Palin: The GOP's LeBron James?

Back in 1979, my late law professor, Robert Cover, wrote a much-cited piece in the New York Times twining Supreme Court Justices and baseball players.  For example, John Marshall was the judicial version of Babe Ruth:  “Both Marshall and Ruth transformed the games they played.  Both became symbols of their institutions, and both are understood to be originators of the professions' modern age.”  Other pairings were more subtle, like Earl Warren and Yogi Berra: “Both Warren and Berra were enormously effective performers on teams with many stars.  . . . Both would frequently swing at bad pitches, but both were capable of hitting them for extra bases, especially in the clutch.”

In the spirit of Cover’s exercise, I have matched up leading contenders for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination with their counterparts in the sports world:

Mitt Romney/Pat Riley:  They look somewhat alike – tall, slick, thick-haired.  Both reinvented themselves.  Romney was the moderate governor of Massachusetts who became an unabashed conservative when he sought the GOP presidential nomination; Riley coached the beautiful game in LA and deplored roughhouse play, then coached the Knicks to win through intimidation.

Donald Trump/George Steinbrenner:  Both famous for spectacular wealth, erecting landmark buildings in New York, and ruthlessly firing people.  Tremendously successful despite (or perhaps because of) outsized egos and narcissistic tendencies.  Both recovered after going bust mid-career.

Newt Gingrich/ Rex Ryan:  Girth matched by bluster.  Innovative thinkers with major wife problems – Ryan’s YouTube video advertising his fetish for his wife’s feet became a distraction in the playoffs and Gingrich, who has a habit of trading in wives for younger woman, may suffer the same fate.

Sarah Palin/LeBron James:  Enormously talented prodigies whose reputations took a hit when they were perceived as quitting – Palin as governor of Alaska, James as savior of the Cleveland Cavaliers.  You either love them or you hate them, and these days few love them.

Tim Pawlenty/Paul Molitor: Both born in St. Paul, just two years apart.  Effective but little known.  Unless you follow baseball, you’ve never heard of Molitor; unless you follow politics, you’ve not heard of Pawlenty.  Uncharismatic mid-westerners, too boring for their own good.

Mike Huckabee/Tony Dungy: Widely liked for their relaxed, folksy manner, but their evangelical preaching may wear thin.  Both may prefer their TV gigs to another shot at the Big Prize.

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