The American Spectator : Palin and the Politics of Familial Destruction

Political Hay

Palin and the Politics of Familial Destruction

By John C. Wohlstetter on 7.7.09 @ 6:07AM

Governor Sarah Palin's stunning early resignation elicited predictable surprise and sympathy from most of her supporters, and equally predictable surprise and sheer glee from most of her detractors. The question uppermost in the minds of political types was when, if ever, she might run for President. That question, while intriguing, is secondary. Front and center is how much the politics of familial destruction -- at least, against conservative candidates -- will be energized.

The references to her family, plus the ceaseless legal harassment imposing six-figure financial cost and consuming time needed for governance, suggests a chilling reality: A sustained, vituperative smear campaign directed against a candidate and family can succeed. Palin, who hunts moose at 4 a.m., can surely take hits directed against her in the normal political arena. An attack directed against an activist adult partner who is a co-player -- think Hillary -- is also fair game, though Hillary played the "little woman" card when it suited her during the Clinton years. But Palin's children range in age from one to 18. Unwillingness to stand by and watch vulgar attacks directed against her teenage daughter by a famous late-night comedian and even worse, adults subjecting her children to ridicule aimed at her special needs infant, hardly shows weakness. Such attacks are a cancer growing on American politics.

Like all people, Sarah Palin has flaws. Hers are fair game for opponents and for media. Flaws of activist adult relatives -- those who campaign on issues and the like -- are also fair game. But teen children are never fair game. Attacking them forces candidates to weigh their professional goals against personal imperatives to protect their family from abuse. Their children are, in effect, being held hostage.

Has there ever been a campaign against children filled with such vitriol? Imagine if anyone had gone after Chelsea Clinton as a teen in the White House, for any reason whatsoever. Whoever did it would have faced a raw fury from Democrats (and even some Republicans) and the full fury of mainstream media. True, Chelsea did not give birth as a teen out of wedlock, but that would hardly have tipped the scales. She would have been defended as worthy of compassion and support. Indeed, campaigning for her mother in 2008, Chelsea, now nearly 30, was given a full pass.

A generation ago, impressionist David Frye, miming LBJ, had LBJ speak of "My two semi-beautiful daughters." Richard Nixon's daughters received occasional snarky remarks. Ronald Reagan's two children by Nancy received notice, too. And George W. Bush's twin daughters made the papers when they had a few beers.

But all of these instances involved adults. They were still unfair, as rarely did any of these children weigh into issues. But they were at least old enough to be able to handle attacks. And there was protective pressure all around not to go too far. Kennedy clan children have often been in the news, but not targeted constantly.

During the campaign both Barack Obama and Joe Biden, commendably, spoke out against targeting Palin's family. However, since the November election attacks on Palin's children have continued. True, Palin is a potential future presidential candidate, but never before has any candidate -- let alone, any candidate's family -- attracted such bile in the months immediately after a presidential election. Bob Beckel, Mondale-Ferraro campaign manager in 1984, conceded yesterday that Sarah Palin faces a media double standard, and added that had David Letterman attacked a Democratic politician's daughter, he'd have been taken off the air.

Palin would have done better to call upon those attacking her to end assaults on her family, and focus on her alone. She could have asked leading Democrats to follow the example set by candidates Obama and Biden, and publicly condemn attacks on her children. As to her financial burden she could have called upon the state government to fully reimburse her for the cost of defending against merit less ethics charges. Her hastily called, ill-timed, meandering announcement likely did not help her future political prospects. GOP political pro Ed Rollins's comment that press conferences should not raise questions, but answer them, is apt. But such reservations should not deep-six the family protection issue.

The wolves whose attacks helped bring Sarah Palin's resignation are no doubt enjoying the fruit of their labor immensely. No one else who cares for the integrity of the nation's political process should join them.

Letter to the Editor

topics:
Sarah Palin, Dirty Politics

rachel| 7.7.09 @ 6:29AM

Were you asleep during the clinton years and the 2008 election? At the age of 12 Chelsea was called a dog byRush, McCain made a foul joke about her asking why chelsea was so ugly was because her father was janet Reno and lets not forget all the jokes on Saturday night live. In 2008 some smuck on fox said she was beign pimped out, she was ridculed for not commenting on her dad's affair. Chelsea was the meida's favorite target starting at the age of 12 and she wasn't even a pregent unwed teen with a live in boyfriend who's mama spouted about abstenince.

Kitty| 7.7.09 @ 6:56AM

People who have supported Sarah Palin in the past are still supporting her now. These attacks do not deter them.
...

drudge ette obama| 7.7.09 @ 7:00AM

Rachel, Chelsea Clinton appears to have been willingly pimped out by her parents during Hillary's campaign - Chelsea offered them cover and some evidence of apparent success in raising her. In return, she enjoyed being set up for her own political future and a free ride.

But I remember her rude comments about the Secret Service. And a really bad photo of her wearing a Barberry string bikini when whe should have worn waders. Why hasn't she given a decent interview? Image control? Would she tank in the personality department like Caroline Kennedy in her failed Senate fiasco?

And how do you know that her father isn't Janet Reno?

And who in the press has come close to reporting about Chelsea's boyfriends and private life as they have about Palin's daughter? Or the Bush girls?

To her credit, Chelsea may not be able comment about her father's affairs because of lack of personal knowledge.

El Rey| 7.7.09 @ 7:12AM

A society that allows the Democrats and liberals to get away with their vicious politics of personal & family destruction is sick unto death.

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 7:13AM

What's the difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom?

Pit bulls don't quit.

Rachel| 7.7.09 @ 7:44AM

Drudge, your comments to my post are typical, I see you have nothing to say about the rude comments rush, mccain, saturday night live had to say about her, except to make a joke about it. I know that janet reno is not chelsea's father the same way republicans know that palin's youngest is really hers and not her daughter's second child oops let me think about that.

drudge ette obama| 7.7.09 @ 7:52AM

Rachel, when you refer to comments but do not reproduce them in full for us to read, then how can you expect us to comment?

I am not sure what you know about Janet Reno or whom else she has fathered, but your spelling could use some work.

Enjoy the Michael Jackson tribute today, Rachel.

Deborah D| 7.7.09 @ 8:02AM

Guess what, Rachel? It was an MSNBC reporter who said the Clintons were pimping out Chelsea. So, if this is wrong, how much of the other stuff can we believe. David Shuster was the dirty-deed-doer...another liberal Obama-journo. Leave Fox out of it. Read it here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/taylor-marsh/msnbcs-david-shuster-ch_b_85649.html

Big J| 7.7.09 @ 8:13AM

Rachel, straw men come to mind when reading your comments.

Don't let your hate for Sarah Palin keep you ignorant of the facts. No politician EVER has received the treatment from the left that this woman has. No politician's family has EVER been treated like the Palins.

Back to MoveOn with you, girl. You'll feel a little more at home.

Deborah D| 7.7.09 @ 8:14AM

Here's background on the Rush thing (it was a technical mistake)...and by the way, the left's own Saturday Night Live did harass Chelsea and Hillary did complain about it. Who was one of the writers on the show at the time? Senator Al Fancken...how funny is that? Read it here: http://lyingliar.com/?p=17

Deborah D| 7.7.09 @ 8:15AM

Oops.. Franken...sorry.

Ryan| 7.7.09 @ 8:16AM

Chelsea WAS the brunt of several jokes.

It doesn't excuse behavior on either side. At all.

Now, I DO believe that there is a legitimate character issue with the out-of-wedlock birth, both on Sarah AND Todd, and whether or not they are good parents (which is EXTREMELY difficult for high-profile politicians). It's one of the big reasons I was uncomfortable with Palin, along with I think she was thrust into the spotlight a little too soon.

Ridicule and off-color jokes should be out the door from all media types when it comes to a pol's family; however, I DO believe that their personal life should have some light shed on it because it speaks to a person's character.

Deborah D| 7.7.09 @ 8:23AM

I'll give you one, Rachel. It seems McCain did make a joke about Chelsea, but at least she was 18 (not that that excuses him...it was a mean and nasty thing to do). So, I'm with you there. You can tell those kinds of jokes in private, but when you're a public figure, you'd best watch your mouth.

KyMouse| 7.7.09 @ 8:41AM

Ryan, what is the "legitimate character issue with the out-of-wedlock birth, both on Sarah AND Todd"? I don't know which decade you grew up in, but I was a wild child of the '60s in spite of the good values that my parents tried to instill in me. I did plenty of things that they weren't aware of (and still aren't!). Even the best of parents can't keep their youngsters on the straight and narrow; every teenager makes bad choices in one way or another, at one time or another, although many of them don't end in pregnancy.

Some people think Sarah and Todd should have supplied Bristol with condoms and/or the address of the nearest abortuary. As truly pro-life people, they tried to teach her the values of self-control and self-respect; when she disobeyed them (and God), they didn't take the easy way out of pressuring her to kill her baby. Her pregnancy was not what they wished for her, but they knew that her baby deserved life and love, not death at the hands of an abortionist.

I remember climbing out a bathroom window late one night and driving down a (closed) airport runway with my best friend -- we were celebrating just having gotten our driver's licenses. My parents never knew about that, and my breaking the rules didn't make them hypocrites or bad parents.

Today, whenever I drive by that airport, I see the chainlink fence that was put up by the airport authority the very next morning -- it's still there four decades later.

So tell me, did you NEVER do anything that your parents told you not to do?

Richard Baker| 7.7.09 @ 8:48AM

Didn't the Kenyan say, during the campaign, that his family was off-limits? Oh yes, I forgot, he's a black liberal. Double standard, anyone?

melvin| 7.7.09 @ 8:53AM

I guess it can be said that politicians are a queer lot. Some peddle their families to advance their careers and some shut their families in a vault to protect them, and then there are those who just want to have some sense of normalcy to their lives.
If a person really takes a sincere honest and subjective look at Sarah Palin's family, they are not that much different than the rest of us. They have the same teenager issues, special needs children, arguments, wants, and needs that encompasses us all to varying degrees.
This honesty that Sarah Palins projects with her family is a godsend and a curse. People respect and relate to her, and on the other side of the coin she is loathed because she doesn't project this image of perfection of herself and her family.
The political elite in the Democrat Party view imperfection and faults as a disability that should be pitied and Sarah Palin's views imperfection as a fact of life that should be overcome and conquered not pitied.

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 9:22AM

What a big deal about NOTHING, name-calling. The same thing any child faces growing up.

Anyone, like Sarah Palin, who is so weak that she would quit because of name-calling shouldn't be in politics. If every Republican were a cowardly control freak like Palin, the Democrats could take over the whole government just by name-calling, because all the Republicans would quit. It won't happen because unlike Palin most Republicans are fighters, not quitters.

There is a more sinister agenda here in that Sarah is trying to censor the internet and the world world, like when she tried to burn books from the public library as mayor. Her lawyer has threatened to sue anyone who criticizes her. She's such a control freak that she spent weeks arguing with a comedian, trying to censor him.

Solo| 7.7.09 @ 9:48AM

First..well said, KY Mouse (above).

I am so sick and tired of the intellectually sophomoric charge of "hypocrisy" against Sarah Palin for the actions of a recalcitrant teenage daughter.

Everyone makes mistakes and teenagers are notorious for them. It's what you do about your mistakes that reveals your true character.

Moreover...it is far easier to maintain a moral course when that "moral" compass needle swings in response to immediate personal convenience. Something to consider the next time you see a leftist pointing a finger and yelling "hypocrite".

Appleby| 7.7.09 @ 9:55AM

My folks had five daughters in the 1960s and if you think Bristol Palin and her parents had issues ... well, then again, if you are shrieking HYPOCRITE, you are probably a college student, because people older than 20-something don't normally use that word.

My Jewish granny had the perfect curse for all of you. "May you grow up and some day have children EXACTLY LIKE YOU."

Ryan| 7.7.09 @ 9:59AM

It's true, there's a certain amount of teenage "rebellion" here, but the question DOES need to be asked - why did Bristol have premarital sex? Was it an act of deliberate rebellion against her parents, or are Sarah and Todd typical political "parents" who place their ambition and careers ahead of everything else? What were the values there - were they merely giving lip-service to abstinence?

Honestly, I don't know that it's something we can really know the answer to, because anything that comes out in the press - even from the family or "close friends" - has to be taken with a grain of salt.

I applaud SOME of the aftermath and how it was handled with Bristol (outside of the matter that the father of her child is dishonorable and they aren't getting married). Bristol came across as not quite ready to handle the limelight, which is understandable.

I think there's a lot of "projection" that goes on with the Palins - they APPEAR normal, and outside the political mainstream that we wish they would be, but is it because they truly are or because we so desperately want them to be?

Aaron| 7.7.09 @ 10:20AM

Fairly easy fix to this... every time someone makes a nasty remark about a Palin child, repost the remark with an Obama child's name inserted instead and link back to the original comment. The MSM would go ape sh*t. Same thing would work for radio/tv commentators except they would be taken out of context of course.

ccc| 7.7.09 @ 10:27AM

"Imagine if anyone had gone after Chelsea Clinton as a teen"
Imagination is unnecessary, memory is sufficient. Limbaugh used to call Chelsea clinton ugly on his national tv show.

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 10:28AM

When Obama sent his personal staff to Alaska to try and dig up as much dirt as they could on Sarah Palin, and didn't, my blood ran cold, envisioning "Americans" turning on "Americans" for purly political gains, all the while watching Obama on tv smiling and waving to all his adoring puffins jumping off cliffs for him. At that moment Obama knew he could be President and Soros backed him while manipulating him from behind the curtain.
People, this is scary stuff. Obama's arrogance to use the Constitution as his own personal toilet paper pisses me off. Can I get an Amen?
I read the "Spectator" often but have never contributed until now.
Living in CA I never contributed to gov't outcry until now.
How many of you "vetern contributors" who scribe daily here write letters or email your elected officials voicing your opinion? I would hope all! If the only place you want to be heard is here, Obama will wipe his feet on your back(s) and you allowed him!

101st Airborne
Firebase Eagle
A Shau Valley

jim rice| 7.7.09 @ 10:41AM

Palin made her family a target. How can you expect to run around talking about "family" and "values" and NOT think that the media is going to dig into those things and make fun of you... especially when your walk doesn't match your talk.

I can't wait to see what Palin does next tho; I really hope she's not out of the spotlight. She's hilarious and (God willing) will never be President, but at least she brings up her crazy ideas and is hot enough that people will listen for a little while. I like her being the represenative for the whackos in the country.

wayfaring stranger| 7.7.09 @ 10:43AM

This was a good summation of what has become of American politics -- a metastasizing cancer. My only quibble would be the lauding of Ed Rollins, who IMHO has always been a vulgar opportunist.

Sadly, several of the recent long knives were wielded by regular contributors to this site. I used to be shocked. Now I'm just amused.

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 10:53AM

July 7 - abcnews.com

Department of Law

But as for whether another pursuit of national office, as she did less than a year ago when she joined Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., in the race for the White House, would result in the same political blood sport, Palin said there is a difference between the White House and what she has experienced in Alaska. If she were in the White House, she said, the "department of law" would protect her from baseless ethical allegations.

"I think on a national level, your department of law there in the White House would look at some of the things that we've been charged with and automatically throw them out," she said.

There is no "Department of Law" at the White House.

Liberal Reader| 7.7.09 @ 10:56AM

1. Other than David Lettermen, who is a shallow stand-up comedian, who exactly has "attacked" Palin's family? What prominent Democrat or credentialed journalist has said anything cruel about her son Trig?

I'd like some evidence. A link, the name of a publication, anything.

2. Had Palin been elected vice president, would she now be resigning? The "attacks" would almost certainly have continued were she elected to national office.

3. Palin's speech last Friday was absurd and incoherent. I'm trying to imagine FDR or Eisenhower or Reagan standing beside a lake and babbling like an eight-grader. I'm quitting because I'm a fighter. I'm taking on larger problems because I don't know how to solve smaller ones. I'm seeking higher political office because I can't govern my sparsely populated state. I want to serve in a larger, more important public cause because I want to spend more time with my family.

Did I miss anything?

Am I now guilty of a "vicious attack" on Palin or her family?

Not too long ago, conservatives descried -- rightly, I think -- the growing tendency to seek victim status in this country. Public whining, making excuses replaced self-reliance and keeping one's chin up.

What's up with Republicans? Palin's confusing and erratic resignation speech stands next to Sanford's bizarre interviews and press conferences.

You people need to demand that your political leaders learn to govern themselves before we should consider letting them govern the rest of us.

Doorgunner| 7.7.09 @ 10:56AM

Chelsea Clinton WAS NOT asked to comment on her father's affair. She was asked (and every video on the web has had the actual question removed) whether her mother's -for whom Chelsea was actively, professionally, representing on the campaign trail- remarks during the impeachment process created credibilty problems for the candidate.
And she disingenguously deflected the question by immediately mischaracterizing it... like a good little sociopath- just like Mom and Dad.

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 11:03AM

"What's up with Republicans? "

That's the biggest problem with the Republican Party, that there is no internal criticism. It is totally "us" versus "them", where they are utterly evil, and no one on our side can do anything wrong. This prevents weak candidates from being scrubbed out, and it keeps the RINOs in office. That results in Obama and the Democrats winning.

Doorgunner| 7.7.09 @ 11:05AM

To Liberal Reader-

does Andrew Sullivan ring a bell?

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/12/a-fourth-pictur.html

but I think we were talking about daughters anyway...

Blakeney| 7.7.09 @ 11:28AM

Letterman is a deceiver, a dissembler
His fallen trousers are alight
From what pole or gallows
Shall they dangle in the night?

What infernal serpent
Has lent him his perverted tongue?
From what pit of foul deceit
Have all his slanders sprung?

What red devil of mendacity
Grips his sick soul with such tenacity?
Will not one he cruelly showers with lies
Put a pistol ball between his pedophile eyes?

Liberal Reader| 7.7.09 @ 11:36AM

I'm not saying I'm not sypathetic.

1. I understand people's admiration for Palin. She's a remarkable woman.

2. I think anyone who would make fun of her son, or people that make crude remarks about the daughters, are shallow, cruel, and contemptible.

However, most reporters and politicians that I have heard on the news or elsewhere have not made remarks about her family.

There were remarks about Bristol's pregnancy that were uncalled for, but now Bristol is earning a living as a national spokeswoman: she's entering public life, and the rules are changing.

Of course any comments about the minors are repugnant.

But again: is this really an issue?

I think conservatives were offended by legitimate satire and mockery of Palin herself. Tina Fey -- like it or not -- was devestating, and I think people perceived those performances as symbolic of the media's overall attitude towards Palin.

There is truth in this, and I understand why people are sensitive and defensive of Palin.

But you have to remember: Palin was campaigning for Vice President. She was going to be a heart-beat away from having the world's largest nuclear weapons arsenol under her control. Mocking her was a natural and normal reaction to her ambition, and frankly, nothing could be more American.

Liberal Reader| 7.7.09 @ 11:40AM

Doorgunner --

Thanks for the link. I read it carefully.

While I find Sullivan's interest in Palin's pregnancy vile and stupid, I don't see how he's "attacking" the son.

But I think I see where you're coming from and I'll concede the point.

But again, is this reason enough for Palin to resign her office? Is Sullivan taken that seriously by people?

It seems a little thin to me.

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 11:52AM

John Wohlstetter and Sarah Palin have no right to censor the internet. I oppose them and everyone else who would take my liberty away.

dunross| 7.7.09 @ 11:56AM

Richard Baker, you are incorrect. Obama never said 'his' family was off-limits, he said all families are off-limits and was answering a question about Bristol Palin.

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 12:02PM

Department of Law (Satire)

There is some confusion about US "Department of Law" which Sarah Palin mentioned, so here's a clarification. Under Palin, the Department of Law would bring us the "liberty" which many here talk about. It would do this by censorship to protect us from hearing anything which Sarah Palin didn't want us to hear.

The first way this would happen is by book burning in public libraries. Palin tried this when she was mayor, and even fired the librarian, but was forced to rehire her because of protesting.

The second way Palin would protect us as president is to spend most of her time scanning the internet and television, especially comedy shows, to make sure that none of us heard of any material she didn't approve of. To Sarah, this is liberty and fits her definition of the first amendment, so she would be protecting our constitutional rights.

One way Sarah would grant us liberty is to boycott anyone of us who said something which she didn't like. The other approach, which would give us our day in court, would be to first have her attorney send a threatening letter, and if that didn't work, sue us.

Oldefarte| 7.7.09 @ 12:21PM

Liberal Democrats are in a word---------TERRORISTS!!!!!!!!

Bo Darville| 7.7.09 @ 12:29PM

The mainstream media did not call Chelsea Clinton a "dog". It was Rush Limbaugh who is a partisan commentator. The full throttle denigration of the Palins by the mainstream media and other "non-partisan" outlets should give any semi-neophyte pause before entering the top levels of the political arena.

Doorgunner| 7.7.09 @ 12:31PM

Liberal Reader,

I think 'The Atlantic' is taken seriously... as is Vanity Fair (i.e. Todd Purdum's endless grind-down this month).
Really, I don't think any of this "politics of personal destruction" is about decorum so much as it is an attempt to deny the enemy a weapon. And I think that Siegfried is correct about empowering RINO's with a blind self-reflecting eye. I am not defending Palin- I think she is making a calculated, self-serving move. Whether it's Hillary's Amazing Bag-o-Accents, Chelsea's Defense-o-Damaged Goods or, now, Sarah's Rearguard Retreat, all of it is symptomatic of the ruthless, amoral pusuit of power. And it is all always accompanied by a barely restrained, respectively sycophantic Greek Chorus of Media.

And when you take a p**s on your oath of office, as Palin has, it really doesn't matter what pose you strike; you've lost my support forever.

JerseyJ| 7.7.09 @ 12:40PM

Pete asks ... "How many of you "vetern contributors" who scribe daily here write letters or email your elected officials voicing your opinion?"

I'm not a "veteran contributor" but have posted a time or two. Much like you, I never felt the need to lend my voice to the public outcry until recently. I've found that those like us are a growing number.

To answer your question, I for one have taken up contacting my elected officials on a regular basis. I am sad to report the complete lack of representation I've encountered when doing so.

I'm ashamed to say my "representative" was one of the despicable 8 rebubs who vote for cap and tax despite a littany of friends and neighbors in the same district who actively voiced their opposition to the bill. Matter of fact, I've not found a person in my district who supported it, so why did our "representative" vote for it?

Previous to that, when contacting one of my senators regarding my complete and utter dissatisfaction with the CPSIA, the individual in question responded stating he agrees that the CPSIA is important and thanked me for voicing my support for it. What an Idiot!

I've come to the conclusion that it's going to take a lot more than contacting our elected employees to straighten out this mess. We have to impose our own term-limits and start voting these buffoons out regardless of party affiliation.

BTW Pete ... thank you for your service to our Nation.

Average Joe L-E| 7.7.09 @ 1:07PM

I'm still a big fan of the "finishing school" theory: http://bit.ly/pN5Np

BigJack| 7.7.09 @ 1:13PM

Sarah did the responsible thing by stepping down. Once she determined that she wasn't running for re-election it didn't make sense to keep spending the AK taxpayers money on ethics charge after ethics charge that have been brought against her even though every one has shown her in the clear. If she had stayed on it would have been nothing but an exercise in ego. Now the states business can be done unencumbered by this kind of political chicanery.

Old Texican| 7.7.09 @ 1:24PM

Pete
Amen and Amen!

and thank you for your service. What happens if Obama calls upon you to open fire on law abiding American citizens?

AK inthe Know| 7.7.09 @ 1:50PM

Palin is a starter, not a finisher

What can you say about a public official who ridicules those who would take the "quitter's way out" -- as she faces reporters to announce that she's quitting? A governor who claims that "the worthless, easy path" would be to serve out the remaining 18 months of her term? An ambitious politician who says that "life is too short" to worry about, you know, boring things such as responsibility or duty?

You can say that all of us who ever took Sarah Palin seriously -- or pretended to take her seriously -- should be deeply ashamed. And you can say that John McCain should publicly apologize for putting the nation he loves at risk by choosing Palin as his running mate. Imagining Palin within a heartbeat of the presidency should be enough to make even die-hard Republicans shudder.

The reasons she gave for stepping down are not just contrived or implausible but literally nonsensical. She can most effectively serve the people of Alaska by ceasing to exercise the powers of chief executive? She worries that as a lame duck she would somehow be compelled to waste taxpayer money on useless junkets? In her "Don't Cry For Me, Alaska" news conference announcing her departure, the folksy non sequiturs -- "Only dead fish go with the flow" -- were like nuggets of Cartesian logic amid a tub of mush.

But I'm stating the obvious. The thing is, Palin's unsuitability for high public office has been obvious all along. Tina Fey got it right; the rest of us were far too reluctant to state plainly that the emperor, or empress, has no clothes.

There are basically two reasons the political class and the commentariat continue to speak and write about Palin as if she were a substantial figure whose presence on the national stage is anything but a cruel, unfunny joke. The first is fear -- not of Palin and her know-nothing legions, but of being painted as elitist and sexist.

From the beginning, Palin has been a master at maneuvering her critics into this trap. Like most Americans, she didn't go to an Ivy League school; like most women, she deals every day with the challenges of juggling work and family. She highlighted these aspects of her biography, then used them to portray herself as a victim whenever anyone had the temerity to criticize anything she said or did. The most recent illustration is what she posted on her Facebook page last weekend on the reaction to her announced resignation:

"How sad that Washington and the media will never understand; it's about country. And though it's honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make."

What is she talking about? Who are these "countless others" who supposedly have made the same decision to abandon governorships for no credible reason? The names don't come rushing to mind. Why is any criticism of Poor Little Sarah the result of the "different standard" that mean old "Washington and the media" always apply? Because blaming her favorite alleged persecutors allows her to ignore the bewildered reaction from her constituents in Alaska who are stunned and mystified at her decision to skip out.

The other reason Palin is taken more seriously than she deserves is that she has a constituency. Heaven help us.

Palin has far-right conservative views, and while I disagree with her on almost everything, there's certainly nothing inappropriate or illegitimate about her philosophy. But I feel sorry for conservatives who look to her as a champion because she's going to let them down. Articulating a political vision and inspiring people to believe in it are true accomplishments, and no one can take that away from her. But realizing that vision through legislation or executive action requires discipline, persistence and rigor. To return to stating the obvious, these are attributes that Palin lacks.

Anyone tempted to see her resignation gambit as a masterstroke, positioning her for a presidential run in 2012, is riding for a fall. She will flake out.

Sarah Palin is by nature more of a firebrand opinion-maker than anything else. I know one when I see one. She can deny it all she wants, but really she's -- gulp -- one of us.

By Eugene Robinson
Tuesday, July 7, 2009

BigJack| 7.7.09 @ 2:05PM

Nice attempt at a fillibuster Eugene- at least that's what it appears to be. The fact is that despite allof your blathering, Palin did the responsible thing for her state by not continuing to have the Tax payers of AK foot the bill for their Governor's defense(s) against specious and unfounded ethics charges.

Roy| 7.7.09 @ 2:25PM

Maybe so, but what really should have happened is that those who filed the charges should have been made to pay the price. And they still should.

Otherwise, George Soros can wipe out any non-independently wealthy politician by just filing endless lawsuits through his minions at the Center for American Progress, Center for Progressive Americans, Progressive America Center, Progressive Center for America, American Progressive Center and American Center for Progress.

JeffW| 7.7.09 @ 2:37PM

Wow! Mentin Sarah Palin and the libs come out in force don't they? Just more proof that she can draw attention to whatever issues she wants to. Was this a wise move? Maybe, it's to early to tell. Nixon did the same thing and went on to become President. Of course he then shot himself in the foot by thinking he was above the law. Gee, a president that thinks he's above the law and can do whatever he wants. Thank God, history hasn't repeated that huh?

Philly Busther| 7.7.09 @ 3:11PM

Let's be real in a way the national media seems incapable of: this person should never have been placed on a national ticket in a mature democracy. She was incapable of running a town in Alaska competently. The impulsive, unvetted selection of a total unknown, with no knowledge of or interest in the wider world, as a replacement president remains one of the most disturbing events in modern American history. That the press felt required to maintain a facade of normalcy for two months - and not to declare the whole thing a farce from start to finish - is a sign of their total loss of nerve. That the Palin absurdity should follow the two-term presidency of another individual utterly out of his depth in national government is particularly troubling. 46 percent of Americans voted for the possibility of this blank slate as president because she somehow echoed their own sense of religious or cultural "identity". Until we figure out how this happened, we will not be able to prevent it from happening again. And we have to find a way to prevent this from recurring.

It happened because John McCain is an incompetent and a cynic and reckless beyond measure. To have picked someone he'd only met once before, without any serious vetting procedure, revealed McCain as an utterly unserious character, a man whose devotion to the shallowest form of political gamesmanship trumped concern for his country's or his party's interest. We need a full accounting of the vetting process: who was responsible for this act of political malpractice? How could a veep not be vetted in any serious way? Why was she not asked to withdraw as soon as the facts of her massive ignorance and delusional psyche were revealed?

The Palin nightmare also happened because a tiny faction of political professionals has far too much sway in the GOP and conservative circles. This was Bill Kristol's achievement.

It was a final product of the now-exhausted strategy of fomenting fundamentalist resentment to elect politicians dedicated to the defense of Israel and the extension of American military hegemony in every corner of the globe. Palin was the reductio ad absurdum of this mindset: a mannequin candidate, easily controlled ideologically, deployed to fool and corral the resentful and the frightened, removed from serious scrutiny and sold on propaganda networks like a food product.

This deluded and delusional woman still doesn't understand what happened to her; still has no self-awareness; and has never been forced to accept her obvious limitations. She cannot keep even the most trivial story straight; she repeats untruths with a ferocity and calm that is reserved only to the clinically unhinged; she has the educational level of a high school drop-out; and regards ignorance as some kind of achievement. It is excruciating to watch her - but more excruciating to watch those who feel obliged to defend her.

Her candidacy, in short, was indefensible. It remains indefensible. Until the mainstream media, the GOP establishment, and the conservative intelligentsia acknowledge the depth of their error, blogs will keep demanding basic accountability.

The point is not to persecute or hound some random person. I wish I had never heard of Sarah Palin. I wish this nightmare had never happened. I wish totally innocent by-standers, like Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston and Heather Bruce and Trig Palin, had not had their lives disrupted by this circus. It's distressing to everyone, which is why most journalists left many aspects of this charade alone. But Palin is claiming vindication, is on every cable show, is at the National Governors Association Conference, and is touted as a future leader of the GOP. There comes a point at which you have to simply call a time out and insist that this farce cease and some basic accountability and transparency be restored to the process.

Even Bill Kristol and his minions in the McCain-Palin campaign will not be able to resuscitate her political viability now. She is history.

By Andrew Sullivan
July 7, 2007

tj| 7.7.09 @ 3:35PM

She should be happy to spend a half-million of her own bucks defending against unfounded attacks. And she should only defend herself after working hours so she won't be accused of further ethics violations such as anyone with half a brain could cook up.

hermit| 7.7.09 @ 3:58PM

Banana Republics are beginning to look very good by comparison. Election stealing, all out war on a candidates family, use of illegitimate ethics charges, and the list goes on are now the norm and accepted practice. In the charge and counter charge we defend out team by the well tested third grade playground tactic ‘well you guys did it first…” followed by did so did not.
Our political process has become theater and farce.
We have allowed ourselves to be divided in to warring camps willing to accept any behavior in an effort to win at any cost and look at the results. Look at the Senate and the House, at the people we allow to write our laws and lead our government. Looking at either party how many of the people there would you claim any pride in their having been elected? The acceptance of these despicable behaviors limits the gene pool if will of those that are willing to serve. Who would subject themselves to this insanity? Let alone their family.
I think that unless we can find those things that bind us together, about which we universally agree and begin to build from there we are fast approaching the point where the peaceful transfer of power will be a memory.
Our political elites thrive on this, whether you are a republican or a democrat, liberal or conservative we all receive the breathless phone call seeking funds and pointing to the latest outrage committed by our despicable opposition. How you win and how you fight matter. The whole process, indeed the whole body politic is being made to suffer by this vile progression.
Palin’s resignation is illustration; the decline of the process is the issue. What are we willing to tolerate?
I believe our political class is populated by the putrid miscreants that it is precisely because of the process we are willing to tolerate.
We will take back our process soon or lose our nation.

NoToObamessiah| 7.7.09 @ 4:14PM

Philly Busther, "She is history" You wish.

And Pete, AMEN!

GwenGlynn| 7.7.09 @ 4:22PM

Hey Sarah, read MY refrigerator magnets...

Winners Never Quit and Quitters Never Win!

Solo| 7.7.09 @ 4:29PM

Siegfried X Wrote:
"The first way this would happen is by book burning in public libraries. Palin tried this when she was mayor, and even fired the librarian, but was forced to rehire her because of protesting. "

And weren't you the one who postulated about the "us vs. them" "problem" with the GOP?

That's funny coming from someone who is too dishonest (or too ignorant) than to know better than to continuously repeat this baseless lie!

There was no "book Burning".
There was no "Book Banning".
There was never any attempt at either.
And there was no "protest" to re-hire the Librarian given that she was re-hired the next day.

All bald faced lies perpetrated by the "the opposition is pure evil" mental midgets of the left.
http://www.factcheck.org/elections-2008/sliming_palin.html

Oh....and Palin never said " "I can see Russia from my house" either. That was a Saturday Night Live skit. Ahhhh.....That means that it isn't actually "real".

When you get your political positions from sources like The Jon Daily Show and Saturday Night Live, you're bound to lend credence to Reagan's famous quote:

"It's not that Liberals (leftists) are ignorant. It's just that so much of what they 'know' isn't true".

You should see a surgeon about that "Cranio-Rectal Insertion". It could be your only hope at this point!

S af Ugglas| 7.7.09 @ 4:35PM

Why is it, the FBI has shown such an interest in Sarah Palin when they could have made better use of their time investigating Obamas birthcertificate?

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 4:36PM

Sarah Palin - Book burner

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5766173&page=1

According to coverage in the local newspaper, the Frontiersman, Palin asked the librarian at a meeting "if she would object to censorship even if people were circling the library in protest about a book."

The report quotes the librarian as responding, "I told her clearly I will fight anyone who tries to indicate what books can go on the library shelves."

The same week that Palin raised the issue she fired Baker (then using her married name Emmons) as librarian, claiming she was not "loyal" to the new administration and had supported Palin's opponent in the election. She said the dismissal was not connected to questions of censorship, and that she had dismissed all city department heads and told them they could re-apply for their jobs.

After a public outcry, Palin rescinded the dismissal of the librarian.

The local newspaper reporter who covered the controversy, Paul Stuart, claims he was later told by the librarian that Palin wanted three specific books removed from the library.

Solo| 7.7.09 @ 4:39PM

Oh...and Siegfried.....

If you're concerned about Sarah Palin's "Department Of Law" comment and her potential proximity to the "nuclear trigger", what do you think about your president who doesn't know the difference between the Russian President and the Russian Prime Minister? Or.....a VP Biden who thinks that people sat home and watched FDR's speeches on T.V.?

"Yes we can"!!

LOL!

Solo| 7.7.09 @ 4:46PM

Sorry Ziegfried....
I don't see any evidence of "book burning" or book banning". All I see is a preliminary report by (of all things, ABC).

Moreover...the timeline clearly insists that he librarian was re-hired the next day. Must have been one short "protest", huh?

LOL!!

Where's the "book burning", Zeigfried? Where's the Book Burning?

Siegfried X| 7.7.09 @ 4:46PM

"what do you think about your president "

I'm a Republican so I don't pay attention to Democrats. No sense listening since I'm not going to vote for them anyway.

Marc Jeric| 7.7.09 @ 4:48PM

Finally - Roy has said it. Palin should hire a bunch of good lawyers working on promise of a percentage and sue the hell out of all of her detractors for defamation of character - say for one trillion. Let us see all those rats scurrying into their holes!

Palin the idiot| 7.7.09 @ 4:51PM

Sarah Palin is a flawed person, the first word come to mind is idiot.

But America, elect figure heads, not leaders hence why Palin seem such a good idea.

Zbigniew Brzezinski, is the man behind Jimmy Carter, who is now behind Obama.

Obama is using Russia, Syria, against Iran, good for America if the Russians falls for it.

World war 3 will break out in the early part of 2010. Israel will attack Iran, America has provided the Bunker Busters 2 years ago for the attack. The only problem is Iran will respond by attacking Israel. If America can convince Iran neighbours to be on side with Israel and America fine, but who in their right mind will trust America and Israel? given their reputation. This is how world war 3 breaks out, the Chinese and Russians may think in the short term but the long term, China Russia, and Iran is in trouble.

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 5:01PM

As I write this, my tears seem to get in the way of what my heart needs to say.
Everyone here, let your voice be heard! Your ship DOES have a rudder. Guide it and all who trust you, to safety.
Why do some Republicans wipe their eyes in the morning when they waken, because they have no balls.
Take your friggin balls out of Pelosi's little pink purse and show us what cojones you got!
Or are you at the capital getting one of those $400 haircuts Edwards likes!!

Is anyone here as REALLY pissed off as I am???

PolishKnight| 7.7.09 @ 5:02PM

In some ways, I like the way Palin is being held to scrutiny in that she tossed her future son-in-law overboard after her daughter didn't get along with him. She talks about family values but didn't walk the walk and this builds upon her own battles with another son-in-law. This is an allegory for the problems Republicans have with family values in general: They side with the feminists and the left in bashing men because of sentimentalistic chivalrous principles. But if that's the case, and women should be treated as June Cleavers, what is Sarah Palin doing in politics in the first place? Yes?

If women are to be allowed in public office and to compete with men in the workplace, Republicans and Conservatives should do more to empower men. After all, men are their best supporters and the backbone of their two parent families. The public LOVED the Newt Gingrich welfare reform even if it really was a paper tiger.

Even if Palin does clean up her act, she's still tainted from being a cheerleader for RINO McCain who sold out Americans to La Race, er, La Raza. How about Ann Coulter for president?

Carl Hungus| 7.7.09 @ 5:05PM

Ah yes, the Christian right's favorite go-to topic: victimization.

"We're just like Jesus Christ! Misunderstood and persecuted wherever we go!"

BWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 5:12PM

Old Texican!
You asked me "what would you do if Obama asked me to open fire on law abiding citizens?" I'm a law abiding citizen. What would you do??

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 5:26PM

Are there any Vets here???? Please let your hearts be heard. "The pen is mightier than the sword!"
We have laid ours down people. We are tired. We would like to rest for a while until you ask us to serve again. At 60, I would serve in a heartbeat to lay down my life for this great country of ours rather than surrender it to some of our own "people" (spelled, politician) who's only battle is their own political career???????
And I took several bullets for this shit???? While John Kerry cuts himself shaving and demands a Purple Heart?????
Nobody gives a fuck!

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 5:39PM

Old Texican,

I'm sorry.

I promise to never write here again as my Pride runs deeper than mere rhetoric or words. Writing here can become addicting as many show here. I can't. I raised my hand to speak, spoke, and will sit down now!

101st Airborne
Screaming Eagles
(big smile)

JeffT| 7.7.09 @ 5:43PM

It's one thing to have the "press" go after a political candidate and their family. It's quite another for the Democrat machine to send 40+ attorneys to Alaska to dig up real and imagined offenses against Sarah Palin. Politicians understand they will be attacked. In the era of Clintonian "politics of personal destruction," it is what it is. But for an established political party to lead the charge is virgin territory. I hope the Republicans have long memories. Unfortunately, The Stupid Party fights with both hands tied nehind their collective backs.

AKAlice| 7.7.09 @ 5:56PM

Palin's late term abort of her office is now being called the...

'Iquitarod'.

Solo| 7.7.09 @ 6:00PM

Pete....Thank you for your service! If you took a bullet, you took it for me and mine and the country that I love...and I can never express my debt and thanks for your sacrifice.

As a combat veteran...maybe you could share with us the tactical wisdom of decimating our own ranks while being swamped by the enemy. Some here are suggesting (and attempting) exactly that.

It's one thing to demand a qualified leader and to expect that leadership to be capable of holding the line against the enemy. It's quite another, however, to be so hostile and so single-minded in the desire to find fault that one would resort to rank fabrication in order to sow dissent among the troops.

Such is the mission of the likes of some listed here who, under the guise of demanding quality of leadership, seek only to bring chaos and destruction to the cause while the enemy pours across the ramparts.

I "give a f**k", Pete. And I honor your service!

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 6:16PM

AKAlice,

I hope and pray Alice, that when you have children of your own, they grow up just like you.

AKAlice| 7.7.09 @ 6:23PM

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 6:16PM
AKAlice,

FYI Pete...

I'm Sarah Palin's mother.

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 6:38PM

Solo,
Spending days in a foxhole, urinating and defacating side by side, we become one. Today our politicians crap on us for their gains. Obama wipes his ass on our freedoms. And counting!
Send out a message to your elected officials who's salaries are paid by US and declare, "I'M MAD AS HELL AND CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!"
Or just bend over and let them rape us for their own pleasure as Obama watches, wringing his hands, smiling, and Soros, laughing like Vincent Price at the end of "Thriller!"

101st Airborne

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 6:46PM

What's the name of Todd's flotation plane?
What is Sarah's maiden name? (easy??)
What's your middle name?
Is Sarah left/right handed? And Todd???
What's Tig's birthday?

AK Alice| 7.7.09 @ 7:06PM

Pour yourself a scotch Pete and turn off the computer...seriously.

JerseyJ| 7.7.09 @ 7:12PM

Philly opines ... "The impulsive, unvetted selection of a total unknown, with no knowledge of or interest in the wider world, as a replacement president remains one of the most disturbing events in modern American history."

Second only to the marxist junior senator from IL with no knowledge of or interest in the world outside of university liberalism and community "organizing" garnering 53% of the presidential popular vote through intimidation, voter fraud and outright deception ... go figure.

Philly Busther| 7.7.09 @ 7:31PM

JerseyJ fond of remembering 200o huh?
"won the presidential popular vote through intimidation, voter fraud and outright deception..."

No JJ second only to 8 years of brain dead Dubya and Pres Chainme lying & running up the deficit par excellence.

Alan Brooks| 7.7.09 @ 9:08PM

Rachel et al, this is a rightwing blog, not the Chomsky site.
we here are supposed to meanspirited. If you want 'nice' then buzz off.

Alan Brooks| 7.7.09 @ 10:04PM

rightwingers are SUPPOSED to be meanspirited, that is why they are not "progressives".

Rick Garner| 7.7.09 @ 10:46PM

With Palin's resignation as Governor of Alaska, the feeding frenzy is on of news organizations clamoring to be the first to announce all the details. After all, if one quits their job they either couldn't handle the pressure or were up to no good, right?

http://richardtgarner.blogspot.com/2009/07/palin-keeps-em-guessin.html

Joe Heathen| 7.7.09 @ 11:01PM

Solo sez: "I am so sick and tired of the intellectually sophomoric charge of "hypocrisy" against Sarah Palin for the actions of a recalcitrant teenage daughter."
-
Er, uh, where were Levi and Bristol shacked up? In the back seat of a car? At the Palin Palace? Or at Sherry Johnston's home? And St. Sarah didn't know about these shenanigans?
-
As it is, given the proclivities of Sarah to brand PRESIDENT Obama as a terriorist because of his past associations with William Ayers, then employing the infallible Palin logic, Sarah's paling around with Sherry Johnston makes Sarah a drug dealer.

JerseyJ| 7.7.09 @ 11:45PM

Philly ... "No JJ second only to 8 years of brain dead Dubya and Pres Chainme lying & running up the deficit par excellence."

Ah yes, now we're FINALLY getting somewhere. I hadn't realized this was all W's fault. The Dem's should really get the word out on that one. I'm not sure America has heard about it. Thanks for enlightening me.

You win (sheesh, I'm glad that's over)

Richard Baker| 7.7.09 @ 11:50PM

Siegfried X:
Allow someone to publicly speak in the manner to which she and her family have been subjected and let them do it to your Mother, Sister, wife, or other female relatives and let's see how TOLERANT you'll be. Better yet, go do it to someone you don't like, in person. Strategy sometimes requires a retrograde movement/maneuver as being necessary to re-position for an attack later. Don't count her out. It's easy for people like you to be anonymously brave on this media, isn't it?

JA| 7.8.09 @ 12:31AM

She's not a quitter. If she was a quitter, she'd sit back and let the ethics complaints pile in one after another. She'd not show up to work, go have a secret rendez-vous in another country with a lover, she'd give the media the bird. That's what a quitter does. She assessed the situation, saw it was getting negative, made a move to pull her family out of it, and hopefully gain back some control over her future decisions. What ever was happening to make her resign suddenly must have felt very legit from her perspective. I figure she'll attempt to spend the next few years, "getting herself educated", thickening her skin, coming out as a vocal advocate for disabilities, and raising her family.

CJuhnson| 7.8.09 @ 12:42AM

As an Alaskan I congratulate Mrs. Palin for her recognizing Alaskas' need for an intact government that presents a positive national image, and that it had become impossible to govern anything in Alaska while under the microscope of the national media. No Alaskan wants any other Alaskan to become the spectacle of a nationally hostile media, knowing it always results in negatively impacting our state and negative imagery of all things Alaskan: oil production, mining, lumber, building infrastructure, etc.
People 'outside' cannot comprehend that Alaskans all know each other, sorta. And that our elected leaders are also our neighbors, hockey moms, builders, teachers, bartenders and public employees (or related, worse even yet).
Did it occur to anyone that launching a national media bonanza on "my governor, her family or her staff" is a little personal to me too? I am tired of wasting precious 'out of state' calling time correcting the perpetual misinformation being lapped up by Americans about Alaskans, Alaska, or the Governor. At least I now have proof that the media controls the conversation among the politicians and the populas and assures we stay misinformed about fairy tales, pixie dust and magic beans and just palin ignorant about energy development, national defense and international trade.
So, thank you Sara, for proving a few things about the Times we live in.

KarlLaFong| 7.8.09 @ 2:35AM

Moonbats hacked into Palin's e-mail, released her SS number, burnt down her church, made serial jokes about her kids, went around destroying campaign signs, made shirts with "Fuck Palin" on them, chanted "Fuck Palin" at rallies, tried to get into sealed state records--the list is endless. Joe the Plumber got investigated by state dem hack goons but had about 1/100th of the frenzied, mad dog leftwing attacks that Palin and her family experienced.

Obama is a Chicago thug/tool and his crediblity is totally shot. He has been gaming and trashing the system for years now, protected by a strange race immunity card and a subservient media.

charles smith| 7.8.09 @ 3:42AM

Let's be honest. Palin was the object of hate because she is a very sexy woman who is strongly pro-life. She gave birth to a Down's Syndrome despite 9 out of 10 such babies being aborted. There have been 60 millions abortions since 1965.That is a lot of women and men (biological fathers) who do not wish to suffer the pain of conscience every time they see her face in the media.She had to be destroyed.

C4P| 7.8.09 @ 4:31AM

Good comment, Charles--until your last sentence. Sarah Palin is a force to be reckoned with--her career has just started. Palin For President 2012!!

Pete| 7.8.09 @ 3:06PM

C4P

Charles last sentence, I think, was refering as to Sarahs destruction by the 65M people who aborted healthy babies for their own egos.
I wonder how many of those 65M abortions were paid with tax dollars by "our elected officials?"

Sarah Palin 2012

Tootsie| 7.8.09 @ 3:36PM

Sarah has just started.

Palin 4 President 2012

Jessica| 7.8.09 @ 9:56PM

Liberal Reader writes "She was going to be a heart-beat away from having the world's largest nuclear weapons arsenol under her control. Mocking her was a natural and normal reaction to her ambition, and frankly, nothing could be more American."

My only question is this, President Obama now has that arsenal under his thumb. He seems entirely discomfited by that, which is disturbing.

I'm not sure that mockery of him was what was lacking, but if by mockery you mean to imply questioning, or challenging, where was that for Mr. Hope 'n Change?

You are right, nothing could be more "American", but where is that American spirit when it comes to Barak "like a god" Obama?

Raoul Ortega| 7.9.09 @ 12:01AM

Limbaugh's mistake was repeating an unfunny joke that was written by Senator Al Franken.

Ceecee| 7.9.09 @ 5:56AM

I am hoping that Sarah Palin will be the first woman president of the United States. After the disgusting performance of Sarah's political enemies, I wish it all the more.
I want those pigs to know that the voters are sick and tired of the politics of personal destruction (Sarah's words, and a great description). They are also sick of attacks on the politicians' children, especially babies and handicapped children. I hope there will be a backlash that will have the voters put Sarah Palin in, just to show the hate mongers that their hatefullness has the opposite results from the ones they want.

KyMouse| 7.9.09 @ 3:16PM

Pete| 7.7.09 @ 6:46PM
AKAlice,

Ha! Great challenge, Pete! I gather that "AKAlice" has crawled back under its rock. "AKAlice," turn off your computer and get some honesty ... seriously.

bill| 7.9.09 @ 3:36PM

How much you want to bet AKAlice is really the ten pounds of crap in a five pound bag Celtic diva or Shannyn MSNBC pinup girl) Moore? These two losers will stop at nothing to slander Palin because she has class,looks, a happy family,etc. and they are ugly witches past their expiration date.

Tootsie| 7.9.09 @ 9:27PM

Brutal, Bill! lol

Marc| 7.17.09 @ 1:54PM

ccc writes 7.7.09 @ 10:27AM: "Imagination is unnecessary, memory is sufficient. Limbaugh used to call Chelsea clinton ugly on his national tv show."

Amazing how your memory remembers something that never happened.

Bo Darville writes 7.7.09 @ 12:29PM: "The mainstream media did not call Chelsea Clinton a "dog". It was Rush Limbaugh who is a partisan commentator."

No, it wasnt Rush.

AliceL.| 7.17.09 @ 4:21PM

I happen to think that Obama, despite his protests, was and is behind the attacks on Palin.'s children Don't kid yourself - these attacks are coordinated. As for Andrew Sullivan, he is truly a sick person for having attacked Trig and Bristol. The faux concern from a fraud such as Sally Quinn is also terrible. Peggy Noonan is another phony who disdains real families and real children.

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What's the difference between Linda Celtic Diva and a spitting cobra spewing venom all over the place?

Answer: Not much.

Ceecee| 7.25.09 @ 3:23AM

To Liberal Reader: If Sarah Palin had a huge nuclear arsenal under her control, I would not worry about it. She's a mother and I'm sure she doesn't want to have nukes going off. Unfortunately, there are nukes, and somebody is going to have control over them. I'd rather it be a mother who has a reason to want a nuclear explosion free world for her children to grow up in.

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