Dave v. Sarah

I have always found David Letterman to be quite funny. His original 12:30 show was new, inventive and incredibly funny. He has been a little more tame since moving to 11:30, but generally still a pretty funny guy.
Unfortunately his spat with Sarah Palin over inappropriate jokes at her daughter's expense reveals a certain arrogance, but it is not just Dave. Many entertainers seem to be of a mind that they just elected a President and now, having saved the country from George W. Bush and the Republicans, they can do and say no wrong. In their minds, their values and tastes have prevailed and the rest of us just need to get used to it.
I believe that is what led David Letterman and his writers to think that sexual jokes about a 14 year old, or even an 18 year old, were funny and appropriate. It was not so much the content of the joke that they approved of, but the idea that because Sarah Palin is a strong conservative, anything about her is fair game. Before you disagree with me, take a step back and ask yourself what would be happening if a talk show host made any joke, sexual or otherwise, about either of the Obama daughters or suggested that the First Lady looked "slutty"? How many hours do you think it would take before that person was fired?
This is all about what Sarah Palin stands for and the arrogance of those public figures who supported Obama (even as they pretended to be "objective").
Now for Sarah Palin. As a parent she should be outraged at her teenage daughter being the object of crude jokes on national television. As a woman she should be offended by the commentary on her appearance. That said, she should not overplay it.
Remember the Dan Quayle-Murphy Brown debate? While then Vice President Quayle was making a valid point about lifestyle choices and the de-emphasizing of the importance of fatherhood in some circles, it got lost in the fact that he was having the debate with a fictional character.
David Letterman is at least a real person. That said, he is an entertainer and a comedian. He tells jokes for a living and interviews movie stars. Nothing wrong with that, but when you are a political figure trying to build credibility for a possible presidential campaign, a drawn out debate with Letterman, while keeping the Governor in the news, does little to convince everyone that she can handle North Korea and Iran. Those two countries are lead by individuals who are a lot wackier than David Letterman (although not as funny).
Sarah Palin's supporters also do her no favors by perpetuating this controversy. It seems to be a way for a few folks to get themselves interviewed on the Today show and/or Fox News, but what it is doing is elongating a debate between a would be presidential candidate and a comic.
Sarah Palin needs to be talking, in depth, about the runaway growth of government in this Administration, about how extending a hand to these regimes has only emboldened them to continue their mischief and what she thinks ought to be done about it. That is how you get people to see you as a potential President, not by scoring points against Letterman.