In the days after announcing her resignation as Alaska's governor, Sarah Palin's decision remains a source of mystery, speculation and debate. But there's little doubt is that she'd have a future in the cable news universe.

Even before the election, TV producers and packagers speculated that, should she be freed from the constraints of elective office, she'd make for a big "get" as the host of a Fox News show or even a daytime syndicated yakker. When she made her bombshell announcement, one theory was that she had been made an "offer she can't refuse" from some TV network.

In a world where Rush Limbaugh is treated as the de facto head of the Republican party, with tremendous sway over lawmakers given his following, Palin could do a lot worse than establishing some kind of a TV or radio brand. Freed from the constraints, petty and provincial politics (and investigations) that come with a statehouse job, she could very well wield much more influence from a media platform.

The Fox prospect would be the perfect match, as she has become such a partisan figure that she would, on some level, be freed from the constraints of "Q" scores. Stations are barely buying anything, and syndicators generally don't want to take on a persona who is automatically disliked by a big share of the audience. When Mike Huckabee dropped out of the presidential race, he landed an agent at CAA, and then his own show on Fox News. The network's Greta Van Susteren has close ties to Palin --- and has come to her defense in the media storm.

As of yet, Palin's only plans --- at least those announced publicly --- are her book, due in spring of next year, something that will surely see her making the rounds on the talk show circuit. Her announcement caught so many off guard that the initial reaction, over a holiday weekend, has been puzzlement more than anything else. But that sentiment is likely to give way to opportunity, particularly in a business ever more driven by polarizing personalities.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend...

Timed to the Fourth of July frame, President Obama joined the Hall of Presidents at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom.

Updated

Sarah Palin's decision to resign was surprise enough, but her speech evoked a meandering version of Richard Nixon's famous, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore," delivered after he lost the 1962 race for California governor. Her fire was aimed at the press, enemies, opponents --- but she still left the door open for another phase of her career.

The announcement on the eve of the holiday weekend left commentators scratching their heads, wondering whether she was giving up politics altogether for her family, or embarking on a much savvier plan to establish a tabloid-less national profile for 2012.

"Take the words of General MacArthur. He said, 'We are not retreating. We are advancing in another direction."

She sounded exasperated as she flowed from one topic to another, from energy independence to the brutal attacks on her family.

"I am taking my fight for what is right, in Alaska, in a new direction."

It left me wondering if, at the state level, there is still another shoe to drop, or if the wave of attention focused on her, from David Letterman to the recent Vanity Fair profile, were just too much.

Vanity Fair responded with a headline: "Don't blame V.F. for Sarah Palin's resignation."

Palin's biggest problem --- from the view of D.C.'s GOP establishment --- has been that she hasn't made any major public effort to establish national policy credentials. Rather, in the eight months since the election, she's been the subject of endless tabloid fodder and an ill-advised brouhaha with Letterman. While it has garnered her some support and sympathy, the feeling is that the onus is on her to establish a sense of trust that she is up to the task of governing.

I'm told Palin has no plans as of yet for a talk show gig --- as has been speculated. Even before the election that Palin, if she decided not to seek reelection, there had been ust such speculation that she would go the talk show route, ala what Mike Huckabee has done on Fox. There even was some talk among producers and agents that she could make for a perfect daytime syndicated talk show host. While that would help her establish a platform of her own, free from interference of the mainstream media, the drawback is that the exposure would still make her tabloid fodder. Just ask anyone from "The View."

Republicans are split. “I think Sarah Palin is on the verge of becoming the Miami Vice of American politics: Something a lot of people once thought was cool and then 20 years later look back, shake their heads and just kind of laugh,” Republican media consultant Todd Harris quipped to Politico.

Paul Begala reviewed the text of the speech on the Palin website and said that, with its generous use of exclaimation points, it "had all the depth and gravitas of a 13-year-old's review of the Jonas Brothers' album on Facebook."

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker failed to grant an injunction to halt Prop 8, but he did move to "fast-track" the lawsuit.

He set Aug. 7 as the date that the parties have to file "case management proposals," along with a guide with how they believe the case should proceed. The next hearing is scheduled for Aug. 19.

One thing I did not mention the other day: Because California Atty. General Jerry Brown already has stated that he believes that the proposition is unconstitutional, that left a dearth of defendants. So Walker granted the initiative's backers the ability to "intervene" in the case to defend Prop 8.

The day after Al Franken won Minnesota's junior Senate seat, Sen. James Inhofe called him a "clown." Franken himself said "there's plenty of room for humor in politics." And here in the state, where I am for the Fourth of July holiday this week, those who didn't vote for him already describe him in polarizing terms.

That's why, when Al Franken goes to Washington, we're unlikely to see he him igniting O'Reilly-level feuds, snapping one-liners at will and providing easy fodder for "Saturday Night Live" skits. Even as he lionizes late Sen. Paul Wellstone, a friend, they are two very different people. After his first speech on the Senate floor in 1991, Wellstone was paid the ultimate compliment (for a Democrat from Minnesota) by Sen. Fritz Hollings, who told him, "Young man, you remind me of Hubert Humphrey." Then Hollings added, "You talk too much."

The times that I have met Franken, the first thing that comes to mind is that he has neither the ebullience of Wellstone or Humphrey. Even if he tried, the results may be quite different. When Wellstone famously challenged President George H.W. Bush at a 1992 White House reception, Bush was reportedly overheard saying, "Who is that little chicken shit?" You can only imagine the cable-fueled blowback if Franken were to make similar waves in the seniority obsessed Senate.

Rather, there's already been considerable speculation that he'll take the Hillary Clinton approach when she joined the Senate from New York in 2001: hunker down, study up and respect tradition. By 2006, when she faced re-election, the stories about Clinton were all about how much she has surprised her colleagues, forming relationships even with the strident foes of her husband and high marks from the firebrands who were among her husband's most vocal critics.

At a victory rally in St. Paul on Wednesday, Franken signalled as much when he predicted that his colleagues will be "pleasantly surprised" when they get to know him. He addressed the lack of humor in his campaign, a tactic that surely helped him establish credibility: "I don't know that I suppressed that humorous side of me so much as I let out the wonky, serious side of me."

He does have a tricky path ahead of him, perhaps no more so than the high-profile Judiciary Committee confirmation hearings for Sonia Sotomayor. He'll be working to establish credibility with colleagues and, perhaps most importantly, with constituents. It's important to remember that he won this race with the thinnest of margins, with a majority voting against him, and in a state that has in recent decades been all too willing to throw out the incumbents. The state already has seen its fair share of antics; what it is looking for now is a little bit of humility and a serious dose of good will.

Today, Franken responded to Inhofe by not taking the bait. "I don't know how Sen. Inhofe regards clowns, but it might be an incredible compliment."

U..S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker indicated that he was not inclined to put a halt to Proposition 8 but instead said that the case should proceed promptly to trial.

His statements came in a filing that sets up many of the issues to be brought up in the case, a federal suit filed by David Boies and Ted Olson that challenges Prop 8 as a violation of constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process. The first hearing on the case is scheduled for Thursday in San Francisco.

Their suit, filed on behalf of two same-sex couples who attempted to marry in California but were denied licenses, included a request for a preliminary injuction to put an immediate halt to Proposition. But Walker suggested that doing so would create a level of uncertainty for couples who then tie the knot because there still would be no final judgment at the federal level..

Walker said that "serious questions" are raised in the suit, and that the court would consider a wide range of factors in the case, including the motivations of voters in supporting Prop 8 and the advertising and literature used in the campaign. He also suggested that the court would consider everything from the differences between domestic partnerships, civil unions and marriage; history of past discrimination; same-sex parenting; and whether gay marriage had a detrimental impact on heterosexual couples.

"The just, speedy and inexpensive determination of these issues would appear to call for proceeding promptly to trial," he wrote.

The lawsuit is backed by the American Foundation for Equal Rights, led by Chad Griffin and with a board made up of entertainment industry activists.

Although plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction, Olson said in a statement that they are "encouraged that the judge wants to dispense with the preliminaries and move quickly toward a final ruling on the unconstitutionality of Proposition 8."

-------------------------- Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld

Another update: Al Franken will become a U.S. Senator after Norm Coleman conceded the race today. Minnesota's Governor Tim Pawlenty says that he will certify the results.

The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that Al Franken was the victor in the protracted race for a Senate seat against Norm Coleman. The decision was not unexpected, and Coleman has hinted that he will not take his challenge to the federal level. Franken's victory will give the Democrats 60 Senate seats, a critical filibuster-proof majority. He also becomes somewhat of an anomoly: A liberal entertainer winning elective office. Virtually all show biz figures who have successfully made the transition have been Republicans.

President Obama addressed some 250 gay and lesbian activists from around the country at a ceremony in the East Room of the White House today, telling them that "by the time this administration is over, I think you guys will have pretty good feelings about the Obama administration."

Among those from the industry there were Wilson Cruz, Chad Griffin and Skip Paul, as well Los Angeles-based philanthropist David Bohnett, the Brunswick Group's Hilary Rosen and new GLAAD president Jarrett Barrios.

The event was to mark the 40th anniversary of the Stonewall riots, but Obama has been criticized for not taking bolder steps on don't ask and for his administration's issuance of a legal brief defending the defense of marriage act.

Obama said, "We have made progress and we will make more.  And I want you to know that I expect and hope to be judged not by words, not by promises I've made, but by the promises that my administration keeps."

The full transcript --- including Obama's interruption by a duck-sound ringtone --- is here.

Julius Genachowski was sworn in as FCC chairman today, following his confirmation last week.

Justice David Souter presided over Genachowski's afternoon swearing in ceremony at the Supreme Court. The new FCC chairman served as one of Souter's clerks.

-------------------------- Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld

From Washington:

The Supreme Court delayed a decision on whether the election-year documentary "Hillary, the Movie" should have been regulated by campaign finance law or if it was a protected form of free speech.

In an unusual move, the court will rehear arguments in the case on September 9.

The movie was relentless in its criticism of Hillary Clinton, and the case hinged on whether advertising for the movie constituted a form of political propaganda at a time when Clinton was seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.

The makers of the movie, Citizens United, led by David Bossie and based in Washington, has produced other documentaries, including a scathing one on Barack Obama, timed to the election season.

Although they do not share his political stripes, some documentary filmmakers fear that a decision in favor of federal regulators could limit their ability to market highly charged political films during an election season.

-------------------------- Sent from my BlackBerry Wireless Handheld