Would You Pay Sarah Palin $100,000 Dollars to Come to Dinner?

Posted by Tana Ganeva, AlterNet at 10:42 AM on October 29, 2009.

A conservative Iowa organization really wants Sarah Palin to attend an upcoming banquet, because somehow, even post-odd-resignation, post-trashy public flaps with Levi, post-joke book -- Palin is still a draw for social conservatives. So the Iowa Family Policy Center is trying to raise $100,000 to entice the former Governor to the state. But they are meeting opposition from GOP activists, who seem to think they shouldn't pay for the privilage of giving potential Presidential hopefuls a crack at a roomful of influential Iowa insiders. Politico reports:

The Iowa Family Policy Center’s effort to cobble together $100,000 for Palin would represent a striking departure from customary practice in the first-in-the-nation state, these Republicans say, noting that a generation of White House hopefuls has paid their own way to boost their party and presidential ambitions.

But representatives from other Iowa-based political advocacy groups said they would never consider shelling out money for what many politicians see as a privilege: the opportunity to speak to a room full of sure-fire caucus-goers who often serve as precinct captains and can be instrumental to a presidential candidate’s success.

“If somebody tells me they want me to pay an appearance fee, it tells me they’re not very serious about running for president,” said Ed Failor, Jr., president of Iowans for Tax Relief and an influential GOP insider.

As it turns out, Palin might be too busy anyway:

 “This is one of more than a thousand requests for the governor's time,” said Palin spokeswoman Meg Stapleton. “This particular invitation arrived late last week. It is under consideration, as so many are, but will be incredibly difficult to attend with her tightly-scheduled book tour underway at that point.”

Palin’s book, “Going Rogue,” is to be released on November 17th, followed by a national book tour.

There is no indication that the former governor has requested a fee or that her decision whether to attend is being influenced by whether she’ll be paid.

Tagged as: president, gop, sarah palin, iowa conservatives