WELL LOOK WHO'S TALKIN', AND THE MAN KNOWS POLITICS – AT 8:17 A.M. ET:  Former President Bill Clinton, who knows a thing or two about politics, is now publicly warning his fellow Democrats.  From ABC News:

Former president Bill Clinton had words of warning for Democrats who think Sarah Palin could be the best thing to happen to President Obama in a 2012 presidential bid – "It's always a mistake to underestimate your opponent."

“In the Republican primaries she's very popular with the conservative base. She gets more people to come out,” he told me. “And she hasn't won all of her endorsements, but she's won most of them. And you know, she's a compelling, attractive figure.”

And...

“I do think she’s a resilient character. And we may be entering a sort of period in politics that’s sort of fact free, where the experience in government is a negative,” he told me.

“I think she's clearly a public figure who is, who speaks well and persuasively to the people who listen to her. And she's somebody to be reckoned with,” he said. “And she's tough.”

Clinton recalled when “people were making fun of her” he read about Palin’s husband finishing the last 500 miles of Alaska’s Iron Dog race with a broken arm.

“Now, where I come from people like that. They think that's pretty good,” he said.

So is she qualified to be president? Clinton said the “American people can elect whomever they want.”

Yes we can.  We can elect whomever we want.

As readers know, I've been skeptical of Sarah Palin, but mighty impressed with how she's grown during this election season.  She puts herself on the line, and people like that.  Her approval ratings, still in the red, are lagging behind her progress. 

And she is still the most fascinating person in American politics, eclipsing the president of the United States.

The mainstream media will always hate her, but by 2012 the mainstream media may have as much credibility as a refrigerator salesman at the North Pole.

September 21, 2010