Andrew Sullivan is still calling for the McCain/Palin campaign to provide proof that Sarah Palin is Baby Trig's biological mother. I'm no fan of Palin, and I definitely recognize that she and McCain are big fat liars. And I think that a McCain/Palin administration would be disastrous for this country. And I hope and (almost) pray that voters recognize this. However, it is completely unacceptable for anyone to ask someone to prove his or her parentage of their children. Particularly when there is no solid evidence to suggest that she is not his mother--only speculation and judgment of her pre- and post-delivery activities.
That said, the fact that Palin exposed her teenage daughter to public scrutiny in a direct response to the Trig rumors is appalling. And it certainly provides further evidence that Sarah Palin is ambitious to a fault, and she will clearly do whatever she needs to do--whether that be outright lying or abusing her power or exploiting her children--to get ahead. Why is no one talking about this?
If the goal of questioning Palin's motherhood is to undermine her character, then there's really no need to go there. She offers plenty of alternative (and concrete) evidence that she has no ethics and no morals--and nothing that qualifies her for the job of Vice President of the United States.
3 comments:
So I'm not clear why Sullivan is demanding that Palin confirm the maternity of her child. What impact does this have on her ability to be an effective VP? Not a damn thing.
But, I have to say, Supa, I'm also not sure I understand your comments that Palin is using her children to get ahead. Are you suggesting, given her daughter's unplanned pregnancy, that she should have turned down the VP position? (and I'm asking seriously about your comments; no sarcasm here). I do agree that Bristol Palin has been put in an unfortunate situation in terms of public scrutiny, but given that her mother is already governor of Alaska, she'd have been put in that position no matter what. I do agree that she shouldn't have to address the media either, but I'm not sure that she has. How do you think Palin has used her children to get ahead?
Palin revealed her daughter's pregnancy to divert attention away from the rampant internet rumors regarding Baby Trig's parentage (the press release stated this outright). She then arranged for her daughter's "fiance" to appear alongside the family at the RNC. Yes, it would have been impossible for Palin to keep her daughter's pregnancy a secret, but she and the Republican spin machine used Bristol Palin as further evidence of Palin's conservative politics.
She has also exploited the hell out of that baby--suggesting that the fact that she is the mother of a special-needs child means that she will be an advocate for other parents of special-needs children. Nothing in her career suggests that she cares one bit about parents (in general) or mothers (specifically). And she certainly has shown no support for women's interests--even though the previously anti-feminist right wants to herald her as a feminist icon.
It's bullshit.
Solon argued (in person) that the question of Trig's parentage is relevant to her run for VP because the circumstances surrounding his birth are very odd, and she appears to be hiding something--which calls her character into question...ESPECIALLY given the way this child has been used to serve political purposes. And I do see his point.
Points taken. I agree with everything you said; I just hadn't considered it from that perspective.
But I do think your original point is the one that we need to focus on. There are so many other ways to prove she's unethical and that her character is questionable than to question her parentage.
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