Last night I came home from teaching at 10 PM, sick with grief that I missed the enthronement of Obama. Hail was falling. Lightning streaked across the sky. Tree branches littered the streets. I-17 was so flooded that I wondered if I would stall out in the water. I would have preferred the Left-wing banalities of Obama to a night waiting for AAA to arrive. But I got home safely, without stalling, without needing AAA.
Last night, I almost posted my prediction of the Minnesota governor being selected as McCain's running mate. For months the pro-life conservatives have posted their dreams of Governor Palin being on the ticket. No one thought McCain would do something so wise, so thoughtful, so effective. I did not think so either. McCain in Arizona has a reputation for dissing conservatives.
For those who do not know, the Governor of Alaska is:
- Pro-life, with a bevy of her own children.
- Pro-Bill of Rights, knowing that gun ownership is protected by our most basic document of freedom.
- Pro-energy, working hard to get Alaskan resources to the lower 48.
Senator Biden, as an attack dog, will be an embarrassment to the Democrat ticket. Most of his weapons are taken away.
The story for today will be Palin, not Obama.
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Palin balances newborn's needs, official state duties
By Steve Quinn
Palin balances newborn's needs, official state duties
By Steve Quinn | The Associated Press
The results of Gov. Sarah Palin's prenatal testing were in, and the doctor's tone was ominous: "You need to come to the office so we can talk about it."
Palin, known for a resolve that quickly launched her from suburban hockey mom to a player on the national political stage, said, "No, go ahead and tell me over the phone."
The physician replied, "Down syndrome," stunning the Republican governor, who had just completed what many political analysts called a startling first year in office.
She had arrived at the Capitol on an ethics reform platform after defeating the incumbent Republican in the primary and a former two-term Democratic governor in the general election. Her growing reputation as a maverick for bucking her party's establishment and Alaska's powerful oil industry quickly gained her a national reputation.
Now she is trying to balance caring for her special-needs child and running a state.
The doctor's announcement in December, when Palin was four months pregnant, presented her with a possible life- and career-changing development.
"I've never had problems with my other pregnancies, so I was shocked," said Palin, a mother of four other children.
"It took a while to open up the book that the doctor gave me about children with Down syndrome, and a while to log on to the Web site and start reading facts about the situation."
The 44-year-old governor waited a few days before telling her husband, Todd, who was out of town, so she could understand what was ahead for them.
Once her husband got the news, he told her: "We shouldn't be asking, 'Why us?' We should be saying, 'Well, why not us?"'
There was never any doubt the Palins would have the child, and on April 18 she gave birth to Trig Paxson Van Palin.
"We've both been very vocal about being pro-life," Palin said. "We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential."
Down syndrome is caused by the presence of an extra chromosome in the fetus' cells. It's a genetic abnormality that impedes physical, intellectual and language development.
The mother's age is a large factor in the chances of having a Down child. Once a woman turns 40, the chances of having a Down child is 1 out of 100, according to the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
During her first year in office, Palin distanced herself from the old guard, powerful Republicans in the state GOP, even calling on tight-lipped veteran U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens to explain to Alaskans why federal authorities were investigating him.
She asked Alaska's congressional delegation to be more selective in seeking earmarks after what came to be known as the "Bridge to Nowhere" turned into a national symbol of piggish pork-barrel spending.
She stood up to the powerful oil industry, and with bipartisan support in the statehouse she won a tax increase on oil companies' profits.
She also found time to pose for the fashion magazine Vogue while she was pregnant, and she has been mentioned as a potential running mate for presidential candidate John McCain.
Three days after giving birth, Palin returned to work in her Anchorage office, accompanied by Trig and her husband.
This was not a mother's typical visit to the office to show off the new baby; instead, she was serving notice that a child of special needs would not hinder her professional commitments.
"It's a sign of the times to be able to do this," she said. "I can think of so many male candidates who watched families grow while they were in office.
"There is no reason to believe a woman can't do it with a growing family. My baby will not be at all or in any sense neglected."
Neither, Palin said, will the state, as she prepares to lead deliberations for a multibillion-dollar natural gas pipeline. She calls it the economic future of the state, a means of getting North Slope natural gas to consumers throughout North America.
"I will not shirk my duties," she said.
Other politicians have pressed forward with their careers despite jarring personal news.
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards continued with his campaign despite the return of his wife Elizabeth's breast cancer, though he eventually dropped out.
Another elected official who has a child with Down syndrome said that Palin will probably have detractors, but that it shouldn't change ambitions for the mother or child.
U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Washington state Republican, has just celebrated the first birthday of her son Cole, her first child, who was born with Down syndrome. She is busy campaigning for a third term, and Cole often travels with her between Washington, D.C., and the Pacific Northwest.
"Cole opened my eyes to the pain and trouble a lot of families endure," Rodgers said. "He's allowed me to see people and circumstance more deeply, and the generosity of people.
"It's in human nature to focus on the negative, on what the person can't do. In our mind, we are focused on what he can do, what he will be able to do and do very well."
It's not unlike how Palin sees her child.
"I'm looking at him right now, and I see perfection," Palin said. "Yeah, he has an extra chromosome. I keep thinking, in our world, what is normal and what is perfect?"
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James Pethokoukis sends the 10 Things You Didn’t Know About Sarah Palin:
Sarah Louise Palin (nee Heath) was born Feb., 1964, in Sandpoint, Idaho. Her family moved to Alaska when Sarah was an infant. Her father, Chuck, is a retired schoolteacher.
2. She attended Wasilla High School where she played point guard on the state champion basketball team. Her nickname was “Sarah Barracuda.”
3. Palin graduated in 1987 from the University of Idaho with a degree in journalism. She worked briefly as a sports reporter in Anchorage.
4. She refers to her husband, Todd, as the “First Dude.” He’s worked as a commercial fisherman and as a production operator on the North Slope for BP. He enjoys snowmobiling and has won the Tesoro Iron Dog, billed as the world’s longest snowmobile race, four times.
5. Palin and her husband have five children, Bristol, Piper, Track, Willow, and Trig. Trig, born in 2008, has been diagnosed with Down syndrome. Her son Track joined the army in 2007.
6. Her favorite meal is moose stew.
7. She comes from a family of outdoor enthusiasts. Her parents, Chuck and Sally Heath, enjoy hunting and fishing, and have both completed marathons.
8. Palin was named Miss Wasilla in 1984 and was a runner-up for Miss Alaska. In 1996 she was elected mayor of Wasilla.
9. She’s a lifetime NRA member and enjoys hunting, fishing, and snowmobiling.
10. Elected in 2006, she’s Alaska’s first female governor and the youngest governor elected in the state.
