Sarah Palin is the quintessential political leader envisioned by the Founding Fathers while they were debating the structure of the Constitution. Her resume and biography both seem too good to be true, and they probably are. For now, however, as conservatives, we can bask in the “hope” for “change we can believe in“.
Her selection by McCain as his running mate has energized the conservative wing of the Republican Party as perhaps no other choice could have. At the same time it has driven the socialist/democrats and their media propaganda arm into a state of near hysteria.
The left’s strategy for handling opposition, based on the Alinsky model, is to utterly destroy them. This has been Obama’s campaign tactic of choice since his first run for a state Senate seat, and accounts for his eventual election to the U.S. Senate.
In his campaign for state Senator he eliminated his competition by successfully having them disqualified. In his run for the United States Senate he had his surrogates arrange for the unsealing of the divorce records of his opponent, and used those records to force his competition from the race. In all three of his successful campaigns for political office, he has run virtually unopposed after eliminating his competition. The McCain-Palin ticket presents a real problem for him in using his normal tactics.
John McCain is all but untouchable as far as personal integrity and political ethics are concerned. Any questions that could be raised have already been dealt with in previous elections. Democrats would be hard pressed to come up with anything new that could cause McCain any serious problems.
Sarah Palin presents an even greater problem for the Democratic attack machine. She is an All American woman, from an All American family, with All American problems which they handle in an All American way. Any attack on the Palins is an attack on Americana and will likely elicit an All American backlash from the voters in November.
In spite of the risk, the Democratic Party cannot resist the temptation to use the tactics that have worked so well for them in the past. In the week since McCain’s announcement the Democrat media have attacked Governor Palin on any pretext they can dream up. Most of the attacks are of the “ho-hum” or “so what?” variety. To make it even more risky for the Democrats, whenever they attempt to smear Palin, it’s usually on experiences common to the lives of the average American voter. Instead of diminishing her in the eyes of the voters, they only succeed in demonstrating just how little they actually know about mainstream America.
The criticism of Palin for choosing to give birth to a special needs child rather than opting for an abortion only shows their misunderstanding of most “pro choice” women. Women who claim to be pro choice, for the most part, are not pro abortion. While they selfishly cling to the idea that the decision to carry a baby to full term should be the woman’s, few share the opinion that giving birth to a special needs child is something that should be condemned.
The left also tries to attack Sarah on her belief that abstinence is the best form of birth control overlooking the obvious fact that it works every time it is tried, as Rush Limbaugh often points out. The fact that it did not work in the case of Palin’s daughter is only because it wasn’t tried. At least, that’s what I concluded from my limited understanding of biology.
You would be hard put to find any family in America who has not known a daughter, niece, cousin or some other family member who has not gone through the same experience. The important thing is that the daughter assumed the responsibility of her gender and faced the consequences of her action in a responsible and mature manner. Rather than bringing condemnation in the way the Palin family chose to handle the matter, it really demonstrates what is meant by the term “family values”.
An accusation that may get some traction in the coming weeks is the allegation that Sarah was once a member of an Alaskan separatist movement, the Alaskan Independence Party. If true, this accusation would also be of the “So what?” variety. The fact is, it is more of an example of how a “half-truth” often morphs into an outright lie.
Evidently this rumor got started when Lynette Clark, Chairman of the Alaskan Independence Party mentioned to someone that she thought Sarah Palin had once been a member of their Party. After some research, Ms. Clark issued a press release on September 3 to set the record straight. The press release was an apology that further illustrates the character of Alaskan citizens. Ms. Clark wrote:
“I, foolishly, repeated and accepted as fact what an officer of this membership shared with myself, and husband Dexter Clark, over a year ago. My statement was incorrect regarding the Governor’s membership. What was correct was that Todd Palin was a member, that Sarah as a candidate for Governor appeared at the AIP Convention in 2006, and sent a welcoming DVD to the membership at the 2008 AIP statewide convention. Those truths do not take away my fault in mis-speaking regarding her membership. For that I do take full responsibility. I hold Governor Palin in high regard, I believe she is far and away the best individual Alaska could have as Governor, and as a woman, mother and wife is one of the best examples walking!”
For those who want to make an issue that Sarah’s husband Todd was a member for a short time, I would again ask, “So what?” Far from being un-American, the Alaskan Independence Party represents the most fundamental American principle, the right to self-government. Thomas Jefferson named the right of the people to change their form of government as one of the natural rights granted by their creator.
“That to secure these rights, (life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness) Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.” —Declaration of Independence
The AIP has never advocated armed insurrection, and has never suggested rebellion or any other unlawful acts. From what I am able to find out, it seems they have always sought to have their grievances resolved through democratic means. Just what is it the AIP is seeking?
“The Alaskan Independence Party’s goal is the vote we were entitled to in 1958, one choice from among the following four alternatives:
- Remain a Territory.
- Become a separate and Independent Nation.
- Accept Commonwealth status.
- Become a State.”
In AIP’s desire to put “Alaska First” they are expressing the same attitudes Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry expressed toward their beloved state of Virginia. Only someone totally unfamiliar with our founding documents and early American history could call the AIP “un-American”. They are only asking that the government honor the promises of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Todd Palin’s brief flirtation with AIP and Sarah’s evident respect for its members only reinforces the conservative credentials of the Palin family.
