McCain's Palin pick is the epitome of tokenism

It is hard to think of a more cynical and contemptuous political act this year than John McCain's selection of Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate. Having served as governor of Alaska for less than two years -- and as mayor of a small town before that -- her qualifications for national office are minimal.

Palin is the epitome of tokenism, exactly what conservative Republicans have always claimed to scorn, until today, as the politics of quotas and political correctness. Even Rush Limbaugh is a feminazi now (at least until Election Day).

But if Palin's résumé is limited, to put it politely, she possesses the only two qualities that McCain now seems to consider essential: She is a right-wing religious ideologue with female gender characteristics. Suddenly that is all anyone needs to qualify as a potential commander in chief of the world's most powerful military. We probably won't hear so much from now on about "experience" and "judgment," McCain's vaunted standard for the presidency until ... today. We certainly won't hear again about the "person most prepared to take my place," the phrase he has used more than once to describe his main criterion for a running mate.

Check out this piece from April, it's from a Wisconsin newspaper. They were talking about Hillary , mind you.

Gender bias in presidential coverage, politician says

Remember Obamania from early on in the presidential primary season?

Around the time of the Wisconsin primary, Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk suggested the media was guilty of gender bias in its news coverage of the Democratic presidential candidates, saying that media reports were favorable toward Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.

She said that type of coverage did a disservice to New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, the candidate she endorses for the Democratic presidential nomination and whom she believes is better qualified to serve in the White House.

A story today in the Press-Gazette touches on another issue of concern to Falk, which is the low numbers of female lawmakers in the state Legislature.

Falk and others, such as Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton - who also endorses Clinton - said the political landscape, statewide and nationally, is very much an "old boys" network that is hard to crack.

In an interview last month, Falk said the gender bias in the political arena is so insidious that it often goes unchecked by the media.

She said that when Clinton was heckled in New Hampshire by a male protester carrying a sign that read, "Iron my shirt," there was very little media coverage and even less outrage from pundits.

"The media did not react...to that overt sexism as they would have had that been an overt racial slur," said Falk.

Instead, she said, female politicians continue to receive press coverage that focuses on such trivial matters as the clothes a female candidate is wearing.

Falk says the underlying message to the public is that the media is struggling to picture a woman in a position of power.

"If you can't picture somebody in that position, we'll never have somebody like that in the position," said Falk. "And they don't seem to be having that same trouble with Senator Obama, who happens to be a man."

Obamania has fizzled, due in large part to recent comments by Obama's pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and by Obama himself on small-town voters.

But female politicians say there's a long way to go before the playing field is level for women seeking office.

What had TR doen before becoming VP?

Do you know what President held the most offices before becoming President? (He was a VP also.)

Lincoln is controversial here and elsewhere, but the guy became President with one unimpressive term in the House and a lost Senate race.

There are many examples, including Vice President Agnew.

However, for those that remember Nixon-Agnew, we got all teh rhetoric and they got all the action. Nixon gave us Affirmative Action, EPA, the so-called Family Assistance Plan, and oterh measures that expanded liberalism (and gave us lousy Supreme Court appointments like Blackmun) while Agnew ran around teh country attacking “nattering nabobs of negativism”, “pusilanimous pussyfooters”, and other targets.

As an American first and a conservative, with party preference way down on my list, I worry that McCain-Palin could be Nixon-Agnew all over again. We’ll get all the rhetoric and they’ll get ll the action.

Certainly, John McCain’s signature legislative achievements, such as the assault on free speech, his “global warming” hooey, the immigration amnesty bill he sponsored, and other measures indicate an inclination to go in that direction.

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