SARAH PALIN IS Obama By Proxy. “I used to dismiss these contradictions as simply hypocrisy, but perhaps these people are angry at Palin because of her perceived similarities to Barack Obama, not in spite of them. They need someplace to ground the lightning of their frustration and disappointment, and they’re not allowed to be angry at Obama. . . . Sarah Palin is a convenient hate fetish for increasingly nervous and confused Left, because she embodies the qualities of the red-state America they loathe… and serves as a voodoo doll for uncomfortable criticisms of Obama, which they project onto her.”

UPDATE: Reader Steve Hendren writes: “I thought the same thing about Tiger Woods during his recent spate of personal problems. Can’t bring yourself to criticize The One? Have a go at Tiger, instead….” Yeah. I think Tiger’s public persona did a lot to help Obama early on — I heard plenty of explicit comparisons, in fact — so the connection’s even more close.