Levi Johnston says fame got to Sarah Palin’s head

Levi Johnston mumbled his way through an interview on the “Today Show” this morning in which he continued to paint a rather unflattering image of former Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. Johnston says she abruptly resigned as Alaska’s governor because she wanted to “take the money and run.” He also says Palin was interested in making money and getting more fame by doing a reality show.

Levi Johnston [says Sarah Palin] resigned as Alaska governor because she was too stressed out and wanted to “take the money and run.”

While living with the Palin family, “she was talkin’ about how [being governor] is a very stressful job,” Johnston — the 19-year-old father of ex Bristol Palin’s baby — said on the Today show Monday. “After the campaign and things, we had tons of offers, from everybody out there; just all kinds of ridiculous things. There had been talk about, ‘It’d be nice to just take the money and run.’”

Asked if that’s what Palin said, Johnston replied, “Yeah, and do a reality show maybe, or somethin’ easier.” (As for a reality show, Johnston said he and Palin’s kids “didn’t want to do any of that.”) Johnston said he believes Palin earned more than the $7 million that’s been reported for her Harper’s Collins book deal. “I’ve heard anything from $7 to $9 million,” he said. “It’s up there.”

He said money isn’t the only reason Palin resigned. “I am sure there are multiple reasons… but that’s definitely a part,” he added.

Perhaps unintentionally, Johnston also paints a sympathetic portrait of Palin after the election. Though he doesn’t use the word “depression,” it sounds like that’s what she was suffering from. Johnston says she lost her spark and you could tell she was no longer feeling the same way about being governor – and he believes the fame got to her head.

After losing the presidential campaign, Johnston said Palin “wasn’t as outgoing. I didn’t see the spark in her eyes about being governor anymore.”

“She’d come [home] and hang out in her room…. She was sad she lost,” he added.

Asked if the fame went to her head, Johnston said, “Yeah, a little bit, I think so. Just being up there and running for vice president, it’s totally different than governor. There’s cameras every day, she had secrets service… You name it.”

“Seeing how she acted when it was all gone, I think it definitely got to her head.”

He said he admires Palin because she “speaks her mind,” but said that “there are times when she’s not up front with everybody.” He cited her resignation as an example. Asked if he’d vote for her if she ran for president, he said no. He explained that if she couldn’t handle the stress of being governor of Alaska, she wouldn’t be able to handle being president of the United States.

Levi’s point seemed to be that Palin had gotten used to the perks of being a potential VP and was bummed to have lost that. I think it’s more likely she was depressed after working hard and getting her hopes up. We could argue all day about how well Sarah Palin did, but she obviously stepped up her game from what she was doing in Alaska.

It does make sense that anyone would naturally feel let down – how could you not? But I agree with Johnston and think she’s killed any chance at a higher-level political career. She didn’t follow through on being the governor of Alaska and has yet to provide any good reason for it. It doesn’t sound like her heart is in politics anymore – though I can’t imagine she won’t eventually regret her decision.