'd love to see a woman in highest office, but it shouldn't be just any woman, it shouldn't be just one of us, a hockey mom, a mayor of a piddling town, a person without education or experience. It should be a woman who is qualified, who has served her country for years and years, who has traveled, met with foreign leaders, familiarized herself with the workings of the world, not just the simple life of low population Alaska. 

 

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