The Politico offers this report on the prospect of the Embarracuda challenging Alaska GOP Senator Lisa Murkowski when the latter faces reelection to her Senate seat in two short years.
This is interesting because in running for governor, Palin unseated Senator Murkowski's father, Frank, who was the incumbent she knocked off in the GOP primary. As you might guess, Murkowski fille isn't especially crazy about the idea of Palin's possible ascendance:
"I can guarantee it would be a very tough election," Murkowski said in an interview.
Palin is also up for reelection in 2010. She could run for a second term as governor, but the Senate holds some obvious attractions: a national platform, and with it the chance to beef up a thin résumé and rebuild damaged credibility on foreign policy and other issues.
But Murkowski says a run against her would be fraught with risk. If Palin lost, her stock would drop just ahead of a potential 2012 presidential run. And if she won, she'd be a backbencher in a chamber that is dominated by seniority — and would have to begin her presidential campaign as soon as she took office.
"If she wants to be president, I don't think the way to the presidency is a short stop in the United States Senate," Murkowski said.
Asked Monday to respond to Murkowski's comments, Palin's communications coordinator, Kate Morgan, said only, "The governor has never stated her intention or desire to run for that office."
If Palin were to lose such a race, she'd probably be finished as far as national ambitions go. This is why it seems unlikely to me, but man, would that be the most interesting race in Alaska since the famous Great Race of Mercy, featuring the heart-rending exploits of Balto the wonder dog.
