Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin took to the airwaves yesterday to defend assertions, made during a visit to the North End on Thursday, that Paul Revere’s iconic ride was as much to warn to the British as it was to warn American colonists of an impending British attack on arms stores.
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Palin bristled when anchor Chris Wallace suggested she had erred in her retelling of Paul Revere’s role in the event leading up to the Revolutionary War.
“You realized that you messed up about Paul Revere, don’t you?’’ said Wallace.
But Palin defended her previous statement on the purpose of Paul Revere’s famous ride.
“You know what? I didn’t mess up about Paul Revere,’’ said Palin, a paid Fox News contributor and possible GOP presidential candidate. “Part of his ride was to warn the British that we’re already there. That, hey, you’re not going to succeed. You’re not going to take American arms.’’
Palin had initially spoken to reporters about Paul Revere during a North End visit to Parziale’s Bakery on Thursday as part of her recent “One Nation’’ tour of some of the East Coast’s famous historical sites.
After a visit to Old North Church, Palin was asked about Paul Revere’s ride and said he “warned the British that they weren’t going to be taking away our arms. By ringing those bells and making sure as he’s riding his horse through town to send those warning shots and bells that we were going to be secure and we were going to be free.’’
Online video of Palin’s initial telling of Paul Revere’s ride quickly went viral, drawing much criticism from those who said Palin was unaware that the famous ride was to warn American patriots that the British were planning to attack.
Palin, a frequent guest on Fox News Sunday, called the reporter’s inquiry a “shout-out, gotcha type of question’’ and insisted her grasp on American history was firm.
“Here is what Paul Revere did. He warned the Americans that the British were coming … and they were going to try take our arms and we got to make sure that we were protecting ourselves and shoring up all of ammunitions and our firearms so that they couldn’t take it,’’ Palin said yesterday. “But remember that the British had already been there, many soldiers for seven years in that area. And part of Paul Revere’s ride — and it wasn’t just one ride — he was a courier, he was a messenger. Part of his ride was to warn the British that we’re already there… . You are not going to beat our own well-armed persons, individual, private militia that we have. He did warn the British.’’
