Despite the dismal turnout for Jacksonville anti-abortion group Heroic Mediaâs âAn Evening of Hopeâ event, keynote speaker Sarah Palin still managed to stray from pregnancy to politics.
The event was essentially a showcase for the organization responsible for the various âPregnant? Worried?â billboards popping up around the state, and consisted mostly of fundraising efforts from Heroic spokespeople, including Southeastern President Deborah Ortiz, who implored the audience to donate money to help fund more Florida advertisements: âWe need $1 million. Iâm looking for someone to give $50,000, two couples to give $10,000 ⊠so that we can increase our advertising efforts in the state.â
Earlier in the night, Heroic Director Mark Nelson made the same please: âIf we could raise $122,000, we can run 10 weeks of television commercials. ⊠With $3,850, 10 weeks of Facebook ads.â
The cheapest seats to the event were $50 ahead, and though the price tag for keynote speaker Palin is currently unknown, itâs a safe bet that it was quite expensive. In January, Politico reported that Palinâs going rate was around $100,000.
State Sen. John Thrasher introduced Palin as one of âAmericaâs leading advocates for less government, fewer taxes, and more personal freedomâ and said that her life was a âtestimony to the valuesâ of Heroic Media.
The former Alaskan governor came to the stage in typical Palin fashion. After a rousing âDo you love your freedom?â she playfully told the senator that she loved his name because, âin Alaska, [calling someone] a thrasher means theyâre a really tough snow-machiner.â She also made light of her time spent on the 2008 Republican presidential ticket, telling audiences she was âa neophyte on the campaign trailâ and admitting she âdidnât always know what [she] was doing.â
And though she spoke passionately about the organization she said worked at âbuilding and affirming life,â she made a point to speak freely about politics. Palin received a standing ovation upon her mention of President Obamaâs health care reform, saying âit is essential that we use the 2010 elections to end ObamaCare.â Calling the health care bill âthe mother of all unfunded mandates,â Palin said that President Obama was the âmost pro-abortion president to ever occupy the White Houseâ and that his time in office had been âa trail of broken promises.â
Though she said that the âbiggest advance of abortion [has been] the advance of ObamaCare,â Palin didnât place all the blame on the current president. When speaking about Floridaâs much-publicized ultrasound bill, Palin was quick to charge Governor Charlie Crist with vacillating over an issue he had once espoused. She said the bill âwould have provided women with a picture of their baby,â but that âunfortunately, current Republican â well, I donât know if he wants to be a Republican â decided to veto the bill [because] he had lost his pro-life convictions.â
Later in the evening, Sen. Thrasher also reprimanded Crist for his veto of the bill, saying that, come November, he needs to be âheld accountable.â
Later in her speech, Palin said that leaders were needed âto bring this country together under God, under the Consitution and under the Declaration of Independence.â And, though she said that policies were important in the abortion discussion, the private sector âcan do it better than government.â
Palin grew personal during a story of giving birth to son Trig while working as Alaskaâs governor, saying that she was initially scared to go public with news of her pregnancy: âSome of the old sourdoughs and their neanderthal thinking. ⊠âLook, we elect a woman and what does she do? Go and get herself pregnant.ââ
Daughter Bristol (who Palin hinted would be a contestant on next seasonâs Dancing with the Stars) was also mentioned. Calling her a single mother and a full-time student, Palin said that she was proud of her daughter for âgracefully plowing through the embarrassmentâ of harsh media inquiries. Utilizing one of her now-infamous one-liners, Palin said that she personally takes all of the mediaâs tough shots in stride: âIâm not gonna retreat, Iâm gonna reload. Because I know youâve got my back.â