This is no rumor.
The 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is pregnant
[…]
Bristol Palin, one of Alaska Gov. Palin’s five children with her husband, Todd, is about five months pregnant and is going to keep the child and marry the father, the Palins said in a statement released by the campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Wow.
UPDATE: A couple of things. First, this really should put to bed the rumors of Bristol being the mother of Palin’s youngest child, Trig, as there is no way she could be 5 months pregnant now after having given birth four months ago.
Second, I’ve been hearing over and over that Sarah Palin does not believe in birth control, even between a husband and a wife. As I backtracked through trying to find the source of that, it appears that the it was simply the echo chamber of the blogosphere and not reality. According to TIME:
She is Christian and pro-life, but also a supporter of birth control: she’s a member of Feminists For Life (FFL), an anti-abortion, pro-contraception organization.
I trust that TIME has a source for this.
VIVIAN J. PAIGE | All Politics is Local 
Doug, if Bristol Palin = the results of the policies and values that Sarah Palin advocates isn’t logical enough for you, well, there’s not much more I can say.
And really, you taking McCain at face value about what he knew when? Really? Do you want to skate on thin ice like that?
Vivian: if you want to follow up on the cvxn link, she’s directing media inquiries to http://karion.tumblr.com at this point. Thought it was time for some legal advice.
It’s not about going after the daughter. It’s this . . . last week Sarah Palin had a decision to make: Should I accept the VP nomination, having just given birth to a son with Down’s and having a teenage daughter who is five months pregnant? Should I go with my ambition or should I be there for my son and daughter? Where am I needed more — with my family or with John McCain? She chose McCain.
Now, if you think that is unfair and she should be given the opportunity to prove that she “can have it all” then fine — she can have that opportunity. I’m not going to interfere. But as a parent, I can tell you . . . those are some big-time risks she is taking. Those hand grenades she is holding in her hand are the health, welfare and future of her son, her daughter and her future grandchild. I don’t think any office in the world is worth that, but she is certainly welcome to make that choice.
I don’t believe the debate should drag the daughter into it; it should be about the mother’s judgement, and that IS fair game.
Funny how the Repubs want everyone to respect privacy when it involves them or their families, but when it comes to Dems and consenting adults — ?? Yeah right.
If my limited experience with children has taught me anything, it’s that lots of people fail to raise well-adjusted children, but being a parent who is also an elected official poses special challenges. The children have difficulty adjusting to knowing that their parents are somehow different from other kids’ parents; the parents themselves often lose sight of where their kids are supposed to rank in terms of their priorities, and everything gets more scrutiny. I’m sure Palin didn’t want her daughter to get pregnant, but it happened. I’m sure W. and Laura didn’t want their twin daughters to spend their college years getting constantly photographed being drunk and disorderly for every celeb magazine around. It’s actually kind of remarkable how normal and well-adjusted Chelsea Clinton seems to have turned out, when you think about it. No matter what you think about Hillary Clinton personally, all evidence points to her being an incredible parent.
…but I suppose that’s just more evidence of the obvious: Sarah Palin may have some remarkable accomplishments, but at the end of the day she still can’t hold a candle to Hillary Clinton.
@ Now at 10:56pm: Your comment got hung up in my spam filter and I just fished it out.
When Bill had the misfortune of having his intern’s head run into his genitalia (no… it was not sex :), everyone wanted to hold him up as some sort of “moral” leader. I dare say that a newcomer such as Sarah Palin has cast herself (because of her evangelical religion) into the spotlight as a true moral leader. We are in trouble.
Silence, that is one of the most ridiculous arguments I have ever heard. You have a single data point for each, Chelsea and Bristol, who have only one thing in common — they are named for towns in England. Hilary held no elective office while Chelsea was growing up, and Chelsea was an only child. You have no idea how Chelsea would have turned out if she were Palin’s daughter, or how Bristol would have turned out if she had been Clinton’s. Indeed, Chelsea might have gotten pregnant, too, if she had not had the Secret Service watching her every move.
Bad parents can raise good children, and good parents can raise bad children. Look at the varied children of the senior Barack Hussein Obama.
Now the big question is: “If this whole thing was a TV soap opera, would we believe the story line?” What other surprises await lurking in the shaddows? Doesn’t moral values apply equally? Where’s all those voices of the moral majority now? Guess I really didn’t realize just how good the GOP members were at tap dancing! This is better than watching the soaps…
I, personally, am terribly interested in squaring the whole “Country First” claim of the McCain campaign with Palin’s membership in (and recent support for, as Governor) the Alaskan Independence Party, which advocates for Alaskan secession.
History not hate, MB. I’m sure that’s what they’ll say.
As far as the assertion that this is a family matter and should not be used to form the basis for one’s opinion of Palin, I can go with that only so far. Palin had to know that media would go nuts on this and her child would be subjected to the kind of scrutiny that no teenager should be. Still, she decided it was more important to be the VP nominee. Ambition wins out over her daughter’s well being. Nice family values.
I can only imagine what our right wing friends line would be if this was the the child of Obama (yes, if they were older) or Biden.
Right wingers would be apoplectic in screaming the Democrats are immoral, eschew family values and are too unworthy to be elected. Hypocrisy, thy name is today’s GOP.
Let’s take 2004. Kerry’s war record was scorned and ridiculed and lied about by the gop. They went so far as to wear purple heart band-aids to diminish his being awarded the Purple Heart. McCain is honored for his service but challenged for being wrong on most issues. Wes Clark makes a totally true statement, goaded by Bob Schieffer into the phraseology, and is banished (wrongly IMHO) from Denver.
Judge them by their actions, not the shallow BS the gop is selling.
Kerry refused to release the medical records regarding his Purple Hearts. He could have cleared up the “lies” quite easily, but he refused to do so. Why?
Amazing. Simply amazing… The Hypocrisy of some commenters here…
For YEARS all we hear is how personal lives of CANDIDATES are none of our business but now that a Republican’s 17-year-old Daughter is pregnant, it is the ONLY issue.
Wow… Remember, his holiness, St. Barack was born of a woman barely 18… I know this because Obama reminded us all of this yesterday when he said to back off.
And this talk of her being a fit mother is amazing… Would anyone say this if TODD Palin was the VP pick?
You would think that Liberals would cheer a single mother and a family that supports her. You would think… But I wonder if the issue is more about being able to attack a child and disappointment that there was no abortion…
Now am I thrilled this child is pregnant? Of course not, but if any of you have ever read my writing, then you know I am no crazy, idealistic right wing nut who is some social radical. Sometimes things happen, like unwanted pregnancy… What I look for is to see what people do about it. Does the woman run to kill the baby for the sake of convenience? Does the family shun the girl? Or does the woman go to term (to either raise or put up for adoption) and does a family, in a difficult situation, rally and support each other? See, THOSE are family values.
Liberals, bloggers in particular, are WAY too excited to attack a Republican through a 17-year-old girl… the child of the Republican…
It is simple… If you have never known someone in this situation, or been in it yourself, or had someone in your family in this situation, then by all means, pass jusdgement, I guess, but otherwise see this as I do… and opportunity for people like me who believe in REAL family values like loyalty in tough times to become the realistic norm of not only Republicans, but all Americans.
What amazes me is how Vivian, who DARES to point out the fact that Gov. Palin is NOT against contraception, is attacked… Sometimes things are true whether you want them to be or not.
But instead, keep it up, liberal bloggers… PLEASE, PLEASE keep attacking this 17-year-old and pass judgment. Please do so loudly and as broad as possible… PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE… I am seriously begging you to do so… America will oh-so love you for it… [for those of you from Suffolk, that was sarcasm]
Newport News Dem said, “I can only imagine what our right wing friends line would be if this was the the child of Obama (yes, if they were older) or Biden.”
You make a valid point… So how would you want people to treat the issue? How would you demand the child be treated? Maybe, just maybe liberals could act like they would want to be treated instead of attacking…
If there is a correct way to treat this issue, then it is the right thing to do regardless of party, right? If Liberals want to be above it attacking the child, I am all for that, I wil even let (and encourgae) liberals to be smug about it… but instead they attacked.
Yes, I do wonder what Republicans would have said had it been Obama’s child… All we can do is wonder, but so far we KNOW how the left is reacting to it involving Palin’s child… and it is NOTHING to be proud of.