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Tuesday, Sep 2, 2008 6:34 PM UTC

Today in Palin

More articles than you ever wanted to read on the GOP's vice-presidential pick.

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Topics: Broadsheet, John McCain, R-Ariz., Love and Sex,

With six out of 10 of the New York Times’ most e-mailed articles devoted to her, she’s the vice-presidential candidate everyone wants to talk about … or, at the very least, objectify. (See VPILF.com for details.) When it comes to Sarah Palin, there’s a lot to keep track of — so as a public service piece of sorts, we bring you this roundup:

From the New York Times: Who cares about the fact that Obama’s been on the campaign trail for so long that Malia and Sasha seem to have difficulty distinguishing their real dad from a video screen — or that plenty of presidents have had kids while they were in office? The real question is whether it’ll be possible for Palin to be V.P. while still being a mother (and, more seriously, whether McCain properly vetted his V.P. pick).

Meanwhile, over in the Opinion section, Maureen Dowd compares Palin’s career to a “chick flick,” Gail Collins affirms that the choice had nothing to do with Palin’s being a woman, and David Brooks provides insight into why McCain might have been into the idea of Palin as a running mate … but why she probably wasn’t the best choice (spoiler alert: It has nothing to do with identity politics).

Skipping ahead to the Washington Post, reporter Paul Kane questions Palin’s reputation as a fighter against earmarks. The Post also has a similar “Can a Mom Be Vice President?” piece, plus an assurance that McCain knew what he was getting into when he made the pick.

Over at the L.A. Times, the second most e-mailed link isn’t about Hurricane Gustav or the GOP convention, but rather a link to a photo of Palin posing with a caribou she shot. (Caption: “A woman in an exceedingly macho state, Palin has not always been taken seriously. But opponents cross her at their peril.”) And there’s an evaluation of the political risks McCain faces for his choice.

The Wall Street Journal has a profile of the governor (irritatingly subtitled “Governor, Reformer, Mother” — leading me to wonder why Joe Biden’s press coverage doesn’t refer to him as a “Foreign Policy Expert, No. 1 Dad”) and — oh my God! Something on Palin that doesn’t have to do with babies or dead animals! — a blog post on Palin’s views on healthcare.

Slate proposes an intriguing hypothesis about how McCain even got the idea to choose Palin, and last but not least, our own War Room provides the scoop on Bristol’s baby daddy and yet more titillating detail about Palin’s past political involvements.

And for anyone suffering, as I am, from the overwhelming number of articles that focus on Palin’s daughter’s pregnancy instead of her actual qualifications to be V.P., I suggest joining me in watching a video from the Onion: “Poll: Bullshit Is Most Important Issue for 2008 Election.” I couldn’t have put it better myself.

“Poll: Bullshit Is Most Important Issue for 2008 Voters”

Catherine Price is a freelance journalist and author of "101 Places Not to See Before You Die". She also runs a legally themed clothing shop called Illegal Briefs. More Catherine Price.

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