On June 8, Letterman decided to make multiple references to Sarah Palin's publicized recent trip to New York City during his program, including monologue jokes in extremely bad taste regarding her daugher(s) and certain New York celebrity men with notorious sex lives (baseball player Alex Rodriguez and former Governor Eliot Spitzer). In particular, in reference to Palin's attending a Yankee baseball game, Letterman said, "One awkward moment for Sarah Palin at the Yankee game, during the seventh inning, her daughter was knocked up by Alex Rodriguez."
This is an obvious reference to 18-year-old Bristol Palin, whom had gotten pregnant through a relationship with then boyfriend Levi Johnston and was pregnant for the duration of the general election campaign; giving birth to her first son, Tripp, just before year end. More recently, Bristol Palin has gone around on the lecture circuit, preaching the virtues of abstinence education.
Clearly Letterman wasn't aware of the fact that the Palins have two other daughters (14-year-old Willow and Piper, whom is in elementary school). It was Willow, not Bristol, whom attended the game with her mother.
Sarah Palin, knowing exactly what Letterman meant, decided to politically exploit Letterman's mistake and to smear him in the process, giving the following histrionic response on Facebook:
Concerning Letterman's comments about my young daughter ...'Laughter incited by sexually-perverted comments made by a 62-year-old male celebrity aimed at a 14-year-old girl is not only disgusting, but it reminds us... that acceptance of inappropriate sexual comments about an underage girl...contributes to the atrociously high rate of sexual exploitation of minors by older men who use and abuse others.Well, you aren't going to hear Fox News, with its "slobbering love affair with all things Sarah Palin", say this or any of the other conservative bloggers, but I will. First of all, Ms. Palin, whether or not it's fair, family members do get unasked-for publicity--it comes with the territory; Jimmy Carter had an embarrassing brother, Ronald Reagan's younger children were a handful, etc. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. Second, you largely got a pass on the question of your daughter Bristol by social conservatives whom have applauded your decision not to have aborted your handicapped child, Trig. However, there are a number of social conservatives whom think that perhaps the reason Bristol got pregnant in the first place had a lot to do with a mother more concerned with her own political ambitions than giving her children the necessary attention and guidance they needed. (I don't necessarily agree with this assessment; I'm simply repeating what other people have said. I'm well aware teenagers have minds and wills of their own, often rebel against authority and will make their own mistakes.) You gave a lame joke far more attention than it would ever have received on its own; I think if you had simply ignored it, you would have stood the higher ground and benefited from it.
Instead, you overreact by explicitly charging a comedian, whom has made a living for over 25 years poking fun at celebrities and politicians, with being a sexual pervert. David Letterman subsequently has made his own response, but it's really unnecessary, because I already knew the case: Bristol's teenage pregnancy was well-known by the general public, and for the joke to work, it assumed the audience would infer Sarah Palin's more widely known, sexually active daughter whom has been pregnant before--Bristol. Letterman didn't say "Willow"; he simply said "Palin's daughter" and let the audience fill in the blank. It really didn't have anything to do with the specific facts of the situation--just the general knowledge that Palin attended a game with her daughter. I still don't think it's funny, but it was not malicious.
I know some people will applaud Sarah Palin for fighting fire with fire and/or standing up for her daughter. But the joke was really aimed more at Rodriguez than at Bristol Palin, and a politician really has to learn how not to sweat the small stuff. This incident, in my view, simply lends credibility to last year's rumors of Sarah Palin's diva-like behavior and temper tantrums behind the scenes. You can't, especially if you're a potential candidate for higher office, react to each and every comedian's tasteless jokes; not only is there an endless supply of mediocre comics, but overreacting like this is like bleeding in shark-infested waters.
David Letterman stopped short of which I believe is an overdue apology, but he did extend the Palins an invitation to his show. The Palins have refused, suggesting his only motivation is ratings. My personal belief is that Letterman's intentions were serious and honorable; he probably wanted to apologize in person. The fact is that McCain, her running mate, and others have repeatedly made appearances on the late night talk shows, and I don't think it's a smart move to turn down nationwide publicity, especially if you have national aspirations. Sarah Palin benefits from good ratings as much as Letterman would, so I'm not quite sure why she's cutting off her nose to spite her face. I think she was really out to kill Letterman's career and reputation. That's not going to happen; it's not the first time he's made a bad joke, and it won't be his last. She's wielding a double-edged sword, and her own political career is ultimately at stake.
Carrie Prejean Fired as Miss California USA
The Miss USA runner up, famous for her politely stated affirmation of traditional marriage in response to a gay activist judge's question which ignited a political firestorm in the aftermath of controversial Proposition 8, which reinstated the traditional definition of marriage to the California constitution.
I really don't want to spend a lot of time talking about a banished beauty queen (despite Fox News' obsession with her); I was amused by an HR-related joke I heard about whether or not she had served as Miss California long enough to be fully vested in her pageant-paid breast enhancements or had to return them. I seriously doubt the official story that Carrie Prejean was violating her contractual obligations after a public reprieve from Donald Trump just a few weeks back; Donald Trump's allegation of Prejean's poor people skills with pageant personnel is a fairly typical smear leveled at the victim of almost any politically motivated firing.
This is pure speculation. I think Trump wanted to fire Prejean from the get-go, because the publicity wasn't good for his pageant business. But the last thing he wanted to do was make it look like he was firing her for her inconvenient views in support of traditional marriage, and he didn't want to set a precedent that activists could unduly influence pageant decisions. So he publicly gives her a reprieve, but he's just biding his time, waiting for media interest to fade away on the issue, and then invents some sham rationalization on her performance to justify her termination. The fact is, any employer, if it wants to get rid of an employee, applying a white-glove treatment to fine-print clauses in an employment agreement, will find a pretext. I just don't believe that Carrie had a death wish; I think this is all about Trump wanting to do things his way, on his timetable. He knows the pictures that surfaced to destroy her were unauthorized and surfaced only after the Proposition 8 controversy exploded by activists determined to destroy Prejean. So he had to reject those grounds for termination and find some grounds for blaming Prejean herself. I seriously doubt Prejean would have no-showed events or something that flagrant with the ink barely dry on her reprieve, and if she really was given a fresh start, I don't understand how she could get herself in trouble so fast.
I'm not too worried about Carrie Prejean's future; most of us wouldn't even know whom she is, except for a gay activist judge running his own agenda, Although I suspect she will be blacklisted by politically correct Hollywood, she should be able to bank on her fame, e.g., a book deal, appearance fees, and does Fox News have a weather girl?
Hate Crime at the Holocaust Museum
An 88-year-old white supremacist, James von Brunn, shot and killed a security guard, Steven Johns at the Holocaust Museum. Ironically it's clear that von Brunn was not motivated by Johns' African-American skin color but because of his connection to the Museum. His anti-Semitic website and (according to police and FBI agents searching his car) an incriminating notebook clearly establish his motives. I do not understand this seething anger towards the beautiful children of God, whom only serve to please Him with the sincerity of their prayers, good deeds and love. This comes merely days after our President rightly reminds the world of the awful truths of the Holocaust, which cannot be denied. The Holocaust Museum is a powerful reminder of what we must never, ever forget. God bless the memory of Steven Johns, a good, righteous man and father, whom died in the protection of others seeking to know the truth; may he rest in peace. We need to give Mr. von Brunn a constitutionally fair and just trial and then may God have mercy on his soul, because I can't find it in my own heart.
On a related note, Fox News host Sheppard Smith was discussing the von Brunn crime and what he regarded a relevant controversial Department of Homeland Security April report, which was released to local authorities discussing possible threats by right-wing extremist groups; a viewer communicated concerns over Smith's comments, leading to the following response:
Smith said, “You know at the time we got this warning from Homeland Security, and at the time, I mean the right went absolutely bonkers. I mean the wording on it. They’ve all come back on it and said our wording should have been better on that, that was a little weird.….They were warning us for a reason, not for something political, social, or anything else except that they see signs that this sort of thing is bubbling up, they saw the signs, and now it has begun.” Smith called the report a warning to us all and said that DHS was right.I'm utterly astonished that Fox News allows such shallow analysis during its business day coverage. There is little doubt that the liberal media, unable to account for vigilante killings, such as Roeder (Dr. Tiller) or von Brunn, without concocting some sort of conspiracy theory, have an agenda of using these tragedies to smear pro-life activists and military veterans, and this agenda, not some FBI clairvoyance, is responsible, using government channels to spread their propaganda and sew fear, uncertainty, and doubt of conservatives, nothing less than a typical act of liberal fascism. I don't mind Sheppard Smith holding a different point of view than myself, but Sheppard Smith should save his polemics for Fox News' prime-time commentary lineup.
