Lot of difference between then and now. Back then, being a veep pick was a great way to get your name recognized at the national level. But with the 24-hour news cycle you have people like Michelle Bachmann, who by all rights should be mostly unknown outside of her district, becoming a national figure. And once you're known, people expect you to do things. If all you're known for is being "that other guy/gal who lost", it doesn't translate into strong support in the next electoral cycle.
I disagree with that pretty strongly. John McCain made Sarah Palin into a national figure overnight. The reason she disappeared from the scene is that she had no desire to put in the workload that being a national politician requires. To be a national politician you also need competent people and she was never even tried to get them. There was still endless speculation about whether she would jump into the race, long past the point that any other personality would have been forgotten about. Never before has such a sweet hand been dealt to someone who doesn't know how to play the game or care to learn.
She had a great position among the republican party. But she would have lost (just as surely as Santorum would have lost in the general election), while she appeals extremely well to republicans (and could have probably won a senate seat if she had the inclination) she would have had a very good chance in the primary, but would have gotten curb-stomped in the main election against Obama. But you are right, her real problem is that she simply prefers making millions of dollars a year in a easy job to running for president and probably losing.
I can see why military service could be seen as a good quality to have for any leader: Because it shows that they are willing to do whatever is necessary for their country, even if it means they might die.
However, I look at it as being stupid enough (since joining the military is almost never a wise decision for your future (eg. increased suicide, chance of death, large chance of sexual assault if female, ect, ect)) to put your self in danger for the sake of preserving the status quo and helping defacto American Imperialism (assuming your American of course, it is different depending on which country you live in, and the reason you fought).
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Topic: American Election Megathread - It's Over (Read 765015 times)