Speculation about what’s behind Gov. Palin’s resignation abounds. I thought Mark Steyn had the best take on it, which was essentially that Gov. Palin was probably a pretty normal person before entering politics, didn’t realize the high price that would be paid (particularly by her family) when she moved to the national scene, and may have just decided enough is enough.
It’s of course fair game to speculate about the decisions made by a politician, particularly one who has the potentially to run for President in a couple of years. After all, the cable shows do have hours upon hours to fill. But as seems to be the case frequently when it comes to Palin, some of it crosses the line.
The blog Feminist Professors points out a statement by Paul Begala in which he compares Palin to guys like Ensign, Vitter, Foley, Sanford and suggests she has somehow ought done them. Ann Bartow writes:
Foley? Vitter? Craig? Ensign? Sanford? Every single comparison by Paul Begala in the above paragraph is to a man who engaged in sexual behaviors the media, and seemingly most of the public, condemned. As I understand it, all Palin did was announce her resignation, which Begala characterizes as “turning pro,” which in context strikes me as an unsubtle reference to prostitution. This kind of sexism from a high profile Dem politician is simply disgusting.
I don’t know that I agree with the leap that Berala is somehow comparing her to a prostitute, but it does seem unfair to try to turn a resignation into a scandal and equate with the decision to step down from office with clearly immoral behavior.