Sen. John McCain has announced that Gov. Sarah Palin will join him on the GOP ticket for the Nov. 4 presidential election.
This maverick move means that Gov. Palin will become just the second female vice presidential nominee of a major party ever. Democrat Geraldine Ferraro was Walter Mondale’s choice as a running mate back in 1984.
This appears as a desperate attempt by the McCain campaign to win over the dissatisfied support Sen. Hillary Clinton in the primaries against Sen. Barack Obama. McCain is essentially trying to find the “Republican Hillary.” And by “Republican Hillary,” McCain means a woman. There is no “Republican Hillary.” McCain implies with this move that women will vote for women regardless of issues and stances. This risky implication can be viewed as offensive to women.
At 44 years old, Gov. Palin is younger and more inexperienced than the 47-year-old Obama, an interesting turn of events seeing as McCain loves to challenge the “inexperience” of the Democratic nominee.
The first words in the news release the McCain campaign issued after the announcement were, “Gov. Palin has the record of reform and bipartisanship that others can only speak of. Her experience in shaking up the status quo is exactly what is needed in Washington today.” Is McCain speaking of Palin or Obama in this sense?
This creates an irony in many of the critiques the McCain campaign has launched toward Obama.
The timing of the announcement was calculated by McCain to steal attention from the press frenzy over the Democratic National Convention. McCain will have to run an active and intense campaign against the Obama machine. His choosing of Gov. Palin may be just the trick to stay afloat in the ensuing election.
Palin is severely against pro-choice advocates, something that orthodox conservatives salivate over. Hopefully McCain will not politicize the fact that she gave birth last year — one that she knew beforehand would have Down syndrome, instead of opting for an abortion. I really hope the McCain campaign doesn’t stoop to this level for political advantage. Where is the humanity in that?
McCain must be very proud that her eldest child (out of five) enlisted in the army on Sept. 11, 2007. This son will likely to be deployed this September, conveniently before the election. McCain also has a son that will be involved in the war, which would spice up the election when it comes to stances on the war. With a presidential ticket full with parents of currently serving sons, it will be a stark contrast against Obama’s stance against the war in Iraq. Hopefully the high profile parents of these two soldiers will not target these soldiers directly, putting them in more danger than they are accustomed to.
Look soon for Facebook groups to start with Gov. Palin’s name in them. I imagine they will all have to do with her seemingly good looks. No doubt she’ll be the desire of every gun-toting, Jeff Foxworthy-loving conservative. Did I mention that Palin holds a lifetime membership with the National Rifle Association?
Sen. McCain surely surprised many in the nation with his selection, and come November, we will see if the supposed maverick played his cards right.
