36 Comments

• 1. Sarah Connor  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:01 am

  Three years ago a judge in Alaska accused Palin of child abuse. It is all over Newsweek.

  I have seen this before in my neighborhood. A young girl wants to escape her oppressive family so badly that she gets knocked up a guy in the hopes of using the baby as leverage to get him to marry her.

  The emotional abuse describe by the judge is just that sort of atmosphere that would cause a young girl to get pregnant to escape her immediate family.

• 2. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:03 am

  You could sort of tell by the hesitation in Obama’s voice that, subconsciously at least, he knew the comment he was about to make was going to get him in trouble, but he made it anyway. Without knowing what was in his mind, I’d prefer to say that he just exercised extremely poor judgment, something he seems to have a penchant for. But it goes back to my comment yesterday about the attacks by his surrogates in the new and old media — they know what they’re doing and saying is losing the election for Obama, but they just can’t help themselves. When you can’t really be honest about who you are, the easiest strategy is to engage in verbal put downs of your adversaries. Being nasty, snide, condescending and intellectually dishonest comes as naturally to Liberals as the desire to wallow in the mud does to a pig; apologies to the pig.

  But hey, Libs; you want to continue to go down this road — be my guest.

• 3. kmg  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:05 am

  If you believe Obama was talking about Palin, then you believe McCain also called Hillary a pig in lipstick.

  McCain did call Hillary’s daughter ugly because Janet Reno was her father, and told a joke about a woman enjoying being viciously raped and beaten. There’s sexism you can believe in.

• 4. SEW  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:12 am

  We believe Michelle has reason to be angry.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zhkq11UExcw

• 5. Observer20  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:17 am

  kmg,

  I agree with you that sometimes McCain can have a temper problem and is bad at controlling his mouth when he thinks he’s off camera. If the democrats wanted to counter this whole sexism thing it may be a wise move of theirs to highlight McCain’s comments from 16 years ago.

  Fortunately, as is proven by the vast difference in number and sheer magnitude of gaffes and allegations of discriminatory remarks, he is a much more level-headed and controlled speaker when he knows he is going to be held accountable for his words than Obama.

  Of course, I don’t take gaffes or remarks like this too seriously. I do think Obama was trying to reference Palin with the pig comment, and reference McCain with the fish comment. But I don’t think it was necessarily sexist. But, I could be wrong. And if I am wrong, equivocating McCain’s supposed sexist remarks with Obama’s supposed sexist remarks isn’t going to help Obama put out his “new kind of politician” message.

• 6. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:26 am

  Sarah,

  “All over Newsweek, huh? Yeah, here’s what you get when you search the Newsweek site for “Sarah Palin child abuse accusation”.

  OTOH, Randi Rhodes is making such accusations. Are you sure that’s not where you came up with this POS? Why don’t you head back on over to KOS or DU. They love your kind.

• 7. neocon  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:47 am

  Spook,

  I remember when Randi Rhodes accused Oprah of not being black enough. She’s a disgrace.

  I agree that I think Obama was not eluding to Palin with this comment but it does speak to his ability to measure his words. I don’t think Obama is seasoned enough nor mature enough, to speak Presidential and measure his words, which is essential in that position. One could argue that Bush has the same problem.

  Obama needs to lift himself above the fray, speak in concise, issue related and positive tones. He needs to appear more Presidential, sadly I don’t think it’s in his DNA, but it is in Palin’s. She’s a natural.

  And Axlerod should be fired.

• 8. hermie  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:51 am

  If Obama had waited a while before making that remark, then it wouldn’t have damaged him that much. But he rushed into making that ‘joke’, and this shows that the man who claims superior judgement, vastly misjudged his words.

• 9. kmg  |  September 10th, 2008 at 8:57 am

  Retired Spook,

  It wasn’t that hard to find.

  http://www.newsweek.com/id/158140

• 10. WhatChange  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:05 am

  kmg homophobe, so you agree with Sarah that criticism of an adult trooper is “child abuse.” I’m not surprised.

• 11. Observer20  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:05 am

  kmg,

  Well, that article does include something about a judge’s decree from three years ago, but I can’t find anything about child abuse charges (please correct me if I’m wrong). Rather, it seems to be an article about Troopergate, which is another debate entirely.

  Don’t you think the media would have been shouting it all over the place if she had child abuse charges?

• 12. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:05 am

  And Axlerod should be fired.

  Neo, Axlerod and Davis were on Fox back to back yesterday morning. Axlerod came off as the nerdy highschool kid working behind the scenes to get his friend, the football quarterback, elected class president. IMHO, just another in a long string of bad judgment calls by The One.

  One could argue that Bush has the same problem.

  One could, indeed. But do you think there is a single Liberal in this country who would compare Obama to Bush in that way?

• 13. js  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:16 am

  that was not an accusation against palin for child abuse…and the connotation that it was is a direct lie about the issue…sarah connor is the liar.

• 14. neocon  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:22 am

  No they would not Spook.

  I did see Axlerod on one of the Sunday shows and his sound bites and Bush obsession is laughable. I don’t think he has what it takes to get his candidate across the finish line. Good for us though.

  Palin is obviously going through intense study sessions on the issues at the moment and once turned loose, I don’t think you’ll see her making the same mistakes. She is much more aware of the presence she needs to project and is more articulate of her positions.

• 15. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:22 am

  Pretty weak attempt, kmg, to link to an article without reading it. Neither the word “child” nor the word “abuse” appears in the article, and, as OB20 notes, it’s about Troopergate, and took place even before Palin was Governor. And it would not be a big surprise to learn that the judge was part of the local Good Ol’ Boy club.

  I’ll tell you, watching you Lefties grasping for any straw you can find, no matter how flimsy, just warms the cockles of my heart. It’s like you’re all having the same wet dream. I can’t remember, in my entire life (I’m 63) ever witnessing anything like the implosion we’re seeing on the Left during this campaign. “Change we can believe in” is going to end up being the biggest political joke of the 21st century. And the ultimate irony is that the change that the country really needs (cleaning up corruption, cutting pork and reducing waste) is going to be accomplished by a 72-year-old war hero and a moose-hunting woman.

• 16. A-10  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:27 am

  I wonder how many women who have heard about the “lipstick on a pig” gaffe, were thinking about it this morning while they were putting on their lipstick. Wondering, “Does Senator Obama think I’m a pig, also?” They’ll remember his insult each and every time they put on their lipstick.

  I think it was a brilliant move by Rove. Using his mind control rays to make Senator Obama utter an insult about the GOP VP candidate.

• 17. Some Assembly Required  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:36 am

  Sarah Connor, that is a blatant mis-representation of what happened. The judge said disparagement in his opinion was a form of child abuse. However, the disparagement in this case was allegedly enacted by the Palin’s towards Wooten. Granted, it was enough to warrant the judge to threaten to remove child custody from the Palin’s if it continued. But it was in no way accusations of Sarah Palin abusing her children.

• 18. spok  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:38 am

  Neither the word “child” nor the word “abuse” appears in the article

  Spook,

  I realize you loathe education and intelligence, but don’t be so eager to display your stupidity.

  Paragraph 4, sentence 2.

• 19. WhatChange  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:40 am

  “in my entire life (I’m 63) ever witnessing anything like the implosion we’re seeing on the Left” RS

  I don’t know, the implosion when the Supreme Court ruled that the Dems had to count all votes in 2000, not just 4 highly Democrat counties was spectacular. Those folks remain mentally ill to this day.

• 20. js  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:52 am

  the dnc is going to disintigrate, because after this election, nobody will want to be associated with liars anymore….

• 21. Some Assembly Required  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:54 am

  You want sexism… Follow the link Capitalism at it’s finest. Wheres yours Mark? Be honest, you bought the school girl one didn’t you. Personally, it’s a toss up between Tomb Raider or Boarding School Palin.

  Forget sexism and all that, Palian’s record is enough not to drink the koolaid. She is not the next ‘messiah’. That youtube clip of her talking in front of her church essentially saying we are in a holy war is telling as well. I mean, you were all up in arms about Obama’s Preachers controversial marks. But these we Palin’s and theres no denying it. Kind of fitting.

• 22. Some Assembly Required  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:55 am

  Bad link above

  http://blogs.tampabay.com/moms/2008/09/sarah-palin-act.html

• 23. kimberly4victory  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:56 am

  Barack Obama fake sex video spam contains spy software
  A spam email claiming to link to a fake Barack Obama sex video actually contains malicious spying software, experts have warned.

  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/northamerica/usa/2775709/Barack-Obama-fake-sex-video-spam-contains-spy-software.html

  I use a MAC so it doesn’t affect me (although I would never open anything from an email from someone I don’t know), but PC users beware.

• 24. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 10:03 am

  I’m sorry, spok, I’ll just ignore your nasty, condescending remarks, because that’s what I’ve come to expect from the Left, and merely suggest that your reading comprehension skills need a little honing. Here is Paragraph 4 with sentence 2 bolded:

  The investigation, authorized by the Legislative Council last July, revolves around charges that Palin abused her power by embroiling the governor’s office in a bitter family feud involving her ex-brother in law, a state trooper named Mike Wooten. Specifically, the council is investigating whether Palin fired Monegan when he refused to dismiss Wooten (who at the time was involved in an ugly custody battle with Palin’s sister) after getting repeated complaints about him from the governor and her husband, Todd Palin. (Among the allegations that were raised against Wooten by Palin’s sister: he had Tasered his ten-year-old stepson and shot a moose without a permit.) Palin has denied wrongdoing; Monegan has said he believes his firing was connected to his refusal to fire Wooten.

  If you can find the words “child” and “abuse” in that sentence, I’ll kiss your bare ass in public.

  WhatChage, you’re right, the SC ruling in 2000 did get the Left a little unhinged, something that they’ve clearly not recovered from. Whoever it was who said that Liberalism is a mental disease was right on the money.

• 25. A-10  |  September 10th, 2008 at 10:04 am

  Some Assembly Required,

  You are correct. I’m still scratching my head trying to figure out how disparaging comment by Palnin and others towards Trooper Wooten can be considered “child abuse.” Was the judge implying that Troope Wooten was a child?

  I know that the judge can issue whatever order he wants, but I also wonder what gives him the power to curb the Palins’ constitutional right to free speach and how he could revoke Gov Palin’s sister’s custody of her children because of a Palin relative uttering disparaging remarks about Trooper Wooten. It sounds to me that the judge was overstepping his authority.

  As I understand it, the disparaging remarks that the judge was talking about were complaints that the Palins filed concerning Trooper Wooten’s behavior: using a tazer on his 10 year old stepson, repeatedly threatening Gov Palin and her family (it should be noted that she wasn’t Gov at the time), and drinking in a State Police cruiser while on duty, all of which appear to be legitimate concerns.

• 26. paul  |  September 10th, 2008 at 10:12 am

  I was at the rally yesterday….Palin was awsome! She spoke from her heart!
  See pics at: http://www.paulspoliticalcafe.blogspot.com/

• 27. rich  |  September 10th, 2008 at 11:37 am

  Barack has shown himself to be a real pigger with this comment.

• 28. Some Assembly Required  |  September 10th, 2008 at 11:50 am

  A-10, your guess is as good as mine. I’m assuming that he meant the remarks from the Palin family against Wooten affected the children. How that is child abuse though is beyond me. Anyway, I’m not familiar enough with the case, neither Palin’s or Wooten’s side to really comment about the tazer incident or why he was fired. If she abused her privileges of office she must be held accountable, if she did not she should be cleared. Simple as that.

  I won’t be voting to McCain/Palin in November because of their policies. However fair is fair and unwarranted accusations cannot stand regardless of party.

• 29. Some Assembly Required  |  September 10th, 2008 at 11:58 am

  RS, I think your citing a different article. Below is from the Newsweek article posted by kmg. What’s the source of the article you have quoted?

  Court documents show that Judge Suddock was disturbed by the alleged attacks by Palin and her family members on Wooten’s behavior and character. “Disparaging will not be tolerated—it is a form of child abuse,” the judge told a settlement hearing in October 2005, according to typed notes of the proceedings. The judge added: “Relatives cannot disparage either. If occurs [sic] the parent needs to set boundaries for their relatives.”

  Again, how exactly thats child abuse is beyond me, but there it is.

• 30. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 12:35 pm

  SAR, I just went to the link that kmg posted. I just tried it again and got the article that you cited from. Something is screwy. Here is the article I got when I clicked on kmg’s link the first time.

• 31. Some Assembly Required  |  September 10th, 2008 at 12:50 pm

  RS, the article you cited gets into much more detail. From what I can gather it’s more or less a he said she said ordeal that has gotten national spotlight now that Palin is a new face and McCain’s Vice Presidential Candidate to boot.

  Sadly, it’s only going to get more negative between now and November. Heres to hoping there will be legitimate questions asked during the debates.

• 32. NDeeZ  |  September 10th, 2008 at 1:06 pm

  It interesting that we all expect the OTHER person’s candidate to be perfect.

  How many of us, with every word being recorded for almost two years, might get caught saying something imprudent.

  I know I wouldn’t hold up to that scrutiny!

• 33. Retired Spook  |  September 10th, 2008 at 1:51 pm

  How many of us, with every word being recorded for almost two years, might get caught saying something imprudent.

  I know I wouldn’t hold up to that scrutiny!

  NDeeZ, I know I wouldn’t either, which is why each candidate’s record is so important. There’s an old adage that when a man assesses how a particular woman would be as a wife, he need look no further than her mother as an example. Conversely, to visualize how a politician might govern, one has only to look at his/her record. Two candidates (McCain and Palin) both have records of having confronted corruption, even in their own party and working across the aisle to accomplish what they believed to be in the best interests of their constituents. Their opponents are two of the most partisan members of the United States Senate who have been wrong on pretty much everything. The choice is pretty clear.

• 34. MMoser  |  September 10th, 2008 at 2:41 pm

  “Disparaging will not be tolerated?it is a form of child abuse,” the judge told a settlement hearing in October 2005, according to typed notes of the proceedings. The judge added: “Relatives cannot disparage either. If occurs [sic] the parent needs to set boundaries for their relatives.”

  No charges were ever filed against Palin and the Judge did not award sole custody to Wooten. The allegations lodged against Wooton for tazing his step son, beer consumption in a squad car and moose poaching appear to have been sustained. However, the allegations of threats of violence against Palin?s family have not been. These allegations, however, do not seem as though they are way out in left field either.

  This judge never mentioned Palin specifically in the article, however the author goes to some length to leave the reader impression he specifically warn Sarah to back off. That would be a poetic liberty take by the article most would call a lie given the type of story being told.

  I don?t thin Obama was referring to Palin as a pig wearing lipstick. His judgment is bad, but he?s not stupid. He was searching for a way to punctuated his point and let his choice of words get him into some trouble. Given the donk?s baseless and relentless attacks on Paline, I?m incline to give the GOP a pass on this one and say what good for the goose is good for the gander with or without lipstick.

• 35. Magnum Serpentine  |  September 10th, 2008 at 5:17 pm

  CBS ordered the film removed so I did not get to see it.

• 36. HeyHey  |  September 10th, 2008 at 9:19 pm

  Apparently McCain likes the pig & lipstick line as well.

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR8IhMMhe8w