by Bob McAlister, in The State

Nikki Haley was shocked. A Democratic official known throughout South Carolina as an enlightened feminist counseled that she should not run for public office because she had two young children. But later on the same day in 2003, Mrs. Haley was in the audience when another prominent Democrat, Rep. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, challenged women to seek office.

Spurred by both encounters, the Lexington resident ran the following year and was elected as a Republican to the S.C. House of Representatives. Some insiders say she has statewide potential.

As we discussed the shameful media reaction to John McCain’s pick of Gov. Sarah Palin on the GOP ticket, Mrs. Haley said she has never publicly told the story of the feminist who tried to keep her out of politics. “That just made me more determined,” she said.

Mrs. Haley is reluctant to discuss the double standard for female officeholders (“I am not a victim and don’t want to sound like one”), but she can relate to the pounding Gov. Palin is taking over whether a mother of five should be vice president.

“Every week I’m asked how I handle my little ones and serve my constituents,” she said. “It’s no different from anybody else’s life. I prioritize with my children and husband and do the best I can and refuse to feel guilty.”

So Gov. Palin is not the first political woman to experience the old double standard. But the brutal and loathsome treatment she’s getting from the national media is unique in American history.

Leaders of the intelligentsia, so progressive and tolerant of liberal women, express faux concern over whether her Down syndrome baby will get enough motherly love. They breathlessly conclude a mom of five just can’t hack it, especially when her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant.

As Helen Reddy sang, “That ain’t no way to treat a lady.”

“It’s unfortunate they are focusing on one aspect of a lifetime full of courage and talent,” Mrs. Haley said. “This is a story we should all feel good about.”

The mainstream media and Democratic liberals — excuse the redundancy — are not feeling too good nowadays.

John McCain found a woman for the ticket who has done everything that political feminists spent the last 30 years saying a modern woman should do, except abort her children, and she has done it brilliantly.

This gun-totin’, fish-catchin’ machine steamrolled her way through the corrupt good old boys in Juno and landed in the governor’s office with an 80 percent approval rating. She charmed the big-oil lobbyists, picked their pockets and sent the proceeds back to the taxpayers.

She has managed a balanced budget while balancing the needs of her family with her official responsibilities.

So why do the libs feel so bad?

They were the ones supposed to break the glass ceiling, because they owned the women’s movement. Then The One arose to lead His children to the Promised Land, along the way charging over and through the would-be ceiling breaker, who wasn’t even considered worthy of being The One’s No. 2. An old bald guy took her place.

And they don’t feel too good about what came out of St. Paul this week. The day after Gov. Palin took the GOP convention by storm, polls showed more than half the American people thought reporters were trying to destroy Mrs. Palin, and 24 percent said that makes them more likely to vote for the McCain/Palin ticket.

Score one for the people, who know a media scam when they see it.

I’m guessing the American people have made three discoveries during the Palin rollout:

1. If a woman is pro-life and doesn’t hate men, the chattering class won’t give her an equal playing field.

2. Her daughter’s pregnancy is nobody’s business.

3. A woman who blew up Alaska’s good-old-boy network and shoots bull moose at point blank range is not intimidated by a bunch of sissy reporters who think moose is a dessert.

Mr. McAlister is a public relations consultant and was an adviser to Sen. John McCain in the S.C. presidential primary.

I thought I’d give you a wrap up of the week with my own thoughts and recollections.

Governor Sarah Palin is the Real Deal.
It was a privilege to meet her, and her husband, and her mother, and her aunts. Folks, these are real, every day, down to earth people. No putting on airs, no falsity, just real people – and frankly a breath of fresh air.

Politically, that is going to connect with most of the heartland of this country. The northeastern liberal elites, especially in the media, will never understand the Palins, and will never understand why they connect at such a deep level with ordinary Americans. Neither will the West Coast Hollywood crowd. But the vast middle of the country, stretching from the Sierras to the edges of the Beltway, will understand this family perfectly – because we and they are the same. These are normal people with normal struggles and triumphs and challenges. That is why the left and the media have gone bonkers trying to cut her to ribbons – they understand the danger Governor Palin brings without understanding her at all.

Her speech was simply brilliant – even more so because the teleprompter had died a third of the way through. When they checked the tape to the original, she had changed one only word (not counting the insertion of the now famous pit bull/hockey mom/lipstick reference). That is a sign of a great and polished speaker who kept her head remarkably well.

But her speech, while fantastic, wasn’t the memory I will cherish the most from this convention. Later that night, after we rode the bus back to the hotel, but before we went to the party up the street, a number of us were in the hotel lobby/lounge area. In walks Henry Kissinger. I get to meet Henry Kissinger and shake his hand – too weird. I’m still in that lobby (after taking a few pictures) when I hear the elevator ding – and in walks Sarah and Todd Palin. They meet a few people and chat, and pose for pictures, before the Secret Service politely reminds her to keep moving, and she does – into the hotel lounge/restaurant area.

The roar that went up from the folks in the hotel lounge is a sound I will remember for the rest of my life. It sounded like a Stanley Cup winning goal had been scored, or a Super Bowl winning touchdown – in overtime. The hotel shook with the noise – and then they all started chanting “SARAH… SARAH…” I get choked up just remembering that sound. I spoke with someone Friday morning who still had chills just thinking about it – she was on the third floor and on the other end of the hotel, and she still heard it (and wondered why she wasn’t downstairs in the lounge…)

One last thought on Sarah Palin – sometime Wednesday night, around 11PM EDT, the Presidential hopes of Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, Sam Brownback, and anyone else whose name was on this year’s ballot – their future White House hopes died that night. Anyone on this year’s ballot had only this year to pull the trick – and that moment has now passed. The entrance of Sarah Palin onto the national stage heralds the end of one generation of Republican politician and the beginning of the next. This new breed is conservative socially and fiscally, but is reform minded – something the Big Government breed of Republicans just can’t get. The corruption, scandal, and failure of Tom Delay, Mark Foley, Larry Craig, Duke Cunningham and the K Street cabal has led inexorably to a generation of leaders like Governors Palin, Jindal and Sanford (and probably others we don’t even know yet) who will lead this party into the future. I welcome this development wholeheartedly, even as I remain concerned with some of Senator McCain’s own proclivities on border security and global warming…

Other highlights of this week: Wednesday night’s speech lineup was rock star – and they all hit it out of the park. Huckabee, Romney, Giuliani – all did fantastic jobs at warming things up. That more people watched Wednesday night than watched Obama’s speech augurs well for the Republicans this fall.

Lowlights of the week – protestor idiots, especially the ones that MSNBC allowed to get access into the arena on Thursday night. Shame on MSNBC for knowingly giving protestors badges so they could make trouble – someone needs to get fired for that, just as someone needs to get prosecuted for stealing the identity of an Indiana delegate to gain unlawful access.

People I got to meet (and really enjoyed): The Palins, Mayor Giuliani, Jon Voight, Mary Katherine Ham, Henry Kissinger, and the guy who played George Washington.

SC people (some delegates) I had the pleasure of hanging out with this week: Lou and Patrick Nolan, Doug and LouEllen Robertson, Gen. Richard and Linnea Eckstrom, Kevin Hall, Jim Corbett, Reps. Alan Clemmons, Tracy Edge, Eric Bedingfield, and Wendy Nanney (along with her husband Tim), Glenn McCall, Moye Graham (who is a prince), Eaddy Roe Willard, Katrina Shealy, and Drew McKissick. Special Thanks also to the folks who did videos this week: Lt. Gov Bauer, Atty Gen. McMaster, Speaker Harrell, Congressmen Wilson and Inglis, Rep. Bedingfield, and Kevin Hall. I do wish Governor Sanford could’ve stayed longer (we had to cancel the scheduled video due to Hanna’s arrival) and that Rep. Gresham Barrett could’ve come up (something happened there and that video didn’t happen either).

It was a pleasure and a privilege to go to this convention with such a fine delegation – even more so under the leadership of our Chairman, Katon Dawson, who did remarkable work this week. Jay W., Katie, Lisa, and Rob also were terrific, and did a ton of work keeping things running. Well done all.

So now it’s back to work. I’m back in Lexington, dodging the hurricane on the drive down from Charlotte airport last night. After this many nights of too little sleep, I think it’s nap time…

After a really stirring night last night where Sarah Palin hit a grand slam with her speech, we got together for one last delegation breakfast.

Our Intro speaker was Senator Lindsey Graham, who also spoke later in prime time.

That was followed up by one the young bright lights of American conservatism – Michael Steele of GOPAC. Video in two parts below.

Part I:

Part II:

Note to readers: The writer of this story requested to be anonymous because of his top-level position in government. But he knows of which he writes

It’s been a tough few days for the national media.

In a fit of rage they have torn off the mask. And like the phantom haunting the opera now wholly revealed, they know, we know, who they really are.

And it ain’t pretty.

It’s long been a delicate dance. Americans are a trusting lot and we want to believe in the reporters we invite into our homes via our televisions and internets. Folks like former CBS correspondent Bernard Goldberg, have been warning us for years about the bias – about out-of-control newsroom elites looking down on Middle-America.

But it took Sarah Palin to rock their world enough to rock ours.  Because in excoriating Sarah, Big Media showed Middle America once and for all what they really think about us.

The first thing we now know in a powerful way is really, only ONE woman counts. And her names are: Soledad and Campbell, Diane and Katie. Yes, they are more than one but they stand utterly united in their disgust and bewilderment for any woman who stands not for the sacred right of abortion. Watching their bitter coverage, it occurs to me that these women may never have encountered other breathing females who might consider any alternative to their pro-abortion mandate. After all, we certainly don’t see these women on their networks as a part of any kind of balanced reporting, so they’re always stunned and I think, a little sad, when they’re forced to breathe the same air.

We also now know because only ONE woman counts, it is perfectly acceptable for the Big Media to have two sets of questions: One for ONE woman; the other for conservative woman. It goes something like this:

Question to ONE woman:
How is it that you are so brave to balance both a family and a career and do both so well?

Question to Conservative woman:
What makes you think you can possibly juggle a home, kids, and a demanding career? And really, is it fair to try?

Question to ONE woman:
How do you rock those pantsuits everyday and still manage to stand up for reproductive rights and all women everywhere?

Question to Conservative woman:
So what’s up with the hairdo? Isn’t it true you neglected your prenatal vitamins and had your abnormal kid on a plane? Really, so how come your qualified?

I noticed over at CNN, Soledad O’Brien and Campbell Brown got particularly offended by the glare of the public spotlight turned back on them. Soledad was very insistent that newsmakers (because that’s what these reporters have become) need to ask these questions of Governor Palin and examine the record. Problem is, Soledad, you don’t feel compelled to ask the good senators on your team (that would be the Democratic ticket) the same riveting questions. To turn into CNN during the DNC was to see a network gushing with pride for its candidates done good. I don’t recall Soledad pondering the toll Obama’s time away from his daughters is taking on them and whether, really, he’s up for the task of balancing it all? Meredith, over at NBC, what do you think? Ever lob that bomb at the home team? Nah, didn’t think so. Just chucked it at the sister. So much for The View. But Joy is proud, no doubt.

All this brings me back to Sarah and us.

Big Media wants to destroy Sarah Palin for a number of reasons: she gets in the way ultimately of them controlling the election – and not us.

She stands for the old-fashioned values of patriotism, God, family, and life, that the media elites not only despise – they fear. It is human nature to fear and despise what you do not understand. It is also the opposite of so-called liberal open-mindedness.

They hate Sarah because she loves America. And frankly, most Americans love America. And America loves winning – whether it’s in Iraq or on the ice rink.

But the media always has and always will love a loser. And Sarah Palin may be a lot of things – but she’s certainly no loser.

Obama is an exciting figure at an exciting time, but like FDR’s devoted press corps who conspired with him to deny the American people the real story about his crippling disability (most Americans never knew FDR was in a wheelchair) Obama’s infatuated Big Media is avoiding Obama’s story while inventing story lines on Sarah Palin. That is not only dereliction of duty is reveals a deep distain for ordinary Americans and our judgment.

In the end, they hate Sarah because Sarah is us.

Now that the masks are off, it’s time to clear the air and either turn them off or demand more of us next to them. America will be better for it.

Sarah Palin

How many times last night could political pundits credit Sarah Palin’s speech to “good speechwriters” and miss the fact that she knocked it out of the park?

Reality is that every political speech you’ve probably heard in your lifetime has been written by a speechwriter. It would take a long stroll through the history books before you could find a national political speech actually written and delivered by that politician. Lincoln’s handwritten speech at Gettysburg may have been one of the last.

Credit should be given to speechwriters who consolidate the ideas and thoughts of those delivering the speech into a clear and concise message. That style of writing is an art and talent that very few people actually do well.

But no matter how well a speech is written, it takes a gifted person who believes what he or she is actually saying to deliver like Palin did in her first time at bat on the national stage.

Here’s one prime example from her speech…

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.

Evidently Obama’s speechwriters are scripting his ideas and thoughts into the concise message that he believes and wants to deliver.

The headline from today’s National Journal at convention-goers’ hotels states it best: “Sarah Baracuda Takes a Bite.” That she did, and it left the Obama campaign at a loss for words. Here’s the response released by Obama spokeman Bill Burton immediately following the speech…

The speech that Governor Palin gave was well delivered, but it was written by George Bush’s speechwriter and sounds exactly like the same divisive, partisan attacks we’ve heard from George Bush for the last eight years. If Governor Palin and John McCain want to define ‘change’ as voting with George Bush 90% of the time, that’s their choice, but we don’t think the American people are ready to take a 10% chance on change.

Upon reading this on the air, Brit Hume on Fox News said, “Perhaps they’ll have a less predictable response once they’ve had a little more time to think about it.”

They don’t need more time. More time will only show that conservatives have been energized across America by Sarah Palin and that we no longer have to simply listen to but offer real hope and change that we can believe in.

by Bob McAlister

Gov. Sarah Palin

The story is being told at the Republican National Convention that when McCain’s aides warned Gov. Sarah Palin of the attack dogs waiting for her in the media, she replied: “Do you know the difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom? Lipstick.”

When you’ve blown up the corrupt good old boy network in Alaska, chopped through ice to catch salmon and shot a raging bull moose at point blank range, Chris Matthews and perky Katie must seem like toothless mutts. This pit bull has teeth, folks—very nice teeth—and gives every indication of being ready to kick butt.

She’s already won the first round by exposing political feminism as an empty, hypocritical, pathetic fraud. I use the words “political feminism” because it is the corrupted version of real feminism. Pure feminism untainted by leftists and socialists does not reside in a political party, and it insists on the dignity and value of every woman everywhere.

Sarah Palin is everything that political feminists have held up as a role model. She literally came from Alaskan backwoods to achieve the highest office in the state, and she had to plowNew  through a bunch of white boys to get there. She did it while being a wife and mother.

She’s done everything that political feminists say a woman should do except she has not killed any of her babies.

But they’re after her. They hate her because she is an accomplished woman who succeeded without hating men and worshipping at the altar of abortion. They hate her because she’s an outsider. They hate her most because she just might help McCain beat The One. And they’re willing to go where no man (or woman) has gone before to keep it from happening.

Example: Tuesday’s front page of the New York Times, which reported, with faux concern, “With five children, including an infant with Down syndrome and, as the country learned Monday, a pregnant 17-year-old, Ms. Palin has set off a fierce argument among women about whether there are enough hours in the day for her to take on the vice presidency, and whether she is right to try.”

The Times made sure to quote twice as many critics as supporters, of course, and the only “fierce argument among women” is the one ginned up by biased reporters scared to death that a down-to-earth woman is altering the political landscape.

Let’s say, just for argument, that the Democrats’ vice presidential nominee was the mother of five children. I know, that’s improbable (see paragraph 5 above), but let’s pretend. And let’s say that Dr. James Dobson suggested the woman in question could not possibly be a good mother and vice president at the same time. Anybody out there doubt the outcry from liberals? Hurricane Gustav would have been relegated to page 8-Z, Andrea Mitchell would have hit menopausal rage and Maureen Dowd would have had an accident in her pants.

Breaking news, as they say. I stopped writing this to watch Rudy Giuliani on the Today show, and he just ripped Meredith Viera, who got testy. Rudy looked the lady straight in her sagging eyes and said it was despicable for the media to ask whether a woman could be a good mother and vice president at the same time, something they’d never ask a man. Meredith got that deer in the headlight look and, because her words weren’t on the teleprompter, just mumbled. After Rudy left, she called in White House reporter David Gregory to save her, and he said bluntly it’s not the media pushing the story.

That’s a lie. David Gregory is a liar. It is only the media pushing the story, the media and Obama supporters.

I’m betting the only vice presidential candidate in history who has field dressed a moose will rock tonight’s convention by ripping into liberal carcasses and stripping the bones bare. Just wait and see.

Bob McAlister is President of McAlister Communications and former Chief of Staff of SC Gov. Carroll Campbell.

The Republican National Convention is back on schedule today following the arrival of Hurrican Gustav along the gulf coast. Joshua Gross called from St. Paul midday today with a quick update. He will post more detail later this evening.

On tap thus far for the South Carolina delegation have been…

• John McCain with SC Veterans
• Cindy McCain and Rudy Guiliani speaking at the SC Delegation breakfast
• And Al Sharpton, part of a panel with for House Speaker Newt Gingrich, receives two standing ovations at the convention from a room full of Republican delegates. More on this one in today’s round-up from St. Paul.

Joshua will post updates and videos following tonight’s speech by Fred Thompson.

South Carolina’s delegation breakfast got off to a rousing start today with the actor who played George Washington in the History Channels “The Revolution”. After giving us some historical perspective on the importance of prayer, General Washington led us in a prayer of his own (taken from his diary.)

After that, we got our marching orders for the day (get your badges, make the bus, don’t forget the milk and cookies party…) and an update on the electoral landscape from Whit Ayres (who agrees with the importance of the Palin pick.)

Mostly just business today while we watch. Everyone is palpably relieved that Gustav seems to have spared New Orleans. At the same time, Don Fowler has clearly put his foot in it with his over the top rhetoric about God sending hurricanes to stop the convention. Favorite unintentional admission of the morning: Howard Wolfson on Fox News “Sometimes we say things we don’t mean.” Yep – that’s one of the differences between Republicans and Democrats. Democrats often say things they don’t mean – thanks for admitting it.

The energy surrounding this campaign is overwhelmingly positive since the announcement of Sarah Palin as the running mate. The base is energized and motivated in a way we weren’t just a week ago. The polling from Rasmussen and Zogby shows McCain/Palin leading (in basically a statistical tie) with Obama/Biden, and that’s after their convention and before ours – unheard of. As long as we can get in three solid days of message (Tuesday through Thursday after the cancellation of political speeches tonight due to Gustav) we should see a modest bounce on top of that, and go into the final two month stretch with a lead…

I pulled in around 9:00 PM local time last night, weary from too much flying (I still don’t know if it was Northwest or Priceline that bumped my two-hour direct flight from Charlotte to MSP into two separate two hour flights, with Memphis in the middle… I suspect the airline… and I digress.)

The trip up was eventful. The drive up I-77 to Charlotte included some guy in a minivan who rode my bumper for an hour (even when I changed lanes…). You know that section where 77 goes from two to three to four lanes? I stayed in the “fast” lane, which became the “2” lane. The minivan goes flying around me, but fails to notice the real reason I was driving 70 – the unmarked officer car in front of me, who promptly nails the minivan for whatever speed he was doing when he blew by Sparky. Sometimes, karma’s a beaut.

My first flight was with an LAPD officer who just got back from Iraq this week. Definitely an eye-opener on what’s going on there. It’s clear we’ve won what we went to do – so it’s fast approaching time to declare victory, turn it over to the Iraqis and bring the boys home. Victory with honor is a great way to wrap it all up…

My second flight was also interesting. I was next to two older gals from Mississippi. One was from the north part of the state and was headed to a Montana retreat with her family for two weeks. The place sounds idyllic – a ranch with a stream in the mountains… The other gal was from Pass Christiane, and was fleeing Gustav in advance. When she had returned to her home after Katrina, EVERYTHING had been gone, including the foundation, and two of her best friends. This time, she and her husband didn’t pack the blueprints for the house – if this hurricane takes the newly rebuilt home, they’ll go somewhere else.

These two gals are part of a very important sector of the Republican coalition – married women (who, the polling tells us, are twice as likely to vote Republican as are single women.) Suffice it to say they both had similar feelings as I have had in this election season. None of us were all that thrilled with the concept of a McCain candidacy, but we’re all absolutely stoked over a McCain/Palin candidacy. Two days on, among the folks who are the backbone of the Party, the Palin choice is an absolute home run – exactly what was needed to reach out to the Republican base and energize it. McCain is his own best outreach to the middle (though Palin’s reach to independent women and the “hockey moms” of the battleground states of the northern Midwest {MN, MI, WI, IA, OH, and PA} will be critical).

After so much flying (and a long wait for the luggage at MSP) it was a relief to get to the hotel and immediately be among so many friends. I’ve already run into at least a dozen SC folks, including Chairman Dawson this morning. It’s kinda weird to travel all day, and then see friendly faces you know when you get here. I’ve also run into a fellow traveler from the Fred Thompson campaign as well as Bud McFarlane, the former Reagan National Security Advisor who is now a delegate from DC.

Dawn broke this morning to a brilliant blue sky day here – a cool breeze blowing through the sun-splashed city. I walked the two blocks down to Key’s Café, which came highly recommended by security here. (Travelers hint – if you want to know where to go to get a real breakfast, ask security. They know. Trust me.) The “Everything” omelette was as good as promised, including the homemade strawberry jam on the 12-grain wheat toast. The ambiance was somewhat disturbed when we were joined by the members of a lesbian protestor choir who saw our badges and simply glared…

OH yes, I nearly forgot – the “protestors”. A handful of “peaceful protestors” were arrested yesterday by local law enforcement (God Bless Them All), and charged with conspiracy to start a riot. Among the items confiscated were knives, machetes, slingshots, bows, arrows, lighter fluid, and (my personal favorite) “buckets of urine.” I’m guessing they wanted to mark their territory before they shot the flaming arrows of Gladiator doom in our direction. Good on the local sheriff for shutting it down.

St. Paul city Councilman Dave Thune gets the prize for clueless local Democrat politician quote of the day: (amalgamated from MSNBC and the STrib)

“This is not the way to start things off,” Thune said Saturday morning. “This is sending the wrong message. Regardless of how you feel about these people…they had a right to be there… We spent so much time trying to welcome people to the city and now this is the way we start out,” he said. “It pretty much sucks.”

Gee, Councilman Thune, “We invited folks to be here” is an awfully strange excuse for why those folks should be met with weaponry upon arrival…or did you mean you’ve been inviting anarchist rioters to your district, while the rest of the city is trying welcome Republicans here for a convention? (So… yes, I am wearing my convention security badge for the next week…)

Actually, the local folks working the convention have been spectacularly welcoming. Special shout-out to Annie and Lorri from the MSP2008 crew who have been invaluable in dispensing tourism advice and maps… even last night’s cab driver was into the convention spirit, as an immigrant who came here legally to start a new business and enjoy the American dream as “his own boss.”

Bad Republican rumor of the day – if and when Gustav hits we may shut down the convention. That would be a mistake. This is an opportunity for Senator McCain and Governor Palin to be serious about serious issues at the convention – even if by satellite live from the Gulf Coast. We delegates can be responsible and dial down the “party” aspect of a convention like this – but we shouldn’t pass up the opportunity to energize the base (here and around the country). The Palin nomination has us all in high-energy mode right now, and this convention could be a terrific way to channel that energy into community service projects (locally and in the Gulf) that could go a long way towards building our reputation along those lines. All that said, our prayers go out to the folks along the Gulf Coast right now in the path of the storm. They’re very much in our thoughts.

I’m one of at least three of us blogging from the SC delegation – along with my convention roomie Drew McKissick (Conservative Outpost), and Rep. Alan Clemmons, who is writing for the Sun News. I’m looking forward to what the next week holds.

OK, Moye Graham just rolled up – time for the Party to start…

There has been a ton of speculation that John McCain may be considering a pro-abortion Vice Presidential nominee (bringing responses and pontifications at Politico, Hot Air, Rush, just to name a few).

I’m with the Hot Air folks on this one. A pro-abortion nominee like Lieberman (or Guiliani, or Ridge) would be an unmitigated disaster for McCain, perhaps the one last way he could derail his own campaign and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. As a strategy, it would lead to the wholesale departure of the Republican base, (more than making up for any gains he would make with independents) and the resulting low-base turnout could lead to a filibuster-proof majority in the US Senate – for the Democrats.

With those specters looming, do not expect the delegates at the Convention to go quietly on this point. I’ve been talking to some of my fellow delegates and alternates from around the state and around the country, and they do indeed have the stomach to fight their own nominee on this one. Remember: the delegates hold the power at the convention – and we can nominate someone of our own choosing to go up against a pro-abortion VP nominee. Alert pro-life Republican delegates are already organizing for a possible convention uprising if the need arises. Speculation centers around the same list of pro-life Governors that McCain has been said to be considering – Palin, Jindal, Romney, Pawlenty, and yes, Mark Sanford.

Hopefully, Senator McCain won’t make the pro-abortion VP mistake, and will instead choose a running mate who can secure his base while he tacks to the middle in the general election campaign (which he does without really trying, frankly). With a 5 point lead (according to Zogby this morning), Senator McCain would be wise to secure his base and consolidate the lead with less than 3 months to go.