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Blogs Eric Reads
Leaving Politicians’ Children Alone: A History Lesson for Republicans
Every time I read about Republicans getting on their high-horse and demanding that Bristol Palin be left alone, I want to scream. I want to scream because, while they are absolutely right that politicians’ children should be off-limits to attacks, dragging someone’s child through the mud is exactly the kind of thing that Republicans do! Courtesy of the fine folks at Sadly, No!, let’s take a trip down memory lane:
- Rush Limbaugh
On his TV show, early in the Clinton administration, Limbaugh put up a picture of Socks, the White House cat, and asked, “Did you know there’s a White House dog?” Then he put up a picture of Chelsea Clinton, who was 13 years old at the time and as far as I know had never done any harm to anyone.
- Alicia Colon
Seems to me that [Chelsea]’s more of a pawn for her parent’s ambitions than a beloved child but maybe I’m wrong.
- Ed Klein
No one could have predicted that former Newsweek editor Ed Klein, of all people, would fan the flames of Clintonosis with a disgusting personal attack that purports to dissect Chelsea’s conception:
“I’m going back to my cottage to rape my wife,” Klein quotes Bill Clinton as saying during a Bermuda getaway in 1979.
In the morning, the Clintons’ room “looked like World War III. There are pillows and busted-up furniture all over the place,” an unnamed source tells Klein.
Klein source claims Bill later learned Hillary was pregnant reading about it in the ARKANSAS GAZETTE.
“The fact that his wife didn’t tell him that she was pregnant before she told a reporter doesn’t seem to phase him one bit, because he says, ‘Do you know what night that happened?”
“‘No,’ I say. ‘When?”
“‘It was Bermuda,’ he says, ‘And you were there!’”
If Drudge has this quote and context correct, it’s a mind-boggling anecdote to put into anyone’s biography — and a completely inexcusable and ridiculous claim. It’s difficult to think of a more personal, disgusting, and indefensible accusation to toss at someone than to claim he raped his wife. Adding that they conceived their only child out of an act of violence adds another dimension of shamelessness to Klein’s allegation.
- John Derbyshire
At this point I had better make a confession. It’s a bad one, I know it. It is low, contemptible and — yes! — mean-spirited. It may very well place me beyond the pale of civilized society. I don’t care. Truth will out, I will be heard. Brace yourself: I hate Chelsea Clinton.
- David Shuster
Filling in for Tucker Carlson yesterday, Shuster gave his opinion on Chelsea’s role in the presidential campaign, asking a guest, “Doesn’t it seem as if Chelsea is sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way?”
- And, of course, John McCain
Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly? Because her father is Janet Reno.
Of course, Republicans’ past treatment of Chelsea Clinton in no way justifies the smearing of anyone else’s child, but before the right-wing gets outraged over Bristol Palin, they ought to show Chelsea a healthy dose of contrition.
Palin’s Daughter Pregnant
Time for some Republican Family Values™, Palin style:
Bristol Palin, one of Alaska Gov. Palin’s five children with her husband, Todd, is about five months pregnant and is going to keep the child and marry the father, the Palins said in a statement released by the campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Bristol Palin made the decision on her own to keep the baby, McCain aides said. ‘We have been blessed with five wonderful children who we love with all our heart and mean everything to us,’ the Palins’ statement said. ‘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. As Bristol faces the responsibilities of adulthood, she knows she has our unconditional love and support,’ the Palins said.”
So McCain aides are reporting that Palin’s daughter is going to keep the baby, not that she ever really had much of a choice in the matter. And neither will any women, if the McCain/Palin ticket is elected.
I’m sure Team McCain is hoping that this announcement will be overshadowed by the fact that Hurricane Gustav is crashing into New Orleans right now. If this does make it into the news, though, we can look forward to six weeks of conservative pundits whining about how the mean, nasty liberals should leave the Palins alone (not that the right would have done the same if, for example, Chelsea Clinton had been pregnant in 1996) and how if Barack Obama were President he would personally kill the baby.
I’d like to be completely serious about this subject because I know that Bristol Palin has a long, difficult road ahead of her, but I can’t help but notice the irony that this whole incident could have been prevented if people like John McCain weren’t so opposed to contraception.
Update: It’s fortunate for Bristol Palin that the sex was consensual for many reasons, including because her mother opposes abortion even for rape victims:
In November 2006, then gubernatorial candidate Sarah Palin declared that she would not support an abortion for her own daughter even if she had been raped.
Granting exceptions only if the mother’s life was in danger, Palin said that when it came to her daughter, “I would choose life.”
At the time, her daughter was 14 years old. Moreover, Alaska’s rape rate was an abysmal 2.2 times above the national average and 25 percent of all rapes resulted in unwanted pregnancies.
Update 2: Well, this just keeps getting stranger:
Senior McCain campaign officials said McCain knew of the daughter’s pregnancy when he selected Palin last week as his vice presidential running mate, deciding that it did not disqualify the 44-year-old governor in any way. [h/t]
Seems like an odd decision for a candidate who is already having trouble wooing evangelical voters (who are probably not too thrilled that the Republican candidate for Vice President is permitting pre-martial sex).
Update 3: If Palin’s spokesperson really didn’t know Bristol was pregnant two days ago, are we actually supposed to believe that McCain even vetted Palin at all?
Update 4: Ann Friedman points out the initial press release’s emphasis on Bristol’s choice, something which both McCain and Palin believe women are not entitled to:
In reality, Bristol’s actual “choice” was probably not whether to terminate the pregnancy or carry it to term, but whether raise the child herself or put it up for adoption. But the reason that the McCain campaign chose to emphasize Bristol’s agency in this decision was to reassure the public that this pregnancy is not coercive. They know the public wants to feel secure in the knowledge that it was Bristol’s choice to keep the pregnancy. And coming from the McCain campaign, which opposes a woman’s right to choose, that statement is disgusting. As Kate Sheppard wrote in In These Times recently, during the 2000 primary McCain said that if his daughter got pregnant it would be a “family decision”:
“The final decision would be made by Meghan with our advice and counsel,” McCain said, referring to himself and his wife, Cindy. When reporters suggested that this view made him, in fact, pro-choice, McCain became irritated. “I don’t think it is the pro-choice position to say that my daughter and my wife and I will discuss something that is a family matter that we have to decide.”
In other words: My family and my daughter deserve a choice, but no other woman can be trusted with this decision.
Update 5: Politco’s Ben Smith and Jonathan Martin agree that it sure looks like Team McCain is taking advantage of Hurricane Gustav to leak Bristol’s baby and Todd’s DUI on a day when they hope people won’t be paying attention.
Update 6: While I do think that Bristol Palin’s pregnancy is worth discussing as it reflects on her mother’s and John McCain’s views on choice, contraception and sex-education, this is just plain stupid:
Since the McCain campaign has released a statement declaring that 17-year-old Bristol Palin now faces “the responsibilities of adulthood,” might I be so bold as to suggest that they arrange a press conference where Bristol can attempt to address the horrible embarrassment she’s caused her parents?
Excuse my paternal (and political) indignation but I am in no mood for pleas that the media respect anyone’s privacy at this point. I don’t think it an exaggeration to say that this girl (and her boyfriend) have caused a crisis of global significance, and if her parents are serious about “the responsibilities of adulthood,” Bristol ought to face the consequences, including about 45 minutes in front of the klieg lights while reporters shout stupid questions.
It’s not Bristol’s fault her mother was picked as the GOP running mate, but she certainly should have understood how her personal behavior would reflect on her family.
Incidentally, before anyone starts getting riled up about the vileness of left-wing bloggers, that lovely tidbit was from the conservative American Spectator magazine.