James Lewis: "I believe that Sarah Palin just gave her first presidential address"

James Lewis of American Thinker leaves no doubt as to how he believes the winds of change are blowing in the first paragraph of his piece, "Redefining Sarah Palin":

As President Obama fumbled badly at the UN and G-8 last week, Sarah Palin began redefining herself as presidential timber.

Mr. Lewis sets the cast of characters for the foreseeable future thus: 

1) "a president who is way over his head"

Given another eight years of seasoning Obama might have made a skilled presidential player, but he won election prematurely, as he himself told the press two years ago. He simply was not ready. He was right about that, but he could not stop himself from seizing the big moment. 

2) a future challenger in Sarah Palin, who "showed Reagan's classic simplicity and directness, and like the Gipper's best talks, she went straight to the heart of today's political battle."

Palin spoke in Hong Kong, the most cosmopolitan city in China. By addressing China in both a fair and a tough-minded way she is likely to make a favorable impression. I would think that the Chinese and Japanese are more impressed by clarity and honesty than by flattery and evasions. So you can be sure it is being read all over Asia. 

3) the observers:  we, the voters, along with the other countries and leaders.  Everyone's watching this.  First, we're watching President Obama appearing to be in a losing endgame with Mahmoud Admedinejad:

In the US battle with Ahmadinejad, the most dangerous maniac in the world, we can now see the likely winner. Obama has foolishly put himself into a position of unprecedented weakness, where he can no longer stop Ahmadinejad's systematic march to nuclear weapons. For the first time in history, nukes will be in the hands of a fanatical Armageddon regime that is determined to use them.  In such a contest it is will power that matters. 

Then, we're watching Sarah Palin redefining her own image without the help of her detractors:

Since the election campaign, it seems that Sarah Palin recruited a top-notch team of advisors and political talent. The Hong Kong speech goes straight to her alleged weakness in foreign affairs, and it is a very good first step toward re-making her media image to be more substantive. The truth is that most of our media heads would not recognize foreign policy substance if it hit them right between the eyes. But they know the image of substance, and the Hong Kong speech was good on both appearance and reality. She demonstrated "gravitas" -- in the pop slogan of the early Bush years. We need more of the same, but she has now shown convincingly that she can do it. 

I don't think it is possible at this point to assume that Obama will win re-election in a walkover.  And at this point, Sarah Palin is presenting herself as a very good alternative to his administration's failing policies.

(Hat tip:  Conservatives 4 Palin)