Attacks on Sarah Palin Over Abortion and Pregnancy Unwarranted and But Not Surprising

Life News ^ | 9/2/08 | Dave Andrusko

[wagglebee]

LifeNews.com Note: Dave Andrusko is the editor of National Right to Life News, a publication of the National Right to Life Committe.

I confess that as the father of three daughters and the uncle of a child with profound disabilities, I was going to respond with more anger and indignation than perhaps most people would to the cheap shot, all-out assault on the family of pro-life Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

But I don't think you have to have any more qualifications than to be a human being to be enraged at the guttersnipe attacks on pro-life Sen. John McCain's choice as his vice president, Gov. Palin's 17-year-old daughter, Bristol, and even Sarah Palin's four-month-old son, Trig!

On the off-off chance that you may have missed it, Gov. Palin's daughter Bristol is five months pregnant. According to a statement issued by the Palin family, Bristol intends to marry the baby's father.

The statement they issued captured both the challenges any young couple will face in such a situation and the promise of help from Palin and her husband, Todd.

"Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned," they wrote. "We're proud of Bristol's decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents."

Is there any adult in the United States who is more than two degrees of separation removed from an unmarried pregnant teenage girl? It is a fact of life. What separates us is the quality of our response to a situation that puts any parent to the test.

The Palins responded exactly as you would have expected, given their values. We remember that Gov. Palin had discovered that Trig, her last baby, would have Down syndrome. In our darkened world, such a prenatal diagnosis is a death sentence for 90% of these children.

But the Palin family rallied together and the beauty of Mrs. Palin's life-affirming response is a beacon of light.

"Trig is beautiful and already adored by us," they said. "We knew through early testing he would face special challenges, and we feel privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives. We have faith that every baby is created for good purpose and has potential to make this world a better place. We are truly blessed."

Of course she and her husband would be there for Bristol. Did you even need to ask?

The beauty of their loyalty and steadfastness stands in sharp contrast to the ugliness and contempt of much of the mainstream press and all of the wacko, take-no-prisoners ultra-left blogosphere.

Their objective is simple: turn loveliness on its head.

It would take me several thousands words to begin to convey all the ways they attempted to undermine the Palins as parents and, in the case of Gov. Palin, as a potential vice president. Suffice it to say it was not journalism's finest hour.

Intertwined with the effort to use Bristol's pregnancy as a weapon against her mother was the "rumor" that Gov. Palin's fifth child, Trig, had really been Bristol's baby. In the alternative universe where these lowlifes live, the charge was dredged up that Gov. Palin "covered up" Bristol's pregnancy by pretending that Trig was her child, not her grandchild.

There was, of course, no evidence for this false and scurrilous attack, The accusation was bizarre beyond words, but that made no difference.

As I wrote last week, the selection of Gov. Palin shakes up this election in a fundamental way. This poses a serious threat to a line established well over a year ago: pro-abortion Barack Obama must be President and nothing--and no one and no mere scruple--will be allowed to stop his inevitable ascension.

So while all knew that the choice of Palin would unleash the attack dogs, even I thought it would take a little while. Wrong.

The Palins bear the brunt of this viciousness, so it is almost embarrassing to bring up the fact that pro-lifers and/or people of faith also came under siege. I mention it because we need to know it's out there, to remind ourselves that the pro-abortionists who dominate most of the media haven't a clue who we are, and to keep uppermost in our mind there is no limit to the depths to which the "mainstream media" will sink to elect Obama.

For reasons only the Washington Post understands, uber-Inside Washington celebrity Sally Quinn blogs for the paper's "On Faith." Under the headline, "Palin's Pregnancy Problem," she tells her readers, "[W]ith news that Palin's 17-year-old unmarried daughter is pregnant, McCain's pick may not even find support among 'family values' voters."

Drawing on her deep, first-hand knowledge of "the Republican conservative family-value crowd," she tells us this may be a "hard one" for them "to swallow." Quinn adds, with utter insincerity, "Of course, this can happen in any family," only to remind us in her patented smarmy tone, "But it must certainly raise the question among the evangelical base about whether Sarah Palin has been enough of a hands-on mother."

To be fair, it is asking the impossible to expect someone whose whole world view is threatened by the emergence of an energetic, intelligent, accomplished, family-oriented, pro-life woman to be even marginally fair, let alone insightful. To people like Quinn, most of the cable network correspondents, and plenty of newspaper reporters, the only possible picture they can have of people like you and me is vengeful hypocrites: we preach respect for life but would turn away our own daughter or nieces or next door neighbors in a heartbeat if they told us they were pregnant.

But ask yourself this: what would be harder to swallow, for you and me and most of Middle America? The Palins' true grit, or the contempt that the Sally Quinns of this world have for everyone who doesn't share their sheltered life and their tunnel vision?

I don't expect the loony Left to let up, let alone apologize to Palin family. But I would hope [admittedly against hope] that the Media Establishment would occasionally listen to the better angels of their nature and give fairness a chance.

[EBH]

Ping!

Every thing I have heard from local democrats isn’t good. They are not pleased with how this is being handled, pushed, and smeared.

[EBH]

Ping!

Every thing I have heard from local democrats isn’t good. They are not pleased with how this is being handled, pushed, and smeared.

[Churchillspirit]

Soon anyone interested in standing for elected office will be faced with the notice "Only Saints Need Apply"

[jwalsh07]

Obama Posts at Daily Kos, home of sleaze, slime and left wing nuts. So when he says he has nothing to do with the nuts at Daily Kos, that's not quite true, he is a KOSist.

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Thanks for the feedback

by Barack Obama

Thu Oct 20, 2005 at 08:53:50 PM PDT

Let me start by saying how much I appreciated all the energetic responses to my previous post.  Time didn't permit me to respond immediately, but I personally read most of them - positive and negative - and found them thoughtful and challenging.

Rather than belabor some of the points I made in the original post, let me just offer a few quick reactions to some of the responses to my message.

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Tone, Truth, and the Democratic Party

by Barack Obama

Fri Sep 30, 2005 at 07:38:41 AM PDT

Update [2005-9-30 10:38:41 by Armando]: From the diaries by Armando. Since it is not our normal practice to promote diaries from our representatives, I think I should explain why I chose to promote Senator Obama's diary. Simply put, Sen. Obama's diary addresses in substance an issue that has been a major focus of discussion in our community. Given the source, the topic and the specific thoughts, and the discussion sure to ensue, it is my judgment that promotion was the right thing to do.

I read with interest your recent discussion regarding my comments on the floor(1, 2, 3) during the debate on John Roberts' nomination.  I don't get a chance to follow blog traffic as regularly as I would like, and rarely get the time to participate in the discussions.  I thought this might be a good opportunity to offer some thoughts about not only judicial confirmations, but how to bring about meaningful change in this country.

Maybe some of you believe I could have made my general point more artfully, but it's precisely because many of these groups are friends and supporters that I felt it necessary to speak my mind.

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[MIT-Elephant]

“Way too many people identify with Palin than the msm thinks.

Their attacks on her hit too close to home to too many people.

Attacking her = attacking them.

It’ll backfire.”

You are absolutely right. Too many people know a sister, brother or friend (or parent) who has been in that situation. Their Edwards-on-Cheney attack will flop. All Palin has to do in a debate is say “it’s earlier than expected but we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to welcome our first grandchild!”

Liberals have this perverted concept of conservative morality as some kind of puritanical scarlet-letter condemnation. (If they think that they probably didn’t even read the book, in which Hester’s love for her child is redeeming and the cowardly sperm donor is consumed by his guilt for not revealing the truth.)

Because they think this, they don’t understand that most friends-and-neighbors types probably want to be helpful and sympathetic (if not empathetic) and help make another’s life better. Most people don’t like condemning the people around them, even if they take the opportunity to share a lesson with their children.

Libs think conservatives cast out sinners at the first revelation of trouble. They’ve got it totally backwards - I see they’ve cast out any pro-life influences from their party.

[MIT-Elephant]

As a Catlick myself, I leave the question of taking communion up to an individual and possibly the clergy involved. But that being said, I’m disgusted someone would take that generosity of faith and comment on the taste of the host - the taste is not the point!

[MIT-Elephant]

You forget - only Messiahs.

[Luke21]

We all have to stand against this wickedness some time, it might as well be now.

This shows the power, the shrillness, and the hysteria of the MSM to try and shape public opinion. One woman and her family are willing to stand against this. God bless her.

Grab your muskets and get in line.

[Salvation]

Prayers for Sarah and her family.

[PhilDragoo]

[wagglebee]

Nice one Phil!

[metmom]

A fine example of *liberal logic* (which is really an oxymoron.)

You’re right that they really don’t understand the way conservatives think.

[supercat]

Is there any adult in the United States who is more than two degrees of separation removed from an unmarried pregnant teenage girl?

What fraction of adults are two or more degrees or separation removed from someone who has had an abortion?

I would suggest (and have many times) that a large part of the driving force beyond the "pro-choice" movement is the perception that the only redemption for people who have had abortions is for abortion to somehow be "okay". The key to turning the tide is to awaken people to the fact that the only path to redemption is the recognition that it isn't okay, but that people who acknowledge mistakes can atone for them and be made whole (true on a secular mental level as well as a spiritual one).

[supercat]

You’re right that they really don’t understand the way conservatives think.

Unfortunately, few conservatives understand how liberals think. Not that conservatives should seek to emulate liberals' thought processes, but understanding how liberals think would allow conservatives to avoid approaches that will serve to reinforce people's opposition to them.

[8mmMauser]

Pinged from Terri Dailies

8mm