Not often do we find politicians eager to give up the powers of office, but those who have are remembered and respected for generations.  Alaska Governor Sarah Palin announced yesterday her decision to resign from office and “advance in a new direction.”  Taking her at her word, she will give more of her time to her children and she will “pass the ball” to others while helping them in whatever way she can.

It’s best not to read too much in to this fateful decision by Sarah Palin because the basketball metaphor she used to explain her decision reflects a fast paced and moving scene where the next step a player takes can’t be predicted. 

If Gov. Palin is to be taken literally, she will devote herself to personal matters and do what she can to assist other Republicans.  One can only hope that she is not indiscriminate in giving support.  Whom she supports should reflect her political principles:  small government, national security, the lives of the unborn, and the common sense that has kept America from the extremes that currently threaten it.

A vast cultural divide exists between Sarah Palin and Barack Obama   The latter is an ideologue given to bromides that are staples in courses of every elite university in the United States. 

The only thing that she and President Obama have in common is lack of experience. 

President Obama is getting on the job training, and Sarah Palin will take the next several years to acquire what knowledge she needs to serve the American people. 

She can do that in several ways that people who are self-taught acquire the knowledge they need to pursue their career goals.  Reading widely is important, but more important is good counsel. 

To the extent Sarah Palin finds good counsel, she will be able to meet the challenges that life brings.  For now, however, we know very little about the persons she seeks for guidance.  Though more advisors than she needs will volunteer, she needs to look to a handful of advisors in each of the areas she believes are important.  Limited government, taxation, American cultural values, and national security.

Here are my recommendations:

Conservative Republicans:  Morton Blackwell, Leadership Institute

Economics:  Arthur Laffer, Laffer Associates

Higher Education:  Peter Wood, National Association of Scholars

Right to Life:  Wanda Franz, National Right to Life

Limited Government/American Constitution: 

            William Miller, Marymount of Virginia

National Security: 

            John Lenczowski, Institute for World Politics

Counter-Insurgency

            John Tierney, Institute of World Politics

Media Relations:  Brent Bozell, Media Research Center

Though Sarah Palin suggested that she understood the opportunities for travel that would fall to her if she served the remaining years of her term as Governor, it’s clear that considerable travel is in her future.  Though her children’s needs come first, the Governor needs to travel on her own, at her own expense, and follow a schedule of meetings that introduce her to the geography, history and culture of Western Europe, Asia, and Latin America.  She could do well to take a tour of Italy with one of those organizations that feature travel in Italy, and with the guidance of a Roman historian.  The parallels between ancient Rome in its imperial phase and the United States are striking and what better way to get the feel of that history than by a touring the important sites.  For that I recommend she seek the guidance of classicists Christian Kopff at the University of Colorado-Boulder and David Mulroy, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

That’s more than two cents worth of advice and shall suffice for now.

Happy Independence Day, Governor Palin.