John McCain and Sarah Palin spoke to an enormous and enthusiastic crowd at the Resch Center in Green Bay this evening.
Video.
As expected, many of the lines from their speeches were familiar, but McCain and Palin did make some additions, responding to recent statements made by their Democrat opponents, Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
ASHWAUBENON -- Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, hammered away at their Democratic rivals during a campaign rally before a full house at the 10,000-seat Resch Center on Thursday night.
"He didn't lift a hand to avert this (financial) crisis," McCain said of his Democratic opponent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.
The crowd booed when McCain mentioned Obama's ties to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the embattled mortgage lending giants.
"When I pushed for reform, Senator Obama was silent," McCain said to loud applause.
"Senator Obama will leave this country at risk," McCain said. "Senator Obama just doesn't get it. Americans have had enough of business as usual."
McCain did say in his speech that Obama received more money from Fannie and Freddie than all other U.S. senators, except Chris Dodd.
...McCain also went after Democratic vice presidential candidate Joe Biden for saying that paying more in taxes is the patriotic thing to do for wealthier Americans.
“Raising taxes in a tough economy isn’t patriotic. It isn’t a badge of honor,” McCain said. “It’s just plain dumb.”
The "just plain dumb" statement drew roars from the crowd.
Straight talk.
McCain became emotional at the end of his speech when he relayed the story of Cheryl Lee Patrick of Ladysmith.
...Cheryl Lee Patrick of Ladysmith met him when he arrived at Austin Straubel International Airport this afternoon and gave him the dog tags of her son, Staff Sgt. Patrick Lee Lybert, who was killed in Afghanistan.
He said that every once in a while he has an experience that reminds him what this campaign is really about, and he had one of those experiences when he arrived at the airport.
McCain said that he accepted an envelope from Patrick when she greeted him upon his arrival, but he didn't open it until he was back on the bus.
McCain pulled out the envelope and read to the crowd what Patrick wrote on the outside. He opened it, and held up the dog tags of Army Staff Sgt. Patrick Lee Lybert, killed in Afghanistan in 2006.
McCain said that he would not allow his sacrifice to be in vain, and that our hearts and thoughts and prayers go out to his mom and all the families of the fallen. I thought it was very moving.
That was the end of his remarks.
During Palin's remarks, she referenced what Obama said at an appearance on Wednesday.
...Palin also went after Obama, accusing him of perpetuating “the worst of politics.”
She referenced comments Obama’s been making this week on the campaign trail, urging his supporters to argue with those who disagree and “get in their face.”
“That doesn’t sound like the politics of hope or the politics of change to me,” Palin said, referencing Obama’s campaign themes. “What that sounds like is the worst of politics.”
The crowd agreed.
People love Palin, and they gave her husband, Todd, a warm reception as well when she introduced him as Alaska's "first dude."
There was so much energy at the Resch Center. It's incredible to think of how dramatically things have changed in Wisconsin. Obama was leading by double-digits in summer. No more.
Now, a new poll shows that the race in Wisconsin is a dead heat, with Obama at 45% and 44% for McCain.
That dramatic change in the race is what I like to see. That's change we need.
________________
In Green Bay, McCain-Palin message is: No tax increase
No comments:
Post a Comment