Thursday, Sept. 4, 2008

GOP Convention coverage

Gov. Sarah Palin:

"I love those hockey moms...
 you know, they say the difference between
a hockey mom and a pitbull?
Lipstick.

speech text

[EXCERPTS]

... I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities. I might add that in small towns, we don't quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they are listening, and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren't listening.

We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco.

... I’ve learned quickly, these past few days, that if you’re not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone.”
 

... here's a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion - I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country.

... listening to [Obama] speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform - not even in the state senate.

This is a man who can give an entire speech about the wars America is fighting, and never use the word "victory" except when he's talking about his own campaign.

... In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change. They're the ones whose names appear on laws and landmark reforms, not just on buttons and banners, or on self-designed presidential seals.

My fellow citizens, the American presidency is not supposed to be a journey of "personal discovery."

... though both Senator Obama and Senator Biden have been going on lately about how they are always, quote, "fighting for you," let us face the matter squarely. There is only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you ... in places where winning means survival and defeat means death ... and that man is John McCain.

news coverage:

Palin shows she knows how to throw a punch

Broder: Democrats have a problem on their hands

"So much for being nervous on the national stage. If she was nervous, she sure didn’t show it. She may be new to the national stage but I have a feeling she’s not leaving that stage for a long, long time. And the Republican crowd inside the Xcel Center in St. Paul was in such a frenzy that they didn’t want her leaving that stage tonight."

Palin takes off gloves, rips Washington elite

'Average hockey mom' slams Obama's 'change' mantra

Sarah Palin delivers smash hit in St. Paul

Palin fires up faithful, comes out swinging

Palin could make the difference in this close race

John Fund: Palin's home run

"Twenty years after Ronald Reagan left office, Republicans who have long missed him may have found a future Margaret Thatcher. If John McCain wins, conservatives may find one of the most enduring accomplishments of his term will have been what he did before it started: helping to fill the Republican Party's future talent bench with such a fresh and compelling figure.

Sarah Palin is a conviction politician, a naturally compelling speaker and someone who can relate to her audience on very human terms. America has just learned why Mrs. Palin enjoys the highest approval ratings of any governor in America."

McCain's surprise appearance follows Palin's speech

It looks like another tradition has been added to our convention rituals -- the "surprise" appearance by the top of the ticket to join the vice presidential candidate in the spotlight on the gathering's next-to-last night.

Barack Obama did it last week in Denver, after Joe Biden did his part to rouse fellow Democrats.

Tonight, John McCain did the same after Sarah Palin delivered her stem winder to an adoring Republican crowd in St. Paul.

Rudy Giuliani:
I hope for his sake, Joe Biden got that VP thing in writing

speech text

[Excerpts:]

... [Obama] ran for the state legislature - where nearly 130 times he was unable to make a decision yes or no. He simply voted "present."

As Mayor of New York City, I never got a chance to vote "present." And you know, when you're President of the United States, you can't just vote "present." You must make decisions.

... [Obama's] rise is remarkable in its own right - it's the kind of thing that could happen only in America. But he's never run a city, never run a state, never run a business. He's never had to lead people in crisis.

... Barack Obama has never led anything. Nothing. Nada.

... "change" is not a destination ... just as "hope" is not a strategy.

... I hope for his sake, Joe Biden got that VP thing in writing.

... Later, after discussing it with his 300 foreign policy advisors, he changed his position and suggested that the "the UN Security Council," could find a solution. Apparently, none of his 300 advisors told him that Russia has a veto on any UN action. Finally Obama put out a statement that looked ...well, it looked a lot like John McCain's.

Here's some free advice: Sen. Obama, next time just call John McCain.

... she already has more executive experience than the entire Democratic ticket. She's led a city and a state. She's reduced taxes and government spending.

see also:

Rudy revs and riles

Giuliani hammers Obama

Mike Huckabee:

...Maybe the most dangerous threat of an Obama presidency is that he would continue to give madmen the benefit of the doubt. If he’s wrong just once, we will pay a heavy price.

...I’m not a Republican because I grew up rich, but because I didn't want to spend the rest of my life poor, waiting for the government to rescue me.

Mitt Romney:

Just like you, there has never been a day when I was not proud to be an American. We inherited the greatest nation in the history of the Earth. It is our burden and privilege to preserve it, to renew its spirit so that its noble past is prologue to its glorious future.

Cindy McCain:
Sarah Palin coverage is sexist

Speaking to Diane Sawyer, Cindy McCain blasted the overall coverage of Palin as sexist -- and specifically an Us Weekly cover headlined "Babies, Lies and Scandal."

"I think it's insulting," McCain told Sawyer. "I think it's outlandish. And for whatever reason, the media has decided to treat her differently, because, I believe, because she's a woman."

Cindy McCain holds infant Trig Palin at the Republican Convention in St. Paul, Minn.