Matthew Yglesias » Sarah Palin, Feminist

Aug 30th, 2008 at 3:28 pm

Sarah Palin, Feminist

All the women I know think it’s hilarious to express your political disagreements with female legislators by using the term “bitch” and mocking their physical appearance:

At least we see why McCain likes her so much.

Comments
43

Filed under: Feminism, Palin,

43 Responses to “Sarah Palin, Feminist”

kid bitzer Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 4:22 pm
yeah, of course palin not the one doing the bitching and mocking.

but.

the *best* you can say about this–the very *best*–is that it shows that she lacks the maturity and sense of ease to step in and slap the guy down.

if she didn’t like him calling senator green a bitch, all she had to do was say: “stop right there; that’s over the line. you can criticize her, but i won’t have you talk that way when you’re talking with me.”

it’s something that self-assured politicians know how to do. it’s something that greater experience in dealing with the public might have taught her.

so what should we say about the giggles?
maybe it shows that she thinks it’s great to mock women’s appearance, call them ‘bitches’, and call them ‘cancers’, when in fact they are cancer-survivors.
but at the very least it shows this: she had a moderately awkward social task to do: call out someone who had stepped over a well-known line. and instead she giggled.
kid bitzer Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 4:26 pm
…and of course for bonus points, it may be worth pointing out that lyda green is a survivor of breast cancer.

yeah, her ability to stick up for women and forcefully express her solidarity with women’s issues is overwhelming.
dB Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
Ugh, but her husband is dishy! Mark Halperin realizes this, Matt. Why can’t you? So, so biased.
Grumpy Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
In their defense, Sen. Lyda Green is very ugly. If that kind of thing is important to you.

Also, Bob & Mark are assholes. On the air, anyway.

Third, and most important: Bob & Mark have Palin & McCain scheduled as guests on their radio show Monday morning.
MW Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 5:09 pm
The Democratic party should make McCain’s erratic decision-making the major story here. He’s not so much principled as he is unhinged and unpredictable. If this becomes the theme, then every time Palin speaks it reflects back directly to the McCain’s achilles heal (which everyone on both sides of the aisle appreciate already).
Neil the Ethical Werewolf Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 5:16 pm
Yeah, this clip kind of underdelivered. “Hear Sarah Palin giggle as radio hosts mock a cancer-surviving legislator as a ‘bitch’ and a ‘cancer’ ” would’ve sold it right, though.
Buzz79 Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
It seems that Lyda Green returns the disrespect - . “She’s not prepared to be governor. How can she be prepared to be vice president or president?”
Ian Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 5:23 pm
Matt, clearly you and others on the left are going to try to rip Sarah Palin to shreds, but hiding behind “all the women I know” in order to kick her is wimpish to say the least.
Harvey Lobster Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
Amateur hour. Beyond belief. McCain has lost it. Seriously, McCainites and PUMAs, have you listened to this? Remember that Lyda Green is a *Republican*, the *President of the Alaska Senate*, a *Cancer Survivor* and a *70 year old grandmother*.

Do you, Republicans, want to have vice-president or president Palin pulling this sort of thing on, say, Olympia Snowe? Kay Bailey Hutchinson?

Let’s set aside the politics of this - I have no idea whether the Obama campaign will use this or not, although just as a viral clip I would think it can do some damage. Are you ready to have a (vice)president with this little self-control?
Freedom Fry Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
I don’t really listen to talk radio but it seems kind of unprofessional to sit there gossiping and laughing about a colleague. It’s one thing to talk about someone behind their back but on a radio show? They remind me of the popular kids in high school gossiping and giggling about the unfortunate looking but smart girl who then goes on to become governor of the state leaving them to live miserable lives in their podunk town.
vew Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 8:20 pm
A real Christian woman would not allow another person to say such words about another person, man or woman. And the giggles are what a woman does when she can’t handle the situation and doesn’t know how to respond. Not the mark of a mature political figure. Poor thing, she’s in over her head. So you’ll be hearing a lot more giggles from her.
rickhavoc Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 8:59 pm
Shades of “don’t kill me.”
Richard Steven Hack Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 9:07 pm
That’s nice, Matt. Now show us exactly how this is going to influence the US electorate in general, most of whom will never see or hear this, and the rest probably won’t care that much.

You keep picking on irrelevancies as if they mean something in the Big Picture. Unless the Democrats can get their act together and make use of stuff like this nationwide, it’s meaningless.

Meanwhile, the Hillary freaks are going “we told you so - Obama should have picked Hillary for VP!”

Ha! Say the Online Hillary Supporters
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/08/29/ha_say_the_online_hillary_supp.html
pk Says:
August 30th, 2008 at 11:57 pm
Never mind that she didn’t shut them down–she says, “We’d be honored to have you guys.”
Dan Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 1:27 am
What an avalanche of desperate outrage the Palin bashers are spewing this weekend.

Hell yeah, Palin came off terrible in this clip. And the same can be said of her critics who have stooped to all kinds of ill-considered cheap shots.

Let’s see. Throughout Friday, the Obama surrogates, using talking points issued by the Obama campaign, referred to Palin — a sitting governor — merely as “the former mayor of a town of 9,000″ when the counterpart reference to Obama (”former community organizer”) would have automatically drawn quick rebuke (and perhaps charges of racism, to boot).

The critics mocked the names of Palin’s kids (but remember: don’t make any jokes about the name Barack Obama), and Andrew Sullivan (he of the grand self-righteousness and the supposed great soul) peddled the petty and incorrect claim that Palin had named her daughters after witches.

The critics have denigrated her lifestyle as absurd. (Um, what happened to that crucial liberal principle, respect for diversity? I mean, Obama’s big speech — you know, the BIG SPEECH, with its calls for respect and unity — was only a few days ago.) Does liberal tolerance extend only to the idiosyncracies and particular ethnic/cultural mosaic of the grand blue-state cities? If so, doesn’t that mean the 2008 model of American liberalism amounts to a mere caste system, with left-wing Puritans pointing an accusatory finger at anyone whose lifestyle is at broad variance from their own, starting with Alaskans and their unconventional ways? Hawaiians, of course, should be shielded from liberal mockery. At least for the next eight years.
Asher Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 2:12 am
I mean, those sound more like nervous giggles to me, or “what the fuck am I doing on this show” giggles.
Jeffrey Davis Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 3:23 am
Palin’s giggling while some vicious sycophants of Alaska talk radio slag somebody emphasizes the connection between McCain and Palin: McCain has survived the last 8 years making bullying remarks on talk shows.
Julian Elson Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 3:30 am
Well, when people say sufficiently stupid and offensive things, it can be so stunning that it’s hard to actually maintain coherent thought. Laughing certainly isn’t the most flattering reaction she could have had to that crap, but I don’t know if it really indicates that she actually found it funny or agreed with it. That’s not to say I know she doesn’t. The one part that came off as really bad was the “we’d be honored to have you” part at the end. She wasn’t active enough during the rest for me to be comfortable making a judgment.

Of course, we also know she holds a variety of antifeminist positions like opposition to abortion rights, but this particular clip is rather sparse on Palin herself.

Then again, perhaps sparse information about which to appraise Palin herself is one of the big issues about her in the first place.
Harvey Lobster Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 6:48 am
Hell yeah, Palin came off terrible in this clip. And the same can be said of her critics who have stooped to all kinds of ill-considered cheap shots.

Her critics - none of whom, obviously, actually represent the political opposition; you won’t find Obama or Biden giggle on talk radio while someone calls *her* a bitch or a cancer - also aren’t running for president.

Your understanding of “liberal diversity” seems to equate to “embracing public servants who laugh at, and are ‘honored’ by, people who personally mock and denigrate important and powerful colleagues.”

So, right back at you: does this clip show us someone who is prepared to be president in a few months? Is this the way you want your president handing *your fellow Republicans*?

Well, when people say sufficiently stupid and offensive things, it can be so stunning that it’s hard to actually maintain coherent thought. Laughing certainly isn’t the most flattering reaction she could have had to that crap,

Of course you or I might have this reaction - especially, say, if a boss said something incredibly offensive to us. But this is the governor of Alaska, talking to the media about a fellow Republican. Maybe the clip shows that she agrees with these people — or maybe it shows someone who is so intimidated and overwhelmed by talking to the media that she can’t assert herself. It’s ok if you or I can’t handle talking to the media; that’s one of many reasons why we’re not running for high office. It’s not so good for a governor. Perhaps - just perhaps - it’s even more of a problem for a potential *president* to be unable to muster a response in this circumstance.

Pick one - either she’s nasty or she’s weak. Republicans and PUMAs - which one makes her qualified to be president?
Dan Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 9:07 am
The YouTube video is no longer available… Can someone post either a transcript/description of what was in it, or an alternate link somewhere?

Thanks!
55 Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 11:33 am
“I mean, those sound more like nervous giggles to me, or “what the fuck am I doing on this show” giggles.”

Is this supposed to be a defense of her? The person who might be president got nervous on a talk radio show???
55 Says:
August 31st, 2008 at 11:33 am
Dan- the video is still working for me…
central squared Says:
September 1st, 2008 at 9:16 am
Seems more like nervous giggles to me, showing signs of political and emotional immaturity. This one is a little weak. There are plenty of bigger fish to fry both on the McCain side of the VP pick and Palin’s other scandals/beliefs eg creationism, abuse of power, inexperience, McCain’s decision making ability…
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Sarah Palin, Feminist

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