We knew that Wednesday night's boffo speech to the Republican National Convention by newly minted vice presidential nominee Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was a huge hit inside the house. But perhaps no one among the GOP faithful swooned more than Rush Limbaugh.
El Rushbo, the self-appointed voice of broadcast conservatism to his many millions of faithful listeners, had been less than enthusiastic about the candidacy of Sen. John McCain. But he has been an enthusiastic booster of Palin, and Sept. 4, 2008, is a day that will go down in the annals of political history as one of the all-time greatest show biz flip-flops: Rush has fallen in line with John McCain.
As noted by The Page's Mark Halperin, Limbaugh said this in his broadcast Thursday:
"I did not want that to end last night. . . . I didn't want the night to end. I didn't want Rudy to stop. What a night! Folks, we have a future beyond November here. Regardless what happens. . . . The convention has been unified on the basis of conservatism. Properly executed, beautifully articulated.
"Believe me, Barack Obama has a lot to fear today and he knows it. . . . The drive-bys are in panic, the Democrat Party is in panic, the liberal left is in panic. . . . They do not know who hit them, they do not know how to respond to this.
"This lady has turned it all around. . . . From now on, on this program John McCain will be known as John McBrilliant."
No, really! Rush said that.
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Embracing gays, Republican-style
Gay Republican. We've known some Democrats to deride the term as an oxymoron. But for years now, openly gay Republicans not only have stayed the course in the party but have sought to raise their profile through the Log Cabin organization. And Thursday, that group reveled in a visit from John McCain's campaign manager, Steve Schmidt.
Schmidt spoke at a luncheon in Minneapolis hosted by Log Cabin and, according to a release quickly sent out by Scott Tucker, its communications director, he said, "I admire your organization."
Other quotes from Schmidt, as related by Tucker: "Keep fighting for what you believe because the day is going to come," and, "We are the party of freedom. We will keep fighting as a party to reach it in full."
Schmidt's interest in the group's efforts may be more than academic; a recent Washington Post profile of him noted that his lone sibling is a lesbian.
