McCain, Palin draw thousands to concert, rally in Missouri
Published Sunday, August 31, 2008
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Stumble It!O'FALLON, Mo. -- They jammed to country music, munched on hot dogs and popcorn, sweated through their red-shirts in the summer sun and erupted in applause as a bus drove straight into the ballpark.
The River City Rascals minor league baseball season was over. But the political season was in high heat Sunday as thousands of people filled their stadium to rally behind Republican presidential candidate John McCain and his new running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
The event was one of first in which McCain shared the stage both with Palin and his past GOP presidential opponents - Mitt Rommey and Mike Huckabee. It also was one of the final stops as the GOP ticket makes its way to the Republican National Convention this week in Minnesota.
McCain spotlighted Palin at the suburban St. Louis rally - giving her the clean-up speaking spot on a stage erected over the ballfield's home plate. She got an enthusiastic reception from the crowd that filled the infield bleachers and spread from the dirt base paths into the outfield grass. At various times, they chanted, "Sarah, Sarah."
The ball team's president said the stadium holds about 15,000 for such concert-style events. McCain's campaign estimated there were 23,000 people.
The rally was held on important political ground for McCain in his November matchup against Democrat Barack Obama. O'Fallon is located in St. Charles County, a traditional Republican base.
In each of the past two elections, President Bush was spurred to victory in Missouri partly because his combined votes from St. Charles County and from the southwest Missouri Republican stronghold of Greene County more than made up for his deficit in the state's most populous area of St. Louis County.
Palin, a 44-year-old mother of five and a first-term governor, carries strong social conservative credentials that often prove important in those areas. She was raised in a Pentecostal church, is a member of the National Rifle Association and has calls herself "as pro-life as any candidate can be."
"She's fantastic!" exclaimed Jody Garcia, 48, of nearby Belleville, Ill. "She's smart, she's young, she's energetic, she's has all the right stances on issues," namely on abortion and guns.
"I would have been supporting McCain anyway, but now I'm excited," Garcia added.
Missouri Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder proclaimed that McCain has "supercharged" his campaign with the selection of Palin.
"Before, the attitude of folks on our side was, 'Well, we're going to vote for McCain, but we're not enthusiastic,' and the question of how much we're going to go out and work was in doubt," Kinder said in an interview. Now, "our coalition is reassembled as a fighting army."
McCain and Palin flew into St. Louis on Saturday night. But before the rally, they jetted to Mississippi to tour an emergency management center bracing for Hurricane Gustav. They used the Missouri event to urge residents along the Gulf Coast to evacuate.
McCain also used it as a sort of formal introduction of Palin to Missourians.
"When you get to know her, you're going to be as impressed as I am. She's got grit, integrity, good sense," McCain said.
Palin cast herself as a reformer, proclaiming that as governor, "I have stood up to the old politics as usual and the special interests and the lobbyists and Big Oil and to the good ol' boy network."
Democratic U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, a close ally of Obama's, criticized Palin as a "risky" vice presidential pick during a news conference earlier Sunday in St. Louis.
"It shows he is perfectly willing to abandon the modern middle and wrap himself around the radical right in this country," McCaskill said.
While McCain's event showcased Democrats who are supporting him Sunday, Obama's campaign said it planned to launch a "Missouri Republicans for Obama" effort on Monday. Obama's campaign said later that it had postponed the event because of developments related to the hurricane.
At McCain's rally, Republicans were encouraged to wear red to the stadium - a color that happens to belong to the St. Louis Cardinals but, in this case, was intended to demonstrate their desire to keep Missouri a red Republican state instead of letting it slip to Democratic blue.
As part of the build up to McCain's speech, the crowd heard from Sen. Kit Bond, Gov. Matt Blunt, former Sen. Jim Talent, Republican gubernatorial candidate Kenny Hulshof and Republican 9th District congressional candidate Blaine Luetkemeyer.
After an opening act from another country music band, singer John Rich crooned a special McCain song and delivered an unconventional endorsement to rousing applause. To bolster a claim that McCain - a former prisoner of war in Vietnam - should be popular among young people, Rich declared him to be "one of the most bad-ass men that ever walked the face of the earth."
Community Discussion
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McCain didn't see this local news report on her Trooper-Gate problem.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UojMnCgq...
HA! HA! This is all the dems got and its of no substance. Obama is still a done nothing-er and has no experience running a government except for a few aides that the government has paid for. Big budget there huh. She has more guts and smarts than Obama and she is just a VP candidate. No teleprompter for her.
stalkexpress...thanks for also submitting this exact same comment to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch website. Nothing like showing people outside of Alaska your lack of class as well.
A VP candidate that doesn't know what a Vice President does according to an interview she did a couple of months ago. She just might need that teleprompter after all.
salkerexpress and Heidi72, where are your from. salkerexpress your first time on and Heidi two days at it. How much are the Democrats paying you to put the Governor down. One thing your going to find out about Alaskans, we don't care much for phonies who try to make it look like your part of the local crowd. Go back to your cocktail parties, we got to go moose hunting.
I'll bet in his dreams they are shouting, "Der-mot, Der-mot".
All these people on here from the lower 48 trying to bad mouth our hockey mom had better go away. People up here do not take kindly to that type of thing. Maybe that trooper deserved to be fired, he broke the law and sounds like he might be a little off.
I am amused that the Barack Hussein Obama Chicago style political hacks are busy at work trying to denigrate Governor Sarah Palin. The evil scum keep slithering out from the shadows in their attempt to hurt Governor Sarah Palin.... Just like the cockroaches that they emulate. Sarah Palin has the Barack Hussein Obama political scum all in a confused lather. It is great to see.
Sarah Palin will be missed here as Governor when she takes her new office in Washington D.C.
Does any of you know what the job description of a VP consist of?? I believe asking what this position consists of just shows that Sarah is smart and does not jump without knowing.
My perception of the "YOU TUBE"-thing:
Since the investigative committee made a tv plea to the general public establishing an anonymous tip hotline, that's a pretty clear indication they have no proof with the evidence they currently have.
That tells me Sarah Palin hit a nerve with some folks who are really out to get her. I find it humorous that this Public Safety guy plays pure and innocent saying he felt "intimidated".
I've never seen an intimidated State Trooper. "Oohhh, help me! help me!... Big bad Sarah tried to get me and I was scared!"
Stalkexpress, here's some information you probably didn't see on youtube. Troopers investigated 13 issues and found four in which Wooten violated policy or broke the law or both:
• Wooten used a Taser on his stepson.
• He illegally shot a moose.
• He drank beer in his patrol car on one occasion.
• He told others his father-in-law would "eat a f'ing lead bullet" if he helped his daughter get an attorney for the divorce.
...and he still kept his job thanks to the union "protecting their own."
Wooten also has been married & divorced four times.
I knew the Obama camp was in trouble when not more than 30 minutes into the announcement that Palin was McCain's VP pick, they (the Obama campaign) started attacking her, particularly about her ZERO foreign policy experience. Uh, has anyone checked on how much foreign policy experience the young Senator from Illinois has? And to then have a few of the liberals from out of state (Heidi72 & stalkexpress) join the DNM forums to start attacking her as well, shows just how desperate they've (the Democrats) become. Now with the Republicans not going with any "festivities" during the RNC, but more as Americans getting ready to help other Americans (Hurricane Gustav), it has the Obama camp even more concerned that people will see the McCain/Palin ticket has more personal appeal than ever before! Uh-oh .. looks like scary times for those poor ole Dems.
It may come as a shock to some, but I am an Alaskan who's been in the state for more than 25 of my almost 40 years, I'm educated, and I vote, and I don't like Palin. I have never liked her. I couldn't care less if she tried to have her ex brother-in-law fired or not. I don't like her because I don't agree with her on almost every policy and issue that exists. She stands for so many things I dislike. Despite being our first female governor, she feels women belong in the home (doesn't support universal pre-kindergarten for that reason), nor does she trust women with making decisions about their own health.
She's young, she's pretty, and she's female. Those are the main reasons she was chosen, and those are not the qualities I look for in a vice president.
Soooo, baby got back(ing) here... Well, that's not surprising, just as it's no surprise that MciavelliLite has once again 'tapped' a former I'm so pretty pageanteer in an attempt to defibrillate his flaccid campaign, and once again left a faithful long-time companions behind all lurch-like(by the looks of him, haha).
Wonder if McSenileSociopath will feel any pangs of guilt this time around after JoLie gets demdumped when the pugs are down to 30some seats in the Senate next year?
Nope.
Palin comparison, though, to the turn to c-word McAngerMissManagement's new relationship will take after the upcoming VP debatacle and subsequent pollplunging.
lol
;-}
I'd like to know why Jim Whitiker is not supporting Sara Palin. Is he upset that she didn't goose-step behind him and Wally Hickel after being elected governor? It is to her credit she followed the learned advice of her DNR people and ran the Port Authority people off. And she has shown she has what it takes to become a great vice-President!
zardog,
According to the Constitution, the role of the Vice President is to serve as President of the Senate and vote in the event of a tie and be prepared to assume the role of the President in the event that the president cannot fulfill his/her duties. Over the last fifty years, the Vice has been charged with doing everything the President doesn't want to or doesn't have time to do personally. That includes hosting leaders of other nations, representing the President, and speaking on behalf of the President. The President has a cabinet of advisors to handle foreign policy, the economy, military affairs, intelligence, the interior, and energy. Occasionally the Vice President has experience in one or more of those areas and is relied on for advice. In Governor Palin's case, she has experience with Energy, and the Department of the Interior. Some have said that as Governor or Alaska, she has ties to big oil, which is true but the ties she has involve fighting big oil to get them to develop the resources, and own up to their corporate responsibilities. She also recognizes that oil and gas companies are not alternative energy companies and should not be forced to change their business model. Leave that to the solar wind and hydro energy companies. Meanwhile tap the fossil fuel reserves of America to reduce our dependency on foreign oil and build the bridge to become energy independent. That ideology is what she brings to the ticket along with a personality that keeps her in touch with the voters and common people.
She has launched a lawsuit against the Federal Government which targets stopping Alaska's development of natural resources because of the listing of the Polar Bear as a threatened species. Though it is not threatened by development, it is threatened by climate change and the fact that Alaska population contributes the least to those changes, was not considered by the Feds. It is all about the baby polar bear on the chunk of sea ice and eco terrorists unfairly preventing development of this State's resources. If development of resources is the cause of climate change then the practice should be banned in all 50 states and off the coasts of every state.
the main stream media keeps harping on her lack of experience and they constantly belittle our "small" state. Whats funny though is that sarah has been running a city and a state for the last several years. During this time Obama was running a senate subcomitee that never held any meetings.
Have Obama or biden ever done anything as important as negotiating an agreement on a 40 billion dollar deal to deliver clean, and cheap energy to the country? Seems the most obama has done is voted "present" and ran for president.
Check out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qUVQDmLf...
McCain on Palin.
Yes the Barack Hussein Obama Chicago political machine HACKS are out here pretending to be conscious people, instead of automatons who have their brains pithed at "Democrat Party Central"....
The haters of individual responsibility and individual freedom and the cheering squad for the Marxist Barack Hussein Obama and his "handlers" are spewing their garbage in every media outlet that is available to them. No surprise there since The Barack Hussein Obama Camp will also likely have a very large number of votes, as Chicago Politicians typically get, from cemeteries (On this occasion, nation wide).
I have been reading what is being said in the New York Times and it is ugly, misinformed, and the Governor is taking a beating on every issue in Alaska especially the eco terrorist issues like Measure 4, ANWR, the Polar Bear lawsuit, ad nausium. It is amazing how uninformed the average person is who posts their comments there. Take the DNM posts and multiply by ten and have Dermot Cole as the Republican Spokesman and that's what I have read in the Times. We are so blessed to live in Alaska. We are in a win-win situation. If she gets elected, we have a voice in the nation's capital. If she looses, then we get back the best Governor this state has had in 20 years.
Just a thought about the comment Govenor Palin about not knowing what exactly the Vice President's job entailed. I believe she has known for quite sometime that she was the pick. Maybe she used the excuse to get the media to forget about her being in the running for the VP pick. Just a hunch. I believe the second Obama Odrama beat Hillory Gov Palin new she was the pick. Why in world wouldn't he pick Gov Palin. Her approval rating is unheard of in the polical world. I'm not aware any other politician with an approval rating of 80% or higher.
G'day,
I am an outsider from the other side of the world. I live in a small town called Kendenup in Western Australia. I came to your site because I was reading all I could about Sarah Palin as I have a strong interest in American politics.
John McCain's choice of a VP running mate is inspired. I think Sarah has opened the eyes of the world to your great but often forgotten state. She will make a wonderful Vice President and it might just be that we are seeing the future first female president of America.
I believe the Democrats will do their best to destroy her but I have confidence the Alaskans will stand behind their girl.
Well done.
All the best
Ian
Aquitaine, not all of us Alaskans like Palin. I'm with inchworm. I don't think looks is a good reason to pick a VP. In fact, I think its a terrible reason. When you have a person who is one heartbeat away from being president, that person should have some experience and knowledge - period. Palin has neither. And, I disagree with almost all of her beliefs. So, please don't lump all of us Alaskans in the same boat - believe me, I have no desire to be lumped with the ignorant redneck majority of this state. Sarah Palin is a carbon copy of George Bush - if she becomes President, the country will continue down the path of ruination that that idiot set us upon.
Newsminer, I sure hope we aren't going to have to read about every single campaign stop that Palin makes over the next 2 months. If we do, please be even in your "reporting" and tell us what Obama is up to as well. Maybe get away from this campaign bs and tell us something about Hurricane Gustav and other notable news.
I'm middle of the road on most issues...I've been trying to find out as much as I could about both canditates running for president. Both have extremely interesting backgrounds. McCain a POW, and Obama had somewhat of a rough childhood. Both has used their life experiences to build up to who they are today and both seem like good people who may do a good job running this country. I was almost hooked on Obama because I just couldn't see how McCain could truly understand or benefit the working middle class.
I am an Alaskan of 22 years, but have been out of state for five due to the military. I've been reading the DNM religiously since I've left so I feel more close to home and I've read up on everything I possibly could about Gov Palin. I'm estatic she was chosen to be VP and with out a doubt believe she will do an excellent job. I have no worries of her being a heart beat away from presidency. What most people seem to forget is that us women have this uncanny ability to adapt and overcome. With her being a mother of five, a wife and running the LARGEST state in the U.S its really no suprise a she is doing so great a job. Not only that she is REAL. How many people can you say that about and they are a polititian? And those of you who continue to bash her about being under invesigation, what person out there is perfect? I have yet to see any real bashing with substance about any policies she has made for Alaska. So think about who is the lesser of the two evils when you go to vote for the next president. MCAIN and PALIN now have my vote.
OH yeah and Aquitine thank's for the outside perspective!
I'm not the best speller but for those who like to point out mis spellings: politician. There I fixed it....lol.
I think Sarah has been a terrific governor. I wasn't going to vote for either major party, but I WILL vote for Sarah.
Hopefully, she'll get 4 years of training and 8 in the oval office!
Osama - DONE.
inchworm and akjak, I agree with you both. We might be in the minority, but there are actually some of us (including me-SURPRISE!) from Alaska that don't care for Palin.
Way to go - a women - have always said that they need a women in the White House - they know how to multitask. I am happy to vote for McCain and Palin. Now I know there is hope for our country.
Yeah, the 20% minority.
Good thing we are close to Russia and Palin has lots of foreign policy experience. Yes, this is one of her "strong" points according to some GOPers. This is going to get really funny.
My husband was a big-time Bush hater, and said he would never vote for McCain. He registered to vote as "undeclared". Whenever the poll people called, he always said he'd be voting for Obama. Now he has changed 180 degrees and will be voting for McCain-Palin, because he has loved what she's done in the state, ie. selling the jet, firing the french chef, working on the pipeline deal, holding her inauguration in Fairbanks instead of Juneau, toughing out a rough pregnancy, and truly not being one of the good-old-boys. He thinks she will shake things up and that's what's needed.
I think the candidates are just going for the "undeclared"/undecided voters at this point and this will either work for McCain or not.
One thing for certain--our next president will either be McCain or Obama.
http://www.adn.com/front/story/476430.ht...
Is Wooten a Good Trooper?
See if this link works.
The troopers in Alaska need some serious cleaning up. And not only because of Wooten.
oldakcuss-
If you can get this out around the sites, I'd appreciate it.
It's from the Anchorage Daily News; I think July 27, if the site doesn't work.
I'll try it here after this posts...
Is Palin running for Vice President or President? I think people have forgotten McCain's still on the ticket.
Hilarious that this event with less than 20,000 in attendance is a story, but the Newsminer is one of the few media entities in the country not to mention Obama's convention speech with 80,000 in attendance and a record 38 million watching on tv.
Stormrider said: "...The Newsminer is one of the few media entities in the country not to mention Obama's convention speech with 80,000 in attendance and a record 38 million watching on tv."
Face it, AK's a red state. The Alaskan media's been ignoring his campaign almost entirely.
Also, Heidi72, everyone's ignoring McCain because he's very likely going to croak halfway in office anyway. It's only a matter of time before Sarah Palin becomes the first female president of the US.
I'm Pro-Obama and Anti-Palin all the way.
Just a question: are any of you anti-Palin folks NOT democrat?
These comments are filled with so much partisan bias. It is too bad. This country has become so polarized - when will we wake up and think for ourselves? The media plays us all like fiddles.
Our country really missed the boat in the primaries. I'm discouraged by our "choices'.
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