Palin accepts Republican vice presidential nomination, touts reformer's image
4/9/2008 17:45
US Alasksa Governor Sarah Palin accepted vice presidential nomination and
touted her "reformer" image last night at the Republican National Convention in
St. Paul in the US state of Minnesota.
"I am honored to accept the nomination
and I accept the challenge of a tough fight," she said as she began her first
national speech.
"I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small
town. I was just your average hockey mom," she told the audience.
"I'm not a
member of the permanent political establishment. And I've learned quickly these
past few days, that if you're not a member in good standing of the Washington
elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason
alone," Palin said, touting her "reformer" reputation.
She also touched upon
the energy policies that she and the Republican presidential candidate John
McCain will implement.
"Our opponents say, again and again, that drilling
will not solve all of America's energy problems," she said.
"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," she added.
Palin also praised McCain, saying he is the man to lead
the nation. "In St . Paul's how I look at the choice Americans face in this
election. 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."
Palin blasted Democratic rival Barack Obama, saying he
"wants to forfeit" while victory is "finally in sight."
"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," she said.
Palin, whose youngest
child has Down syndrome, also promised families of special-needs children will
have "a friend and advocate in the White House."
As she took the stage, the
crowd waved banners reading "Hockey moms for Palin" and shouted, "We love you,
Sarah."
Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani warmed up the crowd by continuing
the barrage on Obama last night, calling him a "celebrity senator" with no
leadership experience.
Earlier, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee got
the crowd cheering when he ripped Obama for looking to Europe for ways to change
America.
"Barack Obama's excellent adventure to Europe took his campaign for
change to hundreds of thousands of people who don't even vote or pay taxes
here," he said.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney earlier blasted
"liberal Washington," saying McCain is a "prescription for every American who
wants change in Washington."
Palin's address is sure to generate a lot of
attention, because McCain surprised many political observers last week with his
selection of Palin over better-known contenders.
McCain joined Palin and her
family on stage immediately after she completed her speech.
Palin's speech
was nearly marred by a pair of activists from the antiwar group CodePink, who
got to the very edge of the stage and were a moment away from apparently running
onto it, next to a host of McCain's most senior staff, until the Secret Service
grabbed them at the last minute and dragged them out.
Palin's speech came as
the McCain campaign sought to put an end to media scrutiny of the process by
which the Arizonan picked his running mate, including a Washington Post report
that Palin was not subjected to a lengthy in-person background interview with
the head of McCain's vice presidential vetting team until last Wednesday in
Arizona, the day before McCain asked her to be his running mate, and that she
did not disclose the fact that her 17-year-old daughter was pregnant until that
meeting.
The convention later formally nominated McCain and Palin as their
presidential and vice presidential nominee.
Xinhua
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