Current GOP spin says that Bristol's pregnancy actually reinforces Palin's family values credentials because Bristol is having, not aborting, the baby. Having a child at seventeen is a courageous act. But let's take a broader view of this.
Palin's opinion on sex-ed is well known. I don't think we can expect the reality of her daughter's pregnancy to change her view, either. The trouble is, not every teenager who becomes pregnant gets to raise the child with her (soon-to-be) husband and with the financial support of being the governor's daughter. Lots of kids raise kids with no support at all. So Palin, it is great that your daughter Bristol is choosing to keep the kid and get married and all that, but when you force your policies on the rest of the country realize that a lot of kids will not be so lucky.
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There was just a great little dialog between David Brooks (NYT columnist) and another Times writer on NPR about Bristol's pregnancy and whether this should be a part of the campaign or not. Brooks maintained that it had nothing to do with sound governance (it really doesn't). But the other writer countered that a pregnant 17 year old daughter should indeed be an issue on the campaign trail because teen pregnancy is a significant national problem with profound ramifications on our levels of poverty, crime rates, public health, education, you name it. It was her hope that this information sparks a national discussion about teen pregnancy, rather than just pushing it into the closet.
Teen pregnancy IS a huge national problem, and after years of decline it is starting to dramatically rise again (related to abstinence-only education programs that are all the rage now? Hmm..). Of course the Right has every justification to praise the family's decision not to abort the baby and to marry the father; hell, I praise that decision. But to ignore the very real social problem that gives rise to circumstances like this is deeply irresponsible. I agree with Obama that we should not focus on Palin's family - in other words, we shouldn't pry into Bristol's sex life, her boyfriend, etc. However, we have every right to examine and debate this issue. In fact, we have a responsibility to do this. If an issue is never addressed in the national discourse, how will it be properly countered?
Sarah Palin has a good answer: more abstinence-only sex education. If this doesn't become an issue as we go on, I'm going to be really disappointed - not because of the political opportunity lost on the Dems (though there is a little bit of that), but because of the stifling of a discussion we really need to have as a nation.
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