Vice

Written by: Lag

Sarah Palin Vice John McCain’s pick of a vice presidential running mate has stunned many Americans. Sarah Palin, the governor of Alaska for the past 20 months, has been chosen by the seventy-two year old McCain as his second in line. She will stand beside the presumptive Republican nominee during the campaign and, if he wins, she will stand behind him in line for the Presidency.

His choice was a shocking move that many think was aimed at stirring up a lagging Republican ticket and at winning over the hearts of female voters. For many American women, the move may have worked; Palin is a former beauty queen and a devoted mother of five with a strong record of standing up for her beliefs. However, that record is almost laughably short, and her beliefs… well…

Let’s just say that Sarah Palin is about to step into awfully big britches for someone who has spent the majority of her life in Idahoand Alaska. Living in remote regions is certainly no detriment to character in general, but looking at her from New York, it’s hard to believe that someone whose political life has been played out in a state with a 1.1 person per square mile population knows much about many American lives. If her record was more impressive than 20 months as governor, two terms as mayor of a Wasilla, Alaska, and several months heading the Alaska Conservation Commission; perhaps her remoteness could be scratched off as an issue. But, given that she is up for the job of second in line for Commander-In-Chief, her remoteness from many American experiences bears mentioning. Her convictions may be strong, but any conviction can be questionable when it is uninformed by experience.

For instance, Palin is a staunch anti-abortionist. This stance could actually throw her into conflict with McCain, who has shown reservations about banning abortions in cases of rape and incest. Moreover, she is no stranger to difficult decisions about whether to keep a child; she herself gave birth in April to a boy with Down Syndrome, and her 17 year old, unmarried daughter Bristol is 5 months pregnant. (Palin, by the way, is a supporter of abstinence-only education in public schools. Perhaps, her daughter could have used a little education on contraceptives!) Bristol has decided to keep the baby and marry the father, as Palin’s camp announced recently. It appears that the Palin family knows about tough choices and Sarah has stood by her anti-abortion convictions. Yet, while it’s easy to applaud her firmness, it’s also important to think about how much she really knows about the situations of thousands of women who face those same choices in different circumstances. There are many without a wealthy and loving family to support them. There are thousands who have been raped or who face substance addiction, women who live in poverty and cannot afford to raise their children, and the multitudes of others who have solid reasons to terminate a pregnancy. Sarah Palin, like most other Right-Wing conservatives, has almost nothing in common with these women, whose struggles are so different from her own. If John McCain thought that putting any woman on his ticket would gain him the votes of all American women, he thought wrong.

This is not to say that Mrs. Palin’s morals have no place in America. Certainly they do. And yet, for women of the 21st century for whom reproductive rights are important, she seems to have come from a bygone age where women show their strength in their child-rearing ability and their beauty. And beauty she certainly has, with a history as a beauty pageant queen in Alaska. The pageant circuit must present its own struggles, both inward and outward, for young women, and having lived through that, Gov. Palin will bring an entirely new perspective to the presidential race. But, are the values she learned there, whether they speak good or ill of the world of competitive beauty, any help to a country in desperate need of leaders with diplomatic skill, international policy expertise, and economic know-how? None of these things are in Palin’s past, and while she may study hard between now and her debate with her Vice Presidential rival, Democratic Senator Joe Biden (who also happens to be the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee), it’s hard to imagine that all the studying in the world will prepare her sufficiently either for the debate or the Vice Presidency.

Meanwhile, America is drowning in its own thirst for oil as the temperature and seas rise due to global warming. We are in dire need of leadership that will try to reduce our dependence on oil. And, while it’s no surprise that McCain is towing the Republican Party line by supporting off-shore drilling, Palin takes it one step further. Not only has she strongly supported opening the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge for drilling, but she is also literally married to big oil–her husband works for BP. She has fought against big oil companies already in supporting higher production taxes in Alaska, but she has also been quoted in several major publications as saying: “We should have mutually beneficial relationships with the oil industry.” Alaskans in general tend to support ANWR and offshore drilling, as their vast state has remained fairly immaculate to their view, given they have so much room to move around in and little to pollute their air. And Palin, like other Alaskans, probably needs her car to get to and from work. But for those of us who live in smog and pollution, watching politicians heedlessly continue down flawed energy policy courses is painful.

This woman, who until recently was an obscure governor whose record hardly makes her deserving of the title “politician,” is a conservative who may have the courage to stand up to corruption and big oil companies in a small state government, but the American public knows extremely little about her. No doubt the next few months will bring us more information, but for the time being she is basically a right-leaning blank slate. She can almost re-start her political career on the biggest screen available–an American presidential election–and she can do almost anything she wants to sway the public opinion, because she does not have a solid enough grounding in her record to point her too strongly in any direction beyond conservatism. And that, perhaps, is simultaneously her strongest and her weakest point as a candidate in this election. While Sen. John McCain is not the ultra-Right Wing conservative that some Evangelicals would like to see on the Republican ticket, she can be. Or, if the party calls on her to be a moderate, she can do that too. She can speak out to any group of Republicans that feels it has been marginalized and have her voice be heard as authentic, so long as she sticks to her convictions once she has voiced them. Particularly Republican women (do they exist?) can rally behind her while sticking their tongues out at Democrats who wanted to see Hillary Clinton—an experienced and liberal woman in office.

But, the point cannot be ignored that one of the McCain camp’s primary talking points against Barack Obama has been the Illinois senator’s lack of political experience. Nobody is surprised to hear the Republicans “calling the kettle black,” but in this case, the experience of the Democratic ticket far outweighs that of the GOP. Hopefully, that fact will keep people grounded as they try to come to a decision about what to make of Sarah Palin.

Tags: Politics | Sep 13, 2008 |

17 Comments, Comment or Ping

Alwayswrite

McCain’s nomination of Palin can work out 50/50. He can get the white female, ex-Hillary supporter vote or he cannot. For me, I hope those voters are a lot smarter than he takes them for. Palin is clearly a pick to get those swing votes, and if those voters can’t realize that…then they aren’t as smart as I thought they were. On the issues, it seems Palin and that group of voters don’t agree. Palin, though she looks like them, ideologically is opposed. However, as I had a conversation with a friend of mine, the feminist support the advancement of any female. And a woman in VP position is certainly advancement. I don’t know, man. It could either way. Either McCain has made the best political move of a presidency or he has made the dumbest.

[Reply]
"A Mom" reply on September 16, 2008 6:57 pm:
I think that those voter can sway if Hillary doesn’t do what it takes with the party. Hiliary and Bill seem like people who have lost a fist fit and are sulking. Maybe they are helping, but I feel something in the air when ever they are interviewed. Also we as voters need to see thru what McCain did and not let all the press keep us from the voting polls.

[Reply]
Lag

I’ve been thinking about this more, and have started really resenting her as the VP pick. In many ways, the way in which she presents herself, and is BEING presented both by the Republicans and the media, as a female, which is fine by me. But more than that, because she is making abortion an issue in an election where it had mercifully become less of an issue than recently, she is putting herself forward as a female BODY. And that’s exactly what feminists should be trying to move away from. Yet she is insisting on making herself seen is a mother, an anti-abortionist, a “feisty” woman, for whom her sex is almost every defining feature of her campaign. Because she has virtually no record, we see her as just “the female VP candidate,” rather than as a politician who is a woman. Rather than a person who has come a long way and worked hard, she has breasts and she has borne children, and that’s what we think of when we think of this woman. Her body. Her reproductive self, not her intellectual political capabilities. She is letting us think of her that way, and so is her presence in this race, because of the race itself and the kind of woman she is.
Ick. Gloria Steinem must be throwing a fit.

[Reply]
Alwayswrite reply on September 15, 2008 10:29 am:
That’s an excellent point. A good observation that goes to my reply. I mean, any feminist should be appalled. Palin is completely using her sexuality as a vehicles to win tickets AND she is undermining the intelligence of the woman voter, at least the Hillary supporters, the votes McCain and she are trying to get. It’s absurd. Breasts over brains? Is that politics nowadays? If the McCain/Palin ticket win, it would seem so.

[Reply]
Fresh

I think the most discouraging part of this election was Palin entering the race and American voters falling for this…this…this load of baloney. Since she has entered this race with McCain, so many irrelevant issues have started to pop up that is just ridiculous. I have yet to hear her views on foreign policy, the war, the “recession,” healthcare, or even employment rates. Its even further discouraging that women are really not willing to educate themselves on Palin otherwise they would switch back to Obama. This is really starting to make me nervous about the November elections, America can not afford to have another Republican in office.

[Reply]
"A Mom" reply on September 16, 2008 7:05 pm:
I agree with you. She does not represent me as a women, and I think those who are fooled by her would be fooled by anyone. Frankly I’m not nervous. I think most people can see thru the hype. Ask some of her so called friends in Alaska. Those women are not stupid especially the one’s that really know her. They interviewed at least six of them and only one said she was voting for her.

[Reply]
Q.

chick shouldn’t be in the race.. point blank.. that Charlie Gibson interview was a disgrace.. i don’t even like mentioning her name..

shoot, the chick said she can see Russia from Alaska.. what more can i say?

[Reply]
"A Mom" reply on September 16, 2008 7:08 pm:
I stayed up so I could see “Saturday Night Live” . Palin is a joke and Charlie was not letting up on her. He ran all over her and she didn’t know what to say. Is this what people want for the next four years. I don’t think so.

[Reply]
TROUBLMan

The whole Sarah Palin circus is funny because in all actuality, democrats picked her, not John McCain. The McCain campaign simply reacted to the anti-Obama Hilary supporters that appeared in Denver during the Democratic National Convention. The realized that this important block of voters have been they key swing votes in recent elections. During the 1996 campaign they were called soccer moms. Bill Clinton captured this demographic by tapping into their economic concerns . In 2004 they were called security moms. GWB captured them by tapping into their fears of terrorism. Not only does Sarah Palin personify these voters, she’s attractive, has a clean record and she’s politically savvy. For those reasons, I like Sarah Palin. John McCain made a great pick. I don’t agree with her and I wouldn’t vote for her, but got us along with the rest of America talking about her.

[Reply]
"A Mom" reply on September 16, 2008 10:57 pm:
How clean is her record. There has been this big shield over her. Everything has been hands off as not to be sexiest or picking on her. I don’t know anymore about her and her family then in the first minute she came aboard. Obama was under the microscope. But people are afraid to touch her or her family. So what do we really know besides her seeing Alaska from her house. Obama is handsome but that won’t make him a good president. He is politically savvy as well.

The only thing Palin’s got going in my eyes is a good script. Great writers. When she was up against Charlie Gibson, people said he was to hard on her. Oh well. I just can’t see the real in her. Listening too her girlfriends in Alaska I don’t think they wanted to really say what they thought either.

[Reply]
Q. reply on September 17, 2008 6:46 pm:
Yeah, i’m not with the whole clean record thing, but i get your point..

BUT, i will say that her record is also this clean, because she hasn’t been around that long.. she was a mayor of a spot that is smaller than a suburb of Chicago.. she is governor (for a split second) of a state that doesn’t hold much political weight.. so yea, her record should be clean, because, point blank, no one cares about Alaska like that..

she choked on Gibson, the same way McCain got ate up on The View..

shoot, i’m upset that she’s even a topic of debate right now.. some may consider this a shrewd move by McCain, but in my eyes, that was a stupid move.. she’s a woman, but doesn’t vote as one.. she’s a hockey mom (who cares).. she used to be in beauty pageants (who cares).. she hides her daughter, then parades her around (i care) with her daughter..

the main problem that i have is that I (yea, me) feel that i can eat her in a debate.. i can cram just as well as her, and plus i can “speak so well”..

if the Republicans win, we have a serious problem.. we will no longer be able to claim we are the best (or one of the best) nation in the world.. we might claim the dumbest, but the best?? yea, i’ight..

[Reply]
"A Mom"

There are people out there that would rather blow this election for their own selfish reasons. That’s sad. I feel Palin is more like Bush than McCain is, and if they when She just might become the president of this country. McCain is a whimp.

[Reply]
TROUBLMan

Her record is clean in term of politicians. She’s been under the microscope too. I’ve been hoping the Dems would dig up more dirt on her but they haven’t, which is a gold star for her. Yes, we don’t know much about her, but that’s irrelevant in American politics. The majority of the voting populace doesn’t know much about any of the candidates, yet they still choose a side. Her side has does a good job at creating a bond.

I will admit, Charles Gibson had her looking unprepared but to me that was expected. Still, realize we are among the few that watch this whole political contest; the details of every answer, her composure, her knowledge… The rest see her as a symbol and they connect with that. Again, I know she’s unprepared, but so was Bush, and he was an incredible pick. He won two terms even after we were attacked on his watch. Remember, it’s politics not not an IQ test.

[Reply]
Lag reply on September 17, 2008 9:47 am:
Thought I’d interject this. I read it just yesterday. A New York Times article about how Palin has blanketed much of her official actions as governor behind a blanket of secrecy (using personal e-mails rather than official ones to discuss things with aides, etc) and how many unqualified people she has put into public office, just because she went to school or church with them… Not exactly a squeaky-clean record:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/us/politics/14palin.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin

[Reply]
TROUBLMan reply on September 17, 2008 10:23 am:
For someone who has a chance at becoming the vice president that miniscule. Remember, these are politicians we’re talking about. If the worse the media can dig up on her is that she hires friends, uses personal email and fires enemies than I consider her record clean.

And the same goes for Obama. If the worse the media can dig up on him is that he smokes cigarettes, attended a church where the pastor uses racial rhetoric and that his middle name is Hussein than he too has a clean record. These are people we’re talking about. Don’t they get some leeway when it comes to the things they do.

[Reply]
"A Mom" reply on September 17, 2008 7:25 pm:
Troublman

Come on! You know they would dig more on her, but this whole thing about her being a women would be considered sexiest. They could probably dig up so much more but they are real careful with her. Obama though he is black, is still a male so anything goes. With Palin everything is considered hands off.

[Reply]
TROUBLMan reply on September 22, 2008 2:27 pm:
The media has done a thorough job of digging. They had to because f they would have found dirt they easily would have a scoop. They just haven’t discovered anything that’s really that relevant to her qualifications to be the vice-president.

[Reply]

TROUBL

Vice

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