In politics, all things are just a matter of time, a matter of the right moment. In a piece in the New York Times today, Anand Giridharadas announces the discovery that Sarah Palin is not any kind of conventional Republican, and that she has some big ideas that threaten the political class on both sides of the partisan divide. Quoting liberally from Palin’s recent speech in Iowa, the writer asks: “Is there a hint of a political breakthrough hiding in there?”

Well, the people and especially the political class in Alaska knew all this about Sarah Palin years ago, and it defined her rise to the governorship there and the things that she accomplished during her abbreviated term of office. It’s all a matter of public record and anyone paying attention knew these things about Palin already. Perhaps this discovery by the Times so many years later of Sarah Palin’s exciting ideas is merely a monument to the efficiency of their news-gathering and analysis; on the other hand cynics like me will suggest that now is seen as a good time to boost Sarah Palin, in order to possibly conjure an effective foe for the very scary Rick Perry—or at least to make some kind of mischief.

However, Sarah Palin will advance, or not, regardless of what the New York Times says about her.

And that’s a very nice thing to be able to say about her.