Her name has been in the headlines for days. The second Sarah Palin was announced by John McCain as his vice presidential candidate, the media and bloggers have been dedicating unbelievable amounts of ink to this Governor from Alaska.
The majority of bloggers, supporters and pundits from the right have united behind her, grabbed ahold of her policy issues and her experiences as Mayor and then Governor and resoundingly showed approval by volunteering time, donating money in unprecedented amounts compared to the McCain campaigns previous fundraising efforts, evangelicals hailed McCain's decision declaring the choice to be someone they could get behind and conservative woman have finally seen the Republican Party put a woman on the GOP ticket for the first time in history and waited to see more about this woman that has aroused their curiosity.
The majority of bloggers, supporters and pundits on the left went on a full scale attack, some devoting their time to disagreeing with the issues Sarah Palin represents, others simply making up false rumors about her hoping they those rumors would stick in some people's minds, and yet others questioning her experience for the number two slot on the Republican ticket, yet never once acknowledging that Palin has more executive experience in running a city and then a state, than the junior Senator of Illinois, Barack Obama does.
No matter what side of the political aisle readers are on, they have not suffered from a lack of being exposed to one element or more or even all of the elements of the writing listed above over the last five days.
Tonight Sarah Palin addressed the people inside the Excel Energy Center as well as millions of Americans across the world, via news coverage, and she spoke about herself, John McCain, what they would bring to the table if they are elected in the November elections and most importantly, she did not speak at the people, she spoke to the people.
On the topic of her experience, she digs a little at Barack Obama by saying, "I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small town. I was just your average hockey mom, and signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my kids’ public education better. When I ran for city council, I didn’t need focus groups and voter profiles because I knew those voters, and knew their families, too. Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown. And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves. I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer,’ except that you have actual responsibilities."
Regarding John McCain and change, she declares, "Here’s how I look at the choice Americans face in this election. 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."
Other thing Palin brought up was how she wasn't going to Washington to earn the good opinion of the "media" she was going there to work, she spoke about Obama's tax plans and lack of energy ideas, she showed she can give as good as she can get.
The text to Sarah Palin's speech is found here at the Republican National Convention website as soon as they put it up and the video will be here when they upload it. Once an embeddable version is uploaded it will be supplied to the top of this article.
If early reactions from the conservatives are any indication, the speech was a resounding success that showed she touched a chord in conservatives in her delivery and in her earnest manner as well as poise.
If early reactions from the liberal blogosphere are any indicator, she has presented herself as a threat to their nominated candidate by energizing the conservative base in a way they have not been energized this whole campaign season.
Both John McCain and Sarah Palin will be, as of the roll call being conducted now, the official Republican Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates for the GOP.
Other highlights from the tonight's event came via former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
Excerpt from Mitt Romney:
On why the McCain-Palin ticket is the right choice for the future of America:
"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. To this we are all dedicated and I firmly believe by the providence of the Almighty, that we will succeed. President McCain and Vice President Palin will keep America as it has always been - the hope of the world."
Excerpt from Mike Huckabee:
On the type of change John McCain will bring to Washington:
"John McCain doesn’t want the kind of change that allows the government to reach deeper into your paycheck and pick your doctor, your child’s school, or even the kind of car you drive or how much you inflate the tires."
On the media "elite" going after Palin, Huckabee thanked them for united the party like nothing else could have by attacking her as hard as they did.
Excerpt from Rudy Giuliani
On Gov. Sarah Palin:
"Governor Palin represents a new generation. She’s already one of the most successful governors in America - and the most popular. And 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. And she’s actually done something about moving America toward energy independence - taking on the oil companies while encouraging more energy exploration here at home. Taxpayers have an advocate in Sarah Palin - she even sold the former governor’s private plane on E-Bay."
As John McCain prepares to give his acceptance speech tomorrow night, he is already assured in the knowledge the base of his party, is energized, excited and enthused after Sarah Palin's introduction to America tonight.
H/T Sister Toldjah for the video.
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