REPUBLICAN VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE GOVERNOR SARAH PALIN REMARKS AT A "ROAD TO VICTORY" RALLY LOCATION: CLEARWATER, FLORIDA TIME: 9:00 A.M. EDT DATE: MONDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2008
GOV. PALIN:
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much. And Senator Lieberman, thank you for that kind introduction. And it is so good to have all of you here today. As Senator Lieberman just said, he's never seen so many people up so early and we
thank you for making that sacrifice.
(It's nine AM.)(Applause.)
(Now comes the pander-fest: mention location and sport team.)Thank you so much for that very, very warm welcome to the state of
Florida. You take my breath away.
Thank you,
Florida.
(Applause.)
The flags are beautiful.
Thank you for that also. God bless America. You guys get it.
Thank you.
(Applause.)
It's great to be here in the home of the
Tampa Bay Rays, too. (Applause.)
I know that earlier some of the experts this year are kind of tough on the
Rays. I've been there. But what a difference a season can make. And now the
Rays are in the playoffs for the first time ever.
Florida knows a little something about turning an underdog into a victor, and together that's what we can do.
(Applause.)
How about it
Florida? Let us do that for Senator John McCain.
(Applause.)
So the last time that our campaign came to
Florida it was up in the villages and it was so much fun. Thousands of people out there. Golf carts everywhere. We got such a kick out of that, that was cool. Thousands of people out there to hear our message of reform and positive change. And they came there like you today because the people of
Florida are ready to shake things up in Washington.
(What? How long before you actually say something?)(Applause.)
So John McCain and I, we are taking our cause and our case for reform to every voter of every background in every region of America. Whether you're a Republican or a Democrat or an Independent,
(Alaska Independence Party?) maybe you don't belong to any party at all, we're asking for your vote. And it's going to be a hard fought contest. Right here in
Florida it's going to be a tough contest. With your support, though, we'll win
Florida.
(Applause.)
We'll win for you.
(Applause.)
(Still waiting for you to say something.)So, I wanted to come here a couple of days earlier but I had an appointment in St. Louis that just wouldn't wait.
(Applause.)
And so on Thursday night I had a little debate with Senator Joe Biden.
(Boos.)
Joseph Biden is a decent man, he is. And I enjoyed meeting him for the first time. I was so proud, though, to get to make the case for the next president of the United States, John McCain.
(Applause.) As I explained to Senator Biden, John McCain is the only man in this race who will solve our economic crisis and not exploit it. And he's the only man in this race with a plan that will actually help our working families, and cut your taxes, and get our economy back on track.
(Applause.)
(By Mr. McCain's own admission the economy is his weak suit.)He's the only man in this race who talks about the wars that America is fighting and he isn't afraid to use the word victory.
(Our own commanders in the field don't talk about "victory", but about "success".) (Applause.)
Our opponent gives speech after speech about the wars that America is fighting and it sure would be nice if just once he'd say that he wants America to win.
(Succeed?)(Applause.)
See our opponent voted to cut off funding for our troops even after saying that he would never do so.
(Misleading. Voted against one of two competing bills. Voted for the other, and ultimately, of course, supported the funding. McCain did the same thing, for the other version.)(Boos.)
And he said that our troops in Afghanistan are just quote, "raiding villages and killing civilians."
(Boos.)
(Out of context. Was commenting on a specific case. Everyone else also agreed the soldiers in question were in the wrong. It's war, it happens.)And that's not what our brave men and women in uniform are doing in Afghanistan. The U.S. military is fighting terrorism and protecting us and our values.
(Applause.)
And they're building schools for children in Afghanistan so that there is hope and there is opportunity in that country. That is what our troops are doing and they deserve our gratitude and they deserve our support.
(Obama supports a major increase in our presence in Afghanistan.)(Applause.)
See, John McCain is a different kind of man. He believes in our troops and their mission. And as the mother of one of those troops that's exactly the kind of man I want as commander in chief.
(Applause.)
Man, some of your signs just make me want to cry. Thank you so much. I love you guys.
(Applause.) Thank you.
(Applause.)
(Sniffle. Now let's see how many times I can say "Florida", and pander to veterans.)
Senator McCain -- Senator McCain served our nation in
uniform for 22 years, five and a half years he was a
POW. In fact, it was after graduating from the
Naval Academy, he was stationed right here in
Florida. That's where he learned to do what he does, here in
Florida.
(Applause.)
And
Florida, it was in your skies that he trained to become a
naval aviator. And Senator McCain is proud to have been part of
Florida's strong tradition of
military service. And today, we're proud of all the
Floridians who have worn
our country's uniform. Your state is home to millions.
(Applause.)
Florida is home to millions of our
veterans and many of our nation's
active duty soldiers and
airmen. And they continue to keep our nation strong and secure. And I know that here in the audience there are
veterans, there are those who are serving today.
Would you do me the honor, raise your hand, let us applaud you? Thank you, guys.
(Applause.)
We thank you and we love you guys. Thank you -- and gals, thank you.(Applause.)
( Hang on. Has she actually said anything yet?)Florida, in just 29 days it will be the time for choosing in this election. And here's how I look at the choice that we face. In politics there are some candidates who use change to just promote their careers. And then there are those leaders, like John McCain, who use their career to promote change.
(The writers worked all night on that one.)(Applause.)
This is a moment when principles and political independence matter a lot more than just the party line, as Senator Lieberman just told you. It matters a lot more than just the party line. John McCain is his own man. He doesn't run with the Washington herd. And he and I don't just talk about change, we're the only candidates in this race with a track record of actually making change happen.
(Lieberman was McCain's hands down choice for VP. McCain was convinced by hardliners to run with the herd and choose a "base" candidate, Palin.)(Applause.)
As mayor and as a governor, I reminded people that government is not always the answer. In fact, government too often is the problem. So we got back to basics and we put government back on the side of the people.
As mayor, I eliminated taxes on personal property and I eliminated taxes like small business inventory taxes. Those burdens on our small businesses, we got rid of them. Property taxes were too high. Every year that I was in office I reduced that (mill levy ?).
(And built a gigantic, publicly funded, sport complex.)And as governor, I brought the same agenda of positive change on a state level. I came to office promising to control spending, by request if possible, but by veto if necessary. And today, our state budget is under control and we have a surplus. And I put the veto pen to nearly half a billion dollars in wasteful spending.
(She actually vetoes the entire budget, then has the Legislature come to her in small groups and lobby for each individual road or school.)(Applause.)
We suspended our state fuel tax and I'm returning a chunk of our surplus money right back to the people of Alaska. It's their money and they can spend it better than government can spend it for them.
(Of course Alaskans don't pay state taxes. Its the oil tax money she's spreading around. Redistribution of wealth? Not that I'm complaining.)(Applause.)
Imagine that. Imagine that, having that principle. And that's what we're going to bring on a national level also. That principle of knowing that -- no, the people, our families, our businesses they know best so let them keep more of what they earn and produce and not have this government take trying to quote, "solve" all the problems for our families and our businesses. No, we're not going to do that.
(Huh? Hang on, I think she's trying to say something of substance. She just compared giving oil company tax money directly to the people with letting companies keep "more of what they earn" and not expecting government to solve our problems. Oh wait, that doesn't make any sense)
I've always known that I was accountable to the people who hired me. There, it was the people of Alaska.
(Which is why she promised to serve out her term just before she accepted the VP nod) And in a McCain-Palin administration I promise you that we will never forget that we'll be there in D.C. to work for you the people of America.
(Applause.)
So one mission of a McCain-Palin administration will be to set this nation firmly on a course of energy independence.
(Drill, baby, drill! Drill, baby, drill! No? Not yet?)(Applause.)
Across
Florida and all across America, high gas prices is making a full tank at the pump seem like a luxury. And the cost of living, of course, is going up. And the cost of groceries is going up. Everything is going up, but the value of your paycheck is going down.
(So let's here it for tax cuts for rich people!) And that's because of high energy costs.
(Oh. I thought it was because I work at WalMart) So, to meet America's great energy challenge we're going to need an all of the above approach. And that, in a McCain-Palin administration, will mean developing new alternative energy sources. And it will mean requiring to build more nuclear power plants. And in
Florida, it means alternative sources of energy like wind and solar. God has so richly blessed you here.
(Applause.)
(Drill, baby, dr...not yet?)Look at these sources of energy here in
Florida that are still sitting untapped. And we'll tap into them, along with environmentally friendly off shore production. We do need to drill here and drill now. Now you can chant the drill baby drill.
(Applause.)
(Yes! Now, how many time can you say "American"?)
It's as simple as this, Florida. In a McCain-Palin administration we will achieve energy security for our country. It is a matter of national security and economic prosperity. That means
American energy resources brought to you by
American ingenuity and produced by
American workers.
(Applause.)
And we're also going to bring tax relief to every
(rich)American and cut taxes for businesses so you business owners you can hire more people. That's how jobs are created.
(Thanks for clearing that up.)(Applause.)
Here again, John McCain is the real reformer. In this election, he is the real reformer and he can do this and he has a record to prove it. And so do I, as a mayor, as a governor who cut taxes for the people of Alaska. You know, in this campaign, in this election, I think the phoniest claim in a campaign that's been full of them, is that Barack Obama is going to cut your taxes?
(That's right its only for ninety five percent of us.)(Boos.)
I mean, think about it. He's built his whole career on doling out tax money, first as a Chicago politician, and then raising taxes as a senator. He's voted 94 times to raise taxes.
(McCain voted to spend the money, but borrows from China to get it. We owe over $400,000 per person right now. Painful as it will be we gotta pay for it someday, somehow.)(Boos.)
Even on middle class every day working
Americans making $42,000 a year, he voted to raise those taxes.
(Not true) And he tried to waste a million dollars a day just on his requested earmarks.
(As mayor and Governor, Palin was a fervent fan of earmarks.) And now, he's committed to almost a trillion dollars in new government spending. And yet, he never bothers to explain where all that's going to come from to pay for all of that.
(China?) And dog gone it, no one seems to be asking him how is he going to pay for the huge government growth that he wants. No one is asking him. So you all, just do the math. Either do the math or just go with your gut. In either way, you're going to come up with the same conclusion, Barack Obama is going to raise your taxes.
(Actually if you do the math Obama will cut your taxes. For our purposes here, better go with your gut.)(Boos.)
So, there's a pattern here of a left-wing agenda that is packaged and prettied up to look like mainstream policies. And everybody knows that this country has got to be put back on the right track. But the problem with our opponent's agenda is that higher taxes and bigger government and activist courts and retreat in war, that's not the right track for our country. That's another dead end.
(Let's see, if you borrow from China instead of raise taxes, and recognize that we retreated in Afghanistan to go to Iraq, those are all the Bush policies that McCain still supports.)(Applause.)
We have that plan to put our country back on the right track. Okay now
Florida, evidently there's some interest in what I've been reading lately. And I think that this comes from -- it's a result of a probably less than successful interview that I had recently with kind of mainstream media.
(Just the kind of clear speaking that served you so well in that interview.)(Boos.)
Yet, you know what, in response to critics after that interview what I should have told them was I was just trying to keep Tina Fey in business, just giving her more information.
(True, she gets laughs by quoting you verbatim.)(Applause.)
Job security for SNL characters. All right. Really in that interview I was just getting really impatient because I was so convinced that
Americans want to hear about the issues that are so important in your life: how to win the war, how to get the economy back on track, public education, accountability in our schools, more choices for our parents with education. Those things.
(It all comes to her, now.)(Applause.)
So, I do have to apologize, though, for being a little bit impatient, a little bit annoyed. But anyways, so one of the questions about well what do I read everyday?
(Cereal boxes?) And my answer was sort of flippant,
(Actually you could not name a newspaper that you read.) Well, I was reading my copy of the New York Times the other day, okay.
(Boos.)
And I knew you guys would react that way, okay. So I'm reading the New York Times, though, and I was really interested to read about Barack's friends from Chicago, as the New York Times (put it ?).
(Cue appeal to fear.)(Applause.)
Now it turns out one of his earliest supporters is a man named Bill Ayers.
(Boos.)
And according to the New York Times he was a domestic terrorist and part of a group that quote, "launched a campaign of bombings that would target the Pentagon and our U.S. Capitol."
(Boos.)
And then there's even more to the story. Barack Obama says that Ayers was just someone in the neighborhood, but that's less than truthful. His own top adviser said that they were quote, "certainly friendly." In fact, Obama held one of his first meetings of his political career in Bill Ayers living room.
(Just plain not true.)(Boos.)
And they worked together on various projects in Chicago.
(School reform, on a Republican sponsored board.) And, you know, these are the same guys who think that patriotism is paying higher taxes.
(We all know patriotism is making your kids pay higher taxes.)(Boos.)
(OK, now let's talk about how afraid we should all be.)Remember, that's what Joe Biden had said. And I am just so
fearful that this is not a man who sees America the way that you and I see
America, as the greatest source for good in this world.
(Applause.)
I'm
afraid this is someone who sees
America as imperfect enough to work with a former domestic terrorist who had targeted his own country.
(Boos.)
(Great! You made it sound like Obama is bombing the Pentagon. I am very afraid. Now throw out a Reagan reference, and bring it home:)This, ladies and gentlemen, has nothing to do with the kind of change that anyone can believe in, not my kids, not for your kids. What we believe in is what
Ronald Reagan believed in, and that is
America is an exceptional nation.
(Applause.)
(Everybody chant!)(Chant of USA) Remember
Ronald Reagan used to talk about America being that shining city on a hill for all mankind to see and that
America is a good and honorable nation. We are not a perfect nation but we learn from our mistakes. And individually, no we are not perfect; but collectively together
America represents a perfect ideal. It's freedom. It's tolerance. It's respect for equal rights. It is those things that our military men and women have fought and died for, and freedom is worth fighting for.
(Yay! Individually we ain't much, but as a howling mob, we're perfect!)(Applause.)
So look at the contrasts. On November 4th, you'll have that choice, the contrasts. The only man who can take on Washington is Senator John McCain.
(Applause.)
Okay, so
Florida you know that you're going to have to hang onto your hats because from now until election day it may get kind of rough.
(We might for instance start calling Obama a terrorist.) That's all right. You're going to hear our opponents still go on and on about how they're going to fight for you. But since he won't say it on his own behalf, I've had to kind of make it my business to say it for him.
(?) There is only one man in this campaign who has ever really fought for you.
(Applause.)
He has the courage to go on fighting for you. That man is John McCain so God bless you for supporting John McCain. Thank you,
Florida. God bless you and God bless
America.
(Applause.)
(Um, did she ever really really tell us what they plan to do, if elected? Oh well, I'm stoked. Let's go to a bar and beat up a gay.)Thank you.
(Torches and pitchforks will be available as you exit.)http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2008/10/the-odd-lies-11.html
