By Stephanie Ramage
Recently, a reader of my blog and columns wrote to us and complained that he thought that I’d said “Palin is a deal-breaker” in terms of my support for McCain. But that is not what I said. What I said was Palin’s stated intention of expanding the powers of the vice president was a deal-breaker, as was her plan to “push” McCain on issues like drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, something McCain opposes, as do I and many others who are concerned about protecting earth’s last remaining pristine areas.
Those positions were indeed deal-breakers, because a vice president must know her place, she can’t act as though she’s heading the ticket. But Palin soon reversed herself . Gone is the talk of expanding the powers of the vice president. In its place we hear Palin talking about taking more of an activist role to marshal votes for McCain’s platform among members of the senate, which is an entirely traditional role for a VP. Gone too is the talk of “pushing” McCain. Now, as clearly evidenced by Palin and McCain’s recent interview with Brian Williams, she’s learned her place.
But there is something else that has emerged as well that has given me a great measure of reassurance regarding Palin: although she holds a personal belief that abortion should be used only in cases where pregnancy threatens the life of the mother, lately we have heard increasingly about how Palin has never sought to legislate on that belief in Alaska’s statehouse. This is something worth noting, this is a sign of self-sacrificing equanimity and pragmatic leadership. Good leaders put their personal beliefs aside when they are aware that those beliefs could potentially tear apart their constituency.
Palin’s belief about abortion is deep-rooted and sincere, but as she told Katie Couric in what the left and the media shaped as a “disastrous” interview, her personal belief is just that—her personal belief—and she would not expect or demand that anyone else subscribe to it. Put yourself in her place for moment. How would you feel if you were the mother of a child that many people said openly they would have aborted? How would you react, with that in mind, when asked questions about abortion and the morning-after pill? Yet, she answered evenly that her beliefs were her own. Have you ever been in a position where you believed strongly and deeply in something but you knew that most people strongly opposed your belief and you recognized that it was not a matter that could be reasoned through?
Most people of faith have had that experience at some point. I grew up Mormon, so I grew up keenly aware of a world that did not share my beliefs and that, in many cases, vehemently disagreed with them. Some people handle that better than others—I am reminded of devout Christians, Muslims, Jews and others who daily shrug off a world fundamentally at odds with their faith. It takes humility and an even temper to step back and say 'This is my personal belief and in my own life I will not waver from it. Though at times the belief of others causes me grief, I will respect their belief and nurture my own, privately.' That is the approach of a good leader and that has been the approach of Sarah Palin.