Obama To Media: "Back Off" Palin Pregnancy

ABC News:

At a brief press availability in Monroe, Mich., ABC News asked Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., if he had any response to Gov. Sarah Palin's statement that her unmarried 17-year-old daughter Bristol is pregnant.

"Let me be a clear as possible: I have said before and I will repeat again, I think people's families are off limits," Obama said, "and people's children are especially off limits.

"This shouldn't be part of our politics," he continued, "It has no relevance to Gov. Palin's performance as governor, or her potential performance as a vice president.

"And so I would strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories," he said. "You know my mother had me when she was 18, and how a family deals with issues and, you know, teenage children, that shouldn't be the topic of our politics and I hope that anybody who is supporting me understands that's off limits."

Read the whole story: ABC News

Comments

[mouselion]

Except that Palin and the "right-to-lifers" are using the disclosure as an anti-abortion political prop. They want it to be in the news.

[Haydell]

Obama should consider public implications of teenage pregnancy, sex education, ineffectiveness of abstinence only policy, and maternal & child health care policy before declaring issues off limit that a public figure brings to light.

[MadInFla]

Senator, soon to be president, Obama has so much class! I had tears when I heard his acceptance speech. For the first time in years I actually have a candidate for whom I have complete and total respect, and I was (and still am) a Dennis Kucinich supporter.
I cringe when I hear those rabid, die-hard republicans say that Palin has more experience than Senator Obama. Senator Obama has more compassion for all of us than she has shown for her own daughter! No one outside of Alaska would have know about the pregnancy had this woman put her family first. Talk about poor judgement!
McCain + Palin = 2 x disaster for the USA!!!

[Ricky08]

I support O.. but I disagree with him here.. This woman is put out as the new POSTER CHILD for the republican party on Family Values. But she got an underage daughter that running around having unprotected sex, getting knocked up out of wedlock.. It clearly says that Sarah is not aware or even care that here daughter is sexually active and not educating her daught on safe sex and birth contraceptives. So Mrs Palin lack JUDGEMENT. and she put herself in the position for national office so she opened up herself and her family to scrutiny, just like O is..

If this situation was in reverse and it was O's daughter pregnant at 16yrs old, it would be a constant news cycle.

[fiberoptimist]

I commend Obama for his nobility, but you know what the right would be saying if the tables were turned. The media is going to have a field day with this no matter what anyway says anyway. Her daughter will be 7 months pregnant on election day, so I doubt the story is going to go away on its own. It's just another distraction from the real issues. Fodder for the tabloids.

[GaryWolf]

With all the pending comments, I hope this eventually sees the light of day, because this issue is much more important than everyone gives it credit for. It goes right to the heart of Roe vs. Wade and the pro-choice/pro-life controversy.

As Obama said, both pro-choice and pro-life camps can agree that we want to reduce or eliminate unwanted pregnancies.

Where I have a HUGE problem is the way social conservatives want to handle this issue (and the laws that they want to pass which will affect everyone else). Not only are they anti-abortion, they are also against sex education and contraceptives for teens. They only believe in pro-abstinence education. If the teen daughter of the vice-presidential nominee for the Republican party still gets pregnant, what does this say about the social conservative position? IT DOES NOT WORK! YOU ARE WRONG! STOP TRYING TO FORCE THIS ON THE REST ON THE COUNTRY!

Bristol Palin is just a kid and should be offbounds. But Sarah Palin has to be held to account, especially since she's the one who wants to force her extremist and failed conservative philosophy on the rest of the country. Anyone who is such a fanatic that they think abortion should be outlawed even in the case of rape deserves to get it with both barrels. We need to drive a stake through the heart of this issue once and for all.

[rolitt]

Obama does not have to say anything, the media will.

What kind of "SPIN" can FoxNews give this... oh yea, they will blame the democrats, again, and give McCain a pass.

[DrDemon]

Sorry Obama...

It's very difficult to "back off" when you have true hypocrites, in action, before one's eyes...

[Alonso Quijano]

A candidate's family life, and their children's lives, BECOME AN ISSUE when they are sufficiently messy that they might distract an office holder from paying attention to complex problems that have no simple solutions. If a man candidate for president were a sex maniac and juggled several sex partners and constantly dedicated time and psychic energy to keeping his relations secret, THAT WOULD BE A BIG DEAL. Similarly, a mom with a baby that requires a lot of special care and teenagers that drive her crazy because of teenage rebellions might also be distracted in a way that could impact performance in office.

I know personally a CEO mom whose four children create no end of crises at home because they crave attention, and this CEO mom sometimes gets no sleep for a whole night because of the crises that her children cook up. My conclusion is that most talking heads and pundits are reluctant to point this out as politically incorrect.

[ScandalousCandice]

I respect and understand what B-Rock is trying to say about families being kept out of the fray. It's honorable, reasonable, and fair. However, she uses abstinence as a platform. We don't need to rip her apart about how and what she teaches her family. That's her family and her choice and more importantly her right as an American. But the next time she gets up and spouts off BS about pro life crap, and pro abstinence crap, She is and her daughters situation becomes fair game.

You don't get to stand on a platform of hypocrisy and spew hate and lies, and then hide behind your daughters mistake.

But I stress waiting to rip her apart until she pokes the fires of her BS beliefs.

[meshach]

Due to much arrogance and pride McCain has dug himself a big hole by his latest display of faulty judgment choice Palin. Therefore, we should respect Obama's stand to lay-off the lady Palin's family since McCain has just handed Obama the presidency gratis by this incredibly dumb move.

[caywen]

What class and grace by the Obama campaign. Luckily for him, some of us won't back off, and are willing to do and say the things the Obama campaign can't.

[missmuffette]

Oh man! Well, of course he has to be above the fray but me? I'm getting down it it! But I just have a tinsy little problem... and let me just say I have NO room to point any fingers in the knocked up department and this is NOT about me morally condemning 17 yr old Bristol for getting pregnant..­. it's about the religious right wing, abstinence only, home schooling my kids because public schools don't teach "family values", I ditched my 2 day old preemie special needs baby to go back to work, women don't deserve equal pay for equal work, I wouldn't want my daughter to have an abortion if she was raped, Van Halen loving (makes since don't it?), abstinence only should be taught in schools (ah ha! now I get it!), I believe the bible should be taught in science class, totally hypocritical, Sarah Palin... Oh, the irony is just too delicious!

[NotYourCupcake]

That's right Obama, we should all start respecting candidates children. They should not be under a microscope just because their parents are running for office. I guess however, treating women that run for office are okay to use as sexist targets.

[hipalo]

Perhaps this is Palin's out? Everyone wins if she decides that family is more important than that damned glass ceiling...