Was McCain's selection of Sarah Palin a campaign gimmick or a game-changer?
My first reaction to the news was, "Sarah who?" and then it was, "Well, that's just a blatant attempt to attract Hillary supporters." But there is more to it than that.
If you are not aware of who Sarah Palin is, then you are obviously not part of the radically right movement. They love her! She has been the best campaign donation tactic yet. McCain has raised $7,000,000 in the past two days after naming her to the veep slot. And Rush Limbaugh is so happy he is quoted as saying that McCain has hit, "a home f***ing run."
McCain now calls Palin a "soul-mate." He said in an interview with Chris Wallace today on Fox News that when he first met with Palin that he met a, "partner and soul-mate."
After seeing his campaign bank account McCain is undoubtedly effervescent. Palin, which is pronounced, "Pay - lin" not "Pah - lin" is living up to her name.
First of all, I was wrong. This could not have been an attempt to grab for Hillary Clinton supporters. The women who support Hillary are all saying this in unison, "I know Hillary Clinton, and Sarah Palin is no Hillary Clinton!" No, this may seem like an olive-branch attempt to give the disenfranchised Clinton supporters their chance to shatter the glass ceiling, but it most certainly is not.
This is a desperate attempt to secure the voter base that McCain has been pandering to for months after seeing the success of the the DNC and the 76,000 people cheering in Invesco Field where it did not rain, even though one of James Dobson's cronies, Stuart Shepard of Focus on the Family, was spreading the word to their followers to "pray for rain" on the last night of the Democratic Convention.
"I'm talking 'umbrella-ain't-going-to-help-you rain," the former pastor and television meteorologist said.
In case you didn't watch the event, it was a beautiful evening in Denver, so I guess God didn't see fit to intervene on Shepard's or Dobson's behalf. God smiled on Obama and all was well.
Former presidential candidate Gary Bauer on Friday called the choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin "a historic moment for women and for the Republican Party as well as a choice guaranteed to energize Values Voters. This is a grand slam home run for John McCain."
"Sarah Palin is an outstanding governor, an exemplar of all that is good and true,” said RNC for Life National Chairman Phyllis Schlafly. “She is a major leader in the pro-life movement and that is main reason we chose her as our keynote speaker for our ‘Life of the Party’ party at this year’s GOP convention."
The Christian Coalition in a press release about Palin said, "Christian Coalition of America commends Senator John McCain for his selection of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, a pro-life conservative mother of 5 children including a Downs Syndrome baby born during April."
Roberta Combs, President of the Christian Coalition of America said: "Governor Sarah Palin is a bold choice for Vice President who is a courageous advocate for unborn children. In addition, she is a conservative who is a reformer not afraid to shake up the establishment. I congratulate Senator McCain for his outstanding selection for his vice presidential running mate."
In an interview with Top of the Ticket, Ralph Reid, former executive director of the Christian Coalition, had this to say about the qualities the veep pick by McCain should have:
Reed: He needs a running mate who is 1) a proven, credible conservative to energize the grass roots of the Republican Party; 2) someone with a demonstrated crossover appeal among women, independents, Democrats, and preferably Hispanics; 3) can pass the laugh test among both voters and the chattering class as someone ready to become president down the road.Whatever one thinks of Dick Cheney (and I think he's gotten a bum rap), he has transformed the vice presidency into the second most important office in the nation. This is a real change, and the bar is now higher for running mates.
And given McCain's age, he needs a running mate who will be seen by voters as someone who could succeed him.
Finally, if Obama does not pick a woman, especially after beating Hillary, then McCain should look seriously at qualified women. I'd prefer not to get into names because the bench is so deep and there are so many qualified people (and I don't want to offend any friends who are on the list!)
John McCain was obviously not shy of offending the long list of qualified candidates. But with only having met Sarah Palin once and that just six months ago and with a very fast and incomplete vetting process, is McCain ready for the Pay-dirt that will soon come rolling out about Sarah Palin? Already rumors are starting to swill and bubble up. (Who scrubbed Wikipedia the day before the announcement?)
Did she overstep the power of the Governor's office to fire Alaska Public Safety Commissioner Walter Monegan? What is the controversy about her fifth child with some speculating that Trig is actually her grandchild? And if this is false, then was it grit or incredible lack of judgement that moved Palin to continue with a thirty-minute speech at a conference in Texas on April 18th even though she was supposedly already in labor? After the speech she did not check into a local hospital in Texas but flew over 12 hours to get back to an obscure hospital in Alaska and then returned to work just three days after delivering a premature, special needs infant. Either she is the last of the idyllic prairie woman type that delivered a baby and then went back to the field to plow or there is more to the story.
For McCain to have offered and for Palin to have accepted the veep slot for the Republican ticket says volumes about them both and only time will tell exactly what that is. It is sure to be a long walk in mukluks to Washington, DC for Sarah Palin as her splash on the national scene plays out over the next two months. Whatever you think of Sarah Palin, it would behoove all those that believe to keep her and her family in their thoughts and prayers. It's going to be a bumpy ride. (picture of Sarah Palin from Vogue Magazine story, Feb '08)Sarah Palin Fires Up Conservatives - Politico
The Coming War on Sarah Palin - Renew America
Palin's Child - Anchorage Daily News
Where's the Rest of the Moose? - Slate
Mum of 5, Sarah Palin, Steps into the Limelight - Herald Sun, Australia
Palin fires Alaska's top safety official due to a family feud - Newsvine
That Sarah Palin Rumor - Knox News
What McCain Didn't Know About Sarah Palin - The Atlantic
Things that Make you go Hmmm - the Daily Dish
Meet Sarah Palin - CBS
Just Rumors? Sarah Palin is tops in Google Search - RRU
"What is it exactly that the VP does every day? I am used to be very productive and working really hard... This is a pretty cool job here being Governor of Alaska." - Sarah Palin
