Sarah Palin For Vice President?

September 2, 2008 on 10:06 am | In My Imagination | 4 Comments

Over the past several days, I’ve been attempting to make some rational sense out of John McCain’s choice for his Vice Presidential running mate.  Sarah Palin, Governor of Alaska, previous mayor of small town in Alaska, a mom, wife and first Republican Vice Presidential candidate who is not a white male.  The choice does make me wonder.

First of all, Palin has no experience with foreign policy or the International stage.  She was the mayor of a fairly small town in Alaska prior to becoming the state’s governor.  While she does have a record of making change, it is still, a limited record.  While McCain has continued to argue that Obama’s lack of experience does not qualify him to be President, how does Palin’s lack of experience qualify her to be Vice President.  Remember, should something happen to McCain to incapacitate him in any way from the responsibilities of the presidency, Palin would be required to step in.  Is she truly up for the job?

To cause me to wonder even more about McCain’s choice, it was announced over the weekend that Palin’s 17 year old daughter Bristol is pregnant.  Now, I am not the mother of a teenage daughter, yet.  My first reaction to this news was wondering if McCain’s camp knew about the pregnancy before making the announcement.  According to the lawyer who completed the background review with Palin, Arthur B. Culvahouse, she and her husband voluntarily announced the pregnancy to the campaign.  Now I’m hearing on today’s news that not only did they know, but Palin is happy about her daughter’s pregnancy and her upcoming nuptuals to the baby’s father.  HAPPY?  They stated that they are even looking forward to being grandparents!  Give me a break!

As a parent of a 12 year old, I’d like to know how they reacted when their daughter informed them that she was pregnant, their REAL reaction.  Maybe they are happy about it now, they’ve had time to accept it, but what are their real feelings and how is the entire family coping and learning from this experience.  Are we supposed to tell our daughter’s that it’s okay to get pregnant at 17, especially if you plan to marry and live off of your family because you’re too young to support yourselves?

This has really thrown a big wrench in how I feel about voting in this election.  Obama, who has done nothing for the State of Illinois since being elected to office, has a questionably corrupt background and although very intelligent, comes off as insincere or McCain, bold and daring, willing to fight the establishment, but chooses an unknown with questionable parenting skills and moral values as his running mate.

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4 Comments

  1. Your thoughts on Palin echo mine exactly. I would be VERY scared if she were to suddenly become President if something happened to McCain, and let’s face it, something happening to him isn’t exactly out of the realm of possibility, given his age and history with cancer.

    I do disagree with you, however, regarding Obama. He’s actually done a lot for Illinois, going way back to before he was ever elected to the Senate. I’m not sure what you mean by “questionably corrupt”. I’ve not heard or read anything that would lead one to believe he is corrupt. Perhaps you could enlighten me? Thanks! :)

    Leigh’s last blog post..This is Sarah Palin

    Comment by Leigh — September 2, 2008 #

  2. Hi Leigh -
    Having just recently moved from the Chicago area, we became familiar with the fact that many politicians in that area are bought and paid for. I’m not saying that Obama is one of those, but he has had questionable dealings with contractors and it’s been made public. There have been many questions during this campaign as to how he obtained his home in Illinois and from whom he obtained it.
    I’m not a big fan of politics and probably don’t follow it as closely as I should, but I can say that public schools in Illinois are struggling for money while property owners, particularly in the Chicago area, pay some of the highest property taxes in the country, most of that money going to school districts. The state doesn’t support its school very well. Obama has been in a position to do something about that and hasn’t. But then again, that’s just my opinion.
    This election we’re faced with just keeps getting stranger and stranger. I’ve never felt myself in such a quandry over who to vote for. I’m not sure either candidate is right and I find that to be scary.

    Comment by Lynne — September 3, 2008 #

  3. Lynne, that is some very interesting information. Thanks so much for taking the time to fill me in. It’s good to get info from someone who’s been there, you know? And you’re so right — this campaign is getting SO strange! Last night while watching a few blurbs on CNN my husband broke out laughing, and when I asked him what was so funny, he just said “Oh man, this campaign is getting so screwy!”. LOL

    Leigh’s last blog post..Sleepy Thoughts

    Comment by Leigh — September 3, 2008 #

  4. Leigh – We listened to Palin’s speech last night at the Republican Convention. I found it interesting to say the least! She has excellent comedic timing and is a very good public speaker. I learned a few things too. She did seem sincere, but then again, I find it difficult to trust politicians today. One statement that was made last night was the fact that Obama rarely voted either yes or no when he was a state senator in Illinois. That is actually true. He did seem to have a very difficult time making a decision and sticking to it. I can’t put my finger on it, but I’ve always felt like he makes a great presentation, but someone else has to be telling him what to do because he doesn’t have the experience to make a qualified decision. Again, that’s just my own opinion.

    I think it would be a fascinating time to be a political science student! I’m still listening to both sides, trying to figure out what the heck I’m going to do when it comes time to vote.

    Comment by Lynne — September 4, 2008 #

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