PALIN DAUGHTER PREGNANT

Posted at 1:03 p.m. ET

Here, from Reuters, is the full story of the Palin daughter's pregnancy, as reported a few minutes ago in the bulletin just below.  We report this only because of any political implications:

ST. PAUL (Reuters) - The 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is pregnant, Palin said on Monday in an announcement intended to knock down rumors by liberal bloggers that Palin faked her own pregnancy to cover up for her child.

Bristol Palin, one of Alaska Gov. Palin's five children with her husband, Todd, is about five months pregnant and is going to keep the child and marry the father, the Palins said in a statement released by the campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.

Bristol Palin made the decision on her own to keep the baby, McCain aides said.

And...

"Our beautiful daughter Bristol came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. As Bristol faces the responsibilities of adulthood, she knows she has our unconditional love and support," the Palins said.

The Palins asked the news media to respect the young couple's privacy.

McCain knew.

Senior McCain campaign officials said McCain knew of the daughter's pregnancy when he selected Palin last week as his vice presidential running mate, deciding that it did not disqualify the 44-year-old governor in any way.

Shows class on McCain's part, but the issue will rumble through the campaign.  Listen for the whispers.

McCain officials said the news of the daughter's pregnancy was being released to rebut what one aide called "mud-slinging and lies" circulating on liberal blog sites.

According to these rumors, Sarah Palin had faked a pregnancy and pretended to have given birth in May to her fifth child, a son named Trig who has Down syndrome. The rumor was that Trig was actually Bristol Palin's child and that Sarah Palin was the grandmother.

Finally...

"The despicable rumors that have been spread by liberal blogs, some even with Barack Obama's name in them, is a real anchor around the Democratic ticket, pulling them down in the mud in a way that certainly juxtaposes themselves against their 'campaign of change,'" a senior aide said.

I'm glad someone said that.  In reporting this story, the media have a perfect right, indeed an obligation, to put it in context.  So they will have to discuss those despicable rumors.  (That's known in libel cases as compounding the libel.)  As I said below, public reaction will depend on how Sarah Palin handles the issue.  So far, she's handled it with great dignity.

The public tends to be sympathetic in cases like this.  Indeed, the greater danger may well be to the Obama campaign, if the liberal blogger-clowns make something of the issue.  Millions of families have had similar situations, or known friends or relatives with similar situations, and they won't like dragging the family crisis through the mud.

September 1, 2008.