Rewriting history

The Anchorage Daily News interviewed Gov. Sarah Palin yesterday, and it is clear that she is going to continue her pattern of evasive, non-sensical and misleading responses to simple questions. Her answers ranged from silly to delusional to lying, but don't be fooled; this is a smart woman intent on rewriting history.

Reflecting on what went wrong in the campaign, Gov. Palin expressed her frustration at the [presumably liberal elite/mainstream] news media, over what she perceived as spreading misperceptions about her:

"Some of the goofy things, like who was Trig's mom, you know. And well [raises hand], I'm Trig's mom. And do you wanna see my medical records to prove that? And days would go by before mainstream media would even try to correct that, that yeah, OK, it's proven that she actually is Trig's mom."

Actually, Sarah, about that? Yeah, well, turns out you never actually released your medical records, did you? No, in case you're confused, you didn't. You said you would, sure, but you didn't. You did release a 2-page letter from your doctor saying you were in excellent health (which, admittedly, is better than the 1-page letter Obama's doctor wrote to the same effect), but you didn't even do that until 12 hours before the election. So let's be perfectly clear here: you did NOT release your medical records. Pretending you did, implying you did, insinuating you did, wishing you did, all well and good. But it doesn't actually change the fact that, you know, you didn't.

The following exchange has no real relevance to my point, but her total inability to string together a noun adjective and verb into a coherent sentence continues to amuse and appall me.

Q. Do you think it's going to be difficult for the state to make a case for earmarks, given that you and John McCain were so outspoken against them?

A. Not so much the case being made more difficult for Alaska in requesting but we'd better make sure that every earmark we request is in the nation's best interest and is something that has been vetted and seen the light of day via public participation.

ONE QUESTION

Where are your medical records, Governor Palin?

48 hours to go! We won't want them on Wednesday. You promised. You should keep your promises. That's part of "puttin' government back on the side of the folks also."

Oh, you meant you would release them prior to the end of the 2012 election. My apologies for the "gotcha" journalism then. You keep going rogue, sister!

***UPDATE***: Have you ever noticed that the audio on Sarah Palin's plane was either muted or "wasn't working" whenever the Governor is questioned about Tina Fey's turns on SNL:

It turns out Ms. Palin missed the full experience of watching Mr. McCain on “Saturday Night Live.” She boarded her charter plane at 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, just on time to watch the show, an aide said, but the audio on her television wasn’t working.

Could it be to avoid the awkwardness of questions like does she have any designs on the White House in 2012 before the 2008 election is over?

Is this really an update to this post? No - but it gave me the excuse to yell again, "WHERE ARE THE MEDICAL RECORDS, GOVERNOR PALIN???"

***UPDATE***: Sullivan is exasperated. So am I. Give up the records.

***UPDATE***: Draw your own conclusions about the supposed liberal bias of the mainstream media, but Jake Tapper of ABC News has requested Palin's medical records each day since she promised to disclose them during an interview with Brian Williams on October 22. To date, no production of records. Not even a skeletal one-page summary. Not even a three-hour in camera review. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Draw your own conclusions about Governor Palin . . . you know what . . . no . . . let me draw them for you: Sarah Palin lies. She is the ostensible successor to the "bob and weave" evasiveness and concoction practiced by George W. Bush over the past 8 years.

***UPDATE***: ABC News reports Governor Palin's campaign has released a two-page letter from the Governor's person physician summarizing her past health:

ABC News' Imtiyaz Delawala and Kate Snow report: Gov. Sarah Palin’s personal family physician says she is in excellent health and “has no known health problems that would interfere with her ability to carry out the duties and obligations of Vice President of the United States of America.”

Late on the eve of the election, the Palin campaign released a brief two-page letter from Dr. Cathy Gladwin Johnson, a family physician affiliated with the Mat-Su Regional Medical Center near the Governor’s home in Wasilla, Alaska.

Honestly, I've got bigger fish to fry right now, but thanks for the perfunctory effort, Sarah. Nice meeting you. Good luck with all your future endeavors in Alaska.

From the "Still Missing" Department: Palin's Medical Records

Riddle me this, Batman:

Why is the young rebellious maverick with nothing to hide STILL protecting her medical records like they're nuclear launch codes?

Fill in your own answers and/or conspiracy theories, but ABC News reports that despite their insistence and persistence, Palin's representatives still have not and will not release the information. This makes Palin the only one of the four members of the major tickets that has released not one scintilla of medical information. Warm Apple Pie was all over the story last week here and the only thing that has come out since then is deafening and disquieting silence.

The question one has to ask is: why? There were Internet rumors floating around about cover-ups for a previous Bristol Palin pregnancy along with lots of other fantastic and titillating but completely unsubstantiated stories. But why is Governor Palin hiding her medical records? I don't even have a theory here. What is there within that information that stands to embarrass her or the campaign? And if the answer is nothing, what is the problem?

On Sunday morning, Palin spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt told ABC News that the campaign had planned to release information on her medical history early this week. Today is Wednesday. ABC News has asked every day this week about the status of the release of information and received no updates from the campaign. It is unclear what is holding things up.

ABC News is clearly irked about this, and not trying to hide it:

Aides suggested privately that there was nothing to hide in the records, but that it was simply taking a while to call doctors and round up the appropriate information to release. But an entire week?

However, they're absolutely right to wonder about this. This request was made weeks ago and we're one week and counting from this election. If there is something in those records, the voters have a right to know. Palin was asked about this, and her response gives pause:

"So be it, if that will allow some curiosity seekers, perhaps, to have one more thing that they can either check the box off that they can find something to criticize, perhaps, or find something to rest them assured over. Fine. I'm healthy, I'm happy, had five kids. That is going to be in the medical records. Never been seriously ill or hurt. You will see that in the medical records if they're released," Palin told NBC's Brian Williams.

Whoa there... interesting response, Governor. What are they going to find to criticize in your medical records? And what does it mean if they find "something to rest them assured over" - is that even English? Also, the sinister conclusion - "IF" they are released. Not "WHEN" but "IF" they are released.

Provocative! What could be in these records that would need to be protected and would be of interest to "curiosity seekers"? A history of drug or alcohol abuse? Prescription drugs or anti-depression medication being given to her? An abortion? A sexually transmitted disease? Using birth control pills? (eh, probably not that) Stay tuned for more.

Doctor. Doctor. Glad I'm Not Palin.

In her one-on-one interview segment with Brian Williams last evening, Governor Palin responded to the growing chorus of calls seeking release of her medical records:

"The medical records, so be it. If that will allow some curiosity seekers perhaps to have one more thing that they either check the box off that they can find something to criticize or to rest them assured over. I'm healthy, happy, I've had five kids, that's going to be in the medical records. Never seriously ill or hurt, you'll see that in the medical records if they're released."

So that settles it . . . or does it. Not so fast says the McCain campaign. As reported by an up-in-arms Andrew Sullivan, a parsing bit of wordsmithery comes from the GOP ticket sans medical documentation:

“When medical information related to Governor Palin’s health is ready to be released we will make that information available.”

Hmmm. Medical "information," not necessarily medical records. "Related to" the good Governor's health? I may or may not be a lawyer as far as you know, but Warm Apple Pie, Esq. asserts you can drive a forty-foot rig through the cavernous hole cleared out by "related to." And only when the information is "ready to be released?" By definition, doesn't the word "records" encompass accounts and diagnoses previously prepared by doctors? I don't think we're asking Governor Palin to submit to a physical before the election. The personal annals of her medical history will more than suffice.

I reject almost all conspiracy theories out-of-hand - including the sinfully delicious yarn about Sarah Palin concocting her purported pregnancy and birth of Trig to protect his true biological mother, Bristol Palin.

Notwithstanding, I do squint a bit at the hesitancy to provide full, unredacted medical records. She's the youngest of the four candidates. You would think the papers attest simply that she's the most vigorous as well.

Still, I submit this is garden-variety, election year dookie thrown around by fringe jesters seeking to defame and imbrue the opposition's candidate. However, Obama did supply his birth certificate to combat outrageous claims that he was born outside of the United States. It would seem Palin could immediately delouse herself of these sub-media lice by a timely release of her medical records. How about some of that government transparency you extol?

Salubrity At Issue

Take it or leave it as "in the tank" liberal drivel, but the New York Times will publish an in-depth analysis on the physical health of both Barack Obama and John McCain in tomorrow's print edition. Reportedly, one of the more alarming findings explores John McCain's skin cancer and the opinion of some medical experts that believe it was diagnosed at a more advanced stage than indicated by McCain's campaign.

If the Ayers connection is a relevant topic in McCain's estimation, certainly McCain's health is worthy of conversation - especially with novice Sarah Palin in waiting. The former issue weighs on Obama's past ability to make judgments of character. The latter weighs on McCain's future ability to serve as President.