SNOB…. The Washington Post’s Juliet Eilperin reported earlier on a fundraiser Sarah Palin attended in North Carolina last night. Palin, the item explained, “made a point of mentioning that she loved to visit the ‘pro-America’ areas of the country, of which North Carolina is one. No word on which states she views as unpatriotic.”
This, not surprisingly, raised a few eyebrows. Palin thinks some parts of America aren’t “pro-America”? The Post report was a paraphrase, though, and folks wanted to get the whole context.
In order to clarify comments GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin made last night at a Greensboro, N.C., fundraiser about it being in a “pro-America” area, the campaign issued a slightly more detailed version of the pool report that came out yesterday.
The upshot? Washington, D.C., is neither “real America” nor “pro-America.” Other parts of the nation? It’s unclear, but if you live in a small town, you’re probably patriotic from Palin’s point of view.
“We believe that the best of America is not all in Washington, D.C. We believe” — here the audience interrupted Palin with applause and cheers — “We believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard working very patriotic, um, very, um, pro-America areas of this great nation.”
She continued: “This is where we find the kindness and the goodness and the courage of everyday Americans. Those who are running our factories and teaching our kids and growing our food and are fighting our wars for us. Those who are protecting us in uniform. Those who are protecting the virtues of freedom.”
I don’t think the context helps.
Palin seems to believe there are “pro-America areas of this great nation,” but if you live in a city — including the nation’s capital — you’re not in one of those areas.
From my personal perspective, I’ve lived in big cities and small towns. And if Palin really believes there are two countries — one with “real” Americans, and one with Americans who don’t measure up — Palin really needs to get out more.
Let’s be clear: Sarah Palin looks down on millions of Americans who don’t meet her vision of what “real” Americans look like. As far as she’s concerned, these millions of Americans are to be tolerated, but they’re not as “good” or as “kind” or as “patriotic” as Palin and her allies.
This is, for lack of a better word, snobbery. She think she’s better than the millions of Americans who live in cities. That’s not only wrong, it’s un-American.
