Sarah Palin believes that the Pledge of Allegiance was written by the Founding Fathers.
11. Are you offended by the phrase “Under God†in the Pledge of Allegiance? Why or why not?
Sarah Palin: Not on your life. If it was good enough for the founding fathers, its good enough for me and I’ll fight in defense of our Pledge of Allegiance[.]
She believes the Founders put “under God” in the Pledge of Allegiance. It’s hard to begin to describe how wrong that belief is. The pledge itself wasn’t written until 1892 by Socialist Francis Bellamy. And, in point of fact, “under God” was inserted into the Pledge of Allegiance in 1954 after years of lobbying by the Knights of Columbus. Then there is the small detail about many of the Founders not being, strictly speaking, “Christian;” and, more importantly, believing that Church & State weren’t two great tastes that taste great together.
Other positions by Sarah Palin in that questionnaire:
Abortion should be permissible only when a doctor determines that the mother’s life would end. (Rape, incest, serious injury to the mother — no abortion).
She would not support funding of factual sex education; but only “abstinence until marriage” education. (Is it inappropriate to mention the recent story about her unmarried, pregnant, 17 year old daughter.)
She believes that it is inappropriate for spousal benefits to be available to same-sex or other unmarried couples.
Update Talking Points Memo has more on the McCain campaign’s apparent failure to do much in the way of vetting Palin before McCain decided to roll the dice on her:
George says the McCainers are sending a “rapid response team of about ten operatives that includes lawyers” to do the aforementioned deeper vet. A lot of attention is being given to Gov. Palin’s daughter’s situation. The much bigger deal is the expanding trooper-gate investigation, the fact that Palin lied in her Friday speech about her purported opposition to the Bridge to Nowhere, her apparent former membership in the secessionist Alaska Independence Party, and more. Individually, you can come to your own judgment about how consequential these stories are. What they show pretty clearly now — in addition to the news that the McCain campaign is only now sending in a vetting team — is that John McCain didn’t do any serious vetting of Palin before he invited her to join his ticket and, he hopes, become Vice President of the United States.
Her B.A. in Journalism from the U. of Idaho is not exactly the most rigorous intellectual training…
That’s o.k. We can’t trust those darn egg heads to govern anyway.
Doug: it is not inappropriate at all to mention the “recent story.” Her view on sex-ed have nothing to do with her qualifications to be vice president. However, the folks who are trying to nominate her have made her family values an issue in the same way they ignore the multipled-married McCain’s family values. Fair is fair. McCain made too slick a pick. And, Wilson, as a former journalism major myself, please don’t judge our intellectualism based on our Sister Sarah. Let’s see how she digs out of this one.
I agree – the current story is relevant, despite the fact that it puts a really uncomfortable light on the daughter. I feel bad for the kid, but that was her mom that put her in a national spotlight.
The first of what will probably be a handful of gaffes…that puts her in (very) good company with McCain, Obama and especially Biden.
Many people erroneously believe that “under God” goes back to the Founding Fathers. Even more people believe that the God of the pledge (and the money) is the Christian God. Instead it is the god of civil religion. If you don’t think so, to borrow from Doug Wilson: try to replace that god with “the Trinitarian God” and watch the response…
Trinitarians? Arent they folk from the Caribbean with funny hair, smoke weed and believe in Haile Selassie?
Wilson-that means as an ELCA pastor, I need to switch the sacrament to ganga;-)
Dang-pregnant daughter?!? This electon is getting more twists than the goofiest of soap operas!
BTW marched with the Lake County Obama group in the Lowell-abama (abama-as in as backwards as Alabama) parade today. Had a lot of support; although I guess I’m also a communist who hates out troops. Did meet a guy 20 years younger than me that I talked to throughout the parade (new college frosh). It was interesting sharing how different our experiences were growing up me in Cold War times and he in a post-9/11 world.
Dear Gov. Palin,
Since I apparently learned something in college about American history and you didn’t, you may pay my student loans. I warn you, the monthly payment is large than my mortgage, but at least *I* know something about the years 1763 – 1789.
sincerely yours,
lemming
P.S. Since your daughter proves my point that abstinence-only sex ed is foolish, I’ll exempt you from repaying what I have already shelled out.
Tough news about Bristol Palin. It’s really nice of her mom to release a self-serving statement about how she’s going to find out how tough life is. Bristol’s probably thinking, thanks for that abstinence-only crap. Although her personal behavior and its consequences are on her, if I were her I would be pissed that mom didn’t think passing along a bit of knowledge (and therefore approval that if you’re going to do it, protect yourself) was a good idea, but found the time to spout the “she’s going to find out life is hard” statement to satisfy the base. What a ridiculous twit poor Bristol has for a mom.
I’ll wager she’ll make a fine mom. And may she pass along wishes to her child that abstinence prevail, and useful information for if it doesn’t.
A few snarky observations for mom: Apparently marriage isn’t only supposed to be between a man and a woman. It can also be between a boy and a girl.
Also, it occurs to me how important the second amendment is, right about now. Can’t have a shotgun wedding without a shotgun.
I also am frankly confused about the odyssey Governor Palin took to deliver her baby Trig. She had rupture of membranes in Dallas, called her doctor in Alaska, waited a few hours to give a speech, got on a plane for the 12 hour ride via Seattle to Anchorage (passing neonatal facilities in Dallas, Seattle, and Anchorage), only to then travel 45 minutes to her small town hospital to be delivered by her family physician, despite being preterm and the baby known to have Down syndrome. As a family physician who delivered a bit over a hundred babies prior to giving up that aspect of practice, I’m thoroughly confused by the sequence of events outlined above. It could not have been endorsed by her physician, as it constitutes malpractice. Did she ignore medical advice? If so, what does it say about her judgment? The proper thing for her to do was be examined in Dallas, and expectantly managed there. She would not have been released, and certainly would not have been permitted to travel by plane. The way it transpired is way outside the standard of care.
And I saw that “under God” questionaire answer and said, oh Doug isn’t going to like that at all.
Ugh, whatever next. This has got me worried a lot actually. Thanks for this, it just goes to show that what we vote for is indeed important.