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I don't really know what (if anything) to say about this, so consider this post an open mic. Sound off you know where.
John McCain's running mate Sarah Palin said Monday that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter is five months pregnant, an announcement campaign aides said was aimed at rebutting Internet rumors that Palin's youngest son, born in April, was actually her daughter's.I'm sorta divided on this one. Part of me says this flies in the face of all the "moral authority" mumbojumbo that the GOP so consistently advocates. It's not enough that McCain himself is a serial philanderer who may, or may not have been creepin' on CindyMac as recently as last year. Now, you've got a Veep who staunchly advocates her pro-life stance (which is certainly her prerogative), but seems to be using the fact that she just had a baby with Down's Syndrome to her political advantage. I'm watching Fox News (don't ask) right now, and none other than Bill Kristol is here saying this teen pregnancy "humanizes" the GOP.
A statement released by the campaign said that Bristol Palin will keep her baby and marry the child's father. Bristol Palin's baby is due in late December.
"Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We're proud of Bristol's decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents," Sarah and Todd Palin said in the brief statement.
The disclosure of the pregnancy came on the opening day of the Republican National Convention, scaled back because of Hurricane Gustav, and three days after McCain named Palin as his running mate. The other news was likely to overshadow the disclosure.
The first-term Alaska governor was in Minnesota preparing for her acceptance speech when the campaign issued the statement; her family was home in Alaska.
"Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family," they added.
The father was identified in the statement as Levi, but the campaign said it was not disclosing his full name or age or how he and Bristol know each other, citing privacy.
Sarah Palin's fifth child, a son named Trig, was born in April with Down syndrome. Internet bloggers have been suggesting that the child was actually born to Bristol Palin but that her mother, the 44-year-old Alaska governor, claimed to be the mother.
On the flipside, part of me says this is none of our damn business. Unmarried people have babies all the time, whether their Moms are in the running for Leader Of The Free World or not. It's their business, and their baby to raise, not ours. This shouldn't be a story, and it probably won't be, not with Gustav floating around, as well as the scaled back GOP Convention.
Obama himself has already said as much, stating that Palin's daughter is "off limits", just like his wife and kids are. Never mind the fact that Cotton Hill McCain uttered the same thing, only to sit on his hands once his surrogates and GOP officials started unloading on Michelle-O.
Barack Obama, questioned about the pregnancy of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's unwed teenage daughter, said outsiders should steer clear of that subject.That Barry is one classy dude, and a far bigger man than me. But I digress. Chat amongst yourselves.
"People's families are off limits," he said firmly. "People's children are especially off limits. They have no relevancy. I strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories. You know my mother had me when she was 18."
Sarah Palin said today confirmed her daughter is expecting a child, and said Bristol Palin and the baby's father would wed. Obama was asked by a reporter about Palin's daughter during a campaign stop in Monroe, following the Detroit Labor Day parade.
Asked if anyone in his campaign had a role in disclosing the pregnancy of 17-year-old Bristol, Obama said: "I'm offended by that statement. There's no indication that any of this involved us."
Obama indicated he'd dismiss anyone from his staff that was involved in disseminating that kind of information.
Question: Is Palin's teenage daughter campaign fodder, or should candidate's kids be off limits, no matter what?
Palin says 17-year-old daughter is pregnant [FoxNews]
Obama: Steer clear of Palin's daughter [Detroit News]
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This is a plus. As Mark Steyn points out in his recent best seller, America Alone, if our western civilization is demographically to survive in the increasingly “hostile to the west” islamic world — and not end up like the sinking European populations — these are the precise people (the Bristol Palins’) we should thank for increasing their progeny.
Is Palin's teenage daughter campaign fodder, or should candidate's kids be off limits, no matter what
although i think the kids themselves should be off limits, i think the things palin herself may say in reference to this matter is fair game. if palin starts running off at the mouth, then i think her words (and her words alone) should be questioned when and where appropriate.
My opinion is it's none of our business, but I will concede this might be an opportunity to press Palin on her stance supporting abstinence-only education.
Classy was the exact word that came into my mind, too, when I saw the Barry quote. And I have no doubt that he meant it. (If it were Hillary saying the same thing, I would have put it in the same category as Richard Nixon's infamous "I hereby pledge not to make an issue out of [JFK's]Catholicism."
I have mixed feelings about the revelation, and some skepticism regarding whether or not she came clean with McCain during the vetting. (What's he supposed to say, "She snookered me and our investigatgors are incompetent, but we'll still find Bin Ladin!")
But I have no mixed feelings about the joy and celebration being expressed by so many bloggers and commenters. Regardless of which side you are on, there is nothing to celebrate here. This is not a situation I'd wish on any family, and the Gov. indeed has my sympathy, though perhaps not my vote.
The only thing this news should do is highlight McCain's judgment.
If he knew, which the campaign says he did, it doesn't appear to be an exercise in good judgment, considering the folly we're seeing on the first day, (and it's a holiday).
If he didn't know, it's an obvious lack of judgement in vetting.
It's unfortunate that a pregnant 17 year old needs to be in the middle of it.
The minor children of candidates should be left alone.Once an adult, they can speak for themselves.
I see this hurting the GOP- there's no way some people will vote for this pair now that there may be a 'baby's momma' potentially living in the White House. Nope, I don't see that happening.
Just imagine if this was one of Obama's daughters- thank goodness they're still young. The MSM would have a field day.
I think this does speak to McCain's judgment. It seems to make the road ahead difficult, but let's see how far down the road he can go;
Yes, families should be off limits, in my opinion. I see that McCain clearly didn't care about this. Wonder why he would think it wouldn't hurt his campaign at all? His VP's daughter is pregnant and her husband may have a DUI arrest. Hmmm.... a good ole All-American family? Yikes!!!
I wonder what he's thinking now... I'd love to be privy to all that cussin'... LOL!
I agree that families should be off-limits--by the candidates...I do think, however, that it is the media's obligation to explore this in greater detail. The reason why I suggest this is simply because of the family values/abstinence platform put forth by the conservatives. Her response to the actions of her family versus her party ideology should be explored in greater detail. She is a key face for the party, after all.
With that said, I think back to Jamie Lynn Spears. When she became preggo (or preggers), I did not hear folk saying this is a matter for the family. Right or wrong, she was judged by the media and the public accordingly. Is little Bristol any different?
Also, I found it interesting that the repubs interviewed today all regurgitated Obama's response when addressing this issue--very interesting, indeed.
I was also thinking about the timing of the announcement with Labor Day, Gustav, and the RNC all going on simultaneously. In my mind, the hope was that this would not get the attention that it would have gotten otherwise--I mean, she is FIVE MONTHS pregnant after all.
With that said, I wonder how carefully "vetted" this candidate was. This is the second negative media moment that she has experienced since becoming gramps running mate on Friday. My question is: What next? I am really waiting for the other shoe to drop with this candidate. It seems as though she is full of surprises.
WTH, average nation?!?!?! what's up with the kid gloves treatment?!?!?! ya'll KNOW if the tables were turned, they would use this mess to VILLIFY barack!!! ya'll can stay quiet if you want to but i have some things to get off my chest:
not to be mean, but i had to do some digging on palin when i heard about her daughter. i recall her saying that she was celebrating her 20th wedding anniversary on friday. well, her son is 19. i ran a
google search and alan colmes did the math. she ELOPED what seems to be 4 weeks after she conceived her son.
http://www.alan.com/2008/08/29/conservative-family-values/
they ripped colmes for even talking about this in the comments.
i am not passing judgment at all, simply identifying bold face hypocricy. she stands for "family values" and jamming "good morals"
down everyone's throats yet she NOR her child have practiced what she's preaching. THAT's the problem. the fact that this is essentially her platform, yet she's a walking contradiction. sure
it's commendable to get married post-conception but WHAT ABOUT THE DIRT YOU ALREADY DID TO GET PREGNANT OUT OF WEDLOCK. this is a total
inconsistency with this Christian conservative set. pointing fingers and passing judgment when their own backyards need sweeping.
and i'm sorry. i'm about as liberated a woman as they come. hey, i pulled a "palin" myself when i went back to work very shortly after my
child was born but i'm sorry. she has toooooo much that she needs to be tending to at home to have accepted this job. she really doesn't
need to be trapsing around the country and the world with 1) a son in iraq, 2) a daughter who is about to become a teen mother and possibly
new bride and 3) a baby with special needs. no way.
chew on that.
@williemoonshine- there's plenty more! read up on the investigation being done after a grievance firing she ordered of her ex-brother-in-law. this woman is OFF THE CHAIN, ya'll, i'm telling you!
@deedee
Wow! Tell us how you really feel! LOL!
EG
Obama's the father! Uh, no. no wait. She was taken advantage of, her drink was spiked! Uh, no, wait.
She didn't know that penises were so dangerous and E-Vail! No, wait.
I found it impossible to believe that the offspring from such a fine, middle class, religious famous would turn up pregnant.
No Sir and Mam, I cannot believe it or are the Palin's black or Mexican?
Enough sarcasm.
Hell yeah, the little nasty tramp should be fair game. Her mother is running of a high and mighty platform of family values. I'd like her to explain away her daughter bumping and grinding at such a young age, with SUCH great parents. I mean, I know kids will do what they hell they want. And even the best parents cant prevent their hormones from running out of control, but when Mommie wants the world to think she's perfect, I think she should be told how much she isn't.
As if her keeping the baby makes her less tacky.
And they say McShame knew about this when he picked her as his VP. What, having a sexually active daughter is going to make her favorable in the eyes of liberal women? Try again.
Obama will undoubtly show her respect. But I have bloggers rip that family to shreds. Along with the Political Pundits on TV.
Because you cannot stand there and be all high and mighty on the podium, but have shit hitting the fan behind your closed doors.
Anonymous, you are a coward.
I will +1 TalentedTenth on this... the kids should be off limits, unless Palin drags them into it.
Deedee, take a deep breath. Palin was busy getting the Alaska RNC chairman fired for ethics violations at thee same time Obama was cozying up to domestic terrorists and the famously corrupt Chicago political machine.
You really want to go there? I'll go there.
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Obama showed his class with this issue. I respect that very much.
@willie
Jamie Lynn Spears was an actress starring on a show aimed at tweens. When she decided to pursue a career as an actress she opened herself up to public scrutiny. This girl's mother is the veep on the Republican ticket. She didn't put herself out there and shouldn't have to be dragged through the mud because of choices her mother made.
Okay it's none of our business, blah blah blah ... But, if Levi is black I'm voting for McCain Nov. 4th.
Then I'm relocating with my kids to Canada!
~blk
AB said:On the flipside, part of me says this is none of our damn business. Unmarried people have babies all the time, whether their Moms are in the running for Leader Of The Free World or not. It's their business, and their baby to raise, not ours.
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Exactamundo mi amigo!!!! And that's the problem I have with conservatives shoving their "family values" down other people's throats. My body, My baby, My choice, MY BUSINESS.
So much for abstinence education.
ditto williemoonshine, on the Jamie Lynn Spears comment.
@Deedee & Anonymous 8:22 great points.
And let's be real people...If this were a 17 year old Sasha or Melia Obama, they'd be fair game for the GOP. Yeah, I said it...cause it true.
We must assume that Governor Palin told John McCain or rather his handlers. That's said, if you choose to accept the nomination for vice president of the United States and know that you have a 17-year-old daughter who is pregnant out of wedlock, then you have to be aware that you are exposing her to attention she would not have normally gotten. Families should be off-limits, but that's not the reality these days. For the daughter's sake, let's hope mom's political ambition doesn't make her life tougher.
I haven't seen anyone dragging Bristol through the mud. I have seen people speak of the hypocrisy of the right. As long as she doesn't have an abortion and she marries the father no harm no big deal.
I wonder when the next Democrat has a family matter if the Republicans will think it should be private.
Please, no one is wrong for calling them on their bull.
I have one conservative associate who has stuck to her beliefs. She's ticked Palin is saying she's happy to be a grandmother, etc. None of this 'well at least she didn't have an abortion.'
Thats almost like giving a man a cookie for taking care of my kids.
She absolutely shouldn't be attacked. Too bad the GOP is just as guilty of not doing what they SHOULD as the Democratic bloggers.
What is good for the goose...
^^ Thank you for saying it. It's time for the Dems to take the tampon out and start going for blood. If the tables were turned we would not hear the end of it (Jeremiah Wright, muslim-garb gate, Michelle and the "whitey" video). It's time to stop being the party o' pussies.
I don't have a problem being a party of pussy's because... there are people that I know that are tougher than any man. However, you are right. We should keep the gloves off. I am all for going for blood, and I don't give a good damn about being nice to these white people. Hell black folks and other minorities don't have this luxury. I heard people at the convention saying well she is human. Michelle and Barack don't get to be human......
All you folks raring for blood, tell us, exactly, what the Dems should do...what angle, what message can they put out using this information that will make them not look like they are attacking a teenager who is not running for office who has made a mistake and is not trying to make good on it? As I said earlier, this is an opportunity to press Palin on her abstinence-only stance, but beyond that this is a no-starter. Obama figured it out and he was able to snatch the candidacy from the shoo-in candidate and raise more money than any candidate has raised evah. So, I gotta believe he knows what he's doing.
Oops, that's NOW trying to make good on it.
Wow, lots of strong opinions here. I'll say this....
Kudos for Obama et al for taking the high road. Any mud slinging here would not be appropriate; even in light to GOPs slant towards 'family values.' Seems like they would have done more fact finding than to anoint a candidate with a 'real life' family situation. I would agree that this 'situation' humanizes the GOP if they weren't so married to the conservative Christian agenda....
I agree that it would be nice to take the GOP to task over this very strange pick for VEEP and her family situation. I think in the game of Politricks, being smugly quiet is the best tactic....
"All you folks raring for blood, tell us, exactly, what the Dems should do...what angle, what message can they put out using this information that will make them not look like they are attacking a teenager"
I say swift boat the whole damn family. ALL OF THEM. I don't know but I think the 2004 election did something (at least to me) that was irreversable and I want SOMEONE (and it doesn't have to be Barack it could be a surrogate) to wipe the Republicans' faces in their hypocritical focus-on-the family-moral-majority bullshit.
I say this proves that parents can only have so much of an influence. I know that most of you that are reading this hate on Republicans and are loving this. Palin is ok with me. I classify myself as an independent and I agree with what I have heard of her. She does what she believes is right even if it goes against her party. I wish all politicians did this. Isn't that why they were elected in the first place? They are there to serve us, the citizens, not the Republicans or Democrats. I'm sure we all know someone that has had a baby out of wedlock, even if their parents taught them better. Don't judge this woman because her daughter didn't listen to what her parent's taught her.
I am still a bit confused and curious about what the true story behind all of the new babies in the Palin family.Yesterday I was reading a lot of blogs about how suspicious Sarah Palin's last pregnancy was. There were a lot of supposed facts about her not looking pregnant and that long trip she took from Texas to deliver her baby in Alaska. I was personally very suspicious because of the lack of any obvious signs of a seven month pregnancy and that she would endanger her special needs child by taking such a long trip to deliver him. I can't believe that any mother would pass by so many hospitals only to get back to her own doctor so far away. Everything that I've read or heard about Sarah Palin is unsettling given the fact that she is hoping to become next in line to run our country. So today I was hoping to get more information about how her youngest child was born only to hear that they have announced that her 17 year old daughter is currently pregnant herself. In the blogs I was reading last night the daughter (Bristol) was supposedly the actual mother of the special needs child and that Sarah Palin was lying about having given birth to him. After the announcement today that Bristol is pregnant it makes me wonder if perhaps this story is even more disturbing than I first thought. Could it be that Sarah Palin was faking the pregnancy for another reason? Could it be possible that her other teenage daughter was the real mother of the special needs child? I know this sounds crazy but I just think it is very strange that Sarah would suddenly announce that she is pregnant at seven months having never mentioned it before and not looking like she did during all of her other pregnancies. I'm sure that if Karl Rove wanted to set a trap for democratic pundits he could come up with such a devious plan to get them going but could he really be behind this story? Surely even Karl wouldn't expect Obama to fall for such a scheme but could predict that his followers may say enough on blogs to try to connect such comments to his campaign. McCain claims to have known about Bristol's unwed pregnancy before tapping Sarah to be vice president and that she was properly vetted. I don't know how true that is but I can see them now sitting down and plotting something even more sinister that could cover her ass long enough to get them elected and at the same time smear Obama and make it seem that he was behind the rumors. Could it be that they knew that the fact that Bristol is pregnant would be in the news soon and went ahead and announced that to hopefully end the rumor that she is the mother of the special needs baby boy? If she is pregnant now, could that mean that she couldn't possibly be the mother of the baby that Sarah supposedly had? Why is it that they don't just come out and prove that Sarah did in fact give birth to the baby boy and end the rumors? It makes me even more suspicious that they don't do just that.There is so little time before election day and there are so many questionable facts about this woman. I don't think that would be the case if there weren't some dark secret that the gop wants to keep. I hope that there is a way to get to the bottom of all of these questions we have about her before it's too late. I have seen the Bush administration accomplish too many dastardly deeds to think that they couldn't keep this woman's dirty secrets hidden until she gets elected. (And as we all know, the McCain campaign is only an extension of the Bush administration.) I am so grateful that Obama always takes the high road and says the right thing but I don't have to do that. (Not that an american asking questions about a political candidate is wrong in any way...) I don't wish any ill will on Sarah Palin or her family but I do think that we have a right to know the truth about her. She is a public figure who seems to have a lot of strange and shady factors in her personal life that happens to also spread into her public service. If she has used her position to ruin anyone's career, or has outright lied about a pregnancy for whatever reason we deserve to know. There isn't much time to get to the truth and I hope that democrats aren't too afraid to expose anything that can put our country at risk. I personally feel that even a politician can be a good person and that Obama is the best example of that I have ever seen. We should be able to get to the truth about Sarah Palin without soiling Obama's good name and reputation. The democrats have always had a hard time defending themselves let alone shining a light on a republican candidate without coming out as the bad guy. If Sarah Palin has done wrong it should be she that ends up looking bad and not her children or anyone else. The thing that scares me the most about this is that if they are using such a scandalous story to hide something else, that something else must really be bad!
yes, that is exactly how I feel about it.
Well it seems as though the McCain camp is doing some post-selection vetting...Palin is just like a Transformer--"More than meets the eye"...
Last night, I was having a political discussion with a friend who speculated that, with the growing controversy surrounding Palin, she would step down in the next 48-72 hours. Does anyone else think this could happen? Personally, I disagreed with him as I thought that the repubs would rather weather the storm than concede that McCain made a dumb, shoot-from-the-hip selection (perhaps a forecast of his presidential decision-making skills). Just thought I'd put that out there.
Finally, I am loving how the repubs are consistently regurgitating Obama's argument over and over again--"She's a family member, hence she is off limits". I say Bull Droppings...To counter Sing, I think that the Jamie Lynn Spears example is analogous to this situation as the Spears family could have made a similar plea to the media for NOT reporting on her--she's a minor, its a family matter, blah, blah, blah...But, as a public figure, she opened herself up to that scrutiny when the bun in her oven developed.
The thing is, when Palin decided to accept McCain's offer, she opened herself (and her family) up to scrutiny (perhaps in a hotter spotlight than Jamie Lynn), like it or not. Had this been one of Obama's children (if they were old enough, of course) the media, and McCain (and Palin), would have ripped him a new one. Would we really see the same courtesy that Obama extended?
ITA with the "party of pussies" comment. America can say all they want that they don't want dirty politics, but for the past 8 years, that's what has succeeded on a national level. Somehow, the candidate who hid out from Vietnam got to make the guy who actually served and won medals look unpatriotic. I'm tired of being the bigger person, that doesn't work against Republicans. Since this news has come out, I can't stop from laughing! This shows McCain's awful judgment for not only picking someone he'd met only once, but has a pregnant teenage daughter, while she espouses abstinance only education. This woman is unable to control what does on in her own house, how can she help him run the country, or God forbid, run it herself if he dies while in office. She's a mess of a candidate, is he trying to lose? While Obama himself cannot say anything about this, I hope all Democrat supporters treat this like the Jeremiah Wright debacle. Kids should be off limits, but if this were Malia or Sasha Obama in this situation, the Repubs would not let this rest until the man was run out of Washington. We have to stop being "weak" and call it like it is. The woman is a total hypocrite!
Hm. Obama handled Jeremiah Wright his way and look, he's the candidate. He's handling this his way, too, and I suspect it will work out to his advantage in the end as well. Reacting to this gains him no points among the voters he's trying to capture, it only serves to satisfy those who were voting for him anyway. I frequent several political Web sites to hear the chatter and trust me, there were many many MANY "I'm a conservative, but that was a classy move by Obama" posts yesterday. In the last two elections the Dems tried to throw some folks under the bus and it didn't work because they *aren't* the GOP and shouldn't try to be the GOP. Obama has decided to try something different and looks like it's working for him. If this is your guy, stay with him, trust him. He's WINNING.
I'm with singlikesassy on this one. Obama has run a very succesful campaign so far, he knows what he's doing.
Who knows what would have happened if it were the Democrat candidate's daughter? Maybe the GOP would come down hard on him, but if you would like this kind of campaigning and tactics to stop someone will have to start taking the high road. Maybe starting now will make the next campaigns more and more civil.
Children rebel and do dumb things.
B-A-R-A-C-K(tm) was 100% correct. Its not a campaign issue.
I like how Obama is handling this. Yes, I know it'd be the other way around if it were one of his children. BUT, why stoop so low? I really do think that the American people can see more clearly than they did the last election. I DO think this is working in his favor, of course.
McCain's camp said that he chose her knowing that her daughter was pregnant, but can anyone tell me why I'm callin' bullshit on that? Yeah, because he DIDN'T know and he's just covering his ass. He looks foolish to me (moreso now than before). Also, I don't think she should have accepted the VP nomination. Her daughter needs her mother right now, she still has an infant son herself, and well... she sucks. She seems REALLY wishy-washy. Plus, if McCain kicks the bucket, this woman would be IT. That's not good. At all.
I just have this feeling that the Obama/Biden ticket is the winner. It's a hasty foresight, sure, but I just have this feeling...
How Obama handles it and how Democratic supporters handle it is apple and oranges. No one thinks Obama should be calling conservatives a hypocrite.
But if this was the child of a Democrat Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Hannity and Coulter would be all over this (with the party's unsaid support).
Personally, I do think she should be off limits but I don't think Democrats should take their strategic points from the GOP because they say its off limits.
But like I've said before- I dont think the daughter is the issue of most bloggers.
@ spool- you're right- i do need to take a deep breath- between my uncontrollable fits of laughter!!! palin is a joke but what's more, mccain is TOAST. judgement?? he doesn't have an ounce of it. the conservative talking heads have only their robotic talking point to draw on in interview after interview. and i'm loving every minute of it. anyway, gotta bounce. i'm headed to the post office to mail my thank you letter to johnny boy.
In typical Conservative fashion, they're defending this by bringing up Hunter Biden, Rebb'n Wright, William Ayers, etc.
I'm sorta thinking some Democratic operative needs to call them out publicly in this hipocrisy.
Any I agree, no way McCain properly vetted this woman. He made the same assumptions we did (humble woman from humble roots, she couldn't possibly have baggage) and it's burning him now. Is this the sort of laxadasical judgement we want running the country?
IS HE READY TO LEAD!?!?
And now they're doing the chronology and trying to prove that Obama's mom wasn't married when he was born. And that Obama's Dad was a bigamist and left him stranded.
Ok, that's PRECISELY WHY the Democrats need to go hard on this one.
These folks MAKE ME SICK!!!
You guys went there. Want a dirty fight? The GOP can bring it. Personally, I think this whole episode proves that the "feminist movement" doesn't support women... it supports Democrat women.
But then I've known that for ages. Seeing how McCain has raised $10 million since his announcement and Obama keeps forgetting Palin was a Governor, I think it's working.
Oh, BTW Palin supports access to contraceptives. So much for abstinence-only hypocrisy.
I love that it's women on here who've gone after her the hardest. The Sisterhood membership card has a donkey watermark... shall we keep talking hypocrisy?
I guess I am a little concerned that one would pander for votes using her family and her choice to have one of those family members, but then say that it's a family issue that they will resolve. I'm sorry, that boy was told that he would marry Bristol (too much Sportscenter or something; and what's up with the names of her kids, was she drug tested?) or he was going to be found somewhere in a very compromising position (Iraq or Afghanistan). The fact that McCain knew about this before hand and still tapped her for Veep. I mean she has an ailing child who is going to require lots of care, but she's rolling out to stump for Veep? Why didn't she know her daughter was pregnant until 5 months into it? My momma knew if I passed gas in her house, but a pregnancy? This is either going to be very easy for Barry or something crazy might happen. I'm going to go on record as saying the first time she cries, I'm going to be writing Average Bro all night that night.
@spool32
Interesting comment on the feminist movement. I find that women are hardest on women in all walks of life; politics, fashion, career, etc. Of course women shouldn't support women just because of anatomical similarities but damn, why such extreme scrutiny?
What's up with that....hater-aid?
Bottom line: Had little Bristol not laid with young Levi without some sort of contraception (perhaps she should have just abstained like her mom told her) this be a non-issue. Little Bristol went "Maverick-style" (Maverick from her mother's wizened teachings) in the sack and well...
Gramps made a key (perhaps his most important) decision the campaign--he went "Maverick-Style"--as a result he has a candidate that he has limited knowledge about. I read in the paper this morning that she has some additional lobbyist concerns when she was Mayor of the great city of Wasilla (getting $27 Mil for a town of 6,700)...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/01/AR2008090103148.html?hpid=topnews
My question is: When do you cut bait? More and more is being disovered about this candidate and she is looking more and more like Joan Allen in the Candidate (different skeletons tho). What will the next big scandal be? I wonder if there is any possibility that she will step down (see earlier post).
I said this before (and got blasted for it), but I will say it again: Palin must be a time management GENIUS. She's got FIVE KIDS (four of whom are minors and one of whom has special needs) and a grandkid on the way from her underage daughter. As the pundits say, she is "one heartbeat" away from the presidency--She MUST have an uncanny "Maverick-esque" ability to manage all of these responsibilites.
Is this series of events a glimpse into the mind of a madman? What was McCain thinking? Is this really the person that we want leading our country. He calls himself a--check that--THE maverick, but, good grief, even mavericks make good decisions from time to time. This one was too big to screw up...
I agree with talentedtenth, families should be off limits unless the candidate brings them up. Palin's daughter should not be off limits if she's gonna bring it up all the time. I agree with asking her about her abstinence only teachings now that her own daughter is pregnant and about to bring a new life into the world. Another thing about that too is, say everyone keeps their baby, we'll still have people on welfare, babies in orphanages, babies on the street. What is the alternative offered for keeping a child that either you can not afford to raise or is a product of rape? I in no way condone the use of abortion as a birth control method, meaning don't be hittin it raw all the time and go to the clinic to fix the problem (ie: Jody in Baby Boy). But for those circumstances where it is truly needed. Why make a 12 year old rape victim bring that baby into the world? Her body may not be ready to carry that burden and emotional strees. It's like punishing the victim. But I digress....
@ spool- this just keeps getting better and better for me!!! you're really showing some true ignorance in this comments section. being a feminist doesn't mean supporting any woman no matter what. there is no unspoken pact that we take to defend each other tooth and nail. if a woman needs to be called out, then she needs to be called the h@ll out!! and palin NEEDS TO BE CALLED OUT simple as that. your reasoning is the same twisted logic mccain must have employed when he selected palin. "oh, she's a women, so other women will support her." which conservative agenda bullet point # was that??? likewise, being black doesn't mean supporting every other black person in the world. you've see it here at avb.com. we rip on barack, kwame, whoever, when it's called for. but i guess you really wouldn't understand that concept since you prescribe to the neo-con "stick to the script and SPIN THE CRAP out of ANYTHING" philosophy.
oh, and you might want to educate yourself on the definition of "womanism", MY FRIEND!!! i just HAD to use that one on you!! LOL!!!
From Ben Smith over at Politico:
Sexism complaints no longer "whining"
During the primary Sarah Palin chided Hillary Clinton for complaining about sexism.
"She does herself a disservice to even mention it, really," Palin said. "When I hear a statement like that coming from a woman candidate with any kind of perceived whine about that excess criticism, or maybe a sharper microscope put on her, I think, 'Man, that doesn't do us any good, women in politics, or women in general, trying to progress this country,'" Palin said. "I don't think it bodes well for her."
She, or at least her advisors in McCain land, seem to have discarded this principle today, along with years of Republican complaints about identity politics and political correctness.
The campaign just blasted out an op-ed by advisor Nancy Pfotenhauer under the heading "Ignore The Chauvinists. Palin Has Real Experience."
Said McCain advisor Carly Fiorina: “Because of Hillary Clinton’s historic run for the Presidency and the treatment she received, American women are more highly tuned than ever to recognize and decry sexism in all its forms. They will not tolerate sexist treatment of Governor Palin.”
Also, Lindsey Graham:
“Would a man be asked this question? Probably not,” the South Carolina Republican said in an interview with Politico.
“Did anybody ask [Democratic vice presidential nominee] Joe Biden [similar questions] when his tragedy hit him?”
Inconsistency in politics. Gasp.
@ Spool said: "Oh, BTW Palin supports access to contraceptives. So much for abstinence-only hypocrisy."
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So what are you trying to say, the rubber broke?
American women are more highly tuned than ever to recognize and decry sexism in all its forms.
Yeah, sure we can. The same way some Black see racism when they don't get perfect customer service.
Is it not condescending to a woman to have all the media say Joe Biden has to be careful and take it easy?
If Hillary Clinton was going against John McCain and he verbally kicked her ass I wouldn't sit there whining, "That's not right." I'd say, "Damn Hillary you have to do better dammit."
Maybe thats my military experience. Most times no one cared I was a woman especially when I had to march up hills for miles at a time with that 35 pound ruck sack on my back.
@ebw:
Let's hope we don't find out!
I think it's time to eat some humble pie. Sen. Palin is the "abstinence education" broad(I call most females broads), correct? Well we can see how wonderfully that one worked with her own daughter, I SO want her telling that crap to mine. I don't think that issues of the daughter and her progressing pregnancy should be touched. But she opened the door when she pulled the abstinence card out of her butt, so that and anything else she has to say about "family values" should be in. I feel bad for the girl though, my daughter was born when I was 17 and if I had to get married to further either of my parent's political agenda... it just wouldn't have happened, sorry Mom! It's obvious she's being forced into a marriage and no one cares if she wants to go through with it, because if she doesn't then what they have to step down off the "family values" platform and how unfortunate is that for her?
Gypsy:
Please point me to the sources that make you believe it's obvious she's being forced into a marriage to further her mother's political career.
Otherwise, fall back.
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