Politics | 01/02/2009 8:00 am

Sarah Palin Fights 'High School Dropout Daughter'

By The Staff at wowOwow.com

Sarah Palin’s got daughter Bristol’s back!

Amid reports that Bristol’s given birth to her son, Tripp, came mention that Bristol and her fiancé, Levi Johnston, are "high-school dropouts." Well, Palin doesn’t like it one bit and spent the end of 2008 — a year that was remarkably good to her — calling the press to clear her kid’s name. Referring to Bristol and Levi as high-school dropouts, said Palin in a phone message to People magazine, "harms Bristol’s reputation and Levi’s reputation and their chances for good work opportunities." The governor also took time to defend Bristol and Levi’s respective work ethics: "You need to know that both Levi and Bristol are working their butts off to parent and going to school and working at the same time … They are certainly not high-school dropouts."

Well, to be fair, it is a perfectly reasonable assessment, especially considering Bristol did leave high school and is working toward her GED, while Johnston himself told the press last October that he left school to become an electrical apprentice. Or something. So it’s only natural that the press, which has an apparently insatiable appetite for the Palin brood, would describe these teens as "high-school dropouts." Of course, it is a bit pejorative and we can understand why Palin would parse the words to protect her family’s sterling image.

160 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Agreed.

By f p on 01/02/2009 11:15 am

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Sarah is doing what any mom would do and defend her children. If you read more than the tabloids (try Anchorage papers) Bristol is going back to school next week to finish the (one) credit hour she has left to earn her diploma. Officially she is still a “student” who has been taking her exams online while at home. Same as a sick or home schooled student would. Many kids I know ( and I work with highschool age kids daily) spend their senior year taking fluff anyway to compete the semesters required to walk with their class. When she completes the class work she will have graduated and receive a diploma and not be considered a “drop out”. Levi…on the other hand is 19 and not eligible to go back to traditional highshcool and is completing his GED on line while he is working as a hopeful apprentice electrician to have a family wage earning job for his new family. I applaud BOTH these kids not for having a child at this age but at least accepting the consequences of their actions and doing what they can to give it both a mother and a father. I would be as proud as Sarah if they were mine. As a mother of a 24 year old…..I consider myself lucky rather than superior mother than she!

By S.J. Morgan on 01/02/2009 10:36 am

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Thanks S.J. Well said. The truth is out. Facts are facts. Have a Happy New Year! Namaste.

By T P on 01/02/2009 11:13 am

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SJ “Many kids I know ( and I work with highschool age kids daily) spend their senior year taking fluff anyway to compete the semesters required to walk with their class.” spend their senior year taking fluff anyway to compete the semesters required to walk with their class.” Thankfully even with my UCLA, UCSF, Stanford connection and having been a very active host mother of exchange students, and our home always full of my son’s friends…I don’t know any kids that have been less than TOTALLY responsible all the way through, INTENT on performance, top grades, and getting into great colleges, and still with time for sports, community and other activities and even jobs. It’s called r-e-s-p-o-n-s-i-b-i-l-i-t-y. But obviously with Alaska having the highest HS drop out rate in the country….that isn’t a priority/value high on their list.

By Ann Coulter Crazy, Souless, Evil B*tch on 01/03/2009 7:27 pm

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Carmel It is very different now. Many students finish their senior year on line, and hold down jobs. Many take on line course during summer to graduate earlier or get credits out of the way so that they only have to attend one or two classes per day, so they can work, or hang out even. Some are starting some basic college courses at community colleges while they are finishing their high school. On line is getting bigger and bigger. I don’t like it so much because you can’t always know how much the kid is really learning. Many of my son’s friends that are juniors start at 7am and are out by 11am. They just work it that way. It has changed tremendously. Many students follow it the way our kids did, but there are many who opt out and do it on line. The schools let it happen because it reduces crowding in the class room.

By Frannie Em on 01/05/2009 2:05 am

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Every person I’ve ever known who took their GED to get their H.S. diploma was a high school drop out. Yes, it sounds bad, but it’s a fact.

By DeBúrca obj on 01/02/2009 11:01 am

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DeBurca Not always now. They take many courses on line and then keep taking the test until the pass it, and either go on to community college or work. Grades are so inflated in California schools, that some students have told me that they don’t go to class, get the homework off of the teachers website, do it, go early turn it in and leave. They still get either good or passing grades. It is very different now. Too lax in my opinion, but if parents don’t do something, it is just going to get worse. There continue to be the same requirements to fulfill, but the student has more choice of how they want to do it. In ski tourist towns in CA (I am not sure if they do it anymore) they give/gave the student the option of whether or not they want to take a summer or winter semester off. Many students worked at the ski resorts, so they took that time as vacation, and went to summer semester. I don’t care whether they are drop outs or not. It doesn’t give or take anything away from PE Obama’s coming term in office. It is a mute point to me, and none of my business. I feel the same way about the Obama’s and the choices they make for their children. Public school or private school? That is their business.

By Frannie Em on 01/05/2009 2:15 am

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I didn’t say anything about this having anything to do with Obama, nor that I cared that they are drop outs. I think the whole point in this article was that Palin was disputing the fact that they have dropped out. My point, along with most others, was they did.

By DeBúrca obj on 01/05/2009 10:15 am

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DeBurca I don’t know whether they did or didn’t drop out. My comment has more to do with what is happening in the education system right now. Brooklyn Gal, Susan B and I were having conversations about the state of education on another thread, and since I continue to have one child at home in hi school, and marvel at how much has changed, commented as such. They may not be in the classroom, but may have made arrangements to finish in others ways. I don’t know. It could look like one thing, and be another, or they dropped out. I don’t know.

By Frannie Em on 01/05/2009 11:48 am

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Sarah never surprises me. Does anyone expect anything diffrent from her?

By Joan Brown on 01/02/2009 11:05 am

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Just once…..Just once I would love to read someone defend Sarah Palin when she is criticized, by acknowledging the legitimacy of the criticism. Her teenage daughter not only had sex but had unprotected sex that resulted in a pregnancy. That’s a fact. But instead the argument is “So what, lots of girls do that…. My daughter did that… so what at least she kept the baby, etc. etc.” Her son gets arrested and is involved in drugs. “So what, lots of kids do drugs….He enlisted in the Armed Forces so that is to be respected….We can’t expect her to have control over her teens.” Will I ever read from one of her supporters that her children have made mistakes, actions that will impact on their lives now and in the future? Or will the script continue to be a steady stream of “Yeah but…..” I don’t like or respect Sarah Palin, I’m honest about it. So if someone wanted to attack me for that, bring it on. But when I or other bloggers bring up legitimate issues (verifiable) issues about her, the argument shouldn’t be to immediate defend her. The first action as an adult should be to acknowledge and then provide your opinion and take on the matter. But there I go again judging and attempting to control others, right. :-)

By Belinda Joy on 01/02/2009 11:59 am

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Well said, Belinda. I believe that Palin’s eldest son enlisted in the military because he was given that option by the judge as an alternative to going to jail. It was not a noble choice to serve his country. It is interesting the Sarah Palin chose to call People magazine to discuss her daughter rather than the reverse. Her objective seems to be staying in the news and she doesn’t care if she has to use her children to do it.

By Maurine H on 01/02/2009 12:14 pm

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You believe it so it must be true? Sarah called People magazine AFTER they ran the story. She is not solicitating news only trying to correct the errors!

By S.J. Morgan on 01/02/2009 12:17 pm

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And even in ‘correcting errors’ she continues to reveal herself as the exceedingly low class [that’s being generous] individual that she is: “”You need to know that both Levi and Bristol are working their BUTTS off to parent and going to school and working at the same time.” Many people are parents, and work, and go to school….so what? The difference is they aren’t Govenors using such foul language in PUBLIC.

By Ann Coulter Crazy, Souless, Evil B*tch on 01/03/2009 7:53 pm

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Dear Carmel….I’ve gotten over my “flabbergasted” period and moved on to being simply appalled…..most of the time….You know, our daily dose of disquietude…..There are a lot of phrases like hers’ that abound in my neighborhood….just ask Diana what life in the boondocks of the mind sounds like…..Maybe “working their butts off” is an encouraging word……sort of an Alaskan term of endearment……Sadly enough, we can’t “legislate” class or taste or compassion or responsibility or generosity or much of anything, really…… but, Lordy, where is Henry Higgins now that SP needs him? “The oil, in all, stays mainly in our soil….”

By georgia fatwood on 01/05/2009 2:06 pm