Sarah Palin wows crowd of 9,000 in Estero

Ft. Myers News Press - October 07, 2008
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Can Joe Biden match his rival's star power?

The Democratic vice presidential hopeful is coming to Fort Myers on Wednesday on the heels of GOP candidate Sarah Palin, who wowed a packed crowd at Germain Arena on Monday afternoon.

Camera phones and digital cameras clicked through her 20-minute speech and for at least 15 minutes after, as the Alaska governor mingled with supporters, signing autographs and shaking hands.

Her draw of about 9,000 was so big that her appearance was moved from Florida Gulf Coast University's Alico Arena to the larger Germain. Even so, some 1,500 latecomers were turned away.

"She couldn't have been better," raved Dixie Zuber, 60, of Fort Myers. "She's a dynamite girl."

Biden will appear at Alico Arena at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday for a talk that is expected to focus on the nation's economic crisis.

Palin's rally got off to a headline-making start - and not of her making. Lee County Sheriff Mike Scott took the podium as one of the GOP speechmakers to warm up the crowd.

In his brief remarks, he referred to Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama by his full name, "Barack Hussein Obama," drawing cheers from the crowd but condemnation from the McCain/Palin campaign, which called Scott's decision inappropriate.

There was one other flicker of controversy - a middle-aged, bearded man shouted out in protest shortly after Palin began speaking. The candidate was unfazed.

"You know, bless your heart, sir, my son is in Iraq fighting for your right to protest right now," Palin said.

Security escorted him out.

In 20 minutes, Palin packed in all the key messages - hammering the opposition's stance on the economy, war, taxation and energy policy.

Her remarks reinforced her cultivated image as a middleclass, American mom fighting the same high grocery bills, eye-popping fuel fill-ups and stresses as everyone else.

But she also emphasized how she has tried to alleviate people's financial worries.

"I put veto pen to nearly half a billion in spending," she said of her governorship. "(With the surplus) I'm returning a chunk of it right back to the people. It's their money."

And then she ripped on Obama's voting history, claiming he has voted 94 times for higher taxes and supporting earmarks that she said cost millions.

"You can do the math or go with your gut, but either way you will come to the same conclusion, and that is that Barack Obama will raise your taxes," Palin said.

Palin's visit was not surprising in this battleground state less than a month before the Nov. 4 general election.

"You know, from now until Election Day, hang on to your hats," Palin said. "It's time to take the gloves off and start telling the truth."

Lee County has been reliably Republican, voting for the GOP presidential nominee every year since 1948, according to Congressional Quarterly.

As of Monday, the county had 144,634 registered Republicans, 95,925 registered Democrats and 71,751 in other parties or independent.

The latest statewide polls showed Obama either ahead in Florida or tied with McCain. The Quinnipiac Poll from Sept. 28 has Obama leading McCain 49-43 percent; the Rasmussen Poll from Sept. 28 has the men tied at 47 percent.

Palin also appeared in Clearwater on Monday and plans to visit Pensacola and Jacksonville today.

The candidate, as promised, turned on the heat - reiterating an attack on Obama's affiliation with William Ayers, a former member of the radical anti-war group The Weather Underground that claimed responsibility for bombings in the 1960s and 1970s. Ayers is now a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

"Today, they are saying for the first time Barack Obama didn't know about that," Palin said.

"Yeah, right," someone from the crowd yelled.

"Wait a minute, he didn't know he launched his career in the living room of a domestic terrorist?" Palin asked, taking an incredulous tone.

The Obama campaign has hit back, suggesting Palin was trying to distract from the nation's economic ills and minimizing Obama's relationship with Ayers.

Palin circled back to energy policy - her key emphasis during last week's debate with Biden - but with a Florida twist, promising state decision-making in controversial off-shore oil drilling proposals.

Even so, she made it clear where she stood: The nation needs to achieve energy independence through drilling, alternative energy sources and other means.

Palin suggested she'd contain herself in these final weeks, and then just as quickly scrapped the idea - as if answering critics who suggested her early appearances were too scripted.

"Well, perhaps I'll keep doin' and saying things that will keep Tina Fey in business," said Palin, referring to the comedian whose "Saturday Night Live" skits have become a network and Internet sensation.

And that's what endears her to voters.

"It's like my sister was talking to me," said Bruce Pendleton, 55, of Fort Myers, referring to Palin's down-home mannerisms.

He clutched a newly autographed baseball cap.

"No, it's not going on eBay," he quipped.


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