Sorry, Barack, But It Matters to Me
I was sitting in front of the television, feeling good and ashamed of myself.
Between loads of laundry, I had been calling all my Democratic friends to deconstruct McCain's choice of Sarah Palin and figure out how her teenage daughter's pregnancy would affect voters in November.
And frankly, as the mother of two bright, successful and (so far as I know) non-pregnant young women, I was feeling pretty darn superior. Smug, even.
Then Barack Obama stood up in the September sunshine, stated flatly that "People's families are off-limits," and promised to fire anybody on his staff who tried to make political hay of the Palin's family situation. For a few minutes, I felt like a complete jerk.
Then I thought - hey, wait a minute. A few days ago, the Republicans were telling Americans that they should support Sarah Palin as vice president because she's a hockey mom who consciously and courageously chose to give birth to a child with Down's Syndrome (a decision I deeply admire, by the way.)
But when she announces that her 17-year-old daughter is five months pregnant, that's not supposed to affect my opinion of Sarah Palin's character and judgment?
Look - these things happen in the best of families. And most of the time, when I hear that one of my daughters' friends is pregnant, my first honest thought is usually, "There but for the grace of God..."
But this time, I was frankly appalled. Sarah Palin must have known, when she agreed to become John McCain's running mate, that her pregnant daughter's privacy would shredded by the news media. She must have known that her daughter - and her future son-in-law - would face blistering international scrutiny at one of the most stressful and difficult times of their young lives.
As a mother myself, I feel fully justified in looking at Sarah Palin differently today than I did yesterday. Her politically ambitious decision at a time of family crisis tells me a great deal about her judgment and her priorities.
Look - the GOP can't have it both ways. When the Republicans impeached Bill Clinton on the charge of being a disastrous husband, they justified their salacious snooping into details of the President's sex life on the grounds that it was a "character issue," and the electorate had a right to know. But we didn't. We knew Clinton had a zipper problem when we elected him - twice. We voted for his policies, not his (highly flexible) commitment to his marriage vows.
On the other hand, I'm not generally a huge fan of Joe Biden. (Sorry, Barack.) But it tells me something about Joe Biden's character and priorities that, after his first wife's tragic death, he commuted daily from Wilmington, Delaware to Washington, D.C. so he could be a frontline parent to his two sons. Does being a devoted father make Joe Biden qualified to be vice-president - and, if necessary, president? Not really. But I'm impressed by the effort he put into balancing his responsibility to his constituents and his commitment to his children.
Take John Edwards - please. What level of self-delusion does it take for a man to present himself to voters as the strong, supportive spouse of a brave and beautiful woman with cancer - only to slink off to make whoopee with a wacky woman who re-christened herself Rielle? I'm sorry - there are severe judgment deficits in any public servant who would hook up with a woman whose fast-lane lifestyle shocked Jay McInerney.
Ultimately, Barack is absolutely right: As voters, we have no right to stick our noses into the private lives of the candidates' families.
But here's a warning to every politician whose campaign mailer features a picture-perfect family beaming brightly at the camera: If you're asking us to vote for you just because you're a wholesome soccer mom or a devoted family man, you're inviting us to pry into the lives of everyone in that family portrait. And as a mother myself, I think that's a huge mistake.
Loading comments…
Want to reply to a comment? Hint: Click "Reply" at the bottom of the comment; after being approved your comment will appear directly underneath the comment you replied to
Palin is a concern because she is not ready to be VP of the USA. Not addressing the medica, by McCain and Palin show a disregard of the American People's lives. Selecting who will interview you? Get real-this is not Match.com
Preach on girl.
I think Obama meant it wasn't his campaign's place to focus on Bristol. However, the news is out there and voters will draw whatever conclusions they can from it. No need for Obama to make any further comments about. He wins twice- she looks bad, he doesn't have to look bad talking about her but looks good for saying hands off. Very smart move on his part.
Obama Biden '08
Ms. Austin, I understand your decision to air your views on Gov. P'alin's decision-making, based on the perception that she has shown a lack of concern for her pregnant daughter and the spotlight she (P'alin) is throwing the entire family into in the circumstances. I think there are many questions that will go unanswered and leave a lot of people wondering what exactly makes this woman tick....I have several theories on this, but in case I'm wrong I'm going to keep them to myself, for now anyway.
But as far as Senator O'bama's request that family members and issues are off limits -- I take that as a stipulation he is making to his campaign staff and surrogates, and very properly so. But I don't imagine he expects that the rest of us are going to stop asking questions and offering our opinions on the candidates's personal lives - for all I know, he might even check into huffpo occasionally to see what the heck we think is worth discussing.....
I'm 100% pro-Obama, and I think his stance here is on point. And good for him for being willing to fire anyone one his staff that gets into judging Palin based on her family's current challenge.
In fact, her decision seems totally congruent with her very Alaskan character. These people live in the last wilderness of America, and they have a lot of that spirit. I can see her and her husband saying that if these kids are old enough to conceive and birth a child, and go to war on behalf of our country (whether you agree with the war or not is irrelevant) and vote for the next president - then they're old enough to stand the temporary insanity of media coverage, too.
Her NOT running for that reason would have sent the wrong message to her children - and I'm speaking as a single father of two daughters.
Or maybe you've also been blogging about the horrors of Britney and Paris and Madonna and all the other poor young women who've been chased around by photographers and lowlife newshounds?
How terrible.
Or - maybe you're one of those who thought asking Chelsea those questions about her dad's infidelity was a good thing too.
Let us know, otay?
Thank you Ms. Austin. For me this comes down to bad Judgment for both John and Sarah, and thus unfitness to be Pres. or Vice Pres. We know that Colin Powell would likely have been Democratic or Republican candidate for Vice Pres. He did not because his wife could not stand the scrutiny of the campaign, due to her illness. Running for office is a choice, that affects one's immediate family. John McCain should never have asked her, and she should never have accepted at this time. Timing is everything. A lot of people look good on paper and appear qualified until they actually run for office(Giuliani and Thompson never made it out of the gate). Say what you want, but Obama has been battle tested through the rigors of a long and nasty campaign. If it's true that the first Presidential decision is the selection of the Vice President, then John McCain has failed that test. And in accepting the responsibility at this time Sarah has shown her political immaturity.
Well, Miss Austin, it's a good thing you are not on Senator Obama's staff, because you would, as we speak, be looking for a new job. Do you support your candidate or don't you? And "for the grace of God" don't count your "my teenage daughter isn't pregnant" chicken too soon. You know how life goes, the minute you take your eyes off the ball....
See Elizabeth Austin's Profile
Well, if I were on his campaign staff, I would keep my opinions to myself. But since he's decided he can make it to the White House without my help, I'm a free agent and can express myself accordingly.
And let me stress -- I am absolutely not counting my teenaged daughter chickens just yet. (Well, one of them I can, since she's no longer a teenager...) As I said in my post, these things happen, and families cope. I'm just saying that I think Governor Palin would have been better advised, as a mother and a politician, to sit this one out and wait until next time.
Your entire post was an open contradiction. You first stated that we have every right to make assumptions and pry where we shouldn't because it affects what we think of the candidate. You similarly stated that we SHOULD take into account what we find and alter our judgment accordingly. You conclude by taking the moral high ground, supposedly, saying that ultimately none of this should matter. So which is it? It seems to me you want us to think highly of you because you take the high road, but then chastise us for not doing the same.
See Elizabeth Austin's Profile
Gosh, I guess I didn't express myself clearly. I'm saying that the issue is not a 17-year-old girl's pregnancy, which is none of our business, but her mother's choices in dealing with that pregnancy. And those choices have has been made our business because she has promoted herself to voters as a "hockey mom".
There's certainly nothing wrong with being a hockey mom, (although I'm a soccer/softball mom myself.) But if you're going to run on a "I'm a great mom, vote for me" ticket, then you have to be willing to take criticism when the choices you make as a mother don't sit well with potential voters.
Ah, clarified. Thank you.
Anyone see the cover of US mag? With that mess plastered all over in every store, and every "soccer mom" seeing it, there went her charm.
We Americans like to see train wrecks, especially people that think they are better then us. This is just going to get messier.
And now that Obama is going to go on FOX news Thursday, while McSame chickened out of CNN, we will see who tis the real leader.
Bye Bye McSame, sorry you couldn't loot the country a little bit more for your friends.
Well she is very much independent.
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/09/the_alaska_independence_party.php
See all three videos on this site. Remember that the video if the confernece too place before she was selected as the VP.
The Obama campaign should stay out of this sticky wicket of an issue. There is plenty about the choice of Governor Palin as McCain's running mate that they can attack from a position that is clearly above board: troopergate, the firings as mayor, millions in earmarks, utter lack of understanding of all things not Alaskan, support for the bridge to nowhere, and on and on.
The media, however, have an obligation to report on this in order to present a full picture of the candidate, however. This is an issue of judgment on the part of Sarah Palin and more broadly on the part of John McCain. As you adeptly point out, Governor Palin had to have known that her daughter and her boyfriend would become objects of media scrutiny, and yet, she said, "yes" to the offer of higer office. That does say something about the type of person she is, and the type of parent she is.
{"hockey mom who consciously and courageously chose to give birth to a child with Down's Syndrome (a decision I deeply admire, by the way.)"}
Why does everyone keep makin this a Matter of "choice" when in Palin's viewpoint, and those evangelicals that back her, this was a situation with NO choice. And in no way shape or form in their eyes, does ANY woman or girl, regardless of the factors in the pregnancy, how, why, if whatever, is there a choice to be had.
Nope, LAW. PointofaGun Law.
See Elizabeth Austin's Profile
Sorry, but I do believe that Governor Palin made a real choice, and a principled one, in deciding to continue her pregnancy after finding out she was carrying a baby with Down's Syndrome. Under current law, this was a decision that she made based on her own religious and ethical beliefs, after consulting her husband and her doctor.
Of course, it is deeply troubling to me, and to most Americans, that Governor Palin would force this decision on other women without regard to their beliefs or circumstances. I have known women of great moral principle who have chosen to give birth to, and parent, severely disabled children. I also have known thoughtful and conscientious women who have decided that, for many reasons, they were physically, emotionally or financially unable to care for a child with severe disabilities. I cannot imagine a more deeply personal decision, and I cannot imagine anyone who would want state lawmakers to interfere with it.
What troubles me is that the anti-choice movement does not fully understand the ramifications of what they are trying to do. One aspect of the choice/anti-choice debate that is rarely discussed is that once the government has a vested interest in your reproduction, not only can they force you to carry to term, they can force you to terminate. I agree with you that Governor Palin made a choice, but I would like to point out that she made a choice because she could.
Barack is merely instructing his campaign to stay out of this controversy. A smart move.
I don't recall seeing her ask for our vote because she's "a wholesome hockey mom." Can you please provide that quote? Thanks.
See Elizabeth Austin's Profile
From the McCain website...
This is from Governor Palin's speech upon being named as Senator McCain's running mate:
"I was just your average 'hockey mom' in Alaska. We were busy raising our kids. I was serving as the team mom and coaching some basketball on the side. "
You took her remarks out of context. The entire paragraph reads:
"I was just your average 'hockey mom' in Alaska. We were busy raising our kids. I was serving as the team mom and coaching some basketball on the side. I got involved in the PTA and then was elected to the city council and then elected mayor of my hometown, where my agenda was to stop wasteful spending and cut property taxes and put the people first."
So she was not saying "vote for me because I am a wholesome hockey mom", as you put it. She was giving the history of her involvement in politics.
I think it is more likely that you simply want to see this information aired so that it hurts the Republican chances in November. No more, no less. Trash her if you so choose, but stop with the justification of your actions. Let your actions speak for themselves.
JUDGMENT IS IMPORTANT SHE DON'T HAVE ANY INTERNATIONAL OR FOREIGN EXPERIENCE THAT IS A PROBLEMS FOR SOME AMERICAN. YOU TELL ME THAT YOU TRUST HER TO STEP IN TO BE PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES. BE FOR REAL AMERICAN OWN WORLD ARE IN REAL TROUBLE ALL READY. THIS NEED TO BE A BIG PROBLEMS.
You must be logged in to comment. Log in or connect with
