Big H/T to Newsbusters for catching CNN's John Roberts speculating if Sarah Palin's new job offer might cause her to neglect her Down's Syndrome baby.
That's right. He was openly "wondering" if she would have enough time to care for her disabled baby because she's successful enough to become the nation's first female VP.
How dare he even raise this question. I don't have children, but I know MANY career women who work very hard and carry a lot of stress balancing their home and professional lives. But they do it and they do it darned well. And I know they have no tolerance for this kind of desperate guilt trip that cuts straight into the heart of any mom.
This sort of shameful talk will deservedly backfire in John's face. The transcript is stunningly offensive. Here is is below, emphasis mine.
JOHN ROBERTS: You know, there's one other issue -- we've talked about her experience and what depth of experience she has; the fact that maybe she tries to peel off a few women voters on the Democratic side, who really wanted to see a woman in the White House in some way, shape, or form. There's also this issue that on April 18th, she gave birth to a baby with Down's Syndrome.  DANA BASH: Yes.
ROBERTS: The baby is just slightly more than four months old now. Children with Down's syndrome require an awful lot of attention. The role of Vice President, it seems to me, would take up an awful lot of her time, and it raises the issue of how much time will she have to dedicate to her newborn child?
I think Dana Bash was caught off guard with that "question." She awkwardly responded: "I guess -- my guess is that, perhaps, the line inside the McCain campaign would be, if it were a man being picked who also had a baby, but -- you know, four months ago with Down's Syndrome, would you ask the same question?" Probably not. I'd like to know if Roberts also wonders if Joe Biden should have given up his U.S. Senate seat to stay home with his sons after his wife and daughter were killed in a car accident. Is he a bad, neglectful parent, too?
Update: Meanwhile, bloggers at the DailyKos are wondering if the baby is really hers. They think she might have faked the pregnancy and her disabled child is really a grandchild.
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