In Sarah Palin's interview with Fox News' Greta Van Susteren Monday evening, she referred to bloggers as "kids in pajamas sitting in the basement of their parents' homes" spewing out mean and inaccurate things about her. Well, I am no kid, I am definitely not wearing pajames and I am living in my own house, thank you! And I am seriously depressed about the prospect of this person having a political future.
In the course of the interview with Greta Van Susteren, a softball thrown with great affection by Fox, Palin manages to rebut all the attacks on her without ever providing much, if any, facts to support her position. She never asked for the clothes or the stylists. They just appeared. Nor the clothes for her "eight" member family (eight? I thought she had 5 kids...). She never thought Africa was a country. She was just concerned about Darfur and they discussed "Africa there...the country and the continent". She always knew what countries were in NAFTA. She never thought the crowds were there because of her, it was just because of what she stood or -- just a mom trying to change things.
Pardon me, but I am nearly nauseous by now. There is no acknowledgment by Ms. Palin that she might not have been ready for this job. That there were things she did not know and should have known. That the media intensity revealed her weaknesses -- only that it was mean and unfair.
She deftly avoided the question about 2012, but in a very frightening way to those of us who do not believe God tells what doors to open, she explained that God would reveal to her if she should run. God would tell her if there was a door open with a tiny crack, and she would, "by god", just push through it.
She is also a feminist in the sense of "Feminists for life", which for those of us who believe in the power of women, is not exactly our definition. I actually think she believes women should earn as much as men. But she does not believe government should help women and their families with children, especially special needs children, with any particular programs. Individuals and their communities should do that. Well -- Governor Palin? They do not. And when they do not, why are you in favor of punishing those families when they find they can't make it. They can't support the 24 hour needs of those children without some support. Are they supposed to go out on the street corner and put out a sign that says, "Please feed my special needs child?"
Oh my. We are in for a set of charming interviews over the next few days. The only losers will be the Republican party of "meanies" who have attacked Palin. No one is going to challenge her. No one is going to ask her to be accountable for the leaks from the campaign about her diva personality, her tirades against her staff, her acceptance of all those clothes and makeup and hairdressing, her lack of knowledge of basic facts about American government or foreign affairs. She can just deny it all, smile, wink and we are all ok with it.
Are we?