So, for one of the first times since Obama was declared the democratic presidential nominee, McCain and his conservative team have broken headlines. As many people have written about, McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate is quite the shock. There is much debate over the choice—will it help him? Will it hurt him? Is she qualified enough for the job? And then, of course, there’s the recent news that her 17-year-old daughter, Bristol, is pregnant. People are interpreting McCain’s choice in many different ways.

McCain and his team are not unintelligent. It is safe to assume that they were well aware beforehand of the stir their decision would make in the media and across the country. Perhaps this is what the McCain campaign was in need of. Perhaps the Republican Party is somewhat pleased that for the first time in months, they are receiving equal, if not more, coverage than Obama and his fellow Democrats. From Op-Ed columns such as Maureen Dowd’s with the New York Times entitled “Vice in Go-Go Boots,” to the Wall Street Journal’s column, “McCain’s Surprise V.P. Choice: Alaska’s Gov. Palin Targets Those Stung By Clinton’s Loss,” the media is embracing McCain’s choice for its controversy and interest.

McCain’s choice of running mate is, indeed, quite interesting. With a good deal of his campaign focused on questioning Obama’s experience, does McCain’s choice really portray an insistence on experience or the belief that experience makes one more qualified for a job in office? It’s ironic to me that Palin represents Alaska while Obama is from Hawaii—both states have been relatively forgotten in the national political scene until this election. Palin’s 40-something youth and emphasis on family is also interesting—somewhat similar to Obama’s charismatic youth and close-knit family.

Some are questioning the conservativeness of Palin and her family, based on her daughter Bristol’s pregnancy. A pregnant 17-year-old cannot possibly represent conservative values could it? It can if you consider the pro-life side of it. A pregnant 17-year-old is much more conservative than a 17-year-old who has had an abortion to avoid a teen pregnancy.

The choice of Senator Palin as running mate is indeed a controversial decision—a controversial decision that may have been necessary for the Republican Party in the midst of Obama’s monopoly over the media throughout the election thus far.