The Franklin County Democrat
The truth for a change.Office: 6908 West Argent, Pasco, Washington
US Mail: PO Box 4883, Pasco, Washington 99301 USA
Email: news@franklincounty-dems.org
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The Franklin County DemocratThe truth for a change. |
Published by the Franklin County Democratic Central Committee Office: 6908 West Argent, Pasco, Washington US Mail: PO Box 4883, Pasco, Washington 99301 USA Email: news@franklincounty-dems.org |
| www.franklincounty-dems.org | Tuesday September 07, 2010 | Weather at 14:04 PDT:  Mostly Cloudy, and 67 ° F. |
NEWS
EDITORIAL
OPINION
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Kissing a rational leader goodbyeBy Linda Clifton, Thursday September 11, 2008Senator McCain's nomination of Sarah Palin calls his ability to govern into serious question. The choice only highlights his conversion into a Karl Rove-style campaigner who cares only about dividing and conquering. As one national activist said, "In McCain’s first critical presidential decision, his judgment appears to be lacking with the selection of his Vice Presidential running mate. In Governor Sarah Palin, McCain selected a running mate with zero foreign policy experience and a brewing scandal which is being investigated by the Alaska state legislature." He went on to say: "When asked what qualification he was looking for in selecting a Vice President, McCain, who turned 72 last week, said on Fox News , 'The fundamental principle behind any selection of a running mate would be whether that person is fully prepared to take over.' So why select Palin?"
Let’s look at Wasilla, the town in Alaska where she was mayor:
* Median income: higher than Washington State’s average
* Largest employer: Wal-Mart
* Second-largest employer: local school district
* Population: roughly equal to the student body of Columbia Basin College in the Tri-Cities
* Median age: 29.7
* Percentage of population under age 18: 34%
* Sales tax: astoundingly regressive, with a maximum of $12.50 no matter how large the purchase
Let’s look at the size of the state Palin has governed for two years:
* All of Alaska has only a few more people than the City of Seattle proper, and only one-third of the population of Greater Seattle at the last census
* Budget deficits and shortages dealt with: None
* Highways: 4 total for the state
* Paved roads in Anchorage, the largest city: 92 miles total
As mayor, Palin dealt with very little diversity, either of economics or of age. She's popular because she could hand out government largesse, including the dollars for the “Bridge to Nowhere” that she backed until it became unpopular and which she redirected to other projects.
We must ask the questions John McCain should have asked. For example, Maureen Dowd asks a few good ones:
* What kind of budget-cutter makes a show of getting rid of the state plane, then turns around and bills taxpayers for the travel of her husband and kids between Juneau and Wasilla and sticks the state with a per-diem tab to stay in her own home?
* Why was Sarah for the Bridge to Nowhere before she was against the Bridge to Nowhere, and why was she for earmarks before she was against them?
* What kind of fiscal conservative raises taxes and increases budgets in both her jobs as mayor and as governor?
We must ask why Palin slashed funding for teenage moms. According to People for the American Way: "Sarah Palin made things a little harder (for pregnant teens) a few months ago when she used a line-item veto to cut funding for a transitional home for teen moms in Alaska." The Washington Post says that home’s “purpose is to provide ‘young mothers a place to live with their babies for up to eighteen months while they gain the necessary skills and resources to change their lives’ and help teen moms ‘become productive, successful, independent adults who create and provide a stable environment for themselves and their families.’"
We must ask why Palin, totally out of step with public opinion, opposes reproductive freedom --even in the cases of rape and incest.
We must ask if Palin will protect our Constitutional rights. She doesn’t think much of the First Amendment. According to People for the American Way, "Time reports that as mayor of Wasilla, Palin asked the town librarian how to go about banning books from the local library. News reports from the time show that the librarian...had her job threatened for not giving her 'full support' to the mayor. ...So far the McCain campaign has been quiet about Palin's attempts to legislate what books people should be allowed to read."
We must ask why McCain has chosen--as his immediate partner and potential replacement--someone who has no experience with the economic situation the government will face in 2009, nor with a large, complex, diverse jurisdiction, much less with the complexities beyond US borders.
Palin may be a fighter, and may be able to take on the Alaska good ol' boys--but what she does with power after winning is not reassuring. In fact, the evidence points to her using power just like those same good ol’ boys. She rewards and punishes based on personal relationships, as in Troopergate. So we must ask, what will be the basis for her policy decisions?
We have no evidence at all that she will make a good "decider" –in fact, quite the contrary. Senator McCain, having chosen her, has only damaged what remained of his own credentials to talk straight and decide well.
Sources: Wasilla home page //www.cityofwasilla.com/ Maureen Dowd //www.nytimes.com/2008/09/10/opinion/10dowd.html?th&emc=th) People for the American Way //site.pfaw.org/site/PageServer?pagename=media_2008_09_people_for_response_to_revelations Washington Post //voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/09/02/palin_slashed_funding_to_help.html Send us your comments to Reader's Letters |
Featured LinksPresident Obama's 2010 State of the Union Address |
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Excerpts from President Obama's speech August 9, 2010