Posted on 08/29/2008 1:34:27 PM PDT by Zakeet
CNN’s John Roberts, after briefly alluding to the issue of Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s experience he called into question earlier on Friday’s "Newsroom" program, asked correspondent Dana Bash about how the Alaska governor’s newborn son with Down’s syndrome might be affected if she were elected: "There's also this issue that on April 18th, she gave birth to a baby with Down's Syndrome.... Children with Down's syndrome require an awful lot of attention. The role of Vice President, it seems to me, would take up an awful lot of her time, and it raises the issue of how much time will she have to dedicate to her newborn child?"
Bash deftly answered this question, which has the implication that Palin could neglect her infant son, and made a possible counter-argument the McCain camp would use, that a question like Roberts’ would be sexist: "That's a very good question, and I guess -- my guess is that, perhaps, the line inside the McCain campaign would be, if it were a man being picked who also had a baby, but -- you know, four months ago with Down's Syndrome, would you ask the same question?"
The CNN correspondent continued by briefly describing the Palin’s family situation and the thinking that may have gone into the situation for both McCain and Palin herself. She concluded by reporting on the Alaska governor’s appeal to social conservatives because she is "very staunchly anti-abortion," in Bash’s words.
The full transcript of the exchange between John Roberts and Dana Bash, which began 7 minutes into the 11 am Eastern hour of CNN’s "Newsroom" [audio available here]:
JOHN ROBERTS: You know, there's one other issue -- we've talked about her experience and what depth of experience she has; the fact that maybe she tries to peel off a few women voters on the Democratic side, who really wanted to see a woman in the White House in some way, shape, or form. There's also this issue that on April 18th, she gave birth to a baby with Down's Syndrome.DANA BASH: Yes.
ROBERTS: The baby is just slightly more than four months old now. Children with Down's syndrome require an awful lot of attention. The role of Vice President, it seems to me, would take up an awful lot of her time, and it raises the issue of how much time will she have to dedicate to her newborn child?
BASH: That's a very good question, and I guess -- my guess is that, perhaps, the line inside the McCain campaign would be, if it were a man being picked who also had a baby, but -- you know, four months ago with Down's Syndrome, would you ask the same question? And that might be another way to kind of, you know, kind of close the gender gap in trying to make the point that, yes, she not only has, unfortunately, a baby with Down's Syndrome, but she has five children, the oldest of whom is apparently going -- is in the Army and going to head off to Iraq in the fall. So, you know, it absolutely is going to be a question that she is going to have to answer, and there's no question that she had to do soul-searching and figure out if she could take this on when John McCain made clear that he wanted her to be her [sic] running mate, and it is going to be one of the interesting things that we are going to be able to hear from her when she finally does speaks, whether she does address these things here or in subsequent interviews.
That's going to be a fascinating thing, but it also does -- it also does appeal to social conservatives in another way, and that is that, you know, part of her story, if you read her discussions about that baby, is that, you know, she knew before she gave birth to that baby, that it had Down's Syndrome, and she chose to keep the baby. And that is -- that is because she is somebody who is anti-abortion. She is somebody who is very staunchly anti-abortion. That kind of story, also, can help appeal to the social conservatives that John McCain is still trying to win over in his own party.
—Matthew Balan is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.
John Robrerts wants her baby to have been aborted.
Yep!
True. If Palin didn't think she could handle the job and still give her son the attention he needs then I doubt she would have accepted the offer.
I like Palin she is very impressive, but it is an issue. I just had a baby in March. I just started working 1 day a week. I personally don’t think it is right to work full time when you have a baby.
The vice presidency nearly drove John Adams to drink because it isn't actually a real job.Until and unless John McCain suffers a tragedy in the next four years, a vice president Palin will be utterly able to control her own schedule - and will have servants in the mansion to boot.
If John McCain were to be incapacitated or die, then frankly the fate of the Republic would matter more than the possibility that Mrs. Palin's baby might see less than the optimum amount of time with his mother. But that is entirely speculative. And, were she the president, the worst fate the baby would have to fear would be getting spoiled fantastically.
John Roberts’ co-host Kiran Chetry just had a baby a few months ago. Now, her baby doesn’t have Down Syndrome, but still, I wonder if he has questioned her commitment to her child as he watches her zip around the CNN Newsroom for several hours each day? Let me tell you this, all babies need lots of attention. It is amazing to see liberals suddenly being concerned about women not being in the home to raise their children! Roberts is like all of the other liberals out there.......they are very angry and upset that anyone would choose to give life to a baby with Down Syndrome. They simply can’t comprehend such a thing. Nearly 90% of babies diagnosed with Down Syndrome while still in the womb are aborted. How very sad.
Governor Palin is a great choice for VP. God Bless her!
rodeo-mamma, I have 4 kids, and I never had a choice in not working. My oldest is autistic and has special needs. However, my husband stays home during the day with my kids, and I work as flexible a schedule as possible (early shift and telecommuting a couple days a week), and believe me, my kids don't suffer for it. (And my girls are feisty daddy's girls!)
It sounds like Palin's husband is home with the baby and she can bring him to work, and that won't change with being a VP. I think she will do fine. : ) It is hard work out of the house and raise kids, but that just builds character!
JOHN ROBERTS: You know, there’s one other issue — we’ve talked about her experience and what depth of experience she has; the fact that maybe she tries to peel off a few women voters on the Democratic side, who really wanted to see a woman in the White House in some way, shape, or form. There’s also this issue that on April 18th, she gave birth to a baby with Down’s Syndrome.
You know, with the question and the reference to abortion by Dana in the reply, you wonder if John was questioning the Palin’s judgment on having the baby in the first place. Kind of a “She could have been VP, but she “chose” a different path” kind of thing.
Anyway, kind of creepy all around.
Roberts has always shown himself to be an ignorant liberal. Last year, CNN’s American Morning (Anchor Kiran Chetry) did a feature on a Congresswoman from Washington State who had given birth to a Down Syndrome baby. I think her name is Kathy McMorris-Rodgers. Kiran went to Washington, DC to interview little Cole’s parents and allowed them to explain what a joy Cole was to them. Kathy knew her baby had Down Syndrome early on because of testing. At the end of the segment, Roberts exclaims that “wow, that must have been a very difficult decision”, talking about the Congresswoman’s decision to have her baby. Chetry, looking perturbed and upset, jumped in, saying how it was not a difficult decision at all for the Rodgers family. Chetry’s a liberal, but I loved this story about the Rodgers family and little baby Cole. We need to see more things like this.
John Roberts is so full of himself. Let’s see how many more times the idiot can put his foot in his mouth before election day rolls around.
Are you kidding? The younger Obama kid was acting like Andrew Giuliani when she grabbed the mic from her mom and wouldn’t share it with her sister.
Oh, I believe they are loved. But I think the Palin kids are loved even more. JMHO.
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