Frank Bailey's co-authored manuscript, "Blind Allegiance To Sarah Palin," which leaked out via his agent's emails to potential publishers, is dynamite. Why? Because Bailey was as close to the Palins as anyone from Palin's first race for governor to the bitter end, is a rock-ribbed Fox News Republican, has vast amounts of firsthand data (the emails he has published alone reveal a lot), has contempt for Trig skeptics like yours truly, and comes to a simple conclusion in retrospect: Palin is a dangerous, vindictive, incompetent, congenital liar who has no business in any public office. Any publisher interested in the truth about Palin (Harper Collins therefore need not apply) should fight to publish it.
There's a useful summary of its contents at the Anchorage Daily News, and some notes from the paper's gossip column with this tart truth:
In the end, what makes Bailey's manuscript worth more than other Sarah books is his liberal use of contemporaneous records -- long quotes from e-mails written at the time by the actual participants. If you want to understand who Sarah really is, you can't beat her own words.
There's also just, well, nutritious nuggets like the following. Bailey describes Palin's eventual media strategy: avoid any MSM interviews and get talking points out through surrogates. Who were they? Bailey names names: Bill Kristol, Mary Matalin, former Bush aides Jason Recher and Steve Biegun, GOP officials Nick Ayers and Michael Steele, Rush Limbaugh, Laura Ingraham, Glenn Beck, Greta Van Susteren, Sean Hannity, and Bill OReilly. Then this sentence
We could normally expect them to repeat any coordinated message we sent.
My italics. First among equals as a propagandist posing as a journalist:
Of all the fawningmostly middle-aged white mennobody had infatuated eyes more than Bill Kristol...
He'd gone to Alaska on a cruise in June, 2007 and sat across the table from the sexy future of the Republican Party. Much as President Bush, when looking into Vlad Putins eyes, saw his soul, Kristol understood that deliverance for his beloved GOP lived inside this stunning, five foot five inch Aphrodite from Wasilla. Due Diligence was conducted over moose stew, red wine, and winky charm. He did not need to ask about foreign policy or current event expertise. He saw a winner. Kristol began bongo-drumming her out-Mavericking John McCain virtues in every venue at his disposal... In public and to his contacts within the McCain camp, he made it known that she was not only legitimate, but the only intelligent choice if McCain hoped to have any chance in the upcoming election.