Palin's Future?

Fred Barnes correctly points out that Sarah Palin's future political prospects will be "complicated" if John McCain does not win the election. While being from a small state is not necessarily a problem -- Bill Clinton was governor of Arkansas -- the remoteness of Alaska will make it a challenge to stay in the public spotlight.

In that respect, her status will be similar to that of John Edwards in 2004. Having left the Senate and lost in his candidacy for the vice-presidency, Mr. Edwards lacked a political job to keep him out in front of the public or to provide him a basis for accomplishing something significant. That disappearance undoubtedly set him back at the start of the 2008 campaign.

Of course, Mr. Edwards was arguably less qualified than Gov. Palin, though one would not expect the media to acknowledge that. He has also suffered from other failures of character which one will hope will not plague the Governor. Nonetheless, for her to play a significant role in future elections, she will need to carefully plan her path over the next four years.