September 3, 2008

McCain selects Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as running mate

WASHINGTON (CNS)—Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, selected by Sen. John McCain Aug. 28 as his vice-presidential running mate, won the praise of Catholic leaders earlier this year for embracing the arrival of her fifth child, born with Down syndrome in April. The Republican governor, who is a nondenominational Protestant, knew from early testing that her son Trig "would face special challenges," according to a family statement, but she and her husband Todd felt "privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives." The family's decision stands in contrast to statistics showing that more than 90 percent of women who receive a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome choose to abort the child. Recent polls had indicated that if McCain picked a running mate who supported keeping abortion legal it would have cost him a significant number of votes.