Palin & Obama thrown into spotlight too early?

Noemie Emery at the Washington Examiner poses an interesting question today in her column as she wonders if Sarah Palin and Barack Obama met fame before they could season into life in the spotlight:

Two years ago, two superstars lit up a dazzled political universe -- young, stunning, lissome, and bursting with talent -- and were propelled ahead of their time into prominence, after a minimal time on the national scene. Two years later, it seems as if this has done them no favors: President Obama is widely seen as "overwhelmed" by his office, and Sarah Palin is meeting resistance establishing her credentials as a possible candidate against rivals with rather more seasoning.

On election day 2008, Obama had been in the Senate for less than four years, two of which he had spent running for president, and Palin had spent less than three years as governor of one of the country's most remote and least typical states. Are their problems aligned with their so-called "good fortune"? Unhappily, yes.

Perhaps years toiling in the trenches help prepare for life in the limelight....