In a miraculous moment in Dayton, Ohio, John McCain announced what may be the most politically significant decision of the new millennium. Faced with many choices and the challenge of a resurgent left, McCain defied all of those who questioned his worthiness as a leader and a candidate and those who worship 'conventional wisdom,' by making the boldest and most courageous choice of a Vice Presidential running mate since William McKinley reluctantly accepted the nomination of Theodore Roosevelt. Out of a field which included many safe choices and many establishment figures, McCain vindicated himself and the hopes of those Republicans who had extended him the benefit of the doubt, by picking Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska as his running mate.
In his announcement, McCain summarized Palin's career as an innovative governor, an opponent of big business and institutionalized politics, and stressed her background as a mother and a product of a normal middle-class family. Palin is not a child of wealth or a creature of the political establishment. She's as much a maverick as McCain has claimed to be. She comes from a frontier state with a frontier mentality and a love of freedom and individualism which too many Republicans have drifted away from. By picking her, McCain is making a clear statement that he will be running as the political maverick and innovator and reformer he has tried to be rather than the establishment moderate some have accused him of being.
Palin will bring out the best of John McCain and as running mates they will bring out the best of the Republican party and return it to its root values of small government, fiscal responsibility and individual liberty.
Throughout this campaign McCain has been faced with a choice of constituencies to appeal to. He has had to court independents and moderates, the religious right and Republican reformers, all of whom control substantial numbers of votes and strong activist elements. Although always viewed as a long shot and brilliantly concealed by the McCain campaign, in retrospect the Palin selection seems almost inevitable, because she is the only person whose track record and reputation should satisfy the demands of every constituency McCain wants to appeal to.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Arch Conservative
Am I mistaken or did John McCain just deliver BArry the KO punch?
Well played John McCain.
I'm still voting for Baldwin.
2 - Dave Nalle
It may be too late to make a declaration of victory, but I bet Obama gets a negative 'bump' out of the convention as a result of this.
Things are looking very hopeful for the GOP. How you could vote for Baldwin is beyond me.
Dave
3 - Arch Conservative
If your next door neighbor who's been stealing your newspaper and watching your wife get undressed through the window for years suddenly gives you free tickets to a sporting event with your favorite team because he wants you to be his alibi for a homicide taht was committed last Tuesday night that he's being investigated for do you take those tickets and say "yes officer he was here playing poker with me and the guys last Tuesday night?"
I don't.
4 - bliffle
Some would call this a pretty cynical political choice by McCain. Especially since there's a chance McCain might croak in office and this mystery person might become POTUS.
5 - Lumpy
and what record does baldwin have that would justify any faith in him
6 - Arch Conservative
Baldwin says things that he knows are going to piss off a ton of people. He says these things because he believes these things not because some handler who read a public opinion poll that morning told him to. He is honest. That alone makes him light years more appealing than the Chicago Charlatan and the Angry Arizonan.
If you've ever listened to Baldwin speak you know that he's actually read and understood the constitution.
He's advocated actually doing something about closing the borders.
He doesn't believe this nation should be entering into anymore dumbass trade agreements that have proven to do us great harm.
He's the best man for the job by a country mile Lumpy.
7 - terry b,
why would john McCain pick a someone that is under a federal investagation for mis-useing her office. dumb dumb and dumber.
8 - Silas Kain
Check your facts in their entirety, terryb. Don't depend on sound bites. In order to make an informed decision before casting our ballots this year, it is incumbent upon every voter to exercise caution and do their homework. Anything less is a wasted vote and a continuation of business as usual. If each of us took our electoral responsibility seriously neither Obama or McCain will be the next President. It would be Bob Barr or Cynthia McKinney.
9 - Arch Conservative
My choice is Chuck Baldwin Silas.............
THE TIME IS NIGH!
10 - Pablo
Arch,
I just want to get this straight. Is this the same Chuck Baldwin who is an opponent of what he calls "The New World Order", wants another investigation into 9/11, and is an opponent of "The North American Union"? Hmmmm, if so I may vote for him, sounds like my kinda guy. Smirk
Surely this must be another Chuck Baldwin, arch, tell me it aint so.
11 - Arch Conservative
Yes it is.
12 - Matthew T. Sussman
VPILF
13 - Pablo
So Archie,
Does that mean that you support a new investigation of 9/11 (if so why), and believe there is a New World Order, (if so, who is it), and that you believe that there are people in government and other organizations that are pushing a North American Union, (if so who is it, certainly not the CFR, barf)?
I am all ears Arch, please educate me!
14 - Clavos
I am all ears Arch, please educate me!
A Sisyphean task, if ever there was one.
15 - Silas Kain
VPILF Matt, dude. I thought the same thing!
16 - RJ Elliott
As far as I'm concerned, Palin is *more* experienced than Obama. She's run a city and run a state. What's Obama ever run, other than his mouth?
17 - Dr Dreadful
No, she's run a village and a gigantic wilderness.
18 - RJ Elliott
"VPILF"
I lol'd IRL ...
19 - RJ Elliott
"No, she's run a village and a gigantic wilderness."
Alright, let's try to meet in the middle on this one. She's run a fast-growing small town (no doubt full of simple folks who cling to their guns and their God), and she's run a sparsely-populated state that happens to be the nation's largest in area.
But, again...what's Obama ever run, other than his mouth?
20 - Pablo
Whats the matter Clavy, no poontang last night bubba?
21 - Dr Dreadful
The Developing Communities Project in Chicago, the Harvard Law Review and Illinois Project Vote.
What legislative experience does Sarah Palin have?
All of which is by the by, anyway, since Palin is not running for President.
How does her experience stack up against Biden's, if you want to have that discussion?
22 - Alec
RE: McCain has made his declaration for progressive change, reform and new ideas...
I don't know. "Progressive" and "GOP" is a contradiction in terms.
If reports I've read that she supports the teaching of creationism in public schools, then she could never be an acceptable candidate to me, especially if, in addition, she approves of the GOP platform position with respect to stem cell research.
So while I don't entirely share your wild enthusiasm for Palin, I agree with you that she is an interesting, maybe non-traditional choice. She's a liftetime member of the NRA and a strongly pro-life Christian, so I find it interesting that McCain is playing to the GOP base, as opposed to a choice who might be more palatable to some moderates and independents. But I think it is a very good sign that Palin has fought against corruption -- even in her own party.
One of the dumbest comments I've seen about Palin came from David Weigel at reasononline. He balks at comparisons between Hillary Clinton and Palin: "Clinton was and is a feminist icon. Sarah Palin is Sarah Palin."
I agree that Clinton is a feminist icon to many. But while Senator Clinton pretended to be a mountain woman, Palin is the real deal, and has hunted and apparently can tout the excellence of mooseburgers. The story of how she married her high school sweetheart argues for a certain strongheadedness and independence of spirit (courtesy of Wikipedia): "The two eloped shortly after Palin graduated from college; when they learned they needed witnesses for the civil ceremony, they recruited two residents from the old-age home down the street...." In short, I don't think she has to prove feminist bona fides to anyone or be reduced to something as stupid as "an identity politics" choice.
She named one of her daughters "Willow," apparently after the character in the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" TV show, which suggests that she is not one of those insufferable Christian fools who believe that fantasy shows and novels encourage Satan worship. But any fan of Buffy is a friend of mine.
I haven't noted much about her relative lack of "experience" because it only proves a point I made earlier that the experience template (executive experience, running a company blah, blah, blah) people like to toss around is largely nonsense. That she doesn't have foreign policy "experience" also is a non-issue for me. She seems to be able to connect the dots and come up with rational decisions, which is far more important that filling out the "past experience" page on a resume.
I can easily see her appeal to many in the GOP and also perhaps to others. It will be interesting to see how the rigid family values crowd deals with her (to me, common sense) decisions related to gays.
Oddly enough, I don't think that the Wall Street Republicans will be happy with McCain's choice, nor will the "party loyalty und cronyism uber alles" crowd be particularly happy.
Interesting that among the presidential and VP contenders, we have candidates from the newest states, Alaska and Hawaii (even though, yes, Palin was born in Idaho). It might be fun to see Obama and Palin play a game of basketball.
Game on!
23 - Dan
For us conservatives who were less than thrilled with McCain, this is such an exciting developement.
She seems to be thouroughly conservative.
Her acceptance speech was a display of authentic sincerity and humbleness that forces people to like her.
I see no negatives. Vibrant, intelligent, in touch, and executive experience.
This could be our first woman President eventually.
24 - RJ Elliott
"The Developing Communities Project in Chicago"
He was an organizer for them; I don't know if you can say he "ran" it. Also, they were funded and supported by radical south-side churches like "Father" Pfleger's.
"the Harvard Law Review"
The year Obama was the editor of the Harvard Law Review is the least-cited in the last 20 years.
"and Illinois Project Vote."
A project closely-tied to the corrupt left-wing organization ACORN. His job there, while officially nonpartisan, was to register as many black Democrats to vote as possible. I will cede that he was successful in that endeavor.
"What legislative experience does Sarah Palin have?"
I don't believe she'll be expected to pass much legislation as Vice President. Perhaps she'll have to cast a tie-breaking Senate vote. That's about it. So I don't see the relevance of the question. (But, to answer it anyway, she was a city councilwoman for four years.)
"How does her experience stack up against Biden's, if you want to have that discussion?"
Sure. Palin has eight more years of executive experience (the relevant kind for the job of Vice President) than Biden. She was Mayor for six years, and has been Governor for almost two.
She also has better hair, and isn't the punchline to about twenty different jokes. Biden, on the other hand, has much more experience as a plagiarist and failed Presidential candidate.
25 - Zedd
Dave,
You cant be serious. Do you really believe the things you post?
Have you watched her? She's George Bush in a dress.