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Palin Would Bring 5 Kids To VP's Residence

Youngest Son Born With Down Syndrome This Year

Friday, August 29, 2008

When Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin joined Sen. John McCain's run for the presidency, he didn't just add a young, conservative politician to his team -- he also added her five children.

Palin's oldest son serves in the U.S. Army, and she has a special-needs child who was born earlier this year.

Trig was born in April, and reports at the time said that she was working in the hospital days later. The boy was born with Down syndrome, but Palin has said she doesn't focus on his difficulties.

"I see perfection," Palin told The Associate Press. "Yeah, he has an extra chromosome. I keep thinking, in our world, what is normal and what is perfect?"

Down syndrome results in mental retardation and, often, serious heart defects.

In interviews, Palin has said that she was surprised when she got the diagnosis because there had been no problems with her other pregnancies.

In September 2007, then-18-year-old Track joined the U.S. Army. He is expected to deploy to Iraq in September 2008, according to Palin's Wikipedia page

Her official bio also lists three teenage daughters, ranging from 17 to 7. Their names are Bristol, Willow and Piper.

Todd, her husband, works in an oil field and is a champion snowmobile racer.

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