John McCain accepts the long-elusive Republican presidential
nomination today after running mate Gov. Sarah Palin, in an
electrifying night of slashing attacks on Democrats, declared him
the only leader able to navigate the United States through
difficult domestic and international times.
John McCain accepts the long-elusive Republican presidential nomination today after running mate Gov. Sarah Palin, in an electrifying night of slashing attacks on Democrats, declared him the only leader able to navigate the United States through difficult domestic and international times.
The veteran Arizona senator was to address the final night of the four-day Republican National Convention – a speech in which he was expected to tout his experience as a combat pilot, a Vietnam prisoner of war and a U.S. senator bent on change as a stark contrast to what he argues is Democratic White House rival Barack Obama’s thin foreign policy and national security resume.
He was awarded the nomination after the roll call of states – in this case an anti-climactic tradition that capped a staggering comeback by a nominee who seemed, late last year, on the brink of losing again after his defeat in 2000 to then-candidate and Texas Gov. George W. Bush.
Setting the stage, Palin, the 44-year-old mother of five whose only political experience before becoming Alaska’s governor was as mayor of tiny Wasilla, Alaska, delighted delegates at the convention by blasting away at Obama and extolling McCain’s virtues.
“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,” said Palin, in a sideways reference to Obama’s cornerstone campaign theme.
Palin’s speech marked a dramatic debut on the national stage for a vice presidential pick who American voters barely knew until last week. And, what they did learn since then served as ample fodder for controversy: that her 17-year-old daughter was pregnant and that she faced an ethics investigation at home. Questions have also arisen about her efforts as mayor to gain millions of dollars in federal money – behavior that is at odds with McCain’s message of fiscal reform.
The vast contrasts in the Republican and Democratic tickets, compounded by the addition of the fiercely conservative Palin to the mix, have produced one of the most captivating U.S. presidential campaigns in recent memory.
Obama, a 47-year-old first-term senator from Illinois, would, if victorious, become America’s first black president.
McCain, a 72-year-old cancer survivor, would be the oldest first-term U.S. president. Palin would be the first female vice president of the United States.
McCain was the early front-runner for the nomination, but his candidacy collapsed as his stances on immigration and campaign financing angered the party’s conservative base, and his call for more U.S. troops in Iraq was rejected by most Americans.
But his campaign was revived as Bush agreed to a troop buildup in Iraq and violence there soon diminished. McCain’s positions on key issues, including immigration, moved closer to the Republican mainstream. And the campaigns of top rivals, including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, collapsed.
It was McCain’s second run for the nomination. He lost to Bush in a bitter campaign in 2000. In this race, he has sought to distance himself from the unpopular president.
Mindful of the focus on her personal life, Palin took special care in introducing her husband and five children, including a son who is a soldier heading to Iraq, a 17-year-old unwed pregnant daughter and a son born in April with Down syndrome.
“Our family has the same ups and downs as any other, the same challenges and the same joys,” she said.
Obama’s vice presidential running mate, Sen. Joseph Biden, complimented Palin for delivering an impressive speech with skill, but said that issues important to Americans were missing from her remarks.
“I didn’t hear the phrase ‘middle class’ mentioned, I didn’t hear a word about health care. I didn’t hear a single word about what we’re going to do about the housing crisis, college education, all the things that the middle class is being burdened by now,” Biden told CBS’ “The Early Show” on Thursday.
The family issue took center – mainly by raising questions on whether McCain’s campaign had fully vetted her before announcing her as his No. 2. But for a staunch anti-abortionsit who carried her youngest child to term even though she knew in advance he had Down syndrome, the surprising news of her daughter’s pregnancy only seemed to pull conservatives around her and left others on the defensive.
Biden stressed that Palin’s family was “off limits” and suggested that sexism had played a factor in some of the media coverage.
His comments came as Republicans indicated that at least some of the blame for coverage of Palin rested with Democratic critics, even if Obama has made it clear that he wants no part of any focus on her family.
Palin’s credentials as a reformer in Alaska fit neatly with McCain’s political philosophy. That she is a woman has given him hope of winning over some women disgruntled by Hillary Rodham Clinton’s defeat in the Democratic primary campaign.
Obama’s top strategist, David Axelrod, dismissed Palin’s address as dishonest about his candidate’s record and said she was only parroting advisers.
“There wasn’t one thing that she said about Obama or what he’s proposing that is true,” Axelrod told reporters aboard Obama’s campaign plane. “She tried to attack Senator Obama by saying he had no significant legislative achievements. Maybe that’s what she was told.”
In her speech, she mixed praise for McCain, quips about small-town life, and criticism of Washington insiders with smiling, but sarcastic assaults on Obama.
“Victory in Iraq is finally in sight; he wants to forfeit,” she said. “Al-Qaida terrorists still plot to inflict catastrophic harm on America; he’s worried that someone won’t read them their rights.”
And she showed that she was more than capable of defending herself, even as McCain’s campaign accused the media of creating scandals to destroy the first female Republican candidate for vice president.
“I’m not a member of the permanent political establishment,” Palin said. “And 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.
“But 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 great country.”
It is not clear how Palin’s speech will affect the overall race, but judging by the thunderous applause in the convention center, party loyalists were enraptured by her timing and clear willingness to take on the role of attacking Obama.
Sliding into the Republican convention theme of “Country First,” Palin lambasted Obama as a candidate out for himself.
Meanwhile, Cindy McCain, the nominee’s wife said she respect’s Palin’s views, but disagrees with her opposition to abortion in cases of rape and incest. She also told ABC’s “Good Morning America” in an interview taped for broadcast Thursday they differ on their views about sex education programs, which Palin also opposes.
