Petrelis Files

GOP v Dems:
House Floor Speeches on Palin

Pundits like to say that when Republicans are issued marching orders from party bosses, the troops follow orders and use every free available platform to get their message out, including the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives. I think a few GOP Reps have faithfully carried out their party duty in this respect in the past week on behalf of Gov. Palin.

A recent search of the Congressional Record reveals that Republican members of the House have made five speeches on the floor, defending their party's veep choice and criticizing alleged media bias against her, while no hits were returned showing any comparable one-minute speeches from Democrats attacking Sarah Palin and applauding media scrutiny of her record.

I hate to say this, but I gotta give points to the GOP members for using floor time, probably also covered by C-SPAN and broadcast into millions of voters' home, to rally their base for the presidential vote in November. Are the Democrats too shy to do the same from the House floor and on C-SPAN?

Let's look at who has taken to the House floor recently and what they've said about Palin and the press. Sorry, couldn't find anything from a Democratic member of the House about Palin to include in this survey. From the Congressional Record:

September 11:

Mr. [Lamar] SMITH of Texas [R].

Madam Speaker, sometimes the worst examples of unfair news coverage are what reporters choose not to say. For example, while the media often label Governor Sarah Palin ``conservative,'' they seldom call Senator Barack Obama or Senator Joe Biden ``liberal,'' despite the fact that the National Journal ranks Senator Obama as the most liberal member of the Senate, and Senator Biden as the third most liberal member of the Senate.

A comparison of television network news programs immediately after each vice presidential selection shows that newscasters continually referred to Governor Sarah Palin as ``conservative,'' but did not one time, not a single time, label Senator Joe Biden as ``liberal.'' The American people should encourage the media to apply the same rules to both Presidential tickets. Only then can we restore Americans' faith in news reporting.

September 10:

HOW MUCH MORE CAN BARACK OBAMA DISRESPECT WOMEN?

Mrs. [Candice] MILLER of Michigan [R].

Mr. Speaker, the campaign of Barack Obama cannot refute Governor Sarah Palin's record of change and reform as Governor of Alaska. She took on the ``Old Boy Network'' in Alaska and she won. She took on corruption throughout State government and rooted it out. She took on Big Oil and made it serve the interests of her State. She is a true agent of change.

So now the Obama campaign has decided that the way to get at Sarah Palin is through personal attacks and sexist insults. Yesterday, the Associated Press quoted the following: `` `You can put lipstick on a pig,' Obama said to an outbreak of laughter, shouts and raucous applause from his audience, clearly drawing a connection to Palin's joke. `It's still a pig.' ''

Well, Mr. Speaker, Senator Obama might find such jokes funny, but women will only find them insulting. American women also understand that if this is the kind of change that Senator Obama is offering to America, it is really no change at all. Senator Obama owes Governor Palin and the women of America an apology.

September 9:

McCAIN-PALIN WILL BRING REAL CHANGE TO AMERICA

Mrs. [Candice] MILLER of Michigan [R].

Mr. Speaker, over the past 2 weeks, we have seen both parties' commitment to change on full display.Barack Obama had the opportunity to make an historic choice and choose Hillary Clinton to join his ticket. But, oh, no. The ``Old Boy Network'' won out and Senator Obama went back on his commitment to change and reform by choosing a Senator who has been in Washington for over three decades.

Women understand this because we have seen it before. Sometimes no matter how hard you fight or how much support you have, someone will always stand in your way, regardless of paying lip service.

Contrast that with the choice made by Senator John McCain. He chose a strong woman to join with him to bring real change to Washington. From the PTA to the city council to the mayor of Wassilla to the Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin has broken down the Old Boy Network, rooted out corruption, cut taxes, reduced spending, and brought real change to government. And now we see Senator Obama and his Democratic allies trying to tear her down and destroy another strong woman.

But the women of America will not be fooled and they will not be held back any longer. John McCain and Sarah Palin will bring change and reform to Washington and will finally shatter that seemingly unbreakable glass ceiling.

September 9:

MEDIA FAIRNESS

(Mr. [Lamar] SMITH of Texas [R] asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, according to a recent Rasmussen poll, more than half of U.S. voters now think reporters are trying to hurt Governor Sarah Palin with their news coverage, while a scant 5 percent think reporters are trying to help the VP candidate with their coverage.

The encouraging development is that the American people are letting the media, from MSNBC to Us Weekly to Oprah, know that they will not stand for slanted election coverage. By sending e-mails, canceling subscriptions, and contacting advertisers, they are making their voices heard.

This is an important development. The American people know that they do have a say in the media's coverage. For all those who are dissatisfied with the election coverage, I urge you to contact your local and national media outlets and demand the highest standards of journalistic integrity.

September 8:

Mr. [Ric] KELLER of Florida [R].

I thank the gentleman from Georgia for yielding.

[snip]

I have great respect for all four of the individuals running for President on the national tickets, Republicans and Democrats, but having been to Alaska and spent 4 days with the world leading experts on this issue, I can tell you that in my humble opinion Governor Sarah Palin knows more about this issue than all three men combined. I'm excited with the energy she brings to this debate and the knowledge she has about drilling because she knows these issues cold. And I hope in this Presidential election, whether you're a Republican or Democrat, listen to what this lady says because she's been saying what I learned over the past 4 days. There's very few of us that get to see it in person.

[snip]

Well, look, the bottom line is this: We have a bill. The Republicans have a bill. We have a comprehensive bill. Yes, the cornerstone is ``Drill Here, Drill Now.'' But this is the all-of-the-above approach to energy independence, and that's what we have to have, not only for our domestic needs but for the security of this Nation. And I commend our nominee for President, John McCain, and our nominee for Vice President, Sarah Palin, because they understand we need to drill on the Outer Continental Shelf. And we will have a Vice President who is from an energy State and understands the importance of those resources that we own.