Sarah Palin announced today that she will step down as the governor of Alaska on July 26, 2009, at which time she will turn over the reigns to Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell. She was elected to her post in November 2006, becoming the first woman and the youngest governor in Alaska history.
A new Vanity Fair article on Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin called her “the sexiest and riskiest brand in the Republican party. The pattern is inescapable: she takes disagreements personally, and swiftly deals vengeance on enemies, real or perceived.”
Many are speculating that the woman with the combative style of folksy politics has bigger fish to fry and wants to get on with her ambitious career goals, which may include a run for the White House. With the time between campaign cycles shrinking, it will take a considerable amount of hard work to gain the international credentials that will most certainly be needed if she is to be taken seriously for 2012.
Other theories indicate she is beyond tired of the abuse she and her family have received from the media. Her children have been attacked and humiliated. Case in point, Palin took David Letterman to task for inappropriate comments he made about her fourteen-year-old daughter. He eventually apologized and sounded sincere.
With 18 months left to service in her first term, she is throwing in the towel in order to spend more time with her family. She claims that the decision to step down has been in the works for some time. There is also a rumored probe that could get ugly.
We’ve got video of the statement Gov. Palin made in Wasilla on Friday. Read between the lines and decide for yourself if these are the words of a political warrior who is simply positioning herself for her next career move or is she raising the white flag of surrender.