Letter to the Editor 2, 9/4/08

Dear Editor, The Sept. 2 editorial, ‘Palin’s appeal,’ which praised Republican presidential… Dear Editor, The Sept. 2 editorial, ‘Palin’s appeal,’ which praised Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain’s pick of Alaska governor Sarah Palin neglects many key considerations and appears to consider Palin’s positives without any attention to public reaction. Palin’s nomination does not negate the problem that McCain is viewed as possibly too old for the presidency. It highlights it. Palin was unknown to a majority of Americans before she was selected as the presumptive vice presidential nominee. Even Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, when asked on CNN what she thought of the pick, responded with: ‘I don’t know much about her.’ Her credentials don’t stand out. She served as the mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, a city with a population about one-third of Pitt’s student enrollment, for eight years. She also has less than two years experience as governor of Alaska, a state with a little more than half the population of Allegheny County. When asked about her vice presidential prospects in July on CNBC, she replied, ‘I still can’t answer that question until somebody answers for me what is it exactly that the VP does every day?’ If John McCain is elected, Palin will be ‘one heartbeat from the presidency.’ Only 29 percent of voters believe that she is ready, according to a Rassmussen poll. Claiming that Palin appears to be a surrogate for Clinton implies that the sex of a candidate matters more than their stance on issues. Palin opposes abortion, is doubtful about the existence of global warming, favors abstinence-only sex education and favors drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. McCain has also touted Palin as a reformer, looking at the campaign she ran to be governor of Alaska. Unfortunately, she is currently involved in the ‘troopergate’ scandal, where she is accused of firing the Alaskan Commissioner of Public Safety Walt Monegan for not firing her ex-brother-in-law. For a campaign challenged by an unfavorable political climate, McCain chose a widely unknown candidate in an attempt to gain voters who had initially supported Sen. Hillary Clinton. If McCain was truly interested in serving as president (and not winning an election), he would have chosen a different candidate. Mitt Romney or Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota would have been more effective in resolving the age issue, and Kay Bailey Hutchinson, Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, or even Sen. Joe Lieberman would have been more qualified candidates who are more attractive to female voters. Robert Kosarowich College Democrats Webmaster School of Engineering