I may be biased but I think it is an unwarranted insult to compare anyone sane to Sarah Palin. Was Palin more qualified to be vice-president than Caroline Kennedy is to be a U.S. Senator? To assess that, it isn’t that useful to look at their political resumes. Yes, Palin has been elected as Mayor and Governor, while Kennedy has not. But, take any issue you want…finance, foreign relations, health, environmental regulation, education…and imagine that you have to turn in a 30-page term paper on that issue. Who would you rather write that paper for you, Palin or Kennedy?
This may be a rudimentary way of judging candidates for office, but it is pretty solid. Take any two candidates and ask the same question. In almost every case, the more qualified candidate is the one you intuitively know has a better grasp of the issues.
Now, sometimes the more qualified candidate espouses political views you find abhorrent. In those cases, up to a point, you may prefer the less qualified representative. In other cases, the more qualified candidate is so politically inept that they have no chance of winning (or holding) the seat. But, in the vast majority of cases, you’re better off judging qualifications and merit by an assessment of a candidate’s working knowledge of the issues. Caroline Kennedy doesn’t provide the same starbursts as Palin, but she is surely more qualified to be a legislator or an executive. That’s due to the fact that Kennedy is educated, understands basic science, and isn’t a ditz.
