Scranton vs. San Francisco

First some of my favorite lines from Governor Palin's speech: 

"I love those hockey moms.  You know they say the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull?  [as she gives a subtle little point to her mouth]  Lipstick."  [Roar from the crowd] 

"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. I might add that in small towns, we don't quite know what to make of a candidate who lavishes praise on working people when they are listening, and then talks about how bitterly they cling to their religion and guns when those people aren't listening. We tend to prefer candidates who don't talk about us one way in Scranton and another way in San Francisco." 

"Our opponents say, again and again, that drilling will not solve all of America's energy problems -- as if we all didn't know that already. But the fact that drilling won't solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all. Starting in January, in a McCain-Palin administration, we're going to lay more pipelines ... build more nuclear plants ... create jobs with clean coal ... and move forward on solar, wind, geothermal and other alternative sources. We need American energy resources, brought to you by American ingenuity, and produced by American workers."

"I've noticed a pattern with our opponent. Maybe you have, too. We've all heard his dramatic speeches before devoted followers. And there is much to like and admire about our opponent. But listening to him speak, it's easy to forget that this is a man who has authored two memoirs but not a single major law or reform -- not even in the state Senate.

This is a man who can give an entire speech about the wars America is fighting, and never use the word "victory" except when he's talking about his own campaign. But when the cloud of rhetoric has passed ... when the roar of the crowd fades away ... when the stadium lights go out, and those Styrofoam Greek columns are hauled back to some studio lot - what exactly is our opponent's plan? What does he actually seek to accomplish, after he's done turning back the waters and healing the planet? The answer is to make government bigger ... take more of your money ... give you more orders from Washington" 

"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. They're the ones whose names appear on laws and landmark reforms, not just on buttons and banners, or on self-designed presidential seals. Among politicians, there is the idealism of high-flown speechmaking, in which crowds are stirringly summoned to support great things. And then there is the idealism of those leaders, like John McCain, who actually do great things. They're the ones who are good for more than talk ... the ones we have always been able to count on to serve and defend America." 

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And from Rudy Giuliani's speech:

"On the other hand, you have a resume from a gifted man with an Ivy League education. He worked as a community organizer, and immersed himself in Chicago machine politics. Then he ran for the state legislature - where nearly 130 times he was unable to make a decision yes or no. He simply voted "present."

As Mayor of New York City, I never got a chance to vote "present." And you know, when you're President of the United States, you can't just vote "present." You must make decisions.

A few years later, he ran for the U.S. Senate. He won and has spent most of his time as a "celebrity senator." No leadership or major legislation to speak of. His rise is remarkable in its own right - it's the kind of thing that could happen only in America. But he's never run a city, never run a state, never run a business.  He's never had to lead people in crisis.

This is not a personal attack....it's a statement of fact - Barack Obama has never led anything."

[Note from me: of course, he has run a successful presidential campaign thus far - let's give him that]

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"Look at just one example in a lifetime of principled stands -- John McCain's support for the troop surge in Iraq.  The Democratic Party had given up on Iraq.  And I believe, ladies and gentlemen, that when they gave up on Iraq they were giving up on America.  The Democratic leader in the Senate said so: "America has lost." 

Well, if America lost, who won? Al Qaida? Bin Laden? In the single biggest policy decision of this election, John McCain got it right and Barack Obama got it wrong.

If Barack Obama had been President, there would have been no troop surge and our troops would have been withdrawn in defeat.  Senator McCain was the candidate most associated with the surge.  And it was unpopular.  What do you think most other candidates would have done in that situation? They would have acted in their own self-interest by changing their position.
 

How many times have we seen Barack Obama do that?  Obama was going to take public financing for his campaign, until he didn't.  Obama was against wiretapping before he voted for it.  When speaking to a pro-Israel group, Obama favored an undivided Jerusalem.  Until the very next day when he changed his mind.

I hope for his sake, Joe Biden got that VP thing in writing."

[Note: the line on Biden was simply precious]

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"When Russia rolled over Georgia, John McCain knew exactly how to respond.  Having been to that part of the world many times and having developed a clear worldview over many years, John knew where he stood.  Within hours, he established a very strong, informed position that let the world know exactly how he'll respond as President.  At exactly the right time, John McCain said, "We're all Georgians."  

Obama's first instinct was to create a moral equivalency - that "both sides" should "show restraint."  The same moral equivalency that he has displayed in discussing the Palestinian Authority and the State of Israel.  Later, after discussing it with his 300 foreign policy advisors, he changed his position and suggested that the "the UN Security Council," could find a solution.  Apparently, none of his 300 advisors told him that Russia has a veto on any UN [Security Council] action.  Finally Obama put out a statement that looked ...well, it looked a lot like John McCain's.
Here's some free advice: Sen. Obama, next time just call John McCain." 

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"And as we look to the future never let us forget that - when we are at our best - we are the party that expands Freedom.  We began as a party dedicated to freeing people from slavery... And we are still the party that is willing to fight for freedom at home and around the world.  

We are the party that wants to expand individual freedom and economic freedom... because we believe that the secret of America's success is not central government, it is self-government.  We are the party that believes in giving workers the right to work.  The party that believes parents should choose where their children go to school.  And we are the party that believes unapologetically in America's essential greatness - that we are a shining city on the hill, a beacon of freedom that inspires people everywhere to reach for a better world."