His political career was jump-started by a rousing speech he gave to the Republican National Convention in 1964, 16 years before he made a successful bid for the White House. "Ronald Reagan had been a political activist and a spokesman for major corporations for years before he delivered that address that so rallied the conservative base at the Republican National Convention. It was so effective that for a long time, it was simply referred to as 'the speech.' Palin simply doesn't possess those skills." "In the year since the election has ended, she has done nothing to expand her appeal beyond the base," he said at a D.C. conference late last week. Full Article at Macleans.ca