Social Conservative Democrats Could Sway The Election To McCain-Palin

Argues Julie, at the Cleveland Leader, about Sen. McCain's vice presidential pick: "In the aftermath of Senator John McCain's announcement of choosing Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate, there is one argument as to why Palin was a poor choice that really sticks out for me. That argument is that she does not support women's so-called 'right to choose' and therefore she will not appeal to women voters, and especially not Democratic female voters. That argument is flawed. Surely if Palin is against abortion she's not the only woman in the country to have that belief. There are many other women in this country that are very strongly pro-life. Furthermore, the insinuation that all women who identify with the Democratic party are automatically pro-choice is also a dangerous assumption to make. Have we forgotten about the Catholic vote, or even though those who believe that it is up to God to choose who lives or dies? As much as the GOP likes to portray them at times, all Democrats, liberals, and progressives are not godless heathens. Just as all religious people are not Republicans."

The commentary continues: "McCain has polled at about 12% of crossover voters from the Democratic Party earlier this month. If he is able to increase this number with women who may still be upset by Hillary Clinton's treatment by the media in the primary season he may be able pull out this election. Another factor that may give the Democrats nightmares is the fact that Ralph Nader has been polling as high as 8% in some critical swing states. Anti-war voters, seeking to end the Iraq war and are not pleased with the Democratic Party's inaction on the topic they pledged to fix in the 2006 Congressional election, could be a horrible combination for the Dems. Will Dems not happy with the Obama/Biden ticket cross the party-line? Will Palin swing the all-important middle American suburban vote the GOP's way? By selecting a female running mate, McCain may have taken more votes that Obama-Biden had been counting on as they have dominated the polls with the support of females before Palin was added to the mix. It will be interesting to see how the candidates fare in the next set of polling with Palin having been added to the GOP ticket. Even if McCain/Palin can gather 10 to 15% of what Hillary Clinton pulled in the primary (especially in swing states that are high populations of social conservatives like Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania) the Democrats may have a major problem on their hands come November."