Electronic cuffs planned for dads
'I don't see any safeguards. This presumes men guilty'
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: August 12, 2008
10:28 pm Eastern
© 2008 WorldNetDaily
Illinois has joined a growing contingent of states to adopt a law that will put electronic GPS tracking bracelets on men who have not been convicted of any crime, but might be involved in a messy divorce.
The plan, named in memory of Cindy Bischoff, who was attacked and murdered by a former boyfriend, was signed into law just days ago and is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1.
And while its goal of protecting women and children from out-of-control husbands and fathers is good, it goes too far and violates the civil rights of innocent fathers, according to a lawyer for a group that will challenge it.
"Electronic tagging devices can be appropriate as a condition of parole or probation," said attorney Jeffery M. Leving, who is a nationally known fathers' rights advocate, the author of "Fathers' Rights" and "Divorce Wars" and founder of DadsRights.com. "The Cindy Bischof Law goes far beyond this, placing long-term electronic tags on men who have never been found guilty of any crime."
According to a website set up in memory of Cindy Bischoff, there are about a dozen states, including Washington, Minnesota, Utah, Colorado, Michigan, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Florida and Massachusetts, that now have similar provisions. The campaign's goal is to prevent what happened to Bischof from happening to others.
But Leving said there are major constitutional issues that need to be resolved.
"The law carries a presumption of guilt," Leving said, "without the benefit of a trial, yet the foundation of our entire criminal justice system is based on a defendant being presumed innocent until proven guilty."
He said such restraining orders are not unusual.
A recent article by two leaders of the State Bar of California's Family Law Section said such orders "are increasingly being used in family law cases to help one side jockey for an advantage in child custody." And the Illinois Bar Journal has described them as part of the "gamesmanship" of divorce.
But Leving said the full impact of Illinois' new law is that judges can order anyone – mostly men and fathers – to wear a GPS tracking device if they simply are accused of violating an order of protection, with no court conviction or adjudication required.
In fact, he said, "such orders are generally done ex parte, without the accused's knowledge and with no opportunity afforded for him to defend himself."
Such lack of information for the men can result in unknowing violations, Leving said.
"A man can accidentally be in the same park or mall as his ex-wife/girlfriend, and the electronic monitoring device could lead to his arrest even if he never actually saw her. Some men have even been tricked into violating the orders by former spouses. The device will make this easier-a woman could call her estranged husband, tell him she needs him to come to her house because of a crisis with their children, and then have an electronic record of his violation," he said.
"Perhaps such a drastic measure would be warranted if the men forced to wear the devices had meaningful and fair trials, and were found to be guilty of violent or dangerous crimes. However, the Bischof Law empowers judges with the ability to mandate the GPS tracking device on anyone who is accused of violating an order of protection," he said.
"Unfortunately, the rush to protect the abused is so incredibly aggressive that the rights of the accused have been violated," Leving said. "I don't see any safeguard in this law. This law basically presumes in these situations [men] are guilty."
He said his organization will work with lawmakers to make them aware of the potential pitfalls of their new law and will watch cases as they develop to pursue a court challenge to its constitutionality.
Source:here
I can't wait for Illinois to get sued over this one.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
Boycott Macy's
Boycott Macy's for their anti male sexism in sponsering Respect rings. It appears that Macy's believes that domestic violence in done by men against women and never the other way around and to prove it they are selling Respect rings that symbolize their anti male sexism. I'm joining in with Marc Rudov in boycotting Macy's. If you are not a fan of what Macy's is doing you can send your letters of outrage to:
Terry Lundgren,CEO of Macy's
terry.lundgren@macys.com
Holly Thomas,Macy's press secretary
holly.thomas@macys.com
Let Macy's know their anti male sexism is neither appreciated nor condoned.
To see the propaganda put out for these Respect rings click here
If you click on this link you will see Macy's anti male sexism.
Terry Lundgren,CEO of Macy's
terry.lundgren@macys.com
Holly Thomas,Macy's press secretary
holly.thomas@macys.com
Let Macy's know their anti male sexism is neither appreciated nor condoned.
To see the propaganda put out for these Respect rings click here
If you click on this link you will see Macy's anti male sexism.
Monday, September 1, 2008
Meet your veeps
Hi. This is Masculist Man and welcome to Meet The Veeps,where we show you the veeps who are creeps in a realistic way. Let's go from left to right: first up we have Joe Biden,a senator from Delaware who lists Darth Vader as the best friend that understands him the most. Joe Biden also rules with an iron fist:
Saturday, August 23rd, 2008
Had to take a break from my vacation to register my disappointment in Obama’s selection of Biden.
I understand the rationale–Obama wants an attack dog to go after McCain while he appears to be above the fray. Biden also adds some foreign policy and Beltway heft to the ticket. The Beltway CW says this pick was safe, but not particularly bold. I think that’s about right.
But from a policy perspective, it’s a disaster. Biden has sponsored more damaging drug war legislation than any Democrat in Congress. Hate the way federal prosecutors use RICO laws to take aim at drug offenders? Thank Biden. How about the abomination that is federal asset forfeiture laws? Thank Biden. Think federal prosecutors have too much power in drug cases?
Thank Biden. Think the title of a “Drug Czar” is sanctimonious and silly? Thank Biden, who helped create the position (and still considers it an accomplishment worth boasting about).
Tired of the ridiculous steroids hearings in Congress? Thank Biden, who led the effort to make steroids a Schedule 3 drug, and has been among the blowhardiest of the blowhards when it comes to sports and performance enhancing drugs. Biden voted in favor of using international development aid for drug control (think plan Columbia, plan Afghanistan, and other meddling anti-drug efforts that have only fostered loathing of America, backlash, and unintended consequences). Oh, and he was also the chief sponsor of 2004’s horrendous RAVE Act.
Biden does appear to have eased up a bit in the last couple years, including taking a fairly strong position against federal raids on medical marijuana clinics (though he still opposes making marijuana available for medicinal purposes). But that’s little consolation for all the damage he’s done over the years.
Biden’s record on other criminal justice and civil liberties issues is just as bad.
Opponents of the federalization of crime might note that the 1994 crime bill he sponsored created several new federal capital offenses. Biden also wants to expand federal penalties for hate crimes. He supports a federal smoking ban. His position on the federal drinking age is, and I quote, “absolutely do not” lower it to 18. He believes “most violent crime is related to drugs” (if he had said “drug prohibition,” he’d be closer to the truth). Biden also has an almost perfect anti-gun voting record. He said last year he favors “universal national service,” either in the Peace Corps or the military. Sounds like conscription to me. He says he’s opposed to the PATRIOT Act, but he voted for both the original bill and its re-authorization in 2005.
Foreign policy? Biden voted for the war on Iraq. Yes, he’s opposed to it now (and I like the partition plan he pushed in the primaries). But he didn’t vote correctly when it counted most. Biden also voted to send troops into Darfur. He wants to enlarge NATO. He voted in favor of the air strikes in Kosovo. He voted to strengthen the trade embargo against Cuba.
His seems to be a meddling, interventionist, Clinton-esque foreign policy. His first
instinct seems to be that the U.S. military’s objective include some vague notion of “doing good in the world.” Never mind the disastrous consequences that notion has reaped over the years.
I obviously disagree with Biden on a host of economic and regulatory issues, too (though he does seem to be fairly decent on free trade). But that’s to be expected. My problem with Biden is that he’s not even good on the issues the left is supposed to be good on. He’s an overly ambitious, elitist, tunnel-visioned, Potomac-fevered Beltway dinosaur, with all the trappings. He may well have been the worst possible pick among congressional Democrats when it comes to the drug war and criminal justice.
Your humble Agitator predicted the Biden pick last February. It was a prediction made mostly from cynicism. I wish I had been wrong. On principle, Obama stumbles badly, here. I guess we’ll have to wait to see how it plays out on the electoral map.
Source: here
Now Biden doesn't let the Constitution get in his way when he rules. If he becomes the veep he becomes speaker of the senate. Now that is a job promotion.
Now let's meet the second veep who gives us the creeps. That second veep is Sarah Palin. If elected she will have gotten farther than Geraldine Ferrero did. Also consider she is one heartbeat from the button. One of those monthlies and we're all dead. She is on record crediting Hillary and other feminists and has feminist beliefs. Let's take a look at her:
It is alleged that Mrs Palin pressured and eventually sacked Walter Monegan, the Alaskan public safety commissioner, because he refused to fire Michael Wooten, a state trooper who was estranged from Mrs Palin's sister.
Mrs Palin originally denied any involvement whatsoever in moves to have Mr Wooten sacked.
However, earlier this month she was forced to admit that members of her administration had made numerous phone calls to state officials on the subject.
Yet in interviews at the weekend Mr Monegan claimed that Mrs Palin had also personally spoken and e-mailed him about Mr Wooten several times. Mrs Palin has also been challenged over her claims to have fought the Alaskan state system over corruption and wasteful spending - a key credential in her selection by Mr McCain, who is promising to do the same nationwide.
Mrs Palin has boasted of her success in killing the plan, nicknamed the "Bridge to Nowhere",to connect Ketchikan international airport with Gravina Island. Yet it has been reported that Mrs Palin actually campaigned in favour of the bridge, only changing her position later.
The Republican vice-presidential candidate has also been criticised for her behaviour on a radio talk show in January. While being interviewed about her feud with Lyda Green, the Alaskan state senate leader, Mrs Palin laughed when her interviewer described Sen Green as a "cancer" and a "b---". Sen Green is a cancer survivor.
A local newspaper described Mrs Palin's actions as "plain and simple one of the most
unprofessional, childish and inexcusable performances ever seen from a politician." A
recording of the interview is now circulating on websites including YouTube.
The allegations are bound to increase discomfort among Republicans about Mr McCain's choice of running mate. His main line of attack against his opponent Barack Obama - that Mr Obama is not ready to lead the country - has been undermined, by the prospect of Mrs Palin, who has been governor for only 20 months, being forced to step in if Mr McCain, who is 72 and has suffered several bouts of cancer, were unable to fulfil his duties.
Mrs Palin's apparent lack of knowledge of or experience in foreign affairs has aroused particular concern. When asked in an interview for her thoughts on the "surge" of American troops, Mr McCain's support for which is a key plank of the Republican campaign, Mrs Palin said: "I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq."
In an interview last month, when it seemed unlikely she would be offered the role by Mr McCain, Mrs Palin dismissed the job of vice-president, saying that she couldn't understand what it would involve day to day.
Even Mrs Palin's mother-in-law, Faye Palin, has said she doubts her suitability. Saying that she was still thinking of voting for Mr Obama, she said: "I'm not sure what she brings to the ticket, other than she's a woman and a conservative."
Less substantial allegations about Mrs Palin that could prove no less damaging have also emerged. Doctored photographs purporting to depict Mrs Palin, who is a former beauty queen,in various states of undress have also circulated.
Source: here
Day of stunning Palin disclosures
Monday, September 1, 2008
ST. PAUL, Minn. - In a day of stunning disclosures, John McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, said Monday her 17-year-old unmarried daughter was five months pregnant, and it was revealed an attorney was hired to defend the governor in a probe into the firing of her public safety commissioner.
The revelations threatened to steal any remaining thunder from Day One of the Republican National Convention, which already was overshadowed by Hurricane Gustav - and brought unwanted attention to the 44-year-old governor, a self-described "hockey mom" with little experience on the national stage.
The GOP convention had already been scaled back because of the hurricane, and just three days after McCain named Palin as his vice presidential running mate. Coming after the randomness of Gustav, the revelations added to the sense of unscriptedness hanging over the convention.
"Life happens," said McCain adviser Steve Schmidt, talking about the pregnancy story.
"An American family," added colleague Mark Salter.
In a brief respite from partisanship, Democratic rival Barack Obama weighed in: "I think people's families are off limits and people's children are especially off limits."
McCain aides said the announcement about the pregnancy of Palin's daughter, Bristol, was aimed at rebutting Internet rumors that Palin's own youngest son, born in April, was actually the daughter's The national convention, which a political party counts on to send its candidate surging into the fall campaign, already had been relegated to a distant second to the hurricane on TV, in newspapers and on Internet Web sites.
The pregnancy statement, attributed to Sarah and Todd Palin and released by the campaign,said that Bristol Palin would keep her baby and marry the child's father, identified only as a young man named Levi. The baby is due in late December.
"Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We're proud of Bristol's decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents," Sarah and Todd Palin said in their brief statement.
Palin had told McCain's team about the pregnancy during lengthy discussions about her
background, aides said. At several points, McCain's team warned Palin that the scrutiny into her private life would be intense and there was nothing she could do to prepare for it.
Prominent religious conservatives, many of whom have been lukewarm toward McCain's
candidacy, predicted that the announcement would not diminish conservative Christian
enthusiasm for the vice presidential hopeful, a staunch abortion opponent. In fact, there was talk that it might help.
As for the Alaska probe, a Republican-dominated legislative committee is investigating whether Palin dismissed Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan after he refused to fire a state trooper who had divorced Palin's sister.
The state's attorney general, Talis Colberg, hired Thomas V. Van Flein more than two weeks ago to represent Palin and members of her staff, according to Van Flein. He has represented the Palin family in the past as a private attorney, according to a McCain aide who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
Van Flein said he couldn't confirm representing the family because of attorney-client
privilege. "Did I know the Palins before the state hired me? Yes," he told The Associated Press. "The governor of every state gets legal counsel, and this attorney is part of a weeks-old effort to provide this governor defense in a series of outlandish, politically motivated charges," said senior McCain adviser Tucker Eskew. "It is a matter of her job and is not recent, and it is not related to her selection on the McCain-Palin ticket."
Palin's decision to hire the attorney was disclosed by the Legislature's investigating committee, which released a message it had received from her new lawyer on Friday.
In St. Paul, the convention opened on time, though the opening-day session was shortened because of the hurricane. From the convention podium, GOP officials asked delegates to take out their cell phones and text-message contributions to help in the relief effort.
McCain's wife, Cindy, and first lady Laura Bush made their own appeals for relief help in the convention hall later in the day. The delegates approved the party platform and other business, but most of the opening-day speeches - all of which had been expected to acclaim McCain and assail Obama - were scrapped.
Palin was in Minnesota preparing for her Wednesday night nomination acceptance speech when the campaign released the pregnancy statement; her family was home in Alaska.
"Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family," the parents said.
The campaign said it was not disclosing the father's full name or age or how he and Bristol knew each other, citing privacy.
Sarah Palin's fifth child, a son named Trig, was born in April with Down syndrome. Internet bloggers have been suggesting that the child was actually born to Bristol Palin but that her mother, the 44-year-old Alaska governor, claimed to be the mother.
Palin spokesman Bill McAllister emphatically denied those rumors, and McCain adviser Mark Salter said the campaign announced the daughter's pregnancy to rebut them.
"Senator McCain's view is this is a private family matter. As parents, (the Palins) love their daughter unconditionally and are going to support their daughter," said McCain spokesman Steve Schmidt.
Reaction from religious conservatives was sympathetic.
Focus on the Family founder James Dobson issued a statement commending the Palins "for not just talking about their pro-life and pro-family values, but living them out even in the midst of trying circumstances." He added: "Being a Christian does not mean you're perfect.
Nor does it mean your children are perfect. But it does mean there is forgiveness and
restoration when we confess our imperfections to the Lord."
Roberta Combs, president of the Christian Coalition of America called the pregnancy private. "It's a matter that should stay in the family and they have to work through it together. My prayers go out to them."
Added Combs: "We're excited about the governor and think she's going to do well."
Mathew Staver, dean of Liberty University School of Law, said: "We're all sinners."
"We all make mistakes. Certainly, the ideal is not to get pregnant out of wedlock. But she made the right decision after her mistake," he said.
In Monroe, Mich., Democrat Obama condemned rumors involving the children of candidates and echoed the McCain campaign argument. He said, "Our people were not involved in any way in this, and they will not be," he said. "And if I ever thought that there was somebody in my campaign that was involved in something like that, they'd be fired."
----
Associated Press Writers Eric Gorski in St. Paul, Charles Babington in Monroe, Mich., and Steve Quinn in Anchorage, Alaska, contributed to this report.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Mother's or daughter's,who's kid is it? (Jeopardy music plays)...... (buzzer goes off) Hmmm,troopergate all over again? The last ones to have a "troopergate" were the Clintons. McCain is going for the vagivote.
That is our installment for tonight's Meet The Veeps and don't forget to tune into our next installment coming soon on Meet The Veeps. This is Masculist Man saying so long for now.
Saturday, August 23rd, 2008
Had to take a break from my vacation to register my disappointment in Obama’s selection of Biden.
I understand the rationale–Obama wants an attack dog to go after McCain while he appears to be above the fray. Biden also adds some foreign policy and Beltway heft to the ticket. The Beltway CW says this pick was safe, but not particularly bold. I think that’s about right.
But from a policy perspective, it’s a disaster. Biden has sponsored more damaging drug war legislation than any Democrat in Congress. Hate the way federal prosecutors use RICO laws to take aim at drug offenders? Thank Biden. How about the abomination that is federal asset forfeiture laws? Thank Biden. Think federal prosecutors have too much power in drug cases?
Thank Biden. Think the title of a “Drug Czar” is sanctimonious and silly? Thank Biden, who helped create the position (and still considers it an accomplishment worth boasting about).
Tired of the ridiculous steroids hearings in Congress? Thank Biden, who led the effort to make steroids a Schedule 3 drug, and has been among the blowhardiest of the blowhards when it comes to sports and performance enhancing drugs. Biden voted in favor of using international development aid for drug control (think plan Columbia, plan Afghanistan, and other meddling anti-drug efforts that have only fostered loathing of America, backlash, and unintended consequences). Oh, and he was also the chief sponsor of 2004’s horrendous RAVE Act.
Biden does appear to have eased up a bit in the last couple years, including taking a fairly strong position against federal raids on medical marijuana clinics (though he still opposes making marijuana available for medicinal purposes). But that’s little consolation for all the damage he’s done over the years.
Biden’s record on other criminal justice and civil liberties issues is just as bad.
Opponents of the federalization of crime might note that the 1994 crime bill he sponsored created several new federal capital offenses. Biden also wants to expand federal penalties for hate crimes. He supports a federal smoking ban. His position on the federal drinking age is, and I quote, “absolutely do not” lower it to 18. He believes “most violent crime is related to drugs” (if he had said “drug prohibition,” he’d be closer to the truth). Biden also has an almost perfect anti-gun voting record. He said last year he favors “universal national service,” either in the Peace Corps or the military. Sounds like conscription to me. He says he’s opposed to the PATRIOT Act, but he voted for both the original bill and its re-authorization in 2005.
Foreign policy? Biden voted for the war on Iraq. Yes, he’s opposed to it now (and I like the partition plan he pushed in the primaries). But he didn’t vote correctly when it counted most. Biden also voted to send troops into Darfur. He wants to enlarge NATO. He voted in favor of the air strikes in Kosovo. He voted to strengthen the trade embargo against Cuba.
His seems to be a meddling, interventionist, Clinton-esque foreign policy. His first
instinct seems to be that the U.S. military’s objective include some vague notion of “doing good in the world.” Never mind the disastrous consequences that notion has reaped over the years.
I obviously disagree with Biden on a host of economic and regulatory issues, too (though he does seem to be fairly decent on free trade). But that’s to be expected. My problem with Biden is that he’s not even good on the issues the left is supposed to be good on. He’s an overly ambitious, elitist, tunnel-visioned, Potomac-fevered Beltway dinosaur, with all the trappings. He may well have been the worst possible pick among congressional Democrats when it comes to the drug war and criminal justice.
Your humble Agitator predicted the Biden pick last February. It was a prediction made mostly from cynicism. I wish I had been wrong. On principle, Obama stumbles badly, here. I guess we’ll have to wait to see how it plays out on the electoral map.
Source: here
Now Biden doesn't let the Constitution get in his way when he rules. If he becomes the veep he becomes speaker of the senate. Now that is a job promotion.
Now let's meet the second veep who gives us the creeps. That second veep is Sarah Palin. If elected she will have gotten farther than Geraldine Ferrero did. Also consider she is one heartbeat from the button. One of those monthlies and we're all dead. She is on record crediting Hillary and other feminists and has feminist beliefs. Let's take a look at her:
It is alleged that Mrs Palin pressured and eventually sacked Walter Monegan, the Alaskan public safety commissioner, because he refused to fire Michael Wooten, a state trooper who was estranged from Mrs Palin's sister.
Mrs Palin originally denied any involvement whatsoever in moves to have Mr Wooten sacked.
However, earlier this month she was forced to admit that members of her administration had made numerous phone calls to state officials on the subject.
Yet in interviews at the weekend Mr Monegan claimed that Mrs Palin had also personally spoken and e-mailed him about Mr Wooten several times. Mrs Palin has also been challenged over her claims to have fought the Alaskan state system over corruption and wasteful spending - a key credential in her selection by Mr McCain, who is promising to do the same nationwide.
Mrs Palin has boasted of her success in killing the plan, nicknamed the "Bridge to Nowhere",to connect Ketchikan international airport with Gravina Island. Yet it has been reported that Mrs Palin actually campaigned in favour of the bridge, only changing her position later.
The Republican vice-presidential candidate has also been criticised for her behaviour on a radio talk show in January. While being interviewed about her feud with Lyda Green, the Alaskan state senate leader, Mrs Palin laughed when her interviewer described Sen Green as a "cancer" and a "b---". Sen Green is a cancer survivor.
A local newspaper described Mrs Palin's actions as "plain and simple one of the most
unprofessional, childish and inexcusable performances ever seen from a politician." A
recording of the interview is now circulating on websites including YouTube.
The allegations are bound to increase discomfort among Republicans about Mr McCain's choice of running mate. His main line of attack against his opponent Barack Obama - that Mr Obama is not ready to lead the country - has been undermined, by the prospect of Mrs Palin, who has been governor for only 20 months, being forced to step in if Mr McCain, who is 72 and has suffered several bouts of cancer, were unable to fulfil his duties.
Mrs Palin's apparent lack of knowledge of or experience in foreign affairs has aroused particular concern. When asked in an interview for her thoughts on the "surge" of American troops, Mr McCain's support for which is a key plank of the Republican campaign, Mrs Palin said: "I've been so focused on state government, I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq."
In an interview last month, when it seemed unlikely she would be offered the role by Mr McCain, Mrs Palin dismissed the job of vice-president, saying that she couldn't understand what it would involve day to day.
Even Mrs Palin's mother-in-law, Faye Palin, has said she doubts her suitability. Saying that she was still thinking of voting for Mr Obama, she said: "I'm not sure what she brings to the ticket, other than she's a woman and a conservative."
Less substantial allegations about Mrs Palin that could prove no less damaging have also emerged. Doctored photographs purporting to depict Mrs Palin, who is a former beauty queen,in various states of undress have also circulated.
Source: here
Day of stunning Palin disclosures
Monday, September 1, 2008
ST. PAUL, Minn. - In a day of stunning disclosures, John McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, said Monday her 17-year-old unmarried daughter was five months pregnant, and it was revealed an attorney was hired to defend the governor in a probe into the firing of her public safety commissioner.
The revelations threatened to steal any remaining thunder from Day One of the Republican National Convention, which already was overshadowed by Hurricane Gustav - and brought unwanted attention to the 44-year-old governor, a self-described "hockey mom" with little experience on the national stage.
The GOP convention had already been scaled back because of the hurricane, and just three days after McCain named Palin as his vice presidential running mate. Coming after the randomness of Gustav, the revelations added to the sense of unscriptedness hanging over the convention.
"Life happens," said McCain adviser Steve Schmidt, talking about the pregnancy story.
"An American family," added colleague Mark Salter.
In a brief respite from partisanship, Democratic rival Barack Obama weighed in: "I think people's families are off limits and people's children are especially off limits."
McCain aides said the announcement about the pregnancy of Palin's daughter, Bristol, was aimed at rebutting Internet rumors that Palin's own youngest son, born in April, was actually the daughter's The national convention, which a political party counts on to send its candidate surging into the fall campaign, already had been relegated to a distant second to the hurricane on TV, in newspapers and on Internet Web sites.
The pregnancy statement, attributed to Sarah and Todd Palin and released by the campaign,said that Bristol Palin would keep her baby and marry the child's father, identified only as a young man named Levi. The baby is due in late December.
"Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We're proud of Bristol's decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents," Sarah and Todd Palin said in their brief statement.
Palin had told McCain's team about the pregnancy during lengthy discussions about her
background, aides said. At several points, McCain's team warned Palin that the scrutiny into her private life would be intense and there was nothing she could do to prepare for it.
Prominent religious conservatives, many of whom have been lukewarm toward McCain's
candidacy, predicted that the announcement would not diminish conservative Christian
enthusiasm for the vice presidential hopeful, a staunch abortion opponent. In fact, there was talk that it might help.
As for the Alaska probe, a Republican-dominated legislative committee is investigating whether Palin dismissed Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan after he refused to fire a state trooper who had divorced Palin's sister.
The state's attorney general, Talis Colberg, hired Thomas V. Van Flein more than two weeks ago to represent Palin and members of her staff, according to Van Flein. He has represented the Palin family in the past as a private attorney, according to a McCain aide who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
Van Flein said he couldn't confirm representing the family because of attorney-client
privilege. "Did I know the Palins before the state hired me? Yes," he told The Associated Press. "The governor of every state gets legal counsel, and this attorney is part of a weeks-old effort to provide this governor defense in a series of outlandish, politically motivated charges," said senior McCain adviser Tucker Eskew. "It is a matter of her job and is not recent, and it is not related to her selection on the McCain-Palin ticket."
Palin's decision to hire the attorney was disclosed by the Legislature's investigating committee, which released a message it had received from her new lawyer on Friday.
In St. Paul, the convention opened on time, though the opening-day session was shortened because of the hurricane. From the convention podium, GOP officials asked delegates to take out their cell phones and text-message contributions to help in the relief effort.
McCain's wife, Cindy, and first lady Laura Bush made their own appeals for relief help in the convention hall later in the day. The delegates approved the party platform and other business, but most of the opening-day speeches - all of which had been expected to acclaim McCain and assail Obama - were scrapped.
Palin was in Minnesota preparing for her Wednesday night nomination acceptance speech when the campaign released the pregnancy statement; her family was home in Alaska.
"Bristol and the young man she will marry are going to realize very quickly the difficulties of raising a child, which is why they will have the love and support of our entire family," the parents said.
The campaign said it was not disclosing the father's full name or age or how he and Bristol knew each other, citing privacy.
Sarah Palin's fifth child, a son named Trig, was born in April with Down syndrome. Internet bloggers have been suggesting that the child was actually born to Bristol Palin but that her mother, the 44-year-old Alaska governor, claimed to be the mother.
Palin spokesman Bill McAllister emphatically denied those rumors, and McCain adviser Mark Salter said the campaign announced the daughter's pregnancy to rebut them.
"Senator McCain's view is this is a private family matter. As parents, (the Palins) love their daughter unconditionally and are going to support their daughter," said McCain spokesman Steve Schmidt.
Reaction from religious conservatives was sympathetic.
Focus on the Family founder James Dobson issued a statement commending the Palins "for not just talking about their pro-life and pro-family values, but living them out even in the midst of trying circumstances." He added: "Being a Christian does not mean you're perfect.
Nor does it mean your children are perfect. But it does mean there is forgiveness and
restoration when we confess our imperfections to the Lord."
Roberta Combs, president of the Christian Coalition of America called the pregnancy private. "It's a matter that should stay in the family and they have to work through it together. My prayers go out to them."
Added Combs: "We're excited about the governor and think she's going to do well."
Mathew Staver, dean of Liberty University School of Law, said: "We're all sinners."
"We all make mistakes. Certainly, the ideal is not to get pregnant out of wedlock. But she made the right decision after her mistake," he said.
In Monroe, Mich., Democrat Obama condemned rumors involving the children of candidates and echoed the McCain campaign argument. He said, "Our people were not involved in any way in this, and they will not be," he said. "And if I ever thought that there was somebody in my campaign that was involved in something like that, they'd be fired."
----
Associated Press Writers Eric Gorski in St. Paul, Charles Babington in Monroe, Mich., and Steve Quinn in Anchorage, Alaska, contributed to this report.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
Mother's or daughter's,who's kid is it? (Jeopardy music plays)...... (buzzer goes off) Hmmm,troopergate all over again? The last ones to have a "troopergate" were the Clintons. McCain is going for the vagivote.
That is our installment for tonight's Meet The Veeps and don't forget to tune into our next installment coming soon on Meet The Veeps. This is Masculist Man saying so long for now.
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