McCain's Extreme Republican Makeover

As news hit the airwaves that Governor Sarah Palin’s 17 year-old daughter is pregnant, my first thought was that Senator John McCain decided to push the “maverick envelope” a little far—for his own good, that is.

It’s one thing to be a celebrity— as McCain portrays Obama—but it’s another thing to own the celebrity drama. Immediately my mind conjures up images of Brittany Spears and her little sister Jamie Lynn. Momma Spears can now share a copy of her new book, “Through the Storm,” with Momma Palin. No doubt there is a storm that lies ahead.

Certainly Republicans cannot be happy with this news. However, they will likely use it as an opportunity to promote the pro-life message. Bristol intends to keep the baby and marry the father.

Does this news blemish the can-do-everything-woman image of Governor Sarah Palin? Maybe. Maybe not. Was Sarah Palin too busy being Governor to meet more of the emotional and spiritual needs of her daughter? Did they spend time together talking about dating, God’s purpose for sex, marriage and contraceptives? Was Bristol being kept busy with more productive extracurricular activities and were her whereabouts being monitored?

Perhaps all of the above occurred. After all, seventeen year-olds have minds of their own and will do what they choose. No parent is immune.

News reports claim that McCain knew of Bristol’s pregnancy before offering Palin the VP slot. If so, then McCain new exactly what he was doing—and jumped at the opportunity. He could have chosen a “safe” pick in Mitt Romney or Tim Pawlenty, but if the reports are true, McCain chose to go with Palin anyway.

McCain’s VP pick is McCain’s way of presenting the Republican party in a whole new light—a makeover. In effect, McCain is saying, “We’re not the party of the elite. We work for a living, we hunt, we fish we struggle with addiction and our teens have babies out of wedlock. We’re your average American.”

So it is. But maverick McCain may want to slow his roll. His new Republican makeover may not go over too well with party diehards. They just got excited about McCain’s campaign two days ago because of Palin. Now, they might be scratching their heads. Not about Palin, but about McCain.