No Two Ways About It
Barack Obama made a terrible – in fact, a world class – mistake in putting Joe Biden on the ticket.
“I hear all this talk about how the Republicans are going to work in dealing with parents who have both the joy, because there’s joy to it as well, the joy and the difficulty of raising a child who has a developmental disability, who were born with a birth defect. Well guess what folks? If you care about it, why don’t you support stem cell research?”
No, I don’t think Biden was stupid enough to attack Trig Palin with this absolutely idiotic comment. He appeared to be intent on attacking Sarah Palin on a policy issue. But it will ring like a lead bell in the ears of a lot of people. AllahPundit hits it on the head:
Presumably he means embryonic stem-cell research, not stem-cell research generally; putting it the way he did leaves McCain open to remind centrists that he supports ESCR and Palin open to tout alternatives to the embryonic approach to take control of the issue. For another thing, even partisans as unhinged as Sullivan have felt obliged to praise her for her commitment to life in carrying Trig to term knowing his condition. It’s one of the strongest testaments to her character in her biography. All this does is push that fact back in front of voters. But beyond that, his question is simply stupid and easily answered: She doesn’t support ESCR because she believes in life at conception and isn’t willing to sacrifice it even to help her own son.
There are many people who oppose ESCR for ethical, moral or religious reasons. Biden just gave all of them a reason to vote against Obama. McCain and Palin now have an effective tool to take over the issue and change the debate. They should do so at once.
Biden screwed up here, big time. If McCain grabs the opportunity he was just handed, Obama loses still more votes.
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Blue Crab Boulevard » Ringing Like Bells Made Of Lead — September 10, 2008 @ 3:17 am
By Blademonkey, September 10, 2008 @ 3:27 am
ESCR is the thing right now, every libs I know used it to bash conservatives, especially Republicans, as anti science. Problem is, they assume that the potential of embryonic stem cells transcends and trumps all biological constraints. They ignored the finer points like the ESC will grow into tissues that will be alien to its surrounding, like growing into teeth instead of nerve cells while implanted in the brain. Some think that ESC can be implanted into anyone, regardless of donor compatibility.
In short, they just used it as another blunt instrument to beat the conservative side.
By martian, September 10, 2008 @ 12:37 pm
Well, Bidet, er, Biden has always had a reputation of shooting from the hip and, as a result, being a lousy shot. Sometimes he wings himself from the ricochet. This one is likely to draw a little blood.