Saberpoint

Good Feelings in Wake of Palin's and McCain's Speeches

2008-09-04T21:11:00.000-07:00

Sarah Palin did more than electrify the base last night. She got the attention of millions outside the party as well. In spite of a barrage of scurrilous, false and vicious attacks, Palin appears to be viewed quite favorably by a majority of Americans.

Tonight McCain followed up with his acceptance speech and made many points in his favor. He stressed patriotism and service to the country. He came across as quite sincere in his patriotism and love for America, and of "putting country first" over partisan politics and selfish interests.

The desperate Dems, mainstream media and leftist bloggers are now inventing new slanders. The one now gaining traction is that, while Governor, Palin slashed the budget for special needs children and also for teen pregnancy education. The truth is she increased the budget for both by substantial amounts.

The CBS poll today shows McCain again pulling even with Obama in the hunt for votes. Three days ago another poll showed Obama up by eight points. It will be interesting to see what kind of bump McCain/Palin get from the last two nights of the convention. I would be surprised if they don't go ahead of Obama/Biden. They made strong cases before the convention and to the American public. John McCain has considerable substance compared to Obama's media-hyped persona and thin resume. Palin dwarfs the old Biden retread, with her ideas, energy, optimism and youth.

I feel pretty good about Republican chances at this stage of the campaign. However, we have two months to go before the election and anything can happen.

A couple of days ago I contributed $100 to the McCain/Palin ticket and I will send $100 from every paycheck I receive until the election. My goal is to donate a total of $500.

I have a link in the left sidebar where you can donate to McCain/Palin, and I urge you to do so. I had never donated to a political campaign in my life before this year, but Paypal and the internet makes it so easy.

Do it. Get in the fight.

Live Blogging John McCain's Acceptance Speech

2008-09-04T19:05:00.000-07:00

A great introduction by a voice of a man unseen, telling how John McCain came to love his country more than ever before, when he had lost that country as a POW.

A photo is shown of the McCain's adopted daughter from Bangladesh -- a black girl who is now 17. It is refreshingly ironic that, in a campaign where he opposes the first black candidate, that McCain has a daughter who is also black. The McCains adopted her as an infant.

McCain looks happy and refreshed and looks over the crowd with a smile.

After expressing his admiration and respect for Obama and Biden, a Code Pink protestor attempts to raise a banner and has it snatched from her hands. She rushes down the aisle opening her coat to reveal a pink shirt with a slogan, but I couldn't see what it says. The noise dies down after a minute or two, and McCain says "Don't be distracted by the noise and the static." Laughter. The protestor and and a cohort are escorted from the hall.

Returning to his prepared remarks, McCain now praises Sarah Palin. He says he loved introducing her to the country, "but I can't wait to introduce her to Washington." Then he says to Washington, "Change is coming!"

Now he pledges to fight special interests and says he will veto the first pork spending bill that comes before him.

Now he lambasts those Republicans who lost the trust of the American people through corruption and big government spending, resulting in Republican losses in the Congressional elections. "We're going to change that," he says.

"We believe in faith, work, service. We believe in a culture of life. We respect judges 'who don't legislate from the bench.'"

Now he is comparing his policies to those of Barack Obama. He will lower taxes where his opponent will raise them.

He says that cutting taxes for small businesses will help raise employment and allow businesses to compete.

He talks about replacing failed schools by introducing competition and allowing parents choice in the schools their children attend. He says "We will encourage bad teachers to find another line of work."

Now he refers to his energy policy, saying "We're going to stop sending 700 billion dollars a year to countries who don't even like us. We're going to drill more wells and we're going to drill offshore. We'll build more power plants. We'll use more clean coal."

"Senator Obama thinks we can create more power without drilling more wells and building more power plants. But Americans know better than that."

He now turns to the subject of American security. He talks about the rise of Iran, the biggest exporter of terrorism worldwide. He talks of Russia's new aggression. He understands the military, what it can do, what it can do better, and what it ought not to do. He pledges to work to create an enduring peace, noting that he knows war, that he hates war and wants to prevent it.

McCain now discusses how the culture of Washington must change, to end bitter partisanship, which he says is caused by people serving themselves rather than the country. He says instead of rejecting good ideas because someone else thought of them first, let's use the best ideas from both parties. Instead of worrying about who gets the credit, let's share it.

He now tells of his experiences as a POW, which did much to end his personal selfishness, after he had been dumped into a cell with two other POWs to die. With two broken arms and a broken leg, he couldn't even feed himself. The other POW's did it for them and saved his life. One of the other POWs told him, through taps on his cell wall, that "No man can always stand alone." He came to realize that "I was no longer my own man. I was my country's."

"I'm not running for president because I think I'm blessed with such personal greatness that history has anointed me to save our country in its hour of need. My country saved me. My country saved me, and I cannot forget it. And I will fight for her as long as I draw breath, so help me God."

Extended applause.

He calls for public service, saying "That you can serve no greater cause than to serve a cause greater than yourself."

"Fight with me. Fight for our country. Fight for our future. Stand up and fight! Nothing is inevitable. We're Americans. We never quit. We don't give up in the face of history, we make history. Thank you and God bless America!"

The speech is finished; John Rich is singing "Raisin' McCain." The crowd is on its feed, applauding and dancing to the music.

A fine speech. Did it exceed that of Sarah Palin? No, but it wasn't half bad.

Obama has his work cut out for him.

Live Blogging the RNC: Sarah Palin Speaks

2008-09-03T19:29:00.000-07:00

Sarah takes the stage to long, loud and enthusiastic applause. Her husband Todd and daughter Bristol beam.

She praises McCain, quotes him saying "I'd rather lose an election than see America lose a war." She says that, as a mother of a soldier, "That's the kind of man I want to see as Commander In Chief."

She refers to baby Trig, calling him a blessing. She promises that mothers of "special needs" children will have a friend in her in the White House, and an advocate.

She introduces her parents, saying she is proud to be their daughter.

She calls herself an "average Hockey Mom," saying that the difference between an average Hockey Mom and a pit bull is...lipstick!" She laughs and smiles at the audience, obviously at ease on the podium and very comfortable in her own skin.

Great lines:

"I guess that being the mayor of a small town is sort of like being a community organizer...except that [as mayor] you have actual responsibilities."

"When I became Governor I got rid of a few things that I thought were unnecessary. That luxury jet was over the top. I put it on E-Bay." Laughter and applause.

She says as Governor she "built a 40 billion dollar natural gas pipeline to lead America towards energy independence."

Now she is effectively pointing out Obama's weaknesses. She refers to his Greek Columns, his desire to reduce our military effectiveness in a hostile world, his desire to raise taxes - income taxes, business taxes, payroll taxes and death taxes.

"How are you going to be better off if our opponent places a massive tax burden on America?"

She mentions Harry Reid (loud boos), quoting him as saying "I can't stand John McCain" Then she adds, "What greater proof do we have that we have chosen the right man."

She says of McCain: "There's really only one man in this election who has ever really fought for you...in places where winning means survival and defeat means death."

On the journey that McCain will have made: "From a 6 by 4 foot cell in Hanoi to the Oval Office."

She tells how another POW in Hanoi Hilton, a man from Ohio who is present in the hall, used to watch through a pin hole in his cell door each day as the Vietnamese guards led John McCain down the hall to be interrogated and tortured. When John McCain shuffled back to his cell each night, he would look at this POW's door, smile and flash a "thumbs up" sign to signify that "we are going to get through this." She says that a man such as this should be the Commander In Chief.

She says that "there are eloquent speakers who can inspire for a season. John McCain inspires for a lifetime with his deeds."

It was a great speech. The Convention stands in a long, enthusiastic applause, electrified.

POSTSCRIPT: John Rich, a country singer and McCain supporter, sings a rousing rendition of his song "Raising McCain." You can download the song for free from John Rich's website. Go here to do so.

John Rich is my kinda guy. His picture on his website shows him smoking a big cigar!

Live Blogging the RNC: Rudy Giulani Speaks

2008-09-03T18:59:00.000-07:00

Giulani describes McCain as a man "who has sacrificed for America with his blood."

Now he's panning Obama's Senatorial experience -- how on many occasions Obama has voted "present" instead of "yes" or "no." Rudy says Obama couldn't figure out which way to vote. The assembly laughs and applauds.

He says that Obama has never run a city, never run a state, never run a business, never run a military unit, never led anyone in a crisis. "He has led NADA" says Giulani. More laughter and applause.

"McCain has been tested, Obama has not. This is no time for on-the-job training...We agree with Joe Biden [about Obama's lack of experience]."

He says McCain "has been tested over and over again...we will be safe in his hands, our children will be safe in his hands, and our country will be safe in his hands."

Notable quotes from Giulani:

"Change is not a destination just as "hope" is not a strategy."

"Drill baby drill."

"John McCain will keep us on offense against terrorism at home and abroad."

Now he pokes fun at the Democrats' refusal to speak of "Islamic terrorism" as if they would be insulting someone by so doing. "Who would they be insulting?" he asks. "They would be insulting TERRORISTS." Laughter and applause.

On Iraq and the success of the surge, which McCain long advocated, "John McCain got it right and Barack Obama got it wrong."

On Obama's flip flops, he says "Obama was for an undivided Jerusalem for ONE DAY until he changed his mind. If I were Joe Biden, I'd get that Vice President thing in writing."

On Sarah Palin: "She's already had more executive experience than the entire Democratic ticket COMBINED."

"I'm sorry that Sarah Palin's city wasn't sophisticated enough [for her mayoral experience to count]." Maybe they cling to religion!" Long laughter and applause.

It was a lively, inspiring speech. Great job.

Sarah Palin Speaks Tonight

2008-09-03T18:45:00.000-07:00

Sarah Palin speaks tonight. It will be interesting to hear what she has to say in light of being the target of one of the most hateful and specious media attacks in U.S. history.

Currently on is Governor Linda Lingle of Hawaii, delivering a string of facts in a boring, monotonic voice. Rocking the house she's not.

ZZZZZ

McCain Campaign Rebuts Accusations Re: Sarah Palin

2008-09-02T21:32:00.000-07:00

Bryon York at National Review Online discussed the McCain Campaign's response to a variety of accusations regarding Sarah Palin.

1. Sarah Palin wasn't properly "vetted." The implication is that Palin's negatives are so great that McCain wouldn't have chosen her had he known about certain events in Palin's life and career. York writes:

The story, my campaign source told me, is “materially false.” Gov. Palin, the strategist said, was subjected to a “complete vet.” “That included her filling out a 70-question questionnaire that was highly intrusive and personal. She was then interviewed for more than three hours by A.B. Culvahouse. There were multiple follow-up interviews.” (I asked precisely how many follow-ups there were, but my source stuck with “multiple.”) “There was a thorough interview process,” the strategist continued. “There was a public records search and political vet. There was a private life and financial vet. Everything that has come out was known by the campaign through the vetting process.”

“Every aspect of her political record is known to us. These people [McCain’s opponents] are desperate.”

2. The "Troopergate" Issue: Did Sarah Palin fire the commissioner of public safety because he wouldn't fire Palin's brother-in-law from the Alaska Troopers?

“Of course this issue came up in the vetting, and this is what we discovered,” the source said. “The man who was fired has said on the record that he was never pressured by the governor or the governor’s husband on the issue of firing Trooper Wooten. The governor had a vision for how she wanted that department to be run. The commissioner had a different vision.”

“The reason that members of the Palin family were having discussions with the head of the state police about this state trooper, who was her ex-brother-in-law, was because he had made threats against the family. He threatened to kill the governor's daughter, her father, and her sister. He tasered her 11-year-old stepson. And that is why the Palin family was concerned about this trooper.”

Read it all here.

The Media Bias Against Sarah Palin

2008-09-02T21:23:00.002-07:00

National Review Online has a must-read editorial regarding the mainstream media bias against Sarah Palin. They write:

This shameful but predictable media performance [of cynical politicking regarding Sarah Palin and her pregnant daughter] stands in marked contrast to the rigorous “hands-off” privacy policy dutifully honored by the press throughout the Clinton years for the president’s then-teenage daughter, Chelsea. Indeed earlier this year, though Miss Clinton was now well into her twenties and an impressively poised surrogate for her mother’s campaign, NBC News suspended reporter David Shuster for asserting that Sen. Clinton’s campaign was “pimping” her daughter — a classless formulation, to be sure. But where’s the hyper-sensitivity about a candidate’s child now?

When Al Gore’s son was arrested on narcotics and speeding charges in 2007, moreover, the national press was a model of sympathetic restraint. The muted coverage was devoid of calls for a national “teaching moment” on drug abuse or responsible driving. The message was plain and correct: No news here, move along.

The Republican base and other people of good will are angry over this grotesque display. It is obvious what the media and Democrats are up to here. They want to define Sarah Palin as a failure before she even has a chance to succeed. Hence the speculation that McCain will dump her from the ticket. How absurd. All we know about Palin’s performance as a candidate so far is that she gave polished performances at her unveiling in Ohio and at a rally the next day in Pennsylvania. The supposed embarrassments — about her alleged membership in the fringe Alaskan Independence Party and her woefully incomplete vetting — are concoctions of a media stumbling over itself to prove a conclusion it has already reached.

So far, it is the press that has embarrassed itself, not the governor from Alaska.

Read it all.

Violent Thugs Attack Republicans at RNC Convention

2008-09-02T21:03:00.002-07:00

This picture of anarchists breaking a window is typical of the anti-Republican "protestors" at the Republican National Convention.

So far they have dropped cement bags on two busses, surrounded a bus carrying Cub Scouts to the convention, rocking the bus and terrifying the children; punctured a tire of a limousine and dented the car with a board; set fire to a trash bin and attacked Republicans on the street. They also smashed the windows of a police car and have wreaked damage on private property.

They are utter scum, the very dregs of humanity.

Live Blogging the RNC: Joe Lieberman's Speech to the Convention; Praises Palin

2008-09-02T19:45:00.001-07:00

Joe Lieberman stood before the Republican National Convention and asked: "What's a Democrat like me doing here before the Republican National Convention?" Then he answered his own question: "I am here today to support John McCain because he is the best candidate to lead our country."

So spoke Joe Lieberman, a Senator who paid a political price for putting "country first" over party. A long-time Democrat who was his party's Vice Presidential candidate in 2000, Joe Lieberman was rejected by his party for supporting victory in Iraq. He lost the Democratic primary when he was up for reelection, then ran as an independent, winning back his senate seat.

Lieberman remarked, "If John McCain is just another partisan Republican, then I am Michael Moore's favorite Democrat. And I'm not!"

Senator Lieberman then praised Sarah Palin as a great choice to help McCain "clean up Washington."

...

Now Lieberman praises McCain's advocacy of the surge, saying "Now thousands of American troops are coming home IN HONOR." Wild applause.

...

He concludes with an appeal to fellow Democrats and Independents, urging them to vote for John McCain and Sarah Palin.

...

It was a fantastic speech and can only help McCain's chances.

Fred Thompson's Speech on John McCain

2008-09-02T19:28:00.000-07:00

Fred Thompson gave a thrilling, inspirational and emotional speech on the character of John McCain. Thompson told of McCain's incredibly abusive treatment as a POW at the hands of the Vietnamese Communists. With multiple bones broken, near death and suffering from dysentery, he experienced frequent beatings and torture; but McCain refused to provide military information to his captors and refused to be used as a propaganda tool, proving a level of character and bravery that most of us can scarcely imagine. John McCain is clearly an American hero and highly deserving of the Presidency.

As Thompson said, "It's pretty clear there are two questions we will never have to ask ourselves, "Who is this man?" and "Can we trust this man with the Presidency?"

Amen. It was a great speech.

Anchorage Daily News Investigated Palin Baby Rumor Months Ago

2008-09-01T19:44:00.000-07:00

From the Corner, Byron York says the Palin Baby rumor was spread around Alaska months ago. According to Michael Carey, a columnist for the Anchorage Daily News, his paper investigated the story, interviewed the Palins and their doctor, and decided there was nothing to the story.

York wonders why the leftwing bloggers didn't make even a single phone call to a man like Carey before writing such scurrilous trash.

Duh! The leftwing bloggers didn't care one fig if the story were true. They just wanted to trash Palin and weaken her effect on the coming election.

That's change you can believe in.

Here are York's actual remarks:

Palin and the Bloggers [Byron York]
Here in St. Paul, I was on NPR this evening with a man named Michael Carey, who is a columnist and former editorial page editor for the Anchorage Daily News. We started talking, of course, about the day's Palin news — the fake baby story and the real baby story. As far as the fake baby story was concerned, Carey told me that the rumors were going around in Alaska a few months ago, not long after the birth of Sarah Palin's fifth child. He told me that Daily News reporters and editors explored the story quite extensively, and, as Carey said on NPR, "could find no basis for it except that people who didn't like Sarah Palin believed it." He told me that Daily News reporters talked at length to the Palins about it — Carey said the Palins were actually eager to talk about the rumor because they knew how much it had spread around Alaska. He also said Daily News reporters looked into the medical angle of the rumor, which included talking to at least one doctor involved, and again found nothing to support the story.
In the end, Carey told me, the newspaper became "convinced that it was not true."What is amazing about all this is how making just one phone call to a man like Carey could have given some of the bloggers at The Atlantic and DailyKos pause before they wrote so extensively about it. Why didn't they do that?

Hurricane Gustav Burps Loudly, Leaves New Orleans

2008-09-01T15:56:00.000-07:00

The news media are reporting that Hurricane Gustav has finished its business in Louisiana and is now heading towards Texas. The storm was weakened before it hit land, was downgraded to a Cat 2 storm and did not cause as much damages as feared. Hmm, Gustav's tale sounds suspiciously similar to the political career of Barack Obama.

Meanwhile, our brave Republican leaders have risen to the occasion, put country ahead of party and did the right thing. They were there to show concern. Wonderful.

With any luck, we may be able to resume the RNC National Convention soon. C'mon guys, we have an election to win.

Watch Republican Convention Live On Line

2008-09-01T13:34:00.000-07:00

You can watch the Republican Convention live from your P.C. Go to this link.

Obama Takes Principled Stand: "Back Off on Bristol Palin's Pregnancy"

2008-09-01T13:19:00.000-07:00

From the Washington Times:

MONROE, Mich. Democratic nominee Sen. Barack Obama Monday afternoon issued a strong statement to "back off" reports of Bristol Palin's pregnancy, telling reporters families — and especially children — are off limits in this presidential campaign.

Mr. Obama, campaigning here, also noted that his own mother was 18 when she gave birth to him.

"People's families are off limits," he said. "People's children are especially off limits. This shouldn't be part of our politics. It has no relevance to Gov. Palin's performance as a governor or her potential performance as a vice president. "

"I would strongly urge people to back off these kinds of stories," he added. "That shouldn't be a topic in our politics."

"We don't go after people's families. Our people are not involved in any way," he said.

That is exactly the right and principled stand. As I recall, Barack Obama himself was conceived out of wedlock by his then 17 year old mother. That is certainly no reflection on him and should not be a source of shame to him, and I said so in an earlier post in this blog.

Back when Bill Clinton was in office, I told many friends and colleagues that Chelsea Clinton was "off limits" and not a valid topic for scoring political points. She was just a little girl and some things, like someone's daughter, are sacred.

Bristol Palin is Five Months Pregnant

2008-09-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

A breaking story from Reuters: Sarah Palin has announced that her 17 year old daughter Bristol is five months pregnant. Bristol intends to marry the father and keep the baby.

Reuters reports:

ST. PAUL (Reuters) - The 17-year-old daughter of Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin is pregnant, Palin said on Monday in an announcement intended to knock down rumors by liberal bloggers that Palin faked her own pregnancy to cover up for her child. Bristol Palin, one of Alaska Gov. Palin's five children with her husband, Todd, is about five months pregnant and is going to keep the child and marry the father, the Palins said in a statement released by the campaign of Republican presidential candidate John McCain.
Senior McCain campaign officials said McCain knew of the daughter's pregnancy when he selected Palin last week as his vice presidential running mate, deciding that it did not disqualify the 44-year-old governor in any way.
McCain officials said the news of the daughter's pregnancy was being released to rebut what one aide called "mud-slinging and lies" circulating on liberal blog sites.

It should be noted that Bristol Palin conceived five months ago, or around April of this year -- the same month baby Trig was born to her mother.

This is the final, definitive proof that Bristol Palin could not possibly be the mother of Trig Palin.

Of course, we can now expect Bristol's real and actual pregnancy to become a new source of hateful, vicious and salacious cruelty by the radicals at the Daily Kos and Democratic Underground.

Daily KOS Smear Machine Rebutted: Palin's Daughter Was NOT the Mother

2008-08-31T20:37:00.000-07:00

The Daily KOS is a vicious, leftwing site that often expressed unabashed hatred for Republicans and conservatives. However, it outdid itself yesterday when it posted a false report claiming that "Sarah Palin is Not the Mother." The Kos diarist (ArcXIX) claimed that Palin's 17 year old daughter was the actual mother of the Down's Syndrome child, Trig Palin. They offered this "proof":

1. Photographs of Sarah Palin taken late in her pregnancy show no sign of the abdominal bump that indicates pregnancy.

2. A Photograph of Palin's daughter allegedly taken in March of this year shows the daughter with a bump, or slightly swollen belly.

The facts are as follows:

1. Photographs of Palin supplied by the Daily KOS show Palin wearing heavy coats or in an obstructed view of her abdomen. Other photographs, such as this one from ABC News, show her in profile on February 10, 2008 and her swollen abdomen is noticeable.

2. A science teacher named Elizabeth Eubanks wrote of meeting Sarah Palin and her daughter Piper in the Fairbanks airport in March 2008, and noticed that Sarah Palin was indeed pregnant. Eubanks wrote of the encounter on April 29, 2008:

There were several of us Polar TRECers waiting in the Fairbanks, AK airport
to catch our planes home. We were chatting about all we had learned when Kristen
Timm, ARCUS administrator said “ Look, there is the Hottest Governor in the
United States” as she has been publicly deemed by media and fans. Of course
I had to check out the “Hottest Governor in the US” and quickly turned to see her
pregnant (she has since had her baby) with bags and daughter in tote.

3. Palin appeared before the Hoover Institution Board on Feb 26, 2008 to discuss the Alaskan gas pipeline. A photograph of her behind the lectern shows clear evidence of her pregnancy.
...
4. The photo of Bristol Palin that the Daily Kos claims shows her pregnant does not prove any such thing. Palin's baby was born on April 18, so the daughter would have to be 8 months pregnant in the photograph. The "bump" in the photo, however, is much smaller than that. It is only a slight midriff bulge. See top photo.

It turns out that the Daily Kos photo was not from March 2008, but was in fact taken in 2006 by the Daily Anchorage News. Trig was conceived in the summer of 2007. If you count 9 months backward from April 2008 he would have been conceived in July or August 2007. Maybe Bristol just needs to lay off the sweets. In any case, she could not have been pregnant with Trig whether the photo date was 2006 or 2008.

Another photo taken by a private individual shows Sarah Palin obviously pregnant with Trig late in the pregnancy in 2008. It is the second photo from the top.
...
Conclusions: the photographic evidence and personal account of Elizabeth Eubanks appears conclusive. Sarah Palin was pregnant with Trig and is his mother.

Politico's Undisclosed Bias Comes to Light Re: Sarah Palin

2008-08-31T19:46:00.000-07:00

The Politico reports, “Presidential scholars say [Sarah Palin] appears to be the least experienced, least credentialed person to join a major-party ticket in the modern era.”

The "presidential scholars" however, are not objective; their "scholarliness" is nothing more than Democratic partisanship. Nevertheless, a lot of blogs and websites have quoted the above statement as if it were the unvarnished truth.

The McCain campaign looked into the charge and tells us who these "scholars" are:

After reading this article, the McCain campaign issued the following statement: “The authors quote four scholars attacking Gov. Palin’s fitness for the office of vice president. Among them, David Kennedy is a maxed-out Obama donor, Joel Goldstein is also an Obama donor, and Doris Kearns Goodwin has donated exclusively to Democrats this cycle. Finally, Matthew Dallek is a former speech writer for Dick Gephardt. This is not a story about scholars questioning Gov. Palin’s credentials so much as partisan Democrats who would find a reason to disqualify or discount any nominee put forward by Sen. McCain.”

In other words, Politico's article and "scholars" are a bunch of crap.

Hat tip: Protein Wisdom and Patterico's Pontifications

New York Times on the Palin "Ethics Investigation"

2008-08-31T15:58:00.001-07:00

The New York Times has a story on the ethics investigation of Governor Sarah Palin. It is surprisingly factual and seeminly unbiased. The Times states:

An independent investigator appointed by a panel of state legislators earlier this month is looking into whether Ms. Palin dismissed a top law enforcement official in her administration because he failed to fire a state trooper, Mike Wooten, who went through a messy divorce with Ms. Palin’s sister.

Mr. Monegan told the Anchorage Daily News that Mr. Palin showed him some of the findings of a private investigator the family had hired and accused him of variety of misdeeds, including drunk driving and child abuse.

Mr. Palin told the newspaper he feared for his wife’s safety and said that Mr. Wooten had made threats against her and her family.

As part of efforts to demonstrate she welcomed the inquiry, Ms. Palin asked the state’s attorney general to look into the allegations as well.

Note that the article makes it clear that the Palin family feared Trooper Michael Wooten because he had threatened the family, and that Palin herself requested the ethics investigation.

Read it all at this link.

There's not much to this story that could be honestly used against Sarah Palin. She fired the public safety commissioner (Wooten's boss) in July and replaced him with a new commissioner. However, the new commissioner has not fired Michael Wooten who still has his job. If Wooten was the reason for the firing, then nothing much was accomplished by it.

Furthermore, as this article from the Anchorage Daily News points out, Palin was well within her purview to replace the commissioner and had non-Wooten related reasons for so doing.

There isn't much to the story, but that doesn't mean the Democrats won't capitalize on it and, as MSNBC is fond of doing, emphasize every news story about Palin with "Palin is under an ethics investigation." Such headlines immediately implant in the subconscious images of backroom deals, kickbacks and corruption, none of which applies to the actual facts.

As the unethical writer at Democratic Underground noted: "The modern laws of media hype and political warfare have a useful tenet: Repeat ANYTHING or raise false concern over ANYTHING and it is likely to be planted in the conscious/subconscious of many voters."

That, of course, is exactly what MSNBC and much of the mainstream media hope to accomplish.

Hurricane Gustav Disrupts Republican Convention

2008-08-31T15:43:00.000-07:00

Bad news. Due to the advance of Hurricane Gustav towards New Orleans and nearby localities, the Republican National Convention will not unfold as planned. President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney will not speak on Monday as scheduled. They will be monitoring Gustav and relief effots. John McCain may not appear either and may give his acceptance speech to the convention from an offsite location.

The convention has been heavily scaled back for Monday's opening ceremonies, from 7 hours to 2 and a half hours. McCain is no doubt trying to position himself as an activist future President by giving up political advantage to monitor Gustav and its destruction. Will he receive more bounce from that than from a fully operational convention? Who knows?

In any case, Democrats might well be thanking God for intervening on their behalf -- assuming that they believe He exists at all.

Liberal San Francisco Chronicle Spins Arrest of Anarchists in St. Paul

2008-08-31T10:34:00.000-07:00

TwinCities.com has a breaking story of anarchists arrested in St. Paul, Minnesota, who were planning to disrupt the Republican National Convention (hat tip: Atlas Shrugs). The police issued a statement as to the riot equipment found.

The statement said the items found in the searches included:

Materials to create "sleeping dragons" (PVC pipe, chicken wire, duct tape), which is when protesters lock themselves together
Large amounts of urine, including three to five gallon buckets of urine
Wrist rockets (high-powered slingshots)
A machete, hatchet and several throwing knives
a gas mask and filter
Empty glass bottles
Rags
Flammable liquids
Homemade caltrops (devises used to disable buses in roads)
Metal pipes
Axes
Bolt cutters
Sledge hammers
Rapelling equipment
Kryptonite locks
Empty plastic buckets cut and made into shields
Material for protective padding
An Army helmet.

The five people being held at the Hennepin County jail are under arrest on suspicion of conspiracy to riot, conspiracy to commit civil disorder and conspiracy to damage property.

Photographs of seized material also include Ninja foot spikes, Smoke in the Can, several buckets of human unine, a published venue of convention disruption and various anarchist literature.

The leftwing San Francisco Chronicle, however, has omitted any mention of the above and has spun the story as an RNC plot to disrupt legitimate dissent. An article posted at SF Gate, the Chronicle's online arm, quotes "peaceful protestors" as follows:

I think (Friday night's raid) was a scare tactic to not go to the big demonstration Monday," said Monica Trinidad, a 22-year-old University of Illinois at Chicago student who was handcuffed outside the center Friday night as she was returning to see what was going on. "But I don't think it's going to work."
Hal Muskat, a 61-year-old San Franciscan and member of Veterans for Peace, said the arrests might attract even more protesters. "It was a tactic to try and take out the leaders," he said. "I know some people don't like to go out in the streets. But when anybody within a 12-hour drive hears about what's going on here, they're going to want to be here with us on Monday."

The San Francisco Chronicle's propaganda piece, of course, does not mention the riot gear, weapons and published disruption agenda noted above. It then ends with the above advertisement for more radicals to join the war on America.

Photo above right: Manuals for anarchy were among the materials seized in the raids. Source: St. Paul Police Department

Democratic Underground Encourages Smear of Palin's Baby

2008-08-31T01:08:00.000-07:00

From Atlas Shrugs, we have notice that a writer at the Democratic Underground, a radical Democrat website, has urged Democrats to participate in a smear campaign against Sarah Palin, the Vice Presidential running mate to John McCain. The smear claims that Palin's Down Syndrome infant was actually borne by Palin's teenage daughter and that Palin faked her own pregnancy to cover up the scandal. It is probably not coincidental that this same scenario was a plot in the television series "Desperate Housewives." Now it is a plot for "Desperate Democrats."

The Democrat writer wrote:

NoodleyAppendage (1000+ posts) Sat Aug-30-08 10:26
122. What many here don't understand. It doesn't matter if it's true or not. RUMOR IS TRUTH.
The modern laws of media hype and political warfare have a useful tenet:
Repeat ANYTHING or raise false concern over ANYTHING and it is likely to be planted in the conscious/subconscious of many voters.

If people start to think that there might be something fishy with Palin's last kid (if hers), then that's FINE. One more doubt (whether tied to reality or not) is another hesitation at the ballot box.

GET WITH THE PROGRAM PEOPLE. The "rising above it" bullshit has served us so well in the past, hasn't it?

If you have problems with the story, then STFU and get out of the way of Dems who are engaged in MODERN POLITICAL WARFARE. Go tend your garden or some other pedestrian task, because the "concern trolls" are not helping shape the message.

The post encourages the spread of the false and filthy rumor started by a writer at the Daily Kos, another leftist site, that Palin's Downs Syndrome infant was really the daughter's baby, that Palin faked her pregnancy to hide the daughter's out of wedlock condition. There is no concern for the psychological damage such a rumor might do to Palin's innocent, 16 year old daughter. For that reason alone, the Palin family should SUE THE BALLS OFF of any smear-mongers who propagate this libel.

It is really disgusting what the lowlifes of the left will resort to in order to win an election. Here we have a Democrat openly urging others to spread the rumor, even though false, in order to slander the Palin family and suppress voter support for the Republican ticket.

Atlas gave the link to the Democratic Underground where the message was posted. I checked it and found that the post had already been removed.

SPREAD THE WORD about the rotten, evil politics of the Democrat Left. Let the voting public know what they are voting for when they vote for Democrats.

A Photo of the Young Sarah Palin - Colorized!

2008-08-30T23:52:00.000-07:00

This photograph of a young Sarah Palin is being seen all over the web. It is in black and white, but I colorized it using Photoshop. Enjoy and use as you see fit.

The original black and white photo is below for comparison. Impressed? You certainly should be. :)

Okay, okay, I had to edit her hair a bit, but colorized or not colorized, the lady's a fox.

Use either image as you see fit.

Sarah Palin: The Mudslinging Begins

2008-08-30T22:48:00.000-07:00

Donald Douglas at American Power has run a couple of good articles on the Left's plan of attack against Sarah Palin. They will (1) claim she has no relevant experience and therefore isn't qualified to be "a heartbeat" away from the Presidency and (2) she was involved in some kind of "troopergate" scandal. That's what they've got so far.

The "lack of experience" argument is laughable considering the fact that the Dem's Presidential candidate is Barack Obama, who has less experience and inferior experience to that of Palin. Palin's experience is that of an executive; Obama's is not. Obama is running for President; Palin is not. She's running for Vice President.

The "troopergate" argument is so bogus that those who make it are the moral equivalent of liars. The Left states that Palin misused her position as Governor to fire the head of the Alaskan State Troopers for refusing to fire her former brother-in-law from his state job. Allegedly, Palin abused her position as Governor to pursue a personal grudge against the brother-in-law, Wooten. Wooten was not fired and still has his job, though he was suspended for a time for abuses described below.

Palin's former brother-in-law Wooten was an Alaskan State Trooper who was under investigation for misdeeds even before Palin took office. He had tasered his stepson (to show him how tasers work - good thing the kid wasn't curious about guns) and was caught drinking on the job. Finally, when divorce proceedings began, the brother-in-law threatened to shoot Palin's father if he paid for an attorney to represent Palin's sister. The guy was bad news and deserved to be fired, but he wasn't. Palin says it is the Governor's prerogative to fire and hire the head of the State Troopers as she sees fit. MSNBC, the most rabidly pro-Obama news outlet who doesn't hide its bias, is describing Palin as "under an ethics investigation."

The Dems fight extremely dirty and that's to be expected. No doubt the conservative blogosphere will be working overtime for the next two months, disproving many smears, lies and conspiracy theories. That's also to be expected.

Hillary Supporters Loving Palin!

2008-08-30T12:47:00.000-07:00

See what they're saying at the Hillary Forum here.

Evangelicals Energized by Selection of Palin for Veep

2008-08-30T11:45:00.000-07:00

Breaking News:

Evangelicals energized by McCain-Palin ticket
By ERIC GORSKI – 4 hours ago
Sarah Palin already has energized conservative religious leaders who had fretted that John McCain would pick an abortion rights supporter as his running mate. The Alaska governor was raised in a Pentecostal church and has called herself "as pro-life as any candidate can be."

Read the whole thing here.

Some newspapers are saying that Palin is an unknown to many voters and they don't know yet what to make of her. However, McCain's political base knows who she is and what she stands for. The result of this is that McCain, who has long been distrusted by the conservative base of the GOP, has undoubtedly enhanced the voter turnout in his favor. With Palin on the ticket, there will be fewer conservatives who opt to sit out the election and that means more votes for McCain.