Palin Slashed Funds For Teen Mothers

Washington Post:

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential nominee who revealed Monday that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, earlier this year used her line-item veto to slash funding for a state program benefiting teen mothers in need of a place to live.

After the legislature passed a spending bill in April, Palin went through the measure reducing and eliminating funds for programs she opposed. Inking her initials on the legislation -- "SP" -- Palin reduced funding for Covenant House Alaska by more than 20 percent, cutting funds from $5 million to $3.9 million. Covenant House is a mix of programs and shelters for troubled youths, including Passage House, which is a transitional home for teenage mothers.

Read the whole story: Washington Post

Comments

[BigLib]

THE LIES OF THE LEFT

The Non-Existent Cut of Teen Pregnancy Funds [Jonathan Adler]

It's fashionable in Washington to characterize a decline in the rate of increase as a "budget cut," but even this can't explain the Washington Post's sloppy reporting on Sarah Palin's use of line-item budget authority as Governor of Alaska. Here the Post reported that Gov. Palin "used her line-item veto to slash funding for a state program benefiting teen mothers in need of a place to live." As would be expected, the Post seeks to connect this to the pregnancy of Gov. Palin's daughter. Specifically, the Post claims she cut funding for the Alaska Covenant House from $5 million to $3.9 million. Only that's not really true.

The Alaska Covenant House's entire annual budget typically hovers around $3 million, and grant income is just over $1 million annually. This past year, the organization requested substantial additional funds for the construction of a new $22 million facility. Covenant House asked for $10 million from the state, the legislature appropriated $5 million, and Gov. Palin reduced it to $3.9 milllion. This was not a reduction in funding from prior years — no where close — and it was not even a reduction in proposed funding for Covenant House's operations, but a cut in the amount of new money the Alaska government would provide for a capital expenditure.

[sirius7]

well talk about the dems all you want but the McCain group called Palin "authentic" meaning real not fake..of course shes real just a little too real...we need extraordinary ppl in office..li­ke obama/bide­n...if you can't control your own house how are you going to control the WHITE HOUSE??? i bet she wish she wouldve never cut the money for pregnant teens now she has one of her own..but who cares about the poor?

[FiLoLi]

Please explain to me how Obama is any more extraordinary than Palin, please!!! And please explain to me how ANYONE can really control a 17 year old. At some point we all make our own choices that are beyond our parents control, these choices begin way before we are legal adults.

Why don't you read the rest of the story on this issue, this author seems to have left alot of information out.

http://noquarterusa.net/blog/2008/09/03/finding-the-true-story-is-nearly-impossible-in-the-mainstream-media/#more-4567

[Zeje]

I made sure my teenage daughter knew about birth control.

[mmctrab]

Let's see, in 2006 government funding for this program was about 1.1 million dollars, and now it's 3.9 million dollars. So under Palin's tenure as governor, funding for the program has increased about 300%. I realize liberals have trouble with basic math, but the idea that funding for this program has been "slashed" is completely idiotic. But, what the hell. Why let the facts get in the way of a good smear job.

[UnbiasView]

An honest question to all the angry liberals in here . . .

When did it become government's and the people's responsibility to raise and support other people's children?

What happened to a father helping or your family helping you if you made a mistake instead of stealing from the guy down the road because you screwed up?

Yes, you screwed up if you need government assistence to find a home, food or money.

[AgeofReason]

How much more does it cost society if these mothers don't have support? What happens to the children of these mothers?

You can't have it both ways. If you don't want teens to learn how to prevent pregnancy, and you don't want to allow teens who become pregnant to end them, then you have to be prepared to help teenage parents to find the resources they need to be successful as parents.

As the Palin family proves, even good kids raised in good Christian homes get pregnant. Why? Because human biology is strong and teenagers are weak, especially if they don't have the tools and information they need.

[Zeje]

Yes. The problem of teenagers having babies is a societal problem. NOT teaching teenagers about birthcontrol does NOT help the situation.

[HerbTee]

It's not our responsibility to remove dictators we don't like or start wars with other countries who haven't directly attacked us either but we have and did. So what's your point??

[UnbiasView]

Sounds like a good idea to me, stop government from promoting the behavior. Everytime government does promote bad behavior we end up in trouble . . . see advantages for first time minority home buyers or those with bad credit . . . see welfare recepients receiving more money for more kids (3X higher birth rate for welfare women then those not on welfare).

[Blutus]

Correct. Shooting Iraqii children in the skull. Bad behavior.

[FiLoLi]

Why does our society consider sex bad behavior? Trying to stop people, and yes, teenagers, from having sex is like trying to contain the ocean. It's nature. We need to teach our children not to be ashamed and to make educated choices. They need to be fully aware of the consequences of their actions.

Explain to me why it is that violence in movies is allowed, at all levels, but show a boob, a natural God created boob, and it's dirty and must be restricted.

[UnbiasView]

"Why does our society consider sex bad behavior?"

Having a kid you can't afford and need government help equals a bad decision . . . sex is not a bad behavior.

[honeydiva]

hypocrite.­..what else is new?

[UnbiasView]

Why is she a hypocrite?

Maybe she believes the father and family should be funding their own children?

[Zeje]

Yes, the family should be funding their own children -- and if a teenager can't afford to have a baby, that teenager needs access to a safe, legal abortion. Teenagers need to be taught BIRTH CONTROL.

[COINDIE420]

Looks like she has bought into the Reaganomics meme of "F*ck the Poor"

[UnbiasView]

Hmmm . . . free handouts seems like a great plan to keep people stuck on government.

[Zeje]

THe government should give out condoms. That would be good for all of us. We don't need unwanted babies. We don't need children having children -- this does not lead to a better society. You can preach abstinence all you want. That has not, and will not, solve the problem. And it is a problem. Bristol is NOT the role model I want for MY daughter.

[hypnus]

Check out what else Caribou Barbie’s been up to.

http://dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/9/3/9330/95523/364/584429

[UnbiasView]

Is this the same Daily Kos that said that Palin's autistic child was her daughter's?

[PutinIsDaMan]

NO war criminals who napalmed innocent women and children should EVER be President.

[BigLib]

The lies are being revealed:

This is an increase over previous years. See prior funding.

IRS Form 990
http://www.guidestar.org/pqShowGsReport.do?partner=justgive&npoId=332976

2006 REVENUE for Covenant House Alaska

Contributions $1,667,796
Government Grants $1,194,788
Program Services $0
Investments $67,947
Special Events $271,980
Sales $0
Other $11,139
Total Revenue $3,213,650

Gov. Palin didn’t slash anything from anybody. In fact, it seems that cutting from $5.0MM (Proposed) to $3.9MM (actual) wasn’t too bad a deal for Covenant House Alaska, seeing that in 2006 their revenue from the govt was only $1.2MM.

[walk0nwalls]

Could we please sound an irony alert for everyone in the immediate area of the United States.

Irony alert, magnitude 232 irony alert incoming.

[SeanHannity4Obama]

Now that is someone who cares about social issues!

[UnbiasView]

Everyone cares about social issues, it is just a matter of if you think it is right for government to use other people's money to fund the worst of our country.

[Zeje]

We need government money to help solve the problems we face as a nation. That problem includes uneducated teenagers having babies.

[psarkis]

A New York Times article published on 9/2 contained the following:

“The Palins eloped on Aug. 29, 1988, and their first son, Track, was born eight months later, a fact that Maria Comella of the McCain campaign, declined to elaborate on.”

It sounds like getting’ knocked up and shotgun weddings are a fine Palin family tradition! If Palin were a Democratic candidate, the "family values" GOP evangelical base would be burning her at the stake!

[UnbiasView]

Yeah . . . maybe they should have taken it slow and then gotten divorced like a large majority of Americans. If it gets you a 20 year marriage, it seems to be working and can't talk bad about it.

[Zeje]

I know people who got married at 18 and are still married. But this is unusual. Teenagers usually do not make good marriages -- or good parents. SOmetimes it does work out -- and that is great when it does. But marriage is hard enough without the extra burden of being immature, uneducated and unemployed.

[heal57]

It's a family issue, but since the daughter is 5 months pregnant and not married by now, this will be a shotgun wedding with two people too young to be married. Maybe they will get 12-18 months. It's a farce.

[JUSTME]

Ah, there's that culture of life Republicans talk so much about.