The VP doesn’t really matter that much in the grand scheme of things. This is still McCain vs Obama. But to the extent it matters, this was a pretty good pick.

The GOP’s biggest problem is corruption. That’s the reason the party was tossed out of power in Congress in 2006. A lot of people misread that and still think it’s about the war. But it was about the Bridge to Nowhere and pork and out of touch beltway Republicans. 12 years after Gingrich got them into power on a promise of reform, Republicans had become the problem there were supposed to solve. Rove’s K-Street Project was a disaster.

Proving they didn’t understand what got them into power, Pelosi and the Dems have been even worse since taking over.

McCain, for all his faults, is an anti-corruption guy. Palin is in the same mold. She saw corruption in her own party, called people on it, made enemies, and then defeated them. These two as the 2008 ticket puts the Reform card back in the GOPs hand.

Plus, she’s familiar with how oil gets out of the ground and into our cars. Oil will play a big role in this election, and Americans are not really buying the “drilling won’t solve all our problems” line Obama has been peddling. It might not solve all our problems, but it’s a good start, and Palin tilts the energy policy card farther into the Republican column.