Politics | Election 2008 Mac Aides: Palin 'Going Rogue' Irked campaign insiders see Palin ditching Mac for 2012 positioning By Rob Quinn Posted Oct 28, 2008 5:10 AM CDT Copied Sarah Palin reacts to the crowd as she arrives at a rally at Salem High School Stadium in Salem, Va., Monday, Oct., 27, 2008. (AP Photo/Don Petersen) Sarah Palin is acting like she's more concerned with Palin 2012 than McCain 2008, disgruntled McCain staffers tell CNN. They say the candidate is increasingly going off-message, including at a recent Florida rally where she addressed the $150,000 wardrobe controversy by declaring that the clothes "are not my property—just like the lighting and the staging and everything else that the RNC purchased." "She is a diva," said one McCain aide. "She is playing for her own future and sees herself as the next leader of the party." A Palin associate said the candidate was merely trying to "bust free" of what she sees as campaign mismanagement. A Republican strategist acknowledged that the campaign "mishandled" Palin early on. Still, he added, "she's definitely going to be the most popular Republican in this country when this thing is over." Read These Next Husband of the Coldplay 'Kiss Cam' woman breaks his silence. Wall Street is getting twitchy over falling lumber prices. He was on the run with his kids for 4 years. It just ended badly. Those discarded COVID masks are shedding chemicals. Report an error