Whatever one makes of either one of them, the similarities between Sarah Palin and Carly Fiorina (who’s just announced she’s running for president) stop more or less at the chromosomal level. Fiorina is an accomplished (if controversial) businesswoman; Palin, a half-term governor and television star. Fiorina is a graduate of Stanford (with a degree in philosophy and medieval history) and MIT (with a master’s in management); Palin received a degree in, alas, journalism. Fiorina is an unusually articulate for a candidate for public office; Palin is . . . well, Sarah Palin.
Still, the (new) New Republic has developed a bizarre obsession with likening Fiorina to Palin. Last month, an article asked whether “Fiorina is the new Palin.” The evidence: that both Palin and Fiorina had at times criticized Hillary Clinton. Of course, by that standard, Ted Cruz, Barack Obama, and Bernie Sanders are all the new Sarah Palin.
This week, the magazine once again claims that Fiorina is positively Palin-esque. Staff writer Rebecca Leber writes:
This is a classic example of meeting necessary but not sufficient conditions. Sarah Palin was a Washington outsider who was popular among some conservatives; Fiorina is also a Washington outsider who is popular among some conservatives. But that does not mean they are equivalent.
Fiorina, as a philosophy graduate, could undoubtedly explain this concept to the good people of the New Republic.
