OH NOOOO…PLEASE

The ultimate insult to Canada: Sarah Palin touted as US ambassador to Canada? You betcha! Canadians have expressed dismay on social media after the White House press secretary refused to rule out the ex-Alaska governor as our woman in Ottawa Sarah Palin is a fan of moose stew and snowmobiling – what’s not to like? Photograph: Rex/Shutterstock Ashifa Kassam in Toronto THE GUARDIAN Wednesday 8 February 2017 22.43 GMTLast modified on Thursday 9 February 2017 01.18 GMT Much of her life has played out like a Canadian stereotype: from her favourite food of moose stew to extolling the virtues of hockey moms and her love of snowmobiling. But after a White House spokesman refused to rule out the possibility that Sarah Palin could be the next US ambassador to Ottawa, few in Canada seemed to be embracing the prospect of the former Alaska governor taking up the role. “Sarah Palin as ambassador?” New Democrat MP Charlie Angus asked on Twitter. “Well that would show how little Steve Bannon and his pal @realDonaldTrump think of Canada.” Others dismissed the idea as simply fake news or alternative facts, while some wondered if this was an early April Fools joke from the White House. “Appointing Sarah Palin as the US ambassador to Canada is, like, ultimate trolling,” noted one. “If he makes Sarah Palin the US Ambassador to Canada. I say we keep our oil and hockey players. BTW … does she speak Canadian?” Asked another. The position has remained vacant since the inauguration of Donald Trump. In recent days, Palin’s name has reportedly been batted around in conversations in Ottawa and Washington as a potential prospect for the job. When asked on Wednesday, the White House spokesman, Sean Spicer, refrained from confirming or quashing the rumour. “We have no additional ambassador nominations or announcements to make on that front. I’m sure at some point we will have soon,” he told reporters. The comments prompted Canadians to muse about the qualifications being sought in the position. “This is entirely because Sarah Palin can see Canada from Alaska, isn’t it?” read one tweet, while another said: “Just cus @SarahPalinUSA ‘probably’ knows the difference between a moose & a beaver shouldn’t make her a Canadian ambassador option.” Many of those who spoke out online rejected the idea. “Palin as ambassador is an insult. To any country.” Another added, “Dear Mr. Trump: Rather than appoint Sarah Palin as ambassador to Canada, please bomb us. Signed, all intelligent life in Canada.” Whether Palin would actually want the posting is another question. The job would require her to give up a lucrative trade in speeches and television appearances, worth an estimated $12m to date, columnist Andrew Cohen noted in the Ottawa Citizen. He added: “In Canada, Palin would have to learn to speak one of our official languages. She would have to live in a land of naïfs who favour immigrants, gay marriage, the United Nations and NATO.”