Paul Waldman on how it’s best not to define yourself through your enemies:
While most politicians portray themselves as actors on a grand stage, others try harder to convince us that they are no better than we are, of middling station and modest self-regard. Republicans, always conscious of their party’s white-shoe past and continued advocacy for the most fortunate, work particularly hard to communicate their folksy ordinariness. Some do it more convincingly than others, but all know it’s a key ingredient of political success.
Like anything, though, the act can be taken too far. Which brings us to the brightest star in the GOP firmament, former Alaska governor and current public relations colossus Sarah Palin. More than anyone else in politics, Palin is tethered firmly to the ground by her constant accumulation of petty grievances. In this habit, you can see the quality her fans love most about her — she’s just like them! Ask her who she is, and she’ll tell you whom she’s mad at.
