Sarah Palin's candidacy adds a twist to a familiar "mommy wars" debate: Most social conservatives argue that the mother of five, one a special-needs infant, can handle the heat of the nation's second-highest job, while liberal working women by and large disagree. "You can juggle a BlackBerry and a breast pump in a lot of jobs, but not in the vice presidency," an Obama-backing mom tells the New York Times.
Some women express anger that Palin is running at all, given her younger son’s condition and eldest daughter’s pregnancy. "Not my value set," an evangelical mother from Maine says. But her defenders call Palin a role model. Says conservative icon Phyllis Schlafly: "I think a hard-working, well-organized CEO type can handle it very well." (More Sarah Palin stories.)