sovaldi sale serif;”>Stephen West discusses Dana Rosemary Scallon’s presidential campaign, sildenafil life and political beliefs
The race for Áras 2011 has been peppered with the rumours of celebrities allegedly planning to run. Earlier this year Gay Byrne was suggested as a possible candidate, but after a deal of publicity, he respectfully declined. Mícheál Ó Muircheartaigh, famed sports commentator, was also noted to be considering entering the race, while actor Martin Sheen emerged as a potential candidate due to a support group on social networking site Facebook. Then there was Dana.
Dana is perhaps most famous for her victory in the 1970 Eurovision hosted by the Netherlands. The track, ‘All Kinds of Everything’, led to a successful music career and over twenty-eight studio albums. Her music has been noted for its Christian, specifically perhaps Roman Catholic, themes. In 1997, Dana ran in the presidential election, securing 13.8% of first preference votes and became MEP for Connacht Ulster in 1999. Her EU political career is notable for her strong stance on abortion, contraception and divorce which commentators have noted as being in line with her devout Catholicism. Dana is known for her Euroscepticism.
Dana has repeatedly stated her wish to protect the constitution of Ireland during her campaign. In response to Late Late show host Ryan Tubridy’s question as to whether or not she would refuse to sign a bill if it threatened the constitution, Dana replied simply, “you bet your boots I would”. During the show, the presidential candidate also brought out a copy of what was potentially to become the constitution of the EU. In interviews with the media in the race for the Áras, Dana has stated continually that she will attempt to be a voice for the people and will accept their wishes. With Seanad and abortion referenda in sight, it is as yet unclear whether Dana would campaign against changes to the constitution especially on the topic of abortion which is considered morally wrong by many Christian churches.
The candidate has been subject to a series of controversies throughout her campaign. Family feuds have added sparks of interest to Dana’s campaign. Issues over royalty payments among relatives have been a cause of concern for her over the past few months. Recently, during a Prime Time debate, Dana read out a statement firmly disputing then-unknown allegations against a member of her family. While the story was making news on Irish-American websites, the media in Ireland were slow to pick up, doubtless for fear of legal action in the event that they broke the story. While child sex abuse allegations have been made against a member of Dana’s family and campaign manager, ambiguity regarding Dana’s knowledge of this have been criticised in the press.
Gardaí are currently investigating allegations of criminal damage after the campaign car of Dana suffered a blowout on the motorway. In an interview with The Irish Times, Dana stated that she did not want to push criminal allegations but that in her conversation with members of AA she stated that they had never seen “anything like it in their working lives”.
Polls have not gone Dana’s way in the months leading up to the election. In the Red C Poll organised by the Sunday Business Post, Dana has overtaken Mary Davis but still stands at a rather modest 3%. However, according to the poll, 10% of the population are still undecided which may lend an opportunity for Dana to increase her support base by Thursday.
While Dana has performed poorly in the polls, whether or not she makes it to the Áras is ultimately up to you.
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