Perhaps she isn't experienced enough for the role (...though, jeez, neither is Barack), but Sarah Palin was the pick we all wanted, and only McCain could have made. A Hail Mary? Sure. But, like the invocation of Rudy (as our CN brethren noted today over at the Irish Rover), this is a damn thrilling pass. For basically the first time, I am legitimately invested in this election. I'm not alone in that.
Today, Mike admitted to falling for her personal story like some Oprah audience member (though we've been fangirls all year, as evidenced by Mike's post in March about VPs). Douglas didn't know her, but saw her with that gun and was immediately a fan. Another Alaskan friend has already convinced two mutual friends McCain is worth a second look just for this. This is energizing the conservative youth in an Obama-esque fashion; kind of like socialists who love Obama for his policies (I've no problem with them), we've got a young firecracker of a candidate. Here's a sampling of Facebook this afternoon:
Not just the youth either. This afternoon, my grandmother, an avid NPR listener who remains a registered Democrat in Florida (because in the early 1950s in still Old South Florida, nobody was a Republican) wrote a check for the max to the McCain campaign. Per descriptions by my mother, grandpa, and herself, she has never been this excited about politics. Her younger sister, a Bush Pioneer in 2004, had reneged on her vow not to bundle this election cycle. McCain raised $3 million today. This is what can happen.
This pick is about women, yes. As Douglas told me today, there are plenty of women in Ohio who will hear mother of five, ethics, hunts, and steel union and identify immediately with Palin. My mom, who went back to work after twenty years in January, is a strong believer (as were her employers) that raising a family is a career in many ways.
But, and I argued this earlier today on Youth Vote, this pick was ultimately for true galvanization of the conservative core. The Fix says, rightfully so, the next seven days will be about defining Sarah Palin to the country, but in the end, even if there are miscues or falters, the right will not let liberals destroy this pick. John McCain, she isn't. Palin has sterling conservative credentials -- pro-life, pro-gun, pro-drilling, pro-tax cuts, pro-ethics.
This was an awesome day to be a conservative.
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