Cries of foul, charges of sexism come shouting out of the mouths of Sen. John McCain's lobbyist-spokesmen when anyone asks a question about the judgment or experience of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, McCain's choice as his vice-presidential running mate.
Even though McCain's opponent, Barack Obama, is sending out high-profile women in the Democratic Party to challenge Palin, there is no need for the press tipsy-toe around the most important fact about the Republican nominee for vice president: she is unqualified for the job.
The only qualification she has to be vice president (and perhaps president) is that she is age-eligible, according to the Constitution of the United States of America.
Let me say it again, Sarah Palin is not qualified to be vice president or president of the United States.
That is not a sexist statement. It would be sexist if I wrote that being a woman disqualified her--but that's not my point.
There are plenty of women I would support for the top two jobs in our government. I actually think the country might be better off with a couple of women at the helm.
Besides Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) of New York, there are Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein (D) of California, Sen. Olympia J. Snowe (R) of Maine, perhaps even Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D) of California.
Developing a short list of capable Democratic and Republican women would take only half an hour or so. Adequately vetting the individuals obviously would take longer
One thing is for certain, Palin would not make the long list, let alone the short list
Why isn't Palin qualified?
She is not prepared on any count to be vice president (or president) of the United States of America.
Foreign Relations
She has no experience in foreign affairs despite, as Cindy McCain explained to a reporter, the fact that she lives in the state closest to Russia.
Perhaps Palin's foreign policy can be summed up with, "Bring 'em on." As Republicans constantly harp, "It's a dangerous world out there full of terrorists and bad guys who hate America."- Even by Republican standards, Palin fails.
Economics
She has little if any economic policy experience. The experience she does have aligns her more with the corrupt Republican pols who cherish legislative earmarks.
She successfully worked for more than $400 million in earmarks for her state, aligning herself with the likes of Sen. Ted Stevens. Stevens, the longest-serving Republican senator and a figure in Alaska politics since before statehood, is under indictment on seven counts of failing to disclose thousands of dollars in services he received from a company that helped renovate his home.
When Palin was elected mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, the town had no debt. Zero debt for a town of some 9,000 people. When she left office the town was some $26 million in debt.
That looks more like the type of economics George W. Bush engages in and that is sinking the country into a tier-two banana republic.
Health Care
Palin hasn't, to my knowledge, addressed the matter of health care, which Americans know is daily crumbling. We know she vetoed a bill passed by the Alaska legislature that would provide assistance to pregnant teenagers. We know she vetoed another bill passed by the Alaska legislature to provide assistance to families with children with special needs. That was before her 17-year-old daughter announced to her parents that she was pregnant and before Gov. Palin herself delivered a baby who has Downs Syndrome.
That won't be too bad if McCain and Palin win the election. She will have all the health care she needs, along with assistance from a cadre of experts who will provide the best care money can buy for her and her family.
But if she doesn't win and, heaven preclude, she loses her next election for governor, she'll be out of luck. She will have to rely on the resources of her commercial fisherman husband to deal with all those inconvenient things.
Loyalty
Speaking of her family, Palin's husband Todd was, from 1995 through 2002 or 2003, a member of the Alaska Independence Party (AIP), which advocates, and works toward, secession from the United States. That issue was settled by the Civil War when the first Republican President Abraham Lincoln was in office.
Palin herself warmly provided the welcoming speech at the AIP annual convention earlier this year with words that essentially were, "Alaska needs you. You are an important part of the state."-
The AIP has been known to resort to violence against property, and infighting among members. One incident resulted in the leader of the AIP being murdered.
I submit that the AIP is a terrorist organization and its members, including Palin's husband, should be rounded up and prosecuted.
How can this woman campaign with the slogan "Country First" when her apparent beliefs and her obvious behavior belie any sense of loyalty she ever might have had to this nation?
Palin is a hypocrite. She's just as likely to wind up in a survivalist camp in rural Idaho (or Alaska) being surrounded by the the FBI as she does winding up as vice president.
For God's sake, she is the closest thing to an anti-American sympathizer as I have ever seen on the American political scene, and I've been a close observer of politics for some 50 years.
Sexism?
So, let's get over the sham charge of sexism when examining the background, qualification and judgment of this woman from Alaska, Sarah Palin.
It's not about womanhood. It's about being qualified by education, experience, personal thought, deeds or any other criteria anyone wants to raise other than gender.
Republicans, and John McCain, need to be careful what they wish for.
They might get something like Levitican fundamentalist James Dobson, who asked his radio listeners to pray for rain in Denver on the night Obama spoke before some 84,000 members of the public in Mile High Stadium.
It didn't rain in Denver that night. But the rains did come. A few days later Louisiana felt Dobson's wrath from Hurricane Gustov, which kicked the wheels off the Republican so-called Straight Talk Express and forced the faithful to cancel the first night of the extravaganza to anoint Palin as the Republican "babe" (that can't be a sexist term, it's a quote from Republican sounding board Rush Limbaugh) standing next to old John McCain.
In this case, however, when Palin stands next to McCain, it only accentuates the fact that McCain is as old as the hills.
It wouldn't be unfair if voters perceive that McCain is not only as old as the hills, but also is over the hill, perhaps so over the hill that he has one foot in the grave.
Now that's scary.
