But all pendulums swing back. I have numerous posts in the "in the works," but something I read yesterday made me put aside all the other things I am working on and write this. On another site, I ran across a reference to this blog, and, specifically, a reference to me. Audrey, it was claimed, is a "nutbar." And why? Because apparently, according to this individual, I have continued to pursue the baby story even though the birth of Tripp Johnston PROVES that Bristol Palin cannot be Trig's mother. And that, in turn, PROVES that Sarah must be.
It occurred to me that this really is the cornerstone of everything. Just as Bristol's pregnancy during the campaign "proved" that Sarah is Trig's mother, now Tripp's existence proves the same thing. I'd like to use this post to look at this "cornerstone" in great depth. Before I even start, though, I do want to apologize for the length of this post. It's quite long, with a good deal of embedded video and pictures. Although the final section is the most critical, I have made the decision to split it into two sections. The second section will be published tomorrow.
The premise, that the existence of Tripp Johnston proves that Sarah must be Trig's mother, is absurd. Just off the bat, this statement ignores three other possibilities.
First, Bristol always was (and I believe remains) the most likely possibility for the "other mother" for numerous reasons that have been discussed extensively elsewhere. However, I have never taken the position that Bristol was the only option and I still don't.
Second, numerous people have commented that Trig Palin appeared older than 4 ½ months at the RNC in September 2008. I am not willing to go "on record" saying I agree with this, but I certainly do not disagree. In photos of him from the RNC, he does look large and mature for a 4 ½ month old baby, born five weeks early, particularly given that – in general – Down Syndrome babies have poorer muscle tone and slower development than non Down Syndrome babies.
I was struck by this again when watching the video that Sarah Palin did for the Special Olympics some time last January: Trig, to me and many others, looks older than nine months.
This opens the possibility that Trig Palin was born earlier than announced. If true, this would allow Bristol to be mother to both children.
Third, the possibility must be considered that the entire pregnancy during the campaign was not "as reported" and it is on this possibility that I wish to focus this post. I believe that while there certainly is "proof" that Bristol was pregnant during the campaign and now has a child named Tripp Johnston in her care, I also think that a careful analysis of the evidence raises valid questions and, shall we say, curiosities. I know – I can hear the screams from here. Holey MOLEY! Now she thinks Bristol's pregnancy was faked? She's gone off the deep end.
Frankly, I don't know what to think. But in my thought process the other day, as I realized that Tripp Johnston's birth date and existence is the "cornerstone" of the "Trig is Sarah's" camp, I decided to take another look – a long look – at all the evidence, pro and con, regarding Bristol's pregnancy which allegedly culminated in the birth of Tripp Johnston on 12/27.
The initial response among many of my readers regarding the pregnancy, after all, was a great deal of skepticism. Many wrote to me asserting that it was faked, a position that, at the time, I did NOT agree with (thought I believed it was not as far along as it was stated.) Once Tripp showed up, we simply buried everything that was wrong with the "Bristol is pregnant" story from the beginning. We ignored the discrepancies with the birth story, the extremely fortuitous timing, everything that had been bothering a lot of us all along.
While there certainly is evidence – very hard to ignore evidence – that Bristol was pregnant and had a baby, there is also evidence to the contrary that is just plain puzzling and does not add up.
I am going to list the evidence – as I see it. As I have said so often in the past, you will need to decide. Is Audrey really the "nutbar" she has been made out to be, or just might there be something here?
Evidence which supports Bristol being pregnant, commencing in spring 2008 and culminating with the birth of Tripp Johnston on December 27, 2008.
1. There is a baby, who has been presented to the media on numerous occasions as Tripp Johnston. He appears to be the correct age (more or less) for having been born on 12/27/08. This is obviously very compelling. However, it must be pointed out that it is possible to obtain a baby other ways, first (legally and permanently) via adoption and second, via borrowing a child on numerous occasions. Both scenarios would be very risky in terms of being exposed. But either one is POSSIBLE, and that is a fact.
2. Photographs of Bristol Palin, taken on the day that John McCain announced Sarah Palin as his running mate show an appearance consistent with her being in early pregnancy, though in many photographs she is covered with a baby blanket so it's difficult to ascertain accurately. (Of course, just the fact that they covered her would also tend to prove the point.) As no announcement had yet been made, this is very persuasive.
3. Levi Johnston has appeared in photographs taken in 2009 with a baby who appears to be the same baby that Bristol has appeared with on numerous occasions.
Just last week he has confirmed the outlines of the timing of Bristol's pregnancy with the Anchorage Press. If one is going to allege that there has been any fraud regarding Bristol's pregnancy, Levi Johnston is in on the deception and is actively maintaining it at this point.4. Photographs of Bristol taken mid- February, 2009 show a midsection consistent with a "post partum" appearance.
5. A Washington Times blogger reported seeing Bristol Palin poolside on the day after the election, appearing quite pregnant. The blogger, someone whose other work shows no great interest in, support for, or dislike of Sarah Palin, mentioned it seemingly randomly. This non-scripted sighting of Bristol is very credible. It's hard to imagine a teen agreeing to appear at a pool wearing only a t-shirt in some sort of pregnancy "appliance."
Evidence which I believe is "inconclusive" in supporting the pregnancy.
Numerous people in Wasilla reported knowing that Bristol was pregnant. But the dating in and of itself is more problematic. If one is going to use "people in Wasilla knew Bristol was pregnant" (more on this below) as proof of the reported Tripp pregnancy, it's hard to justify picking and choosing among the reports that she was pregnant much earlier, reports that would disprove the Tripp pregnancy.
In fact, reports, in Wasilla, of Bristol being pregnant go back into 2007. One rumor was posted publicly to the Internet on April 8, 2008, and outlines the story exactly: Bristol was pregnant and not in school, Sarah was not pregnant, Sarah was faking to cover for her daughter. Based on a due date of 12/27, there is no way that that pregnancy could have been known in Wasilla as early as early April.
Sue Williams, a Wasilla caterer, reported to the press that Bristol was pregnant before it was announced by the McCain campaign, so I believe she must be taken seriously. The problem is that her dates do not jibe with what was later claimed (i.e, a pregnancy that could not be known publicly prior to May, 2008.) In fact, her "dating" corresponds exactly to the reddit report, above: she claimed to have heard that Bristol was pregnant in early April (and it was, at this point, not whispers from adults but being bandied about by a middle-schooler.) She makes a point of saying that this meant that Bristol and Sarah were pregnant simultaneously, and she asserts that as of the RNC, Bristol was late in her third trimester and almost ready to deliver. Obviously, that did not turn out to be true.
Sarah Palin herself mentioned the "Bristol is pregnant" rumors to Bill McAllister, then a KTUU reporter and later her press secretary, before March 2008. She denied them, but she did know about them and talk about them to someone else.
Coming tomorrow: The evidence that raises questions about Bristol Palin's pregnancy.
