It appears that Sarah Palin will stiff New York City on her impending book tour. That's bad PR for the aspiring Republican presidential candidate.
Palin kicks off her "Go Rogue with Sarah" book tour November 18 in Grand Rapids, Mich., two days after her appearance on "The Oprah Winfrey Show." Alaska's former governor has posted her tour schedule on Twitter, leaving many people in New York City (and all of New England) crestfallen. If they want to get an autographed copy of "Going Rogue," a November 21 trip to Rochester, N.Y. is required.
Palin says she wants to do a "rogue" book tour, skipping big cities in favor of places like Fort Wayne, Disney World (You betcha'), Birmingham, Jacksonville and Fort Bragg, where "I'm looking forward to meeting our honorable men and women in uniform and their families," she posted on Facebook. Palin heads west after Thanksgiving. It’s a safe bet San Francisco isn’t on her itinerary.
In avoiding blue states, Palin is making a big mistake. She could establish some street cred in the run-up to the '12 presidential campaign by dealing with a hostile reporter or two. Potential opponents like Newt Gingrich like to mix it up with press. Sarah is hoping she can arrange lovefest interviews with Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Bill O'Reilly. Her duck and cover strategy backed with a communication game plan of "off the record" speeches and 140-charter Tweets is not the way to the White House.
What does Sarah have to lose by visiting a bookstore or two in the Big Apple? Nothing. Zippo. Nada. Seventy-two percent of New Yorkers told New York Daily News pollsters today that Palin should stay clear of the city. The remaining 28 percent say they would love to hear what Palin has to say. Palin would certainly boost her positives in NYC by rubbing the flesh here.
C’mon, Sarah. Who knows?
A Gallup poll released today shows more voters would vote for an unnamed Republican than Democrat for Congress. The political worm may be turning. Visit NYC.
The red carpet will be rolled out for you here at O'Dwyer world headquarters. We'll even throw in a Gray Line pass for you, Todd and the kids to see the sights.