The results of Gov. Sarah Palin's prenatal testing were in, but the doctor's tone was ominous: "You need to come to the office so we can talk about it."Glenn Beck, who is also the parent of a child with special needs, talked about Sarah and Trig Palin on his show the other day:
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.
[...]
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 Paxon Van Palin.
"We've both been very vocal about being pro life," Palin said. "We understand that every innocent life has wonderful potential."
Great story.
(Unrelated, but the following line from the article gives me pause about a VP bid for Palin: "She stood up to the powerful oil industry, and with bipartisan support in the statehouse she won a tax increase on oil companies' profits." Hmmmm....)
3 comments:
People never seem to tell the whole story about that "oil tax increase"....they always forget the EXTREME circumstances. When an extreme fiscal conservative like Palin is forced to raise a tax, it makes sense to ask if there are extenuating circumstances, but Palin's enemies found it more advantageous to label her a "tax hiker"...which she clearly is not (cut taxes 11 times as a mayor).
Here's what actually happened:
The previous oil-tax rate had only been in place for one year and was was the result of a MASSIVE rate cut, which was literally bought and paid for by the VECO Corporation (numerous legislators and VECO executives have been indicted and/or convicted on bribery charges). The system had to be recalibrated, as the corruption-tainted rates were severely underperforming. Palin's plan put the rates closer to where they were before the bribery scandal. It's also worth noting that Alaska has no income tax, so over 90% of state gov't is paid for by oil taxes...they HAVE to perform.
The media always tries to situate this story in terms of the lower-48debate over "windfall profits taxes", when the two are totally unconnected...and the great thing about the new system is that it helps the companies by lowering the tax rate if oil prices go down. So, the state can save up for a rainy day when prices are high, but cut the industry some slack during hard times.
Sorry for the soapbox tirade...I'm just getting tired of the uniformed media coverage on this issue.
What a terrible handicap for a tiny baby to bear. That name, I mean. Geez.
HA! I know. Her oldest son (who I think might be in Iraq right now) is named Track.
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