Sarah Palin: Model Of Constistency

Ken AshfordElection 2012Leave a Comment

Sarah Palin, during her resignation speech, on the silly accusations/ethics complaints against her:

And this political absurdity, the “politics of personal destruction” … Todd and I are looking at more than half a million dollars in legal bills in order to set the record straight. And what about the people who offer up these silly accusations? It doesn’t cost them a dime so they’re not going to stop draining public resources – spending other peoples’ money in their game.

Sarah Palin, yesterday, on the "birther" "controversy":

"Um, I think the public, rightfully, is still making it an issue. I don't have a problem with that…. I think it's a fair question, just like I think past association and past voting records — all of that is fair game… The McCain-Palin campaign didn't do a good enough job in that area."

Now, if that isn't inconsistent enough, Palin walked back from that remark, while also standing by it.  She went on her Facebook page at 1:16 a.m. this morning and criticized reporters for calling her a birther and pushing “stupid conspiracies”:

Voters have every right to ask candidates for information if they so choose. I’ve pointed out that it was seemingly fair game during the 2008 election for many on the left to badger my doctor and lawyer for proof that Trig is in fact my child. Conspiracy-minded reporters and voters had a right to ask… which they have repeatedly. But at no point – not during the campaign, and not during recent interviews – have I asked the president to produce his birth certificate or suggested that he was not born in the United States.

In other words, the people have a right to ask about Obama's birth certificate, and the McCain-Palin campaign didn't do a good enough job in that area, but she's not a "birther" herself.  She just thinks people should be able to "ask the questions" EXCEPT when (apparently) those questions are directed at her, and her associations, and she has to defend them.

I agree with Palin that the "Trig is Sarah's child" controversy — to the extent it was one at all — was a fringy and loony.  But here's the difference: it never made the arguments of the mainstream left.  No presidential candidate during the last election, for example, even hinted at the Trig "controversy" – directly or indirectly.  The same cannot be said of the birther issue.

As another blooger wrote: "Both sides of the aisle have their crazies, but only one side thinks their crazies are sane."