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Pluses and perils for Palin
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CommentJohn McCain’s selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his Republican running mate is likely to push social issues back into prominence in a presidential campaign dominated so far by the economy and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
At first blush, picking the 44-year-old Palin appeared to be a fairly straightforward bid for disaffected Democratic women — those who remain unreconciled to Barack Obama’s nomination and who were offended by his subsequent refusal to put Hillary Clinton on the ticket.
At first blush, picking the 44-year-old Palin appeared to be a fairly straightforward bid for disaffected Democratic women — those who remain unreconciled to Barack Obama’s nomination and who were offended by his subsequent refusal to put Hillary Clinton on the ticket.
It’s possible some Clinton supporters remain unmoved by Clinton’s wholehearted appeals for party unity in Denverk. Still, it seems unlikely that many will cross the aisle to McCain — no matter who his running mate is. Clinton’s admirers feel about her as they do not just because she’s a woman but because she’s a particular sort of woman.
Palin is emphatically not that sort of woman. She is, however, the sort who fires the enthusiasm of the religious right and the GOP’s socially conservative wing. That’s where her presence on the ticket really helps McCain, whose popularity in that crucial part of the Republican base never has been better than tepid. As a correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network reported, evangelical leaders literally hugged each other “in joy” when Palin’s name was announced.
Palin is emphatically not that sort of woman. She is, however, the sort who fires the enthusiasm of the religious right and the GOP’s socially conservative wing. That’s where her presence on the ticket really helps McCain, whose popularity in that crucial part of the Republican base never has been better than tepid. As a correspondent for the Christian Broadcasting Network reported, evangelical leaders literally hugged each other “in joy” when Palin’s name was announced.
It’s easy to see why. Palin is an evangelical Christian, a creationist and opposed to abortion and same-sex marriage. (Alaska was one of the first states to amend its constitution to prohibit same-sex marriage, and Palin supported that 1998 measure.) She also happens to be a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association and a hunting and fishing enthusiast whose favorite dish is moose stew.
Palin has been governor for two years in a state where politics are hard-fought but small scale. There’s no telling how she’ll perform on a national stage or how she’ll deal with the size and appetite of the media corps. But if she can find her footing, she could be a formidable advocate for the religious right’s social agenda, particularly when it comes to abortion.
Palin has been governor for two years in a state where politics are hard-fought but small scale. There’s no telling how she’ll perform on a national stage or how she’ll deal with the size and appetite of the media corps. But if she can find her footing, she could be a formidable advocate for the religious right’s social agenda, particularly when it comes to abortion.
The Democrats left Denver with an abortion problem that’s been given far too little attention in the mainstream media. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s incoherent attempt to reconcile her Catholicism and pro-choice voting record on “Meet the Press” has provoked a torrent of condemnation from bishops across the country. Some of those denunciations probably will resonate with the socially conservative, white ethnic Catholics who are disproportionately concentrated in large swing states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania.
If she’s adroit enough to do so, Palin can raise the abortion question with an authority no candidate for national office has ever had. In mid-April, she gave birth to her fifth child, a son she chose to deliver knowing that he would be born with Down syndrome. She said that she and her husband had discussed the prenatal diagnosis but that “we’ve both been very vocal about being pro-life. We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential.” In other words, the anti-abortion camp finally has a candidate who not only talks the talk but walks the walk.
She also brings an interesting tinge of Alaska’s blue-collar, frontier libertarianism to the social-agenda debate. Although she supports the teaching of creationism in public schools, Palin thinks it should be presented alongside, rather than instead of, evolution. “Healthy debate is so important, and it’s so valuable in our schools. I am a proponent of teaching both,” she said during her gubernatorial campaign. “I say this, too, as the daughter of a science teacher ... Don’t be afraid of information, and let kids debate both sides.” Similarly, although she opposes same-sex marriage, as governor she vetoed a bill that would have denied benefits to the partners of gay state employees.
All of this gives Palin the potential to be an unexpected spokeswoman for the religious right’s social agenda, if someone so inexperienced can surmount the rigors of a national campaign to make herself heard.
At some point, too, she’ll have to face the formidable Joe Biden — veteran chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — in a debate sure to hone in on her utter lack of experience with foreign-policy and national-security issues. If she isn’t careful, Palin could emerge from that encounter looking a lot like Dan Quayle in drag.
(Rutten writes for the Los Angeles Times, where this essay first appeared.)
If she’s adroit enough to do so, Palin can raise the abortion question with an authority no candidate for national office has ever had. In mid-April, she gave birth to her fifth child, a son she chose to deliver knowing that he would be born with Down syndrome. She said that she and her husband had discussed the prenatal diagnosis but that “we’ve both been very vocal about being pro-life. We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential.” In other words, the anti-abortion camp finally has a candidate who not only talks the talk but walks the walk.
She also brings an interesting tinge of Alaska’s blue-collar, frontier libertarianism to the social-agenda debate. Although she supports the teaching of creationism in public schools, Palin thinks it should be presented alongside, rather than instead of, evolution. “Healthy debate is so important, and it’s so valuable in our schools. I am a proponent of teaching both,” she said during her gubernatorial campaign. “I say this, too, as the daughter of a science teacher ... Don’t be afraid of information, and let kids debate both sides.” Similarly, although she opposes same-sex marriage, as governor she vetoed a bill that would have denied benefits to the partners of gay state employees.
All of this gives Palin the potential to be an unexpected spokeswoman for the religious right’s social agenda, if someone so inexperienced can surmount the rigors of a national campaign to make herself heard.
At some point, too, she’ll have to face the formidable Joe Biden — veteran chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — in a debate sure to hone in on her utter lack of experience with foreign-policy and national-security issues. If she isn’t careful, Palin could emerge from that encounter looking a lot like Dan Quayle in drag.
(Rutten writes for the Los Angeles Times, where this essay first appeared.)
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kevin wrote on Sep 3, 2008 5:00 AM:
Common Sense wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:08 AM:
Go Sarah Palin! "
Ruff Limblog wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:43 AM:
Palin is irrelevant... the only PUMAs left after Hillary came out in loud proud support of Obama are Republican phonied up poseurs.
VP picks might make a difference if the Democratic Party were divided. But Dems are united and registered more voters and turned them out in record numbers as well.
Also, the idea that Democrats are going to flock to anti-choice McCain and even more anti-choice Sarah Palin is definite a sign that the 'Dems are in a Palin Panic' binkie has been made in China with a hign lead content.
Palin is irrelevant to voting no matter how many times you push a poll before the Democratic Convention.
The polls AFTER the Palin announcement show McCain sinking and continuing to sink...
Palin won't save the Republicans from a massive trouncing in November.
And the sight of all those police beating up and arresting journalists, and seizing their cameras and video equipment shows us that the Republicans are terrified that their days are numbered.
'A finger appeared and wrote upon the wall...' Mine Mine Tickel Parsun - "You have been judged and found wanting. You will be overthrown"
The American people sent the message in 2006 that they were tired of Boooshite misgovernance -- y'all didn't listen did ya?
~Ruff
~Ruff "
Dwayne wrote on Sep 3, 2008 9:13 AM:
I'm crackin' up...... Don't break your keyboard, Ruff... ;-) "
musikluvr wrote on Sep 3, 2008 9:50 AM:
Common Sense wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:32 AM:
"Sarah Palin is the ultimate All-American Girl, beautiful but not glamorous, powerful but unpretentious, high-powered but down-to-earth, a reformer who speaks up while others cower in fear of rocking the boat. Like Ronald Reagan, she can reach right through the television camera into people's minds and hearts. We recognize one of us." "
kevin wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:50 AM:
Q: What's the difference between a hockey mom and a pitbull?
A: Lipstick! "
Sickothis wrote on Sep 3, 2008 1:10 PM:
puddininapie wrote on Sep 3, 2008 3:44 PM:
Ruff Limblog wrote on Sep 3, 2008 5:03 PM:
Well, now there is an 'open mike' moment on MSNBC with Chuck Todd (MSNBC's "numbers' man) and two Republicans.
Peggy Noonan (who I believe was a Reagan speechwriter) and some Republican governor were talking and...
Peggy Noonan said that with the choice of Sarah Palin, "it's over". And even more revealingly said that Republicans weren't good at the kind of campaign they were trying to run.
So far, no bounce for McCain... and if the polls made after the RNC don't show a bounce for them next week, the McCain/Palin ticket will lose by a landslide in just a few months.
No 'Palin Panic' here... just a deep sense of satisfaction in being the first to say that Palin was not going to 'save the McCain campaign'.
~Ruff "
Dwayne wrote on Sep 3, 2008 6:18 PM:
Ruff Limblog wrote on Sep 3, 2008 6:36 PM:
Barack Obama said that the Palin children were 'off limits' and said they would fire anyone that was found to be pushing the story.
And unlike George Dubya Boosh who famously made "Republican Promises" to fire anybody involved in outing CIA agent and WMD investigator Valerie Plame and then promptly crawfished out of his "Republican Promise"...
Barack Obama does what he says he will do.
No 'Republican Promises' from Barack Obama!
And... for those of the Republican Pep Squad who are so concerned about my adrenal state... I am happy to report that...
Where the rubber meets the road this week... so far - no campaign bounce for McCain/Palin.
And those vastly smaller audiences tuning in for the RNC in that rather small, but still half-empty venue in the Twin Cities. Those listless Republicans hiding from cameras as they skulk into those lobbyist parties promise yet more slippage in the polls.
[Que: Dirge music for Republican mortician convention]
"It's hard to stop laughing at all the Guff Republican-enablers babble about Ruff !!! "
Cheers!
~Ruff "
kevin wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:50 PM:
The standing "O" lasted longer than any convention I remember, D or R.... "
musikluvr wrote on Sep 3, 2008 9:09 PM:
russ wrote on Sep 3, 2008 9:28 PM:
"Barack Obama does what he says he will do."
What has Obama EVER promised or EVER done?
Bad timing.
Ruff, what does Obama plan to do about radical Islamic terrorism? "
cab e-girl wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:48 PM:
plasticpinkflamingo wrote on Sep 3, 2008 11:15 PM:
Folks, the lefties have sunk to a new low here. "
misfit wrote on Sep 4, 2008 6:26 AM:
Also, cab-e-girl...Palin actually praised Obama's energy plan on her website...oh, that was then taken down after she was picked as VP. Why don't you go to Obama's website if you'd like speciifics. They are there and have been but, you don't really want to know the truth...do you.
That might mean you'd have to open your eyes and stop that blind faith thing you RepubliCONS do. "
Sandra wrote on Sep 4, 2008 8:32 AM:
Sickofthis....meth capitol?...again new lows....
Heard a lady the other day, a "Proud" democrat say, " the democrats had more class than to trash the republicans like they are trashing Obama", AND in the same breath, in front of her children, loudly say, "Sarah Palin? Oh god, do not make me throw up....you know her daughter is pregnant?...they tried to cover it up with a jacket, her boyfirends name is LEVI!!! OMG who names their kid LEVI???What kind of people live in Alaska? What kind of person would raise daughters there? What did she think would happen? She makes me sick, I'm going home to throw up now."
Hopefully this person is not indicative of all democrats...I know she is not indicative of me. But somehow, in my imagination, I can see her, misfit , and sickofthis, and a few other posters here and on some other blogs, sitting down to a real nice Palin hatefest....with no idea of how they are embodying everything they say they are against.... "
plasticpinkflamingo wrote on Sep 4, 2008 8:55 AM:
And since when has ObamabinBiden (since playground name-calling is SOP for ruff, he will have to be able to take it as well as give it - I know how to play in the mud too) given a speech that they wrote personally? Speechwriters have been employed by candidates probably since the Roman Empire and before that. So what is your complaint that Sarah read someone else's words supposed to mean? Just more innuendo. "
plasticpinkflamingo wrote on Sep 4, 2008 9:20 AM:
Good question, one which Obama probably can't/won't answer, at least not directly. The answer he might offer is that it is above his pay grade. (what pay grade is above Commander-In-Chief?) Or he might say that he will have a few focus groups look into it, or take it to the UN Security Council. It might just work - the terrorists will be laughing so hard they won't be able to come up with their next plan. "
plasticpinkflamingo wrote on Sep 4, 2008 9:30 AM:
So who got fired? The smears have been coming from ObamabinBiden's campaign staff directly to their media lapdogs. Another empty Obama 'promise'. No one will get fired for smearing Sarah's family. "
freeport56 wrote on Sep 4, 2008 10:34 AM:
No matter howe thye left tries to spin it, Governor Palin is a force to be recconded with. It even turns out she is the 2nd most wanted speaker in the country.
Not bad for a small town making good. "
plasticpinkflamingo wrote on Sep 4, 2008 11:11 AM:
In the news today (rasmussen reports as posted on Yahoo this morning): "Nationally, the Rasmussen daily Presidential Tracking Poll showed Obama with a modest but expected bounce following the close of his convention last week, but that is already being offset by the bounce McCain is beginning to get from his party's gathering."
As usual, Ruff covers up the inconvenient truths with the big lie and innuendo. "
misfit wrote on Sep 4, 2008 11:09 PM:
The only remarkable thing about her speech was that she delivered it pretty well. I would hope that someone with her extensive experience as a small fish in a small pond would at least be able to deliver a speech. The Miss Wasilla pagaent was probably a very good stepping stone in developing her skills as a public speaker and made her a shoo in for John McCain's pick. You know how he likes those beauty queen/swim suit model types.
Anyway, enough of this silliness. I'm starting to feel like a RepubliCON wih all of these snarky, mean thoughts.
Sarah Palin speaks to the lowest common denominator in this country. The followers...not the leaders. It's not that they identify with her...they live vicariously through her. They did not even know who she was a week ago so, what does that tell you. "
vocal-de-local wrote on Sep 5, 2008 12:12 AM:
Am I the only person who is genuinely concerned about where her idealism could carry us? Think for a moment about what might happen if she becomes a role model for a certain segment of our society who want an excuse to become welfare dependent? If government can force a woman into birthing a child, they will become legally responsible for its upbringing. Can we afford having Palin in office? This is scary stuff. We have enough trouble taking care of our existing population. We are going to be forced into a position of fighting for quality of life at some point if we're not careful. Someone like Palin could tip the scale in a very bad direction. Imagine if she becomes a role model, possibly out of necessity if she has the power to chip away at the existing reproductive rights of women. Who is going to be legally responsible for the care and expense of all those illegitimate children who come into this world because "planned parenthood" has been shut down? What if teenagers cannot have legal access to birth control? What if a woman can no longer abort a defective fetus? Will the state become legally responsible for the upbringing of these children whose quality of life is sadly diminished? I think Mrs. Palin has a hidden agenda. "
Sandra wrote on Sep 5, 2008 8:48 AM:
Obama s platform will only increase this segment of our society. If you are REALLY worried about this, I suggest you study his platform....hmmmm, hidden agendas...too funny....
Misfit, you continue to wallow in the muck...good for you! I say judge a person by their actions....so far your actions have been consistant. How is the mud? "
vocal-de-local wrote on Sep 5, 2008 12:59 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 5, 2008 2:32 PM:
One of the things that struck me about the difference between the two conventions was that the democratic one was focused on what the government could GIVE to to people.... The needy victims of our country. The republican convention was more focused on what we could DO as a people to make our country a better place. It was focused on service to our fellow countrymen, and PERSONAL responsibilty.
It seemed a more proactive stance, than the democratic stance of hand outs to those already fully capable of working to take care of themselves.
That really seems to me to be the main difference of the two conventions in this election.
One side promotes entitlement and the other responsibilty.
And as for the economy, it depends on what plan you think would work the best.
I think McCain has demonstrated that he is fully capable of taking a road different that the same old republican trail, when needed, and demonstrated his ability to work with both Democrats and Republicans, that he is the one that will be more effective in getting results. Obama has never stepped away from the democratic stance to work with anyone who thinks differently than him. How effective could he be? The answer to that remains to be seen. "
Ruff Limblog wrote on Sep 6, 2008 10:14 AM:
If something is the truth, even a very unpleasant truth... it is not a 'smear'.
The truth remains the truth.
Notice that Republican 'attacks about the Obama campaign involvement with 'smearing Palin' have no names attached?
If the Republicans had even a tiny shred of actual evidence that some Obama staffer had been involved with 'smearing Palin' we should have heard a name by now.
If the Republicans put out some real evidence, and Obama did not fire the person, then Obama could be made out to be... just like Bush, making Republican Promises!
Unfortunately for Republicans, Obama actually means what he says and speaks respectfully of McCain and Palin personally.
Obama does attack McCain/Palin positions on issues important to middle-class Americans if they have one.
The Republicans will continue to make various 'smear' attacks without evidence, because they want to rant... because they don't want Obama to actually fire anybody. That would make Republicans out to be... liars.
It's kinda fun to stand by with the pin of truth and... pop... pop... pop... these Republican lies!
Palin's family mess is her business, not ours, unless she wants to force her personal religion on the rest of us.
Her abuses of power and poor fiscal record as the mayor of a town smaller than Napa are enough to make her a boat anchor on the McCain campaign.
~Ruff "
Hear Ye wrote on Sep 6, 2008 10:42 AM:
What part of the convention was about what we could do for our country? All I heard was cheap attacks and that McCain was a POW mixed in with sweet videos of our soldiers and 9/11. "
B-Side wrote on Sep 6, 2008 1:08 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 6, 2008 4:37 PM:
Can't make a blind man see...any way I can't. We saw the same convention but you only heard what you wanted to hear.
B-side, I am wondering, Micheal Mooore said the latest hurricane was gods punishment on the republicans. Where is that in the bible...also where did it say he would send us Obama, as Pelosi claims God did? "
WorksInNapa wrote on Sep 6, 2008 8:54 PM:
anticommie wrote on Sep 7, 2008 8:55 AM:
" Republicans trying to throw sand in our eyes here! The usual definition of 'smear' is telling lies about somebody to make them look bad. If something is the truth, even a very unpleasant truth... it is not a 'smear'
so Ruff...
it doesnt bother you of Obama's close affiliation with William Ayers? The man the Weather Underground Terrorist that said "the only thing I regret is not causing more damage." This is a VERY unpleasant truth, and should bother any American.
It doesnt bother you that Obama's pastor of 25 years is a left-wing radical that hates white people? Obama says that he never attended any sermons when Wright preached this hatred. The man married the Obama's. Obama says Wright is the reason he is a Christian. Another very unpleasant truth.
You talk about not smearing individuals, and yet that is all I read on this blog. Name calling and personal attacks on every post! "
B-Side wrote on Sep 7, 2008 9:20 AM:
It would appear that my last post didn't make it past the NVR censor.
I don't trust Michael Moore or Nancy Pelosi.
When someone makes a statement as ridiculous as "God wants us to build a pipeline" or "God is punishing Republicans", it is nothing more than a con. It is among the oldest con games that have ever existed and yet people buy into time after time, generation after generation.
In Palin's case it is a NeoCon.
Pun intended. "
Raven wrote on Sep 7, 2008 9:53 AM:
so lets see, Obama was 8 when Ayers was part of the weather underground....I can see the ties being formed right there.....and they both served on the same board for a while...even politco.com says there is no evidence they have more than a casual relationship..
and you have agreed with every sermon preached by every pastor you have ever heard? "
Sandra wrote on Sep 7, 2008 11:09 AM:
Ruff Limblog wrote on Sep 7, 2008 11:25 AM:
William Ayers - no it doesn't bother me. Corporate lobbyists in DC are a bigger threat to the welfare of middle-class Americans today than one washed up 60s radical who saw the light years ago and tried to turn his life around since. Your quote, shall we say, is very 'dated' on the man.
Rev. Jeremiah Wright - No, he doesn't bother me. There are LOTs of crazy pastors out there. That rightwing crazy pastor, 'Reverend Phelps' demonstrating in approval of the deaths of US troops because of gays... now that is REALLY creepy.
I can appreciate Republican 'riffs' on my pen name like 'Bluff' or 'Limplog' so I hope you are not too upset when I take a second to 'riff' on yours! ;o) 'auntiecommie'. Calling people colorful names is not the same as 'smearing' somebody by lying about them.
Name-calling has a long history in politics, and something that Republicans have little problem with... unless they are losing.
Then the very hypocrites who invented SwiftBoating and PurpleHeart Bandaids in 2004 quickly start wanting civility and polite language.
I have no problem with polite language as this post demonstrates, but I will not unilaterally put down my verbal sword when I see the long knives out.
I believe that if somebody accuses you of 'bad stuff' or uses 'colorful names', the best response is to forcefully and truthfully counter-attack more strongly than the original attack.
Republicans often accuse progressives of being weak and weak-minded -- so I do my best to reply proud and strong with the truth as I see it.
~Ruff "
B-Side wrote on Sep 7, 2008 3:08 PM:
As I stated in my original post, I am not a Christian. I am opposed to both sides doing it. The point I'm driving at is that it is ridiculous for politicians to tell us what God wants.
The statement that God wants a pipeline was exceptionally ridiculous.
And I agree that it was stupid to say God is punishing Republicans. Maybe he is. How could we possibly know?
Just for the record, I'm not for either side. I'll use my vote to build a foundation for a third party.
I am so very tired of Demublicans and Republicrats.
Who did you vote for in 2004? The guy from skull & bones or the guy from skull & bones? That was your choice. "
kevin wrote on Sep 7, 2008 5:35 PM:
"quoted him as saying "I don't regret setting bombs" and "I feel we didn't do enough", and, when asked if he would "do it all again" as saying "I don't want to discount the possibility."[12] Ayers has not denied the quotes"
Plus he apparantly is still "tight" with B.O.:
"The two served together on the Woods Fund Board from 1999 until Obama left in 2002. Ayers had other contact with Obama as a resident of Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, hosting Obama's first fund raising reception in his first Illinois state Senate campaign in 1995, appearing on education panels together, and donating $200 to Obama's campaign in April 2001" "
Bill wrote on Sep 7, 2008 5:37 PM:
There was a time when I did not appreciate your tactics but now recognize that this medium is not made for debate, information or achieving common ground I will have to agree with your methods.
This is not a medium meant to convince but rather to attack and the next few months should prove entertaining for you, your opponents and those like myself sinickerin’ and snarfin’ from the side lines.
I suggest Auntycommie find a book of fairytales someplace that tells him Saint Reagan slew the communist dragon with the tax dollars of many Americans (including working and middle class Democrats) only to kiss Snow White and have her awake to Red China’s co-opting the corporate form and employing state directed capitalism for the benefit of the chairman of the board and the ruling corporate apparatchiks.
Now it appears that Russia having jettisoned communism and Stalin’s utopia has donned not merely the trappings of democracy and capitalism but thrown in a more than healthy dose of capitalism with its strident nationalism. Maybe Snow White and Auntycommie should find a frog prince to return them to their fantasy that secular socialism is the crux of all evil and not the corporate managed state insuring that the few at the top get the majority of the good while those who do not are not trickled on but tinkled on.
Auntycommie and others suffering from the continuing episodic fairytale of any suggestion, other than a military and nationalistic solution, pointing to a different perspective than theirs is a heresy to be condemned. If you don’t think like I do you must be a commie mind set lets them sleep at night or perhaps keeps them awake worrying that not all believe or think as they do. "
Suze wrote on Sep 7, 2008 6:17 PM:
Raven wrote on Sep 7, 2008 7:49 PM:
as for the quotes they were referring to what he did during the Viet Nam war, the second being in response to a question about if he thought his efforts were enough to stop the war "
badlandgrl wrote on Sep 7, 2008 8:17 PM:
Raven wrote on Sep 7, 2008 8:59 PM:
XMAN wrote on Sep 8, 2008 2:28 AM:
freeport56 wrote on Sep 8, 2008 10:52 AM:
Vocal- by your comment you have never been to Alaska and travelled through it. If you had you would see a pristine environment well manage and maintained.
Caribou, called Raindeer when domesticated, are thriving due in part to the Alaska pipeline. It provides warmth and a year round food supply due to the warmth it generates. Grizzley Bears, Moose, Dhal Sheep, Narwals (horned whales), are managed and cared for to balance the environment. Trust me Alaskans have a real passion for their state and raise a ruckus if they don't like what is happening. It is funny that the first woman to meet the criteria that femenists have extolled for almost 40 yerars, is so heavily critized by women. I guess it only works for liberal woman!
Raven- Hilary's first elected position was U.S. Senator to New York. First Bimbo to President Filanderer does not count as experience. "
grape wrote on Sep 8, 2008 11:07 AM:
Raven wrote on Sep 8, 2008 5:59 PM:
misfit wrote on Sep 8, 2008 6:35 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 9, 2008 10:20 AM:
MEOW hiss, scratch.... "
Thepeople wrote on Sep 9, 2008 10:26 AM:
and then said..."If government can force a woman into birthing a child, they will become legally responsible for its upbringing."
I don't get it. Are you Pro-Choice or not? Why should a person who isn't responsible enough to have sex be afforded the choice to use abortion as birth control, but Sarah Palin not be given the choice to bring 5 beautiful children into a loving home that CAN care for them? Doens't sound fair to me... "
PlasticPinkFlamingo wrote on Sep 9, 2008 1:10 PM:
answer: being First Lady does not count as presidential experience.
raven q: or does having the last name Clinton wipe all of it away. "
answer: Yes, it does, when you do it all wrong . . . "
vocal-de-local wrote on Sep 9, 2008 4:15 PM:
Those choosing to have more children should be taxed at higher rates to compensate for the cost of increased environmental regulation. Is it fair when those costs are passed onto businesses, taxpayers and those who are responsible about family size?
Same with those entering our country through immigration. They should be subjected to a "personal use environmental fee" because their very presence uses up valuable resources such as water. Their waste necessitates expansion and higher regulations of sewage treatment plants, for example.
Either way, our country is being filled up with more and more people who are dependent on resources. We are responding with greater levels of regulation to preserve the resources we have. Those making the greatest level of contribution to the problem (bigger families, more immigrants) should be paying for it. So THAT'S where I'm coming from! Go ahead and make a "guess" about whether I'm pro choice or not. I do hope we someday develop methods of determining pregnancy and chromosomal abnormalities in the very early embryonic stage. At that point there will be very little justification for late abortions which I do not like. "
Raven wrote on Sep 9, 2008 5:38 PM:
and I feel more comfortable knowing that if the Clintons said the sun rose in the east, you would say, sorry....they are wrong and responsible for it rising in the west... "
Thepeople wrote on Sep 9, 2008 5:43 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 10, 2008 1:40 PM:
1. Palin did not cut funding for special needs education in Alaska by 62 percent. She didn’t cut it at all. In fact, she tripled per-pupil funding over just three years.
2. She did not demand that books be banned from the Wasilla library. Some of the books on a widely circulated list were not even in print at the time. The librarian has said Palin asked a "What if?" question, but the librarian continued in her job through most of Palin's first term.
3.She was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Party, a group that wants Alaskans to vote on whether they wish to secede from the United States. She’s been registered as a Republican since May 1982.
4. Palin never endorsed or supported Pat Buchanan for president. She once wore a Buchanan button as a "courtesy" when he visited Wasilla, but shortly afterward she was appointed to co-chair of the campaign of Steve Forbes in the state.
5. Palin has not pushed for teaching creationism in Alaska's schools. She has said that students should be allowed to "debate both sides" of the evolution question, but she also said creationism "doesn't have to be part of the curriculum." "
Raven wrote on Sep 10, 2008 1:49 PM:
in January 1997, Palin fired Emmons, (The Libarian) along with the police chief. According to the Chicago Tribune, Palin did not list censorship as a reason for Emmons’ firing, but said she didn’t feel she had Emmons’ support. The decision caused “a stir” in the small town, according to a newspaper account at the time. According to a widely circulated e-mail from Kilkenny, “city residents rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin’s attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter.” "
Thepeople wrote on Sep 10, 2008 2:16 PM:
Raven wrote on Sep 10, 2008 3:29 PM:
how does this equate to breaking any law? "
misfit wrote on Sep 10, 2008 4:06 PM:
misfit wrote on Sep 10, 2008 4:07 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 10, 2008 6:38 PM:
Raven...go back and read the librarian thing and the Trooper thing again....you are getting the stories confused with each other. The librain was never fired, the trooper's boss was. And as Thepeople says, I would of fired him also, if what I understand about the situation is true. "
misfit wrote on Sep 10, 2008 9:14 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 11, 2008 8:56 AM:
misfit wrote on Sep 11, 2008 9:22 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 12, 2008 7:57 AM:
Raven wrote on Sep 15, 2008 1:23 PM:
misfit wrote on Sep 17, 2008 1:24 PM:
They do NOT like their governator very much. The real truth came out! Seems she's just another backstabbing, liar in the mold of Cheeeney...just puuurtier.
My goodness, even Karl Rove has called she and McCain liars. "
Sandra wrote on Sep 17, 2008 3:00 PM:
Sandra wrote on Sep 17, 2008 6:50 PM: