Sullivan and Palin -- What Gives?

Until now I have not been sure what to make of Andrew Sullivan's seeming obsession with Sarah Palin. While he seems to become remarkably focused on a single topic from time to time, this focus or obsession usually proves to be defensible in the end.

Today's decision to stop all other work on his Daily Dish blog to focus on the Palin (non?) issue takes this to a new level. Yes, the former Alaska governor's trailer park populism has captured the imagination of the loonie right in the U.S.. And yes this element is, shockingly, not yet a spent force. But it is three years to the next presidential election and it seems difficult to conceive that by that time Palin will not look pathetic instead of powerful. Her fifteen minutes will have expired long ago.

Yes Palin and her ilk are frightening. And Sullivan would serve us well in turning a public spotlight on this seemingly delusional woman. But while her constituency is capable of making a lot of making a lot of noise, it is difficult to believe that in the end they will not prove impotent.