Republicans loath to discuss ' charismatic' Palin

New York, Feb. 25 (ANI): A majority of Republican officials and operatives are loath to discuss Palin on the record.

When a reporter forces them to speak about her, it tends to provoke much staring at shoes, hemming and hawing, and ultimately some form of praise about the "energy" she brings to the party, reports Politico.

During an interview last year, former Vice President Dick Cheney, asked about rising talent in the GOP, didn't even mention Palin's name until prompted - a pattern among senior Republicans.

TPM clips the relevant section of a Newsmax interview with Establishment pillar Jeb Bush, who praises her "charisma" and little else, above.

A sample of Bush's response when asked if Palin is a "viable" presidential candidate: "My personal belief is that for Governor Palin to be a successful candidate for higher office, she needs to take this charisma she has and also add to it some depth of understanding of the complexity of life that we're living in today. If she had the combination of that, she would be a formidable candidate." (ANI)