Who is Sarah Palin?

Unless you live under a rock, you have probably heard the name Sarah Palin thrown around...but even those of us interested in Politics were like "Sarah who?" when we heard the VP announcement. So we figured we should probably give you all some info on her before her speech tonight. This way you can read her facts, listen to her promises, and make your own decisions as to whether Palin is your girl, or just A-pallin (get it? apalling? heehee!)

Name: Sarah Louise Heath Palin
Age: 44 years old
Occupation: Governor of Alaska Dec. 4, 2006 - present

Religion: Pentecostal
School : Hawaii Pacific College and North Idaho College
Major: BS in Communications-Journalism, minor in Poli Sci

Previous Politcal Positions:

Chairperson, Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission 2003-2004

Mayor of Wasill Alaska (pop. 6,715) 1996-2002

THE ISSUES

Gay Rights

Vetoed bill denying benefits to gays, as unconstitutional. (Aug 2008)
Marriage only be between and man and a woman. (Nov 2006)
Ok to deny benefits to homosexual couples. (Aug 2006)
No spousal benefits for same-sex couples. (Jul 2006)
Top priorities include preserving definition of "marriage". (Jul 2006)

Abortion

Opposes stem cell research. (Aug 2008)

Pro-life. (Nov 2006)
Pro-contraception, pro-woman, pro-life. (Aug 2006)
Only exception for abortion is if mother's life would end. (Jul 2006)

Corporations

Aim to reduce general fund spending by $150 million. (Jan 2007)
Firm believer in free market capitalism. (Nov 2006)

Encourage small business growth by reducing business taxes. (Nov 2006)

Drugs

If legislature passed death penalty law, I would sign it. (Nov 2006)
No special hate-crime laws; all heinous crime is hate-based. (Jul 2006)

Smoked marijuana when it was legal under Alaska law. (Aug 2006)

Education

Teach creationism alongside evolution in schools. (Aug 2008)
Supports teaching intelligent design in public schools. (Aug 2008)

Oil

Commercialize Alaska's North Slope natural gas. (Aug 2008)
To win, GOP must push energy independence. (Aug 2008)
Lift moratorium on offshore drilling. (Jul 2008)
Convinced McCain to drill offshore; not yet on drilling ANWR. (Jul 2008)
Unlock ANWR; we're ready, willing and able to contribute. (Jun 2008)

Environment

Opposed protections for salmon from mining contamination. (Aug 2008)
Sue US government to stop listing polar bear as endangered. (Aug 2008)
We must encourage timber, mining, drilling, & fishing. (Jan 2008)
Convince the rest of the nation to open ANWR. (Jan 2007)

Foreign Policy

N/A

Gun Control

Supports ending D.C.'s 32-year-old ban on handguns. (Jun 2008)
Lifelong NRA member & champion of right to bear arms. (Feb 2008)
Supports Constitutional right to bear arms. (Nov 2006)

Healthcare

Health care must be market-and business-driven. (Jan 2008)
Take personal responsibility for personal health & all areas. (Jan 2008)

Noteworthy:

- Alaska's first female governor

- First Republican VP female nominee

- 17 year old daughter Bristol is 5 months pregnant and will be marrying the father

Source: Wikipedia and OnTheIssues.org

RNC: Day 1

Whew! Yesterday was a looong day. We started out at the Lifetime Future Frontrunners Summit where our own Diana Nguyen spoke on the youth vote. Speakers at the Summit included Susan Bevan, Republican Majority for Choice; Michelle Bernard, Independent Women's Forum; Rep. Marsha Blackburn (TN); Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (WV); Rep. Kay Granger (TX); Kathy Lantry, St. Paul City Council President; and Rep. Cathy McMorris-Rodgers (WA). Our Executive Director Mac Morgenstern gave some opening remarks.

Meanwhile, yours truly was over at the Young Republicans Nation Federation Luncheon at the Hard Rock Cafe in Minneapolis, which Declare Yourself helped sponsor. Speakers included Jessica Colon, the YRNF Chairman; president of the Student PIRGs; Sarah Huckabee....and surprise guest speaker Mike Huckabee! Former Presidential Candidate Mike Huckabee surprised the Young Republicans that came from all over the country to participate in the convention. The Southern Baptist Minister focused his speech on his support for Senator McCain's VP pick, Sarah Palin, and how she embodies the conservative values of the GOP.

After that the DY team headed over to the floor of the convention. Although the convention was officially cancelled for the day, all delegates were present and right as we arrived, First Lady Laura Bush took the stage! The GOP stuck to their guns and did what they promised, they put their country ahead of politics. Laura spoke about hurricane Gustav and introduced the governors of the affected states who were thanked the GOP and sent their best wishes to the convention. When the videos ended....Cindy McCain strode on stage with Laura Bush! The First Lady and the wife of the Republican Party's presumptive nominee focused on the hurricane relief and had the links to different websites where you can donate money to help out. You can find them here: http://www.causegreater.com/

As if the convention isn't busy enough....we ran into Bill O'Reilly! What a day...

Picture Source:

Christie's iPhone

http://www.joeff.com/

http://www.pbs.org/

Record Youth Turnout in Texas and Ohio!

“Young voters were inspired by the pivotal nature of yesterday’s races, particularly on the Democratic side, to participate in a wave that swamped prior youth voting levels and continued the unprecedented 18-29 year-old involvement in this presidential campaign,” said Marc Morgenstern, Executive Director of Declare Yourself. “Young voters stated loud and clear that they are an important factor in determining the next president and must be listened to.”

We have been reporting on the youth vote since the primaries began, and we are running out of ways to say that the youth vote turnout is soaring past turnout numbers in previous elections! But hey, we're happy to have this problem!

Youth turnout increased significantly in Ohio by 10 percentage points since 2000, with under 30s making up 15% of the total vote this year. In 2004 Texas (tied with Tennessee) had the lowest youth turnout in the entire country! On the Democratic side, where the race is tight, the youth vote turnout yesterday increased from 83,923 in 2004 to 449,173! Although turnout for Texan Republicans in 2004 is not available, the total youth turnout increased from 6% in 2000 to 17% this year. Overall we are very proud of the Lone Star State!

Since I can't resist a play on words...McCain is now the Lone Star of the Republican Party! After sweeping Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont, Senator McCain now has enough delegates to become the parties nominee and received But who will his opponent be?

Senators Clinton and Obama are still in the race to be the Democratic candidate. Clinton won Texas, Ohio, and Rhode Island last night and Obama won Vermont. The delegate count, according to CNN, now stands at Obama: 1,520 and Clinton: 1,424. The first one to reach 2,025 wins the nomination! Stay tuned for updates or check out the Declare Yourself primary results page to see where the candidates currently stand in the race.