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“I wish I could put into words the joy that this boy brings into our lives.” Trig Palin experienced more public attention in his first few year of life than most of us will in a lifetime. For those who remember the 2008 elections, the media circus was in full swing, analyzing and reporting on details of candidates personal lives at an unprecedented level, and there was a special focus on the Palin family.

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Whether or not you agree with Sarah Palin's politics, it's hard to deny her folksy appeal and bold approach to playing the political game in a man's world.

Born Famous

Sarah Palin had been a small town mayor in Wasilla, Alaska, and would eventually become governor the state in 2006, running on a promise of "clean government," a representative body by and for the people, not the lobbyists. Two years later she would debut on a national stage as Senator John McCain's running mate in his presidential campaign against incumbent Barack Obama. Sarah's farm-girl-like persona made her an instant media sensation, with Tina Fey famously portraying Palin on Saturday Night Live (2008). Palin was a good sport about the spoof, and would even feature with McCain on an episode as herself in October of 2008.

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"In politics there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers, and then there are those like John McCain who use their careers to promote change."

With Sarah Palin already in her mid-forties while pregnant with Trig, rumors swirled about the child's birth, with some supposing that Sarah may have actually been the grandmother, with the real mother being Sarah's daughter Bristol, and Sarah would be taking credit to avoid a media scandal over a granddaughter born out-of-wedlock. Of course this theory is easy enough to debunk as a silly internet rumor, as Bristol would give birth to a child of her own only eight months later.

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This wasn't all that would get people talking about Trig. Before his birth on April 18, 2008, Trig Palin, the fifth child of Sarah Palin, had been diagnosed with Down's Syndrome. Sarah expressed a willingness to take on this challenge head-on. “Trig is beautiful and already adored by us. We knew through early testing he would face special challenges, and we feel privileged that God would entrust us with this gift and allow us unspeakable joy as he entered our lives. We have faith that every baby is created for good purpose and has potential to make this world a better place. We are truly blessed.”

After The Election

McCain and Palin would ultimately lose the presidential election to Obama and Biden, but not before Sarah had been launched in the political spotlight. Soon after the end of her 2008 campaign, Sarah Palin would feature on Fox News with Glenn Beck in 2009, and launch her own TV series, Sarah Palin's Alaska (2010-11) on TLC, produced by Mark Burnett. The show set a new viewership record for TLC with five million viewers.

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In late 2009 Palin became a published author with her memoir Going Rogue: An American Life (2009). To promote the book, Palin would go on an eleven-state tour, and a year later she would pen her second book, America by Heart (2010).

Sarah Palin has taken a step back from her own political career, but has remained vocal in her support for various campaigns, including that of Bill Walker and Bryon Mallott for the 2014 election for the governorship of Alaska. The campaign, featuring an independent candidate with a democratic running mate, helps to underline Palin's own approach to politics: She may identify as a conservative Republican, but she's not afraid of going against the party line when she feels it to be necessary.

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"Here's a little newsflash for those reporters and commentators: I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion. I'm going to Washington to serve this great country."

While Sarah Palin's career has generally remained quiet over the last few years, there are rumors of a TV production company trademarking the name "Palin Rules," with speculation suggestion a courtroom TV show in the works, and she was invited to give a keynote address at Mar-a-Lago in 2018, having visited the president in the White House with Ted Nugent and Kid Rock the previous year.

For Trig's sake, it may be for the best that he will grow up living a normal life in Skagway, Alaska, given the intense scrutiny faced by children who grow up in the White House.