Damian Thompson at the Telegraph gets it right.

At 5 am this morning I woke up from a nightmare, reached blearily for the laptop, clicked on a video link and heard what, for me, were the most important words of the US election campaign so far: “And we were so blessed in April – my husband and I welcomed our littlest one into the family, a perfectly beautiful boy named Trig.” (My italics.)

The outspoken Sarah Palin may, for all I know, mess up the Republican campaign and/or make a bad Vice-President of the United States (though I doubt it). But please, don’t anyone tell me that those words were political rhetoric. And don’t dare suggest that when Todd raised Trig’s arm in a tiny wave it was a stunt.

The adjective “blessed” and the adverb “perfectly” really mean something in this context: they show that love can overpower the natural human reaction to the birth of a baby with a serious mental handicap.

Todd and Sarah Palin aren’t in favour of “choice” – but, when they were told in advance about Trig’s condition, they made the right one. As a result, Sarah may well receive extra support from Christians. Good. Isn’t that how public figures are supposed to attract votes in a democracy – by acting according to their principles?