McCain, Palin Draw Big Crowd in Va. (story from the NYT, of all places)

[Wretched Excess]

the NYT is losing it's mind.  this is a nearly positive piece about mccain/palin.  of course, it's only on their
blog, not their print edition.  I have read in other places that the crowd at this rally was VERY entusiastic,
had a large percentage of women, and numbered by one estimation to be about 10,000.

and most significantly, it happened in virginia, a must defend state for mccain.

but have you noticed the MSM obsession about Sarah Palin's footwear?  the MSM made a reference to her
footwear yesterday, too.  it's creepy.

McCain, Palin Draw Big Crowd in Va.

FAIRFAX CITY, Va. — Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska may have hijacked Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign, but Mr. McCain is acting more and more like the happy captive. And why not? Probably the biggest crowd of his 2008 campaign turned out this morning at Van Dyke Park in northern Virginia, chanting “Sarah, Sarah, Sarah!’’

The Fairfax City fire marshal did not yet have an official crowd count when the hour-long rally concluded at noon, but it was clear that many thousands covered the grassy hillsides spilling down to a large outdoor stage. “I am so grateful for this turnout!’’ shouted Mr. McCain, who attracted crowds in the low hundreds before he selected Ms. Palin as his running mate.

Both candidates stuck to their stump speeches, and then worked the crowd, Mr. McCain in a dark suit and tie, Ms. Palin in a black suit with ruby red, patent leather heels at least three inches high.

Afterward they headed to Dulles Airport and boarded separate campaign planes, parked side by side on the tarmac. Ms. Palin was headed for a homecoming in Alaska, more than 10 hours away. Mr. McCain was headed for an economic forum at the Down Home Diner in Philadelphia, in front of his first post-Palin crowd since the conclusion of the Republican National Convention.


Link

[Jim]

Thats Northern Virginia.  Blue-ville.  But also well-to-do, highly educated and white blue-ville

[DixieBelle]

Go McCain/Palin! They actually had to move the venue to accomodate the crowd. But of course the local D.C. news said it was because the original location (Fairfax High) couldn't be used because it was a school and this was a political rally. *eyeroll*

A coworker attended and said it was great! I wasn't able to quiz him because so many other people were around and they launched into Palin Derangement Syndrome. Ugh.

[RightCoast]

Please remember that most elite media think Hill Clintoon will have a cake walk in 2012, I think overly positive praise of Obombah are a thing of the past.  They need to keep up some appearences so they can't throw him straight under the bus - but more mccain/ palin stories are going to be positive. 

Do you really think McCain would be up in some of these polls if they didn't want him to be?

[Wretched Excess]

Thats Northern Virginia.  Blue-ville.  But also well-to-do, highly educated and white blue-ville

yep, which should have made it obama territory. 

[Jim]

Thats Northern Virginia.  Blue-ville.  But also well-to-do, highly educated and white blue-ville

yep, which should have made it obama territory. 

I'll bet there were more than a few PUMAs there.

[JohnnyReb]

My daddy gave me a lot of experience with the "boot to the ass" thing. I can understand their fixation with Mrs. Palins footwear. I'd look to at the foot that was fix'n to kick my ass.

Wear sharp, pointy shoes Sarah.

[Jim]

official count 23k

[Hawkgirl]

My daddy gave me a lot of experience with the "boot to the ass" thing. I can understand their fixation with Mrs. Palins footwear. I'd look to at the foot that was fix'n to kick my ass.

Wear sharp, pointy shoes Sarah.

+1

I'm waiting to see stilettos...

[Wretched Excess]

official count 23k

that's pure "Sarah Effect".  he was averaging in the hundreds up until then.  I am sure that his crowds would have gotten larger after he got the nomination, but he wouldn't have drawn 23K

[Jim]

official count 23k

that's pure "Sarah Effect".  he was averaging in the hundreds up until then.  I am sure that his crowds would have gotten larger after he got the nomination, but he wouldn't have drawn 23K

May explain why they'll be campaigning together more than is usual. 

Hell of an opening act !

[Wretched Excess]

official count 23k

that's pure "Sarah Effect".  he was averaging in the hundreds up until then.  I am sure that his crowds would have gotten larger after he got the nomination, but he wouldn't have drawn 23K

May explain why they'll be campaigning together more than is usual. 

Hell of an opening act !

it would probably look bad if she outdrew him in separate rallies 10:1.  somehow, I don't think he would mind very much.   

[Wretched Excess]

official count 23k

nothing gets by these b_stards.

The LA Times, a.k.a, The Los Angeles branch of the Obama Campaign Headquarters, quibbles with the size of the crowd
that attended to fairfax rally.  when was the last time you remember seeing a discussion downgrading the size of an obama
rally after the fact?

McCain-Palin crowd: 23,000, or a third that size

One of the many, many imprecise aspects of daily journalism is estimating a crowd size -- especially when the gathering is large and sprawling. In such cases, reporters learn early not to hazard a guess of their own but to rely on officialdom.

But sometimes, in another sign of the vagaries of pinning down a count at an event for which tickets haven't been allotted, the figures from the local authorities vary.

Such was the case Wednesday as John McCain and Sarah Palin wrapped up the road tour that took them to several states since the Republican National Convention ended a week ago.

The GOP presidential ticket ventured into the heavily Democratic Virginia suburbs adjacent to Washington, where a boisterous and undeniably large audience greeted the pair. But exactly how large? Most news reports, such as CNN's, went with the police estimate of at least 23,000 (a number eagerly embraced by the McCain camp).

The New York Times, though, used in its story the reckoning from fire marshals: 15,000. Meanwhile, Marc Fisher of the Washington Post, a columnist for the local section, wrote that he counted it at 8,000 (though he also noted the 23,000 police estimate).

Regardless, there wasn't much question who the star of the show was.

Link

[DixieBelle]

^gotta make sure they keep those handful of subscribers. *eyeroll*