SARAH PALIN (Photo from The Associated Press)
Sen. Barack Obama scored a touchdown with his nomination acceptance speech last night inside Denver’s Invesco Field. Even most people who disagree with the policies of Obama and the Democratic Party simply marveled at what happened on that football field in that historic moment with the huge crowd and fantastic setting. Expectations were Obama, but he still managed to exceed them with a fiesty and heart-touching deliverance that hit just about every note he will need to actually win the November election.
But I was just as intrigued with what Sen. John McCain did Thursday. First, he released a 30-second television ad that simply praised Obama’s accomplishment. Then, McCain kept a very tight lid on his choice for vice president. McCain couldn’t stop the media from spectulating throughout the day. But his campaign actively avoided becoming a real distraction on the final night of the Democratic National Convention, and managed to keep McCain’s selection of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin a secret until this morning.
Naturally, McCain will want the Obama campaign to show similar respect when McCain gives his own acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention next week in St. Paul. But I want to see how the tone and rhetoric might shift in Minnesota as hurricane Gustav sweeps toward New Orleans.
Just as Joe Biden balanced some of Obama’s weaknesses on foreign policy and political experience, Palin will serve a younger political star to match McCain’s age and maturity. She also is a comfortable choice for mainstream conversatives (she’s pro-life, a hunter and pro-oil drilling), while some Republicans are hoping she will attract Hillary Clinton Democrats.
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