Sarah Palin is planning on releasing her new book, “America by Heart,” this November. In the almost two years in which Sarah Palin has been a national political figure, Palin has been subject to the large crowds that love her, the media questioning her intelligence, and scandal (most notably the wardrobe scandal during the 2008 Presidential Election). Prior to August 29, 2008, Sarah Palin was virtually unknown. In fact, with all the media coverage I watched and all the articles and blogs I read, the only person I know who predicted her to be John McCain’s running mate (let alone know anything about her) was my old housemate Luke Markushewski. During the immediate rise of Palin two extreme points of view about her were created. People either loved her for her social conservatism or they hated her for her perceived stupidity. At the time, I found myself relatively in the middle. I liked her because she helped bring the McCain campaign more much needed enthusiasm and disliked her because the public’s view of her was greatly hurting McCain’s chances. Basically it was a safe way of avoiding to answer the important question about her: Do you believe Sarah Palin is a good politician?

I never fully believed that Sarah Palin was stupid. When the Alaskan governor was announced as McCain’s running mate in 2008, there were four political issues discussed more than anything else about her. (1) She is a staunch social conservative, especially on the issues of abortion and same-sex marriage. (2) She is also a staunch fiscal conservative who helped guide Alaska’s economy. (3) She worked towards positive energy solutions in a state where finding clean energy is so important. (4) She is a second amendment activist and a member of the NRA. So before the majority of the public ever heard her speak she had a strikingly positive record, at least as far as Republicans saw her. Sarah Palin was not a stupid person, but she was out of touch on many issues outside of those four, most notably international relations. Not being a politician in one of the 48 states in the continental United States put Palin at an extreme disadvantage which made her sound stupid in interviews. During the famous Katie Couric interview, she seemed baffled by questions that dealt with those international issues and therefore stumbled several times in answering. It was also clear that she had trouble in answering the federal economy issues. Despite what she had done for Alaska’s economy, answering those questions also seemed to be tougher for her. Unfortunately for the GOP, the economy and Iraq/Afghanistan were the two biggest issues of the election. So although the liberal media and Saturday Night Live fueled the public perception that Palin is a stupid person, I think it is more appropriate to say that she was very much out of touch with the American people and failed when being abruptly thrown into the national spotlight.

Sarah Palin has spent her time since the losing bid in the 2008 Election changing the public perception of her. Although not viewed this way by many at the time, the best political move by Palin was resigning as the Governor of Alaska. Whether the intention for her resignation was money-related or politically motivated, the move is paying huge dividends in both categories. This is not the same Sarah Palin from 2008 anymore. The new Sarah Palin is seen as the political leader of the Tea Party movement and is showing more tenacity and more fight than she ever showed during the McCain campaign. While Palin was partially blamed for McCain’s drop in the polls in 2008, McCain saw a boost in the polls for this year’s Arizona Senatorial Elections when Palin joined his campaign. She has not sold out her ideologies in order to make a better name for herself, but rather she is taking advantage of current political sentiments that apply to her beliefs and using those groups as a pedestal to prove to people she has changed. She is playing to her strengths and is finally sounding like a strong politician should sound like. Palin has been the keynote speaker at rallies and conventions for months now and by attacking liberals on immigration, job creations, gun rights, and more.

Whether you like it not, Sarah Palin is now the face of the conservative movement and the comeback of Reaganism. She is making news more often than any other Republican Presidential candidate. Her leaving Alaska was the best career move she could do because being so far away prevented the majority of the country from knowing what she was doing. Staying in Alaska would not give Palin the opportunities for press coverage that she is getting now that she has the podium to stand in front of. I do not support Sarah Palin as the GOP’s candidate for the presidency in 2012, but it is starting to become a real possibility for other conservatives. That by no means implies I do not support Palin as a politician, because I do believe Palin has a strong future if she were to run for Senate in four years (assuming her presidency campaign fails). Mitt Romney still remains my top choice as the presidential candidate (and I would even vote for Mike Huckabee over Palin), but Palin has shifted my personal view of her and continues to change the minds of many other Americans.