Bill O’Reilly Can’t Use Teh Google?

Courtney Martin, of the Women’s Media Center and Feministing, took on Bill O’Reilly yesterday. In his segment, he defended his comments against journalist Helen Thomas, but quickly got off topic. O’Reilly accused women’s groups of staying silent on the issue of sexism against Sarah Palin, arguing they were hypocrites for only recognizing sexism against women whose politics they agree with.

Now, if Mr. O’Reilly had taken just 10 seconds to google his guest Courtney Martin, he would have found that not only has she spoken out against the sexism Sarah Palin faced, she even called out Bill-O himself for sexist comments regarding Ms. Palin.

Shakesville has a list of over 25 examples of Sarah Palin sexism. The Women’s Media Center also ran pieces covering sexism against Sarah Palin, including this one from Campbell Brown on CNN.

O’Reilly says that if Martin in fact did speak out against the sexism that Sarah Palin faced, he would apologize. We won’t hold our feminist breath. But seriously, do some research on your guests. What you’re doing is not journalism.

 

Palin Doesn’t Know If Abortion Clinic Bombers Terrorists

Perhaps she was following McCain’s lead.

On multiple occasions throughout his career, McCain sought to limit the government’s ability to punish violent anti-choice fanatics by:

– Voting against making anti-choice violence a federal crime. As the Jed Report notes, McCain voted in 1993 and 1994 against making “bombings, arson and blockades at abortion clinics, and shootings and threats of violence against doctors and nurses who perform abortions” federal crimes.

– Opposing Colorado’s “Bubble Law.” McCain said he opposed Colorado’s “Bubble Law,” which prohibited abortion protesters from getting within 8 feet of women entering clinics [Denver Post, 2/27/00]. The law was later upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.

– Voting to allow those fined for violence at clinics to avoid penalties by declaring bankruptcy. NARAL Pro-Chioce America notes that McCain “voted to allow perpetrators of violence or harassment at reproductive-health clinics to avoid paying the fines assessed against them for their illegal acts by declaring bankruptcy.”   (ThinkProgress)

I am apalled by McCain and Palin’s ignorance. They have run a disgusting campaign that condones and encourages hateful speech, and now hateful action. Many people have died due to abortion clinic violence and these acts should be recognized and prosecuted for what they are, acts of terrorism. Palin said it herself in this clip, “harming innocent Americans…would be unacceptable.” Yet her unwillingness to call this violence what it is makes me question whether she believes the rule of law should protect all people equally, even those of us who disagree with her extreme anti-choice ideology.

 

Wasilla Project: Rape Kit Controversy

From The Wasilla Project, this video is the first of a four-part series.

Media Matters’ Eric Boehlert also discusses how the rape kit controversy has not been de-bunked, contrary to what some in the mainstream media would have you believe.

In fact, Palin had a direct role in charging rape victims for exams.

Stay tuned…

 

I Don’t Know People Like This

They really don’t seem to like questions.

The Sarah Palin mob: thanks to blogger interrupted

 

Palin Misquotes Albright: Damns Most Women to Hell

Today at a rally in California, Sarah Palin managed yet another misquote of a famous source. This one came off of her Starbucks cup (otherwise she probably wouldn’t have known who Madeleine Albright was).

The statement came after Palin had recounted a “providential” moment she experienced on Saturday: “I’m reading on my Starbucks mocha cup, okay? The quote of the day… It was Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of State [crowd boos] and UN ambassador. … Now she said it, I didn’t. She said, ‘There’s a place in Hell reserved for women who don’t support other women.'” (HuffPo)

But that’s not what Albright said. The actual quote is, “There’s a place in Hell reserved for women who don’t help other women.” So she was only one word off, and some might argue that ‘support’ isn’t too different from ‘help,’ right? Maybe, but do you really want to suggest to the women on the fence that you believe they should be damned to Hell if they don’t vote for you? And is she suggesting that women should vote solely based on her gender and not on the issues that are important to us? Someone should tell her that she’s pushing independent women toward Barack Obama.

Madeleine Albright responded:

“Though I am flattered that Governor Palin has chosen to cite me as a source of wisdom, what I said had nothing to do with politics. This is yet another example of McCain and Palin distorting the truth, and all the more reason to remember that this campaign is not about gender, it is about which candidate has an agenda that will improve the lives of all Americans, including women. The truth is, if you care about the status of women in our society and in our troubled economy, the best choice by far is Obama-Biden.” (HuffPo)

 

Joe Sixpack is a Woman

…and I’m not talking about Sarah Palin.

We seem to be using this generic term to refer to the “common voter,” like John Q. Public or Jane Doe.

But we are forgetting that more women than men have voted in every election since 1964. So why is it that when politicians try to associate themselves with the average voter, they don’t acknowledge that she’s a woman?

Women are not a special interest group; we are the majority! And on election day, we show up.

Women Voters in the U.S. by Kellyanne Conway

 

Women On Palin

Marianne Schnall has a great piece on the Huffington Post featuring several renowned women’s voices on Palin and the election. While I get frustrated by the fact that politicians and the media pretend to care about “what women want” during an election year, and then quickly dump us after we get them elected, I do appreciate hearing several women’s perspectives on important issues.

Despite what the media initially reported, women are not at all flocking to the McCain-Palin ticket just because Palin is a woman. In fact, quite the opposite is happening. Palin is driving women to speak up for what’s at stake. Several blogs have popped up featuring women against palin.

I know that some people genuinely like Sarah Palin, but is it enough to make them vote for her? As her ignorance on the issues becomes increasingly obvious, will women continue to flock to Obama or other third party candidates? Or will the fact that she performs so poorly make women feel sorry for her and rally behind her? I must admit, that after the Couric interview I have begun to feel bad for the position Palin finds herself in. The McCain campaign’s treatment of her is incredibly sexist (Free Sarah Palin!), shielding her from reporters and only using her as a pretty face for photo ops. But will women recognize the sexism and rush to support Sarah Palin? I don’t think so. She hasn’t earned it.

 

McCain Plays Dumb About Fiorina’s Payout

I have a theory that’s picking up steam. John McCain really offended women with his choice of Sarah Palin. In the past few weeks, every time a woman interviews McCain or one of his surrogates, they ask the tough questions they’ve been largely avoiding throughout this campaign. It’s even happening on Fox News and The View!

The latest in the series of women asking the tough questions came this morning from Meredith Vieira.

Unwilling to let McCain play dumb (like usual when he doesn’t want to answer a question) she follows up about Carly Fiorina’s compensation package. He insists that she did a good job as CEO and that he doesn’t know the details of her ‘golden parachute.’ Vieira presses further, noting that he’s been complaining all week about the fat cat CEOs who get big bucks while their employees get laid off. She reminds McCain that Fiorina is “an example of exactly the kind of person you say is at the root of the problem.” (ThinkProgress)

UPDATE: More women speaking out on McCain-Palin: Campbell Brown, Wanda Sykes, Andrea Mitchell, Shushannah Walshe, Lilly Ledbetter, …