And She Did So Much While Pregnant! Right?

August 30, 2008 by Holly in 2008 election, abstinence-only education, politics  

I wasn’t going to touch upon this, however, I read a good amount of conservative blogs and talk to a great deal of conservatives. I hold nothing against them, I believe that one must challenge their world views and without doing so, you will never know what you truly believe or how deeply you believe in something until you open your mind to the other side. You truly find yourself when you accept criticism and have in depth conversations with someone whom you may not agree with; it is when you do this that you truly understand who you are and what you stand for. With that being said, quite a few Republicans are rejoicing over McCain’s VP pick of Sarah Palin; moreover, they are repeatedly shoving the phrase “feminist role model” down the throats of their readers and boasting that she is a great advocate for “traditional family values” and pro-life policies as she gave birth to a son last April who was diagnosed with Down Syndrome; not only that, but she stayed in office as a working governor while pregnant and didn’t even announce that she was pregnant until March 6.

First of all, I do not believe that a woman giving birth to a child with Down Syndrome and choosing not to abort said child when she found out about his disability is hardly a focus point on her politics. As an anti-choice candidate, she has created a pro-life record by standing up against a woman’s right to choose by using such phrases as “It’s not a choice, it’s a child,” which many pro-lifers yell, scream and carry on about during protests and harassing women outside of Planned Parenthood clinics. Using her politics, her son is a child and he was not a choice and yet her son is the first (or close second) thing people bring up when defending her as a candidate saying that it was her choice to give birth to a child with Down Syndrome; this point has also come up in the comments in my last post on Palin. People are very quick to throw that her birth to a child with special needs is a choice, but isn’t that what pro-lifers spend their hours trying to convince us is not the case? (Cara at The Curvature has a more in depth post on this specifically that you should check out)

As I stated in what I’m calling my obligatory Sarah Palin post, Palin is against reproductive rights and believes that abortion starts with contraception. Frankly, Palin is a traditional believer in not having sex until you’re married and ready to begin baby-making. That is all well and good and also fool proof in roping the pro-life voters who weren’t going to vote for McCain at first; but perhaps if her abstinence-only values and pro-life policies were concrete they would work, however as the hours tick by, more and more dirty laundry on Palin is surfacing.

We met Palin’s family at the McCain/Palin rally in Dayton Ohio; we were introduced to her children, Piper, 5; Willow, 12; Bristol, 16; Track, 17. Also amongst the clan was the newest member of the family, Trig, born last April.

Palin did not tell anyone outside of her family about her pregnancy until she was 8 months pregnant and even at 8 months, she did not resemble a woman with child; as Palin is a very slim and slender woman, a pregnancy would have been abundantly apparent. Alaskan media did comment on this, yet their speculations went no further.

Months before Palin’s birth announcement, Bristol Palin, 16, became ill with mononucleosis (mono) and had to leave school. Mono typically lasts between 2 weeks and 3 months and that is if it is a particularly horrendous and threatening case, but Bristol was out of school for 5 to 8 months, ironically this took place at the same time Sarah Palin was pregnant with Trig.

A pregnant Palin, wardrobe still fitting, her physique remaining the same in February, went hiking. A video was released where Palin said:

[5 minutes 55 seconds into the video]
…”I like running the hills, it kills me, that’s why I like it, I mean it thrashes your guts and your lungs and your thighs…”

Now I don’t believe that is something that should come from a pregnant woman’s mouth.

Rumors ran rampant through Bristol’s school while several of her classmates accounted that Bristol was gaining a significant amount of weight and appeared to be pregnant when she abruptly left school.

Sarah Palin went into labor while in Dallas, Texas just before she was schedule to deliver a keynote address at the Republican Governors’ Energy Conference. Palin, instead of checking into a hospital, delivered the keynote speech. She said:

“I was not going to miss that speech,” she says.

She rushed so quickly from the podium afterwards that Texas Gov. Rick Perry nervously asked if she was about to deliver the baby then.

Instead of checking into a hospital after supposed hours of leaking amniotic fluid, Palin then made the very bold move of flying while in labor to Alaska so Trig would be born “an Alaskan.” Palin is obviously wonder woman since she was said to be in labor during the entire 8 hour flight and was said to be extremely pleasant to flight attendants who oddly were not even aware that the woman was pregnant, never mind in labor.

As most of you may know, airlines typically have strict rules regarding women who wish to fly while more than 7 months pregnant. Palin said that it was through the birth of her four previous children that she became comfortable with the signs of active labor and did not feel that she or the baby were in any form of danger by boarding the flight.

I find it rather peculiar how a woman can be eight moths pregnant and deliver a 6.2lb child and no one can even notice the woman is pregnant. Palin then returned to work after three days. I understand that middle-class citizens may have no choice but to return to work, not being able to afford to take time off even after a child is born, but obviously Palin and her big oil-working husband are well equipped to take a little time off to enjoy their newborn, right? Why would any woman want to separate from her newborn child who has special needs to be taken care of after just three days?

Well, because Sarah Palin was not pregnant, Bristol Palin, her 16 year old daughter, was. Mono is a common excuse used in “respectable” families and Catholic school systems as to why teenage girls must be taken out of school when they are really pregnant. The same thing is still happening today.

Yes, Trig was born with Down Syndrome and while this occurs with newborn babies of older women, such as Sarah Palin, the same also occurs in cases of very young women, which Bristol is.

Pictures of the family, the Bristol bump and the lack of Sarah bump after the jump.

Sarah Palin pregnant
Sarah Palin, 7 months pregnant

Sarah Palin
The Palin Family; Bristol Palin obviously trying to suck in her baby bump, hence her chest sticking out to an uncomfortable-looking degree. A 16 year old girl simply gaining weight would not be in the form of a “dome,” it would be evened out along her entire stomach, not just in the center.

Sarah Palin
The Palin family again, Bristol clearly the pregnant woman in the Palin family.

Bristol Palin
*Click for larger image

Things are simply just not adding up when it comes to the miracle child of Sarah Palin and also the reason why so many Republicans are saying that she did an amazing job even while pregnant, thus making her a “feminist role model” and a woman who lives up “traditional family values.” The truth seems to be that while Palin is 100% pro-life and believes abortion starts with birth control, she was not a parent whom her 16 year old daughter could talk to about being sexually active, knowing her mother’s strict pro-life policies and knowing full well that she would not be permitted to be on birth control. It is having a closed family such as this one and so many others in this country where children do not feel that they can talk openly to their parents and the outcome in most of these cases is teen pregnancy. However, not all American families can pull off raising a child as a mother when you’re really the grandmother and fool the entire country into believing it.

I am not saying that I know 100% if this is true or not, but there are a lot of sources and apparently a lot of Alaskans who know the Palins are saying that it is indeed true. However, if Bristol Palin is not the mother of Trig then that proves that Sarah Palin was willing to risk the well being of her child to board an 8 hour flight while in labor just so her son would be born “an Alaskan.” But I do doubt that is the case.

While many will most likely be disappointed in me “going to this level,” it is only because firstly, there is way too much confusion in this alleged pregnancy and the holier than thou pedestal Sara Palin is being placed upon because she “chose” to birth a child with special needs when if she did, she would just be following her own politics and her supporters should treat it as such instead of using it as a weapon against the liberals.

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  • Everything else aside, though, the problem is dragging a 16-year-old girl into this mess. I've got numerous issues here, but assuming this were true, it would be what's at the front of my mind.
  • Mew
    Hmm, I wonder if Ma Palin gave her daughter a choice about what to do?
  • no.
    abortion in teenagers has to be approved by a guardian...so....I'm thinking no.
  • Mew
    Does it!? Not where I live it doesn't, but then I'm not from the USA. Is that the case in every state, or just in Alaska?

    Whoa. Poor Bristol. I hope she did make the choice on her own.
  • no.
    it's nationwide. It's a big topic amongst pro-choicers.
  • TC
    It varies from state to state. In California teens can obtain contraception and abortions without consent, and since they rarely have jobs, we use public funds to cover the costs. You can go to www.naral.org to see what each state says on the issue.
  • I'm going to argue a couple of you points.

    1) Exercise : A woman that is used to it can safely continue during her pregnancy as long as she listens to her body about when to slow up and rest. The biggest risk is being off balance and falling.

    2) No one on the plane knew she was in labor: I've had two children, both without medical intervention and I can assure you that no one knew I was in labor until the very end. With my second I spent the day at the library, park, and playing with my oldest while in la. bor. Not all women resemble labor and delivery as shown on TV. It is possible for her to carry on like normal and be in labor

    3) She did not separate from her newborn only 3 days after giving birth. One of the perks of her office is being able to take the child with her. http://images.morris.com/images/juneau/mdContro...
  • chuck
    REALLY? She just gave birth and was back on her feet at work in three days? I thought you at least spend a day in the hospital after birth. My sister spent at least a week from work as a regular citizen. Your telling me the Governor that could take a couple of days off?
  • ladymd
    I find it very troubling if Gov. Palin was the one who delivered Trig, that she would risk delivering a premature infant with Down Syndrome in a plane. In addition, the risk of infection rises steadily from the moment membranes rupture, and so women are advised to go to the hospital immediately when their water breaks. That she would delay for several hours and risk a complication while she had no access to medical care speaks volumes about her lack of judgment...or it was all a lie. Damning either way.

    One other point, because I've read posts where people are skeptical regarding the likelihood of a young woman having a child with Down Syndrome; although women over 35 are at greater individual risk of having a child with Down syndrome, most babies with Down Syndrome are actually born to young women, because they do more childbearing. This is why initial screening with the "quadruple screen" is offered routinely to all pregnant women. If the result is abnormal, then a diagnostic amniocentesis is offered. The amniocentesis is offered routinely to women who will be 35 at the time of delivery.
  • Actually, the risk comes not from ruptured membranes but from outside objects being inserted in and increasing the risk of infection. In the US they say immedicately, in other countries they don't mind a wait. The vaginal exams from doctors are a bigger risk then the simple rupture of the membranes.

    http://www.womens-health.co.uk/prom.asp

    "Some believe that labour should start within 24 hours or the risk of infection outweighs the risks of induction of labour.

    Others feel that the risk of infection remains low for the next 72 hours and waiting gives the benefit of avoiding the 'cascade of intervention' that may occur with induction of labour"
  • Oh, and #4 is the breastfeeding. It is extremely difficult to regain milk supply if it has been years after giving birth. Her second youngest is 6/7, which would mean a lot of pumping, stimulation, medications, etc... I know women who have done it for adopted children, but it's not easy and very time consuming.
  • ladymd
    Has anyone actually seen her nursing?

    Interestingly, the baby always seems to be with Britstol while they're on the stump. Today in PA, Gov. Palin mentioned the baby and Bristol were not present because he was napping in the bus and his big sister was caring for him.
  • no.
    I don't think that strikes me as even remotely wrong.

    I will always be pro-choice because my great-aunt, when 20 and impregnated, died during a crappy abortion (because abortion was illegal at the time). My grandfather was in the next room (it was in-home as you couldn't get a real one at the time) and 17 years old, and heard his sister die. He drank every day of his life, partly because of that.

    However, while also agreeing with the previous poster, I have to say that this type of personal issue holds NO sway over me. People have their reasons for living their lives as they do, and I don't fault Palin (assuming this is true) for trying to keep her family private like this. This isn't, to me, some major flaw of character or morality, or some proof that there's an overarching inability for the woman to lead. Simply, that she's been through tragedy.
  • WOW..this is the first I am hearing of this and I admit that it is very convincing. It makes sense that if she were sexually active she could not tell her mother because of her mothers public abstinence beliefs. I really hope for her daughters sake that this is not the case. I cannot imagine that if this indeed were true that Palin is the supportive mother that she claims to be.
  • Dan L
    The Anchourage Daily News article about her announced that she was 7-months pregnant and didn't look it and nobody had any idea is NOT a fabrication. Add the pre-birth travel and behavior and birth in the hospital near her home town -- both indisputable facts -- and there are certainly some questions here. I have an instinct for these sorts of things and there's enough here.

    Here's the kicker, add to these facts to Gov. Palin's story about it and it would not likely stand up to cross-examination, which she did not get in Alaska. Still, she would still get the benefit of the doubt from me and most people that it is indeed her child.

    But there is strong additional circumstantial evidence that must be explained adequately or the reasonable conclusion is that she is covering for her daughter. First, her daughter not being in school due to "mono" for months on end. This should be fairly easy to confirm with school records and discussions with her friends. If true, that's quite a coincidence. Second, the purported rumors in school -- not reliable as hearsay on their face -- should nonetheless be reviewed with adequate scrutiny. It is not the left or democrats which started them, but high schoolers who knew her, and can probably shed some truthful light on this situation.

    Third and, perhaps, most inconvenient are the photos. If they are accurate, and they appear to be undoctored, someone has to explain why Gov. Palin does NOT appear pregnant and her daugher does. That seems like quite a coincidence given the rumors, unless the photos are doctored. If they are doctored -- which could be hard to prove -- then I think we can conclusive pass this off as a hoax.
  • This is very intriguing! I wonder if we will ever find out for certain what happened?
  • Oh..wow..Holly! I don't even know what to say about this?!?!?! I can't believe you really went there.
  • carly jean
    I find the argument very compelling. Regardless of the governor's health, a 44-year-old woman would be considered a high risk pregnancy by any competent OB. She lied to the airline (yes, not divulging her late term pregnancy on the flight to Texas and the fact that she was in active labor on the return trip is a lie!) and she put herself and her baby at risk, not to mention possibly inconveniencing an entire plane full of people had her labor moved along very quickly while in the air. And she changed planes in Seattle, thereby lying once again! After the governor arrived in Alaska, she still had to be driven 50 miles to the hospital.

    And this was supposed to be her 5th child? Delivery would have occured soon after labor began, not 12 - 18 hours later as it would in, say, a first delivery for a young girl.

    I agree that this is a private family matter, but the Palin family moved it to the national scene when she accepted the VP slot on McCain's ticket. She's a rapid anti-choice/anti-reproduction rights advocate, against all forms of contraception and sex education, an abstinence-only fanatic, and she finds herself with the shame (in her eyes) of a pregnant teenaged daughter.

    If this is true, DNA testing will prove it one way or the other. If it is true, the birth certificate would have had to have been doctored (another abuse of power investigation?) and if it is true, there may have been insurance fraud involved, depending on who was on the hospital bills, let alone the prenatal care, amnio, ultrasounds, etc.

    John Edwards, in collusion with his wife, knowingly entered the presidential race with a hidden scandal. They were found out, and it ruined his career and reputation. If the Palins did the same, they deserve what they get.
  • my biggest worry on all this speculation, is that it could backfire horribly. i mean, we know this has all the signs of a classic teen pregnancy cover-up, but with only this circumstantial evidence, it's a huge risk. if the embattled Mrs. Palin were to come forward with medical records refuting these allegations, the backlash would be severe, and a terrible public relations disaster. the sympathy that would be afforded Mrs. Palin and Bristol could easily sway a significant portion of the undecideds.

    i would hope that, as this story spreads across the internet, the Obama/Biden camp should step forward and issue a strongly worded statement condemning those making the allegations. i'm not saying you, or the diarist at Daily Kos, or any of the other hundreds of bloggers out there digging into this deserve condemnation, just that the campaign must make sure to steer clear of any connection.

    if it is true, then there were a good number of people involved in the coverup, and chances are someone will succumb to the intense pressure (or a huge chunk of cash) and give some hard evidence.

    until then, i think it's important to tread lightly on this, if only to avoid burdening the Obama/Biden campaign with the potential consequences. but, it's probably a bit late for that, eh?

    between this and Michael Moore's HUGE faux pas on the Olbermann show in which he implied that the hurricane bearing down on New Orleans was proof there was a God and he was punishing the republicans in the week of their convention, the left has given Fox News enough ammunition today to do some serious damage to the Obama campaign. this could not be worse timing, on the heels of a powerful convention.

    i am not blaming you, i am glad that there are people willing to put themselves out there to expose corruption and dishonesty. my best hope at this point is that someone does come forward with hard evidence, and that this turns out to be true.
  • Well I'm glad that you don't blame me. I can definitely see where you're coming from and I actually sat here and thought long and hard about posting this at all but in the end, I figured that I should in case it was true and if it isn't true and Palin or even someone close to her can give hard evidence that Palin was indeed the one who birthed Trig and not her daughter who did, you will see an update about it on this blog saying that this post was a rumor.

    Like I put in the post to begin with, I don't know if it's 100% true, no one does, only Palin and her family knows what's true and I will not be the one to say "Yes, it's 100% true!" because I simply do not know if it is. I also realize that this is a family issue, but once Palin accepted the nomination to run alongside with McCain, her family issues because politics and that is how it has worked with Bush, McCain, Obama, and Biden as well. As soon as any politician runs for any major office in the United States, their family issues become political issues because how they run their families shows voters how they will run the country and Palin already being the focus of a scandal (and this could very well be the second) within days of acceptance, we're already being shown how a McCain/Palin regime would be run...With intense abuse of power and various cover ups.
  • no i absolutely agree with you. it's an important issue, one that (if true) is a very damning indictment of her character, not to mention of the whole religious right hypocrisy over abstinence-only not working an whatnot. and if (has anyone looked up a birth certificate?) there is falsification of identification documents, that could be a federal crime on the part of all who participated. so it's important! it just scares me, the whole backfiring thing.

    sadly, it's the bloggers and private citizens who must get their hands dirty in such situations, thus exposing themselves to all manner of anger and backlash, and the officials must (like Mission Impossible) "disavow any knowledge of your mission".

    after the initial fuss on Daily Kos, there were some diaries that were pulled and replaced with apologies. one of the comments, though, had such a good point: what if this was Michelle? do you think Fox and the rightie pundits wouldn't be alllll over this like white on rice? would Hannity and Billo not be yelping and growling and foaming at the mouth like a pack of rabid wolves, demanding answers and DNA tests immediately? so there's that.

    maybe i'm just used to being part of a political philosophy often defined by its sheepish passivity, and i'm having a hard time adjusting my reactions from flight to fight?
  • I actually read every single 1100+ comments (at that point, who knows how many comments they have over there now) on Daily Kos before I even started this post on the topic and it took me hours because I refused to link to Daily Kos for any type of "proof" because I've seen again and again what they get from the right. I think it took me hours to get this post written because of that alone--Making it a priority to scour the internet for several other resources; resources that wouldn't bring a backlash of conservative, right wing commentators screaming "liberal bias, oh no!"

    I could not possibly agree with you more when you ask what if it had been Michelle Obama. Hell, Fox News makes shit up about her like it's their form of religion because she doesn't have much to go after. I swear Hannity stays up all night going through files upon files of Michelle pictures seeing what he can try to bring up on her next; it's disgusting. I believe they would indeed put something like this on their show (because it isn't news, it's an entertaining show at best) if it had something to do with the Obamas, screaming about what a horrible mother Michelle is, how voters need answers and demanding DNA tests.

    I'm not too worried about the anger and backlash I may get here--I'm pretty used to it being an open lefty, feminist blogger and I believe that all I have done in this case is stoop to the lows of the right and I see nothing wrong with that, to be completely honest. I know that lefty bloggers most often try to appear "bigger" than right wing bloggers because the right will dig up and blog about anything and everything to "sway" the people yet the left (in most cases) try to stay on top of hearsay and blog about the facts. I am pleasantly surprised I haven't received a lot of anger (thus far, at least) and am happy to say that this blog post, while some can say that I am stooping to the lows of the right, when a lefty blogger does it, conversation and constructive criticism happens and I like that. I would much rather blog about events that can strike up conversation instead of receive a ton of comments that all say "Yes, I agree." and that's the end of it.

    I am scared about backfiring political-wise, however and I think Obama has enough sense not to comment on something like this, if it were even brought up to him to begin with. It could hurt his campaign, but hell, how much has happened so far that have been said could kill his campaign? Yet he still continues forward, fighting for the people and not using them as pawns in some sick game he has up his sleeve, which I believe is what McCain is doing. McCain couldn't even give Obama and his voters the time they deserved to celebrate before breaking news on his new veep and that is a bit disappointing, to say the least.
  • i used to like McCain - at least, the McCain who was a crazy upstart maverick, the one who was beaten in the 2000 primaries by the Rove/Bush machine, the one who went on Jon Stewart and seemed like a decent sort, that McCain. but that McCain was the one who chose to get all Roved-up himself as soon as he had the chance, which is to be expected, but no less sickening. and his choice of VP and his timing could not have been more Rovian, a blatant move to pander to the undecideds and disaffected Clintonistas, no matter how ridiculous it is to put someone with no qualifications for the job of President, one heartbeat away from it.

    and while i considered the notion that dragging her daughter into this was out of line, i dismissed it with the same logic you did, that when Ma Palin accepted the nomination, she effectively sacrificed any expectation of privacy for all of her children. though i feel sympathy for Bristol, who at the very minimum has just been called "fat" by a bunch of bloggers.

    in any case, thanks for all the work you did on this and for your willingness to put yourself out there. the small but vocal group of people who have made a stand on this issue are for sure coming under some fire, many have backed down, thank you for not being among them. "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead
  • and look, Obama handled it all just perfectly http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080901/pl_nm/usa_p...
  • You have missed two essential issues.
    WHY did she have the amniocentesis at 4 months, if there is no prenatal concern or consideration for abortion. Usually these rigid Anti-abortionists, Anti-contraceptionists do not wish to know or care if all is going to be OK in term. "Whatever happen, happens."

    And, I propose
    it is either the father (he looks redneck enough to be fiddlin' with his daughter) or the half brother. (Now, why exactly has he NOT been shipped out to Iraq since enlisiting Sept 11, 2007. They sure as hell need cannon fodder over there. Could it be, he was allowed to stay for the birth of his baby?
  • Beat goes on
    More than likely there may have been an untrasound performed on or before three months that may have shown potential complications. It would be normal, then, to actually follow up with amnio. Ultrasounds are pretty routine in the early months of any pregnancy.
  • Skeptic
    Now, we discover that Bristol will be home schooled this year. If this teenager isn't the mother of Baby Trig, she's being used as a live in nanny so Mom can persue her career.
  • wow wow wow. i hadn't heard ANY of this. a friend (wordwebbing.com) passed this on. i have to admit - the "evidence" in pictures and facts you cite is compelling! wow. add this to my growing list of how angry this whole thing is making me. harumph.
  • carly jean
    In Palin's first two public appearances, Bristol was on the bus with the napping baby.

    You know, if this story is true, it is tantamount to child abuse. If this is true, the Palins have forced this child into a life of lies and deceit. If this is true, they are separating this girl from any social contact and the possible support of her friends.

    I guess the bottom line, for me, is, if this is true, Palin should not only be removed from the presidential ticket, she should be removed from office. Period.
  • If this is true, did they really think it wouldn't come out? After Edwards? Are you kidding me?

    At best, she made a very risky call while carrying her baby. So much could have gone wrong. At worst, she's sacrificed her daughter as a political move. Either way, I don't want her anywhere near the White House. With McCain as a running mate, there's a high degree of possibility that she'll have to take office. That scares me.

    What a mess.
  • Rethuglican
    I totally agree with this post. Pregnant women place their babies in significant danger if they work while pregnant. I think we can all agree that this is yet another reason women should not be allowed to take certain jobs that men, who will not get pregnant, can do. After all, why should any company hire a woman who will take several months off to safely deliver their baby.

    Thank you feminist blog, you have shown me the way to equal rights for women, the right to not work when they may put their baby in danger and the right of companies not to hire such a risk.

    PS: My co-worker worked until the day before she had her baby and was working from home the day after her baby was born. The baby was healthy and she is only taking 3 months off work in the office because it's a free paid vacation for her.

    Oh, and I thought it was the Republicans who were the ones who made personal attacks against people instead of debating the issues. Please continue the tradition of impotent liberal frothing on the internet while Obama sinks further and further in the polls.
  • It's not about working while pregnant. It's about being irresponsible while touting "family values" and "respect for life".

    If she respected her son's life so much, then why was she behaving in such a way knowing that her pregnancy was high risk? Her pregnancy- if it was - was risky because of her son's condition (which she said she knew about at 4 months) and because of her advanced maternal age (that's a medical term, you might want to look that up). She need not stop working, but flying here and there while leaking amniotic fluid a month early was reckless.
  • You know, I am really sick to death of people flogging this whole reproduction thing. It's great to have ideals about what women and men can and cannot do, but the REALITY is something very different. I'm not saying women need to be banished from working because they're the ones having the babies, I'm saying it's a fact of life that bearing a baby is not the same for a woman as it is a man. It's BIOLOGY not POLITICS.

    My point is her bad judgment calls...either way, she made bad decisions. And if she's seven months pregnant in that photo, I'm a virgin.
  • ha ha ha. netta is funny.
  • A
    My first pregnancy I leaked amniotic fluid the last 4 weeks of the pregnancy. My doctor was not worried about it, because it was a small leak, and would be more worried about delivering a premature baby with premature lungs than the infection which can be treated better. I had a healthy pregnancy otherwise, exercised and worked until the day I delivered. My second pregnancy I didn't show until I was 7 months along, even appearing in a bridesmaid dress at 5 months along. I had c-sections for both babies and lost more weight than I gained after the births. With my second child I was out shopping the day after I got out of the hospital with little to no pain. That was only four days after giving birth.

    My mom had six kids, and never showed with any of them until the last one. She never gained anything more than 12 pounds with the first five kids, and people disbelieved her about being pregnant at all.

    From that picture it looks like Bristol may be a little thick in the belly, but nothing that you don't see on a normal teenager. Until something concrete comes out of this story, it is a total fiction!
  • I commend you for going there. There is so much I was to say about this! Firstly, I worked up until I had my son (coincidentally my day off), and did not return to work until 6 weeks later; I could not even drive for a week or so. Second, if they are so anti-abortion, why even find out of anything is wrong with the baby? To prepare, possibly, but I agree - everyone says it was her CHOICE to birth a baby with special needs. It obviously wasn't a choice. I think this was a very interesting post, and I will definitely have to keep an eye on it.
  • susan
    1) Michael Moore speaks for Michael Moore. Period. 2) Our daughter has had over a dozen public high school girls in her math classes drop out at 6-7 months. 3) Our daughter looked at these photos and said there is no doubt the girl is pregnant. 4) Palin makes sure someone stands in front of her so as no photo at that time can be taken--the reverse of what sitcoms do when not writing a pregnancy into a script..5) The one photo of Palin at 7 months does NOT show a pregnant woman. 6) having her a heartbeat from the American presidency gives me the creeps 7) she does this to Bristol---allowing NO CHOICE--creates nightmares about what she would do to all other women of childbearing years in America 8) she needs to resign from being governor now and certainly must withdraw from V.P. 9) A liar is a liar whether independent/democratic or republican 10) My mother and father had 17 children and not once did they force us to have a baby for mommy dearest 11) what a let-down to all in America who care about truth and honesty and who really do care about children 12) some talk a good talk but the real talk is with mom and daughter and educating daughter on methods of birth control.12) not teaching sex education makes the situation worse..........13)Last: this Palin family needs therapy now---it is a crime to abuse children and what they have done to Bristol is criminal
  • I'm not going to comment on whether or not Trig is her son or grandson except to say it's a little iffy. Let's, for now, assume that he is her son.

    Hers was a high risk pregnancy, both because of Trig's illness and her age. What was she thinking when she continued to work all those hours, fly back and forth, run in the "hills" and other activities that put her child more at risk? She believes he has a right to life, then why wasn't she busy making sure her son had the very best start she could give him? What does it say of her "family values" when she risks the life of her unborn child so that she can give a political speech?

    Moving on to post-partum.

    Trig was premature with a genetic defect, which means that most hospitals would have kept him in the NICU (she didn't have him in a hospital equipped with a NICU, but we'll ignore that ugly fact). His regular stay would have been at least 48 hours, but how much longer would he have stayed because of his condition? Why wasn't she in the hospital with him? What kind of mother can leave her sick infant and go back to work? Is that dedication or recklessness?

    If Trig wasn't kept for more than two days, what kind of care was he getting? Who was caring for him? Does he have a nurse? I have a friend with a Downs baby who is on the higher end of the spectrum, but he still needs an extra amount of care. Was Gov. Palin so non-chalant about her son's health that she could just leave him and head on back to work full-time. If so, what does that say about her "family values"?

    Someone surmised that perhaps Gov. Palin was hoping that Trig wouldn't make it past birth and that's why she was so reckless. It's a valid theory, I think.

    Now, we'll guess that perhaps Trig belongs to Bristol. I have no problem with Bristol and wish her the best. However, this would explain why Gov. Palin was able to high-tail it back to work and why she didn't seem at all concerned about the welfare of this child. Also, as the governor, Palin would have the resources to hide her daughter's pregnancy as well as take ownership of her daughter's son- and few would have been the wiser. She's a powerful woman in her home state, no doubt many people would have come to her aid in this matter. I imagine that a small hospital in an Alaskan village would provide a better cover for her story than a larger hospital in the "lower 48" or even in a larger Alaskan city. I'm sure that the medical staff in Wasilla would be more than willing to keep this secret.

    If Gov. Palin did adopt her grandson, that's admirable to a certain degree. However, her stance against contraception, sex education, and abortion tells us that she knows those policies fail horrendously and that she's a pandering hypocrite. Unless Trig is her son- in which case she's a selfish and irresponsible.
  • carly jean
    A few quick points to note.

    First, the bottom picture you have of the family was taken last summer, not at a point in the pregnancy when it would have shown on either woman. Note that this is Alaska, and there is no snow on the mountains. This baby was carried and delivered during the fall/winter/spring so there would have been at least some snow evident. Plus, look at the youngest daughter in the outdoor pic and then the more recent indoor pic. You can see that she's older. I don't think that's a baby bump on Bristol in the outdoor pic, which could mean that she's just naturally a little poochy.

    BUT, something very interesting struck me tonight. Palin met McCain for the first time during the National Governors Association meeting, which occured Feb 20 - 25, 2008. Palin announced to staff and the papers that she was pregnant on March 6th, and no one could believe it.

    On Feb 8th, Bristol Palin was in a car accident (minor) and it raises the question of why this teenager, who was out of school because of mono, was out driving alone. The driver of the car she struck said, when asked recently, that he didn't notice that she was pregnant, but also said that with the police there and it being winter in Alaska and everyone was in heavy coats, he couldn't say she wasn't pregnant.

    It just leads one to wonder. If it was Bristol who was pregnant (and we do not know that) perhaps the Palin family wasn't intending to keep the child, but rather put him up for adoption after his birth, allowing Bristol to return to school after her "mono" was cured. Then, Sarah meets McCain and gets a hint that she's being considered for VP (remember, there was a "Draft Palin" campaign underway by a student in Colorado) and the family decided to change course, say the baby was Sarah's and rolled out the announcement less than 2 weeks later.

    I've read that the National Enquirer is investigating this whole story. No, they are not a "news" magazine, but they were the ones who first reported on John Edwards' affair.

    We'll just have to see how this story develops, but there's also a part of me who thinks this is a Rovian creation to discredit the Dems and make them/us look like a bunch of vultures, questioning a woman who gave birth to a special needs child.
  • I'd have a lot more respect for her if she would just be honest about the baby thing. I'd rather know that Trig is actually her grandchild and was born out of wedlock than have such an elaborate charade from someone aspiring to, arguably, the second most powerful office in the country.
  • Bill Smith
    September 1, 2008. A neighbor who has been watching FOXTV, just called - FOX is reporting Bristol Palin is pregnant and will marry :soon:.
  • Janet
    I just heard on the news that Bristol is pregnant. I would say this is pregnancy # 2 from looking at pictures of a post-pregnancy Sarah and Bristol and baby http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=117egpk&s=4 . Click and paste and see for yourself. There's also a photo on internet of Sarah when she was 7 months pregnant with another child and she looks it! Here it is http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20080831/cap...
    As far as giving Sarah a choice, Palin is on record during her Gubernatorial run that she would be "against abortion even if my daughter were raped'! So there you have it. No choice, no matter the reason.
  • Janet, that is some excellent picture-finding. that's extremely compelling. and now poor Bristol is pregnant *again*, does Mom realize this is a really bad thing? two babies by age 18? that's a simply horrible thing to inflict on your kids by denying them access to birth control and sex education. I'm not going to say her life is "ruined" but it's certainly indicative of the terrible damage that this mindset can do.
  • cincy
    I doubt B is pregnant now. Cover-up of a cover-up.
  • Joel_101
    Nothing wierd here........

    Alaskan's do not seem to have made a big deal out of this until others on the internet did the last few days.

    I've researched over 500 sites on this topic to conclude that anything is possible... - innocent until proven guilty will remain my thoughts on this topic.

    I find all of this redirection, misdirection, propaganda and slandering to be very very distasteful - and some of us wonder why a large amount of people do not want anything to do with politics?
  • jason
    the palin family needs to be exposed for this hypocrisy.
    what a disgrace she is with all her lies. and mccain should be removed as the GOp nominee before it is tooo late and they need to nomintae romney or Huckabee for president before mccain makes another bad choice.
    John mccain should lose the nomination over this.
    The GOp is a ****ing hypocritical disgrace
  • Joel_101
    I don't believe in stealing, and I raised my children with my belief. They still got caught stealing. AM I a hypocrite?

    If I say I support the right to life but recognize that others support the right to choice – AM I a hypocrite?

    It is my opinion that all humans are hypocrites at least once in their lives. The starving person who doesn’t believe in stealing, but does to feed their family is an example.

    Just because someone is hypocritical, doesn’t necessarily make them wrong or bad.

    In Sarah’s case, I don’t see anything hypocritical about her 17 year old daughter being pregnant. I also do not see where she has lied about anything – can you please show me where?

    As for Romney and Huckabee – I hope McCain appoints them where they can do the most good with their skills. Both have some awesome ideas.
  • You are wrong
    http://www.stoptheaclu.com/wp-content/uploads/2...

    Picture taken in the Spring showing Sarah Palin clearly pregnant. Feel free to eat your words anytime.
  • Joel_101
    Pictures and video on the internet are very unreliable unless the source is very credible.

    However, I have heard statements by many, including the first lady, that confirms that she was pregnant - in other words these people saw her etc... during that time period.
  • Strange looking back now to how it all worked out.
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