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McCain's sexism & Todd Palin
Was anyone else puzzled as to why John McCain brought him up after Bob asked "Why would the country be better off if your running mate became president rather than his running mate?"
JohnMcCain:
MCCAIN: Well, Americans have gotten to know Sarah Palin. They know that she's a role model to women and other -- and reformers all over America. She's a reformer. She is -- she took on a governor who was a member of her own party when she ran for governor. When she was the head of their energy and natural resources board, she saw corruption, she resigned and said, "This can't go on."
She's given money back to the taxpayers. She's cut the size of government. She negotiated with the oil companies and faced them down, a $40 billion pipeline of natural gas that's going to relieve the energy needs of the United -- of what they call the lower 48.
She's a reformer through and through. And it's time we had that bresh of freth air (sic) -- breath of fresh air coming into our nation's capital and sweep out the old-boy network and the cronyism that's been so much a part of it that I've fought against for all these years.
She'll be my partner. She understands reform. And, by the way, she also understands special-needs families. She understands that autism is on the rise, that we've got to find out what's causing it, and we've got to reach out to these families, and help them, and give them the help they need as they raise these very special needs children.
She understands that better than almost any American that I know. I'm proud of her.
And she has ignited our party and people all over America that have never been involved in the political process. And I can't tell how proud I am of her and her family.
Her husband's a pretty tough guy, by the way, too.
What on earth does Todd Palin's "toughness" have to do with Sarah Palin's qualification? He isn't running. She is. This seemed out of place and pretty sexist, as if he needed to reassure the public -- "Don't worry, she'll have a man standing right next to her, in case she can't do the job."
Yuck.
Re: McCain's sexism & Todd Palin
Since some accounts portray him as "co-governor," I guess it's relevant. I don't think it's relevant in a good way for the MPC, though.
I was pissed when he said he was proud of her and her family. It's like he needed to emphasize that she's a mom and a wife with a manly husband, not some crazy career woman with a whipped, sissy-boy husband because that would be scary!
Either her family is fair game or not. If he's proud of her family, then we get to scrutinize the Bristol-Levi situation and her oldest son's not going to college. But if her family is "off limits" to criticism, then he'd better stop throwing it in our faces as a reason to vote for her.
Me too.
Plus he's "proud of her"?? What is he, her dad??
Yeah I mentioned this Todd Palin thing last night. So weird. You'd think they would want to de-emphasize him given the troopergate mess.
There is something very fatherlike about the way McCain talks about Palin, it's a trend I've noticed throughout the campaign. Every time he talks about her, he comes off as very paternalistic, and when Palin talks about him, it sounds like hero worship.
The whole "I'm proud of her" bit just emphasizes how much they don't see each other as equals.
And, by the way, she also understands special-needs families. She understands that autism is on the rise, that we've got to find out what's causing it, and we've got to reach out to these families, and help them, and give them the help they need as they raise these very special needs children.
Blantant pandering to a select group of voters. It frustrates me that the campaign is trying to take advantage of such a situation.
OT: Because you know Palin might get emotional and need her strong husband to help her make decisions if she were to be President. Bleh!
my read shelf:
Here's the part that caused me to lose it. I was so close to making it through all the debates without an incoherent outburst!
MCCAIN: Just again, the example of the eloquence of Senator Obama. He's health for the mother. You know, that's been stretched by the pro-abortion movement in America to mean almost anything.
That's the extreme pro-abortion position, quote, "health."
It's not *** extreme, ***, to care about what happens to women's health should we outlaw abortion.
I'm crazy extreme liberal on the issue of abortion, but when he said this, I knew that he was referring to pro-lifers' view that doctors stretch the definition of "health" to make abortion more readily available, as opposed to mocking women's health. I disagree with him completely on this issue, but I knew he was speaking to the base so it just didn't bother me.
Well, yeah, he was speaking to the base, a base that does have respect for women's "health." So, he was both mocking and trying to reach the base with that mocking. They're not mutually exclusive.
There was a far better way to answer his question and still pander to the far right without alienating women. Just explain that health is indefinite and you'd like to see it defined. Done. No scare quotes around health.