Can she pull it off is the totally wrong question. That question of working woman vs. neglected family has been asked and resoundedly answered many times over. Has anyone asked Barak Obama that quesiton — after all, he has small children as well. The real question is can she pull off those things the country needs…not can she juggle work and family.

The question here, people, is about sound judgment and character of both John McCain and Sarah Palin. We should leave the family alone as Obama has demanded of his campaign team, but we, the constituency, can’t leave the mother alone because she is playing in the highest stakes game for the #2 (and quite possibly #1) seat of power in this nation. Neither McCain nor Palin are fit to govern this country. They both show an incredible LACK of sound judgment and neither have an admirable character. No matter what the real circumstances (be it cover-up or as the Repubs are presenting this), Sarah Palin does not even put her family first, so how can we assume she’ll put country first? Most teenage pregnancies occur due to motherly neglect. I’m sure Sarah Pallin didn’t mean to neglect her eldest daughter, but she was too busy running Alaska and having a baby of her own at exactly the time she claims her daughter got pregnant (5 months ago, someone gave birth to Trig, right?) It’s completely irresponsible of a new Governor to find herself pregnant her first year in office. I’m sure you can run the state of Alaska in the situation she’s in, but this campaign and office require her 24/7. Now, the new young mom faces one of the toughest times in her young life while her mother campaigns day & Night and then would theoretically take office one month after her daughter’s new baby is born in a place that is 4,245 miles from Alaska. And how about the special needs new baby? Mom is on the campaign trail full-time PLUS for the next ten weeks while this poor child who needs a LOT of love and attention is being held and cared for by her sister (who is getting practice, I suppose.) All of this is under the guise that Sarah Palin is pro-life and pro-family values. This is good character with sound judgment? This person should be our next V.P.? I’m all for working Moms, but working at a reasonable job, not running the U.S. (And yes, she’s just THAT close to the Presidency as we know with Mr. McCain being a senior citizen with health issues.) McCain’s list of character flaws would cause me to keep writing here until Nov. 4 (and I still wouldn’t be done). He showed terrible judgment in choosing Palin which is clearly 100% for political gain and has 0% to do with putting country first and “straight talk”. This is a man you would trust to get us out of a war with Iraq? This is a man you would trust to choose (potentially) three new supreme court justices and many, many more important decisions? We don’t need a maverick like this, people.

This is not a question we asked Obama.

In all fairness, I think we must separate whether the candidate represents one’s positions on the issues from this argument of whether a woman can have a family and a responsible job. I hope the women’s rights movement has addressed the latter issue, and hope the two are argued separately.

I am afraid that her role is being re-defined from “soccer mom” to “super mom” in light of the recent revelation of her daughter’s situation. This role will distract from her experience and qualifications for the position of vice president. My concern is that her family situation will become a banner for “a woman can have it all” and negate the issue of the vice presidency.

I don’t think the “working mom” issue is in dispute as much as the “priority” issue is. Sarah Palin has a family that obviously needs some guidance and focus. With a special-needs infant and a pregnant daughter, and three other children, Sarah Palin has chosen to run for the second-highest office in the country. Obviously, her ambition outweighs her commitment to her children. So, let’s be honest about it. She touts her family values, conservative, anti-choice, abstinence-only education, creationism views, but in microcosm, her own family is an example of the negative side of some of those positions. All of that aside, my biggest question is: if John McCain were to die in office, would Sarah Palin, governor of Alaska for less than two years, be able to take over the management of this country - a country at war, a country whose economy is faltering, a country that needs a strong leadership with real integrity? Sarah Palin, who, in the 1990s was not even a Republican but a member of the Alaska Independence Party, which has at times sought a vote on whether the state should secede from the Union, is certainly unprepared and unable to provide the kind of leadership that my country needs.

Okay.. this is a question that pisses me off. I am not voting for McCain so this isn’t a partisan statemetn. But why the hell isn’t anyone talking about Biden being a bad dad for continueing to do his job as a politician after the death of his wife and child… making him a single parent with a traumatized kid?? Nooo… we’re making him out to be a hero who served the public through crisis. but we’re asking if Palin is a crummy mom for basically doing the same thing?? Although I have yet to hear whether or not her husband is involved or how he handles the home stuff. This entire focus of debate about palin is absolutely flat out sexist. And not because my vote is for a PARENT of either sex to spend hours and hours away from home working on an ambitious career. But my vote is to not make the fact that she’s a mom importatn when we don’t do it with men. obama’s got little kids… McCain has several kids. He didn’t even know his wife was addicted to pain killers he was gone from home so much. But no ones discussing this about the men in this campaign. Argggg… seriously pushed my buttons.