By Markus Löning

Translated By Ron Argentati

2 September 2008


Germany - Die Welt - Original Article (German)

How does the teenage pregnancy of her daughter fit in with Sarah Palin’s conservative Christian views?


Sarah Palin’s speech scheduled for tomorrow at the Republican national convention will be fascinating. She’s become the “shooting star” here in Minneapolis. Hardly known before her selection to be McCain’s running mate, she surprised everyone by becoming the first woman on a Republican presidential ticket but even more so by being an admitted grandmother. Her 17-year old daughter’s pregnancy hit here like a bomb.

The notion that John McCain didn’t decide on Sarah Palin until very late is controversial even among his campaign staff. They’re trying to convince journalists in off-the-record conversations that McCain had her on his list of possibles for a long time and that he had also had several comprehensive discussions with her. They also maintain Palin’s personal background had been intensively examined and that John McCain had been told of her 17-year old daughter’s pregnancy.

Now Sarah Palin has come under fire because she is against sex education and, apart from that, is supposed to represent family values that include chastity before marriage.

The “Christianity” that they talk about in these debates seems to me to be increasingly peculiar. While we Europeans consider faith to be a private matter, in America it’s ostentatiously paraded out front. Example: at yesterday’s convention there were two prayers in as many hours. First, a basketball star led a prayer for flood victims during hurricane Gustav and at the close of the session a priest came on stage to lead another prayer. People rose from their seats and it got very quiet in the Minneapolis hockey arena. It’s nearly impossible to imagine such a thing at a German political convention.

Tomorrow, Sarah Palin will try to convince delegates, especially conservative Christians, not only to vote but to vote for McCain/Palin. At the same time, she’ll try to entice disappointed Hillary voters to cross over to her side.

I can hardly wait to see if that balancing act succeeds.