Gretchen Peters: Fighting Political B.S. Since 2008 The McCain/Palin ticket has already had one entrance music snafu: Van Halen issued a stern denouncement after McCain used their Clear Pepsi anthem "Right Now" during an August rally in Ohio. Now comes number two. At a rally held after last Thursday's VP debate in St. Louis, Sarah Palin was introduced while "Independence Day," a 1993 Martina McBride hit, played on the loudspeakers. The song was written by Nashville's Gretchen Peters. It's about the tragic consequences of living in an abusive home seen through the eyes of a young girl. And as the following quote suggests, Peters isn't exactly thrilled by the extra exposure:
"The fact that the McCain/Palin campaign is using a song about an abused woman as a rallying cry for their Vice Presidential candidate, a woman who would ban abortion even in cases of rape and incest, is beyond irony," Peters says. "They are co-opting the song, completely overlooking the context and message, and using it to promote a candidate who would set women's rights back decades."
To which we say: Damnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn. (And on a side note, Beyond Irony would make a great band name.) But even better than Peters' put-down are her plans moving forward: All election-season "Day" royalties will be donated to Planned Parenthood. And
on her website, Peters is encouraging her fans to do the same, except instead of sending money in their own name she suggests using "Sarah Palin" as a mocking nom de plume. (h/t
GoldnI) UPDATE: Silly us, we neglected to mention
Heart and Jackson Browne, two more artists/groups to object to the McCain campaign using their songs.
