As Harry Reid was seated at his desk considering whether to take a course in charisma a flash of light streaked across the skies above and came to rest beside him.

Had they raised the debt ceiling too high or was it Obama trying to get closer to heaven? No, it was Palinpower.

‘Hi Harry’ said Palinpower ‘this is the first time I’ve ever been in a Democratic office’

‘Well’ said Harry ‘if you’ve come to join the party I’ll have to check whether we’ve got room for another scatty superwoman. We’ve got enough problems with Hillary and Nancy Pelosi’

‘Relax’ said Palinpower ‘I’ve come to offer my services as a member of the super committee set up by Obama to same trillions in spending’

‘That’s an interesting thought’ said Harry ‘but tell me why are you not applying to John Boehner to be one of his nominees?’

‘Because he’s certain to appoint people who are serious about cutting spending’ said Palinpower ‘but if you don’t appoint me you’ll appoint some limp-wristed liberals who think that Obamacare is a penny-pinching program. You need people on this committee who have the courage not only to think beyond the square, but beyond your normal circle and the Oval Office as well. People like me who are not handicapped by the burden of knowing too much about it’

‘Look Palinpower’ said Harry ‘I intend to appoint some of the finest financial minds in the world. If I chose you it would be like selecting Glenn Beck to head up Obama’s re-election committee’

‘Harry’ said Palinpower ‘don’t take this personally but giving you responsibility for recruiting a committee to save trillions is like giving Tiger Woods the responsibility for ethics standards in a girls seminary. We need people who will dump Obamacare’

‘That’s heresy’ said Harry

‘That’s profligacy’ said Palinpower ‘The only people who should get free medical treatment are armed services personnel wounded in Afghanistan and then only if they’ve got a certificate of participation from the Taliban’

‘I will ensure’ said Harry ‘that the committee will not only save trillions in spending but also generate trillions from raising taxes’

‘No chance’ said Palinpower ‘ because the problem with the people you’ll appoint to the committee is that a trillion has got more noughts than they’ve got fingers’

‘Well what would you do?’ asked Harry

‘First of all’ said Palinpower ‘I’d raise the retirement age to 85 and ban medical treatment for everyone over 80’

‘That does it’ said Harry ‘there’s as much chance of me appointing you to the committee as Castro coming here on a state visit’

‘And there’s as much chance of your super committee saving trillions of dollars’ said Palinpower ‘as Maria telling Arnie ‘I’ll be back’’

With that she was gone in a flash leaving Harry to ponder how on earth someone like her could become such a high flyer.