Sarah Palin finally meets John McCain
John McCain and his new running mate, Sarah Palin, spent some quality time together after Friday morning's rally in Dayton, Ohio, when they boarded McCain's bus for the six-hour ride to Pittsburgh. That's a good thing. Because McCain and Palin are practically strangers.
At least that's what the Alaska governor told a reporter two weeks ago. In an interview with the Washington newspaper Roll Call, Palin said she had met McCain only once or twice. She said she was introduced to McCain at the 2006 Republican Governors Assn. meeting.
The pair met again this week, according to McCain campaign spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker. In a news release, Hazelbaker said Palin arrived with an aide in Flagstaff, Ariz., on Wednesday to meet McCain advisors Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter.
On Thursday morning, Palin met with Cindy McCain and John McCain at their home in Sedona, Ariz. That, according to Hazelbaker, is where McCain made his big revelation: "At approximately 11:00 a.m. Thursday August 28, 2008, John McCain formally invited Governor Sarah Palin to join the Republican ticket as the vice presidential nominee on the deck of the McCain family home."
Palin a hit with conservatives . . .
McCain made strides in overcoming the reluctant attitude many social conservatives long have held toward him with his strong performance at the Saddleback Church forum earlier this month.
Now, with his selection of Palin as his running mate, he may have fully brought them aboard the Straight Talk Express.
Typical of the effusive response to the Palin pick was a statement from Andrea Lafferty, executive director of the Traditional Values Coalition:
"At a time when Americans want change in Washington, Sara [sic] Palin is a fresh and energetic voice joining the debate. I am thrilled with Sen. McCain's choice and I look forward to having this strong and independent woman who brings a lot of substance to the campaign.
"It is interesting to hear all of these liberals whine about foreign policy experience. Where were they when the Democrats were nominating Bill Clinton, a governor of Arkansas, to be President? How about Jimmy Carter, a peanut farmer from rural Georgia?
"The audacity of their hypocrisy is galling.
"This was a very wise move by Sen. McCain. He has done what Sen. [Barack] Obama refused to do -- pick a qualified woman to be his running mate. Instead, Obama picked a Washington insider who has been part of the old guard of radical liberals who are still trying to raise taxes, protect the abortion industry and pack our federal courts with activist judges.
