Free Republic

Obama's stump speech plays to fears, hopesSunday, September 7, 2008 By CHARLES BABINGTON DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) -- As Barack Obama paces before 15,000 people with a hand-held microphone, it's easy to assume his 30-minute talk is more or less a free-associating string of talking points and applause lines. In fact, it's a carefully organized four-part argument. Obama delivers it without notes or changes from week to week. A campaign centerpiece for 19 months, the full-blown stump speech probably has done more than anything to rocket him to fame and to a lead over Republican John McCain in some national polls....

LOS ANGELES, Sept 5 (Reuters) - A record 38.9 million U.S. TV viewers watched John McCain accept the Republican nomination for president on Thursday, beating the record set last week by Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, Nielsen Media Research reported. Obama had an average 38.4 million viewers watching his speech accepting the nomination for his party last week. McCain's tally also was higher than the 37.2 million Americans who tuned in to hear Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's speech on Wednesday.

By all reports, John McCain isn’t much of an orator. But one wouldn’t know it from his impressive acceptance speech yesterday at the Republican National Convention. Part personal story, part policy blueprint, the speech, ably delivered by McCain, also was a stirring call to national service. Its greatest virtue, however, was its stark delineation of the differences between Sen. McCain and Barack Obama. Even more than McCain’s rallying cry to “fight with me,” the speech may be remembered as a study in contrasts. In his remarks, McCain had kind words for his Democratic opponent.

Poll asks what people think of Palin's speech -- "not so good" is running ahead, so Freep away!

http://www.cnn.com/ 48 bad 34 good Only 3000 votes so far

More held as convention protests continueTally grows to 315, expected to rise Gary Emerling Thursday, September 4, 2008 ST. PAUL, Minn. | Another day brought another series of protests during the Republican National Convention, as law enforcement officials remained on guard in a week filled with violent activity. National Guardsmen in full riot gear took up posts around the Xcel Energy Center following two days of protests that saw hundreds arrested, traffic disrupted and tear gas in the streets. Officials said 315 people had been arrested as of Wednesday evening, up from 280 on Monday. Secret Service spokesman Darrin Blackford...

NEW YORK (AP) — More than 40 million people tuned in to the Republican convention Wednesday to hear vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin introduce herself to voters. That audience rivaled the one for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama last week. Nielsen Media Research estimated 37.2 million people watched Palin on either ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, Fox News Channel or MSNBC. PBS estimated it had four million viewers for the speech. Last week Obama had 38.4 million viewers on the commercial networks, topping 40 million with PBS and C-SPAN added in.

Couple of good graphics and some Hill-Dem reactions.

She is exceptional

Tonight's NFL opener between the Giants and Redskins is certainly unfortunate for McCain's speech. Plus the game is on NBC so you lose one of the big 4 networks. The Media will go out and say that B.O. got 30,000,000 viewers but he didn't have to go against the NFL and didn't have one network short carrying speech. Plus, the game tonight features the New York Giants, the largest market team in the NFL who also are the defending Super Bowl champions.

Subtle cues in Palin's speech speak volumesBy Christopher CookSarah Palin is about to transform American politics. Last night's speech was unbelievably good. I've heard it said—by at least on person who was physically there for both—that it was the best convention speech since 1980. It's made even more impressive because, apparently, she delivered a good part of it from memory after the teleprompter broke. Wow. Barack Obama couldn't do that if his candidacy depended on it.Like everyone who isn't already suffused with irrational hatred of the woman, I sat enraptured by an amazingly impressive speech. And one word kept floating...

Transcript of Michael Steele RNC speech Good evening. As we gather at this moment, many of our friends, families and neighbors have felt the devastating effects of Hurricane Gustav. Our hearts and prayers are with them at this hour. Times such as this remind us that we are each called to respond to a cause greater than our own self-interest. They speak to a truth about America: that when things are tough and the skies are filled with stormy clouds, we turn to each other for comfort, support and leadership. As mothers and fathers, families and communities begin the difficult...

Video link to Rudy Giuliani RNC speech Due to Rudy's adlibbing, posting the transcript of his speech doesn't do it justice.

"The difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull? Lipstick." --Sarah Palin, RNC Speech In a speech full of memorable one-liners and highlights, we picked what we thought were the top 25 quotes from Sarah Palin's RNC speech in Minneapolis, MN. ALSO at DBKP: Video: Sarah Palin's Speech at Minneapolis, MN* A writer observed: "We grow good people in our small towns, with honesty, sincerity, and dignity." I know just the kind of people that writer had in mind when he praised Harry Truman. I grew up with those people. They are the ones who do some of the...

The scene was stunning. What appeared to be handwritten signs bearing the phrase “Palin Power” multiplied throughout the Xcel Energy Center as the moment of the acceptance speech finally arrived. First came the warm ups from Senator McCain’s former rivals, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and Rudy Giuiliani. Then “Palin Power” became the appropriate slogan for the evening as Governor Sarah Palin lit up the house with her confidence, moved hearts with the warm appeal of her very real and photogenic family and roused the ground troops of the revived Republican Party with a well delivered, substantive and electrifying speech. This...

The scene was stunning. What appeared to be handwritten signs bearing the phrase “Palin Power” multiplied throughout the Xcel Energy Center as the moment of the acceptance speech finally arrived. First came the warm ups from Senator McCain’s former rivals, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee and Rudy Giuiliani. Then “Palin Power” became the appropriate slogan for the evening as Governor Sarah Palin lit up the house with her confidence, moved hearts with the warm appeal of her very real and photogenic family and roused the ground troops of the revived Republican Party with a well delivered, substantive and electrifying speech. This...

Twenty years after Ronald Reagan left office, Republicans who have long missed him may have found a future Margaret Thatcher. If John McCain wins, conservatives may find one of the most enduring accomplishments of his term will have been what he did before it started: helping to fill the Republican Party's future talent bench with such a fresh and compelling figure. Sarah Palin is a conviction politician, a naturally compelling speaker and someone who can relate to her audience on very human terms. America has just learned why Mrs. Palin enjoys the highest approval ratings of any governor in America.

Halfway through Sarah Palin's speech tonight at the RNC, people following the speech noticed she was deviating from the prepared text. According to sources close to the McCain campaign, the teleprompter continued scrolling during applause breaks. As a result, half way through the speech, the speech had scrolled significantly from where Governor Palin was in the speech. The malfunction also occurred during Rudy Giuliani's speech, explaining his significant deviations from his speech. Unfazed, Governor Palin continued, from memory, to deliver her speech without the teleprompter cued to the appropriate point in her speech. Contrast this to Barack Obama who, when...

I put my favorite parts in bold. SARAH PALIN: Mr. Chairman, delegates, and fellow citizens, I will be honored to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States. (APPLAUSE) I accept the call to help our nominee for president to serve and defend America. And I accept the challenge of a tough fight in this election against confident opponents at a crucial hour for our country. And I accept the privilege of serving with a man who has come through much harder missions, and met far graver challenges, and knows how tough fights are won, the next president...

I’m told by a McCain aide that the teleprompter operator mistakenly rolled through the applause lines throughout the speech. So he rolled over the first two lines of the next paragraph after applause. But she was unfazed by it.

This is the text and video. The video is running slow at the time of this post. I think that cspan is bogged down. I will change it if they post it to you tube. This was one of the best political speeches I've ever seen. This woman attacked the dems over and over, and did so without stretching the truth even slightly. She will make a GREAT VP.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin cast herself as an outsider and took a swipe at Democrat Barack Obama on Wednesday in what was the most anticipated speech of the Republican National Convention. She pledged that as John McCain's running mate, she wanted to go to Washington not to seek the media's approval but "to serve the people of this country." Depicting herself as "just your average hockey mom," Palin described her political career as mayor of her small town before her election as governor.

Didn't see this posted. He made an informative speech .....

Let's keep Sarah Palin in our prayers.

Remarks as prepared for delivery to the Republican National Convention on Tuesday by former Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn.

August 31, 2008 DNC Filled With the Same Faces & Ideas By David Broder DENVER -- The Democrats had themselves a successful convention -- at the price of appearing quite conventional. The delegates left here happy and enthused, believing that the divisive nomination fight was finally behind them. But their star, Barack Obama, on the climactic night of the conclave, gave an acceptance speech that was no match for the keynote address he delivered at the 2004 convention in Boston. Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, introducing his colleague again here, said that first one "changed politics in America." That is...

I overheard some Obama supporters Friday talking about Obama's speech. They were saying that Obama's speech had a lot of "subliminal" messages in it and that he was "channeling". I don't think they were referring to communicating with dead folk, but rather to supposed hidden messages to the black people in the country. Any idea what they were referring to?

WHATEVER ONE’S VIEW of Barack Obama, it’s hard to disagree with the New York Times when it calls his party nomination for the presidency, capped off yesterday with an elaborately staged acceptance speech in Denver’s Invesco field, a “remarkable achievement in what has been a remarkable ascendance.” But the trouble with the Obama campaign has always been the gulf between the truly inspiring story of the candidate and the thoroughly conventional substance of his politics, which remains the stuff of left-liberal orthodoxy. For all the pomp and circumstance of Obama’s mile-high moment, that gulf endures.

My fellow Americans, it is an honor to address the Democratic National Convention at this defining moment in history. We stand at a crossroads at a pivot point, near a fork in the road on the edge of a precipice in the midst of the most consequential election since last year’s “American Idol.” One path before us leads to the past, and the extinction of the human race. The other path leads to the future, when we will all be dead. We must choose wisely.

Transcript Barack Obama’s Acceptance Speech Published: August 28, 2008 The following is the transcript of Senator Barack Obama's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, as recorded by CQ Transcriptions.

http://www.mikefrancesa.com/wordpress/?p=1011 The above site has the pictures that document the angry speech. I don’t know what Barack Obama and his speechwriters were smoking but this speech is a disaster. The entire Democratic Convention had no theme and did not attack John McCain enough. This speech is boring, angry, whiny, lecturing, and full of very little specifics. I don’t know who told the Obama’s not to smile but Michelle and Barack are not smiling enough. Barack is coming off as an angry, arrogant, and pretentious candidate. Oh and he just brought out the “recruiting an army of teachers, and paying...

With profound gratitude and great humility, I accept your nomination for the presidency of the United States. . Let me express my thanks to the historic slate of candidates who accompanied me on this journey, and especially the one who traveled the farthest – a champion for working Americans and an inspiration to my daughters and to yours -- Hillary Rodham Clinton. To President Clinton, who last night made the case for change as only he can make it; to Ted Kennedy, who embodies the spirit of service; and to the next Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden,...

"When Barack Obama's record meets his rhetoric, it explodes into a firey ball of hypocrisy."

VideoI am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life...

When I was in junior high school, my bedroom wall was decorated with political memorabilia - campaign posters, bumper stickers and “parchment” copies of political speeches. Among the speeches were some gems from John F. Kennedy. President Kennedy had wonderful speechwriters, and his addresses are filled with memorable quotes. But my all-time favorite Kennedy line is the ambiguous conclusion of a speech he gave in West Berlin in June of 1963. Kennedy, trying to express his solidarity with the people of Berlin, concluded with the words, “Ich bin ein Berliner.” Now this can mean one of two things, either “I...

DENVER – Barack Obama aims to weave the personal with the political Thursday night as he tells 75,000 supporters in a football stadium — and millions more at home — how as president he would make a difference in their lives.

Obama preps in solitude for speech By CARRIE BUDOFF BROWN | 8/25/08 2:50 PM EST Text Size: CHICAGO — For three days in a row, Barack Obama traded his Hyde Park home for a solitary Park Hyatt hotel room. He needed space to think, on his own. With no aides and a small security detail, he put his pencil to his legal pad and worked on a nomination acceptance speech that pundits will inevitably compare to the 2004 Democratic National Convention address that catapulted him into political stardom. Facing expectations much higher this time around, Obama was ensconced inside the...

There's a fundamental paradox confronting Barack Obama as he prepares to deliver his acceptance speech to the Democratic Convention before a stadium crowd of up to 80,000 tonight. Speech-making is what Senator Obama does best. It is arguably the main reason he finds himself on the threshold of the White House. He is one of the finest exponents of English oratory our American cousins have produced; right up there with Martin Luther King, William Jennings Bryan and Abraham Lincoln. And so, barring some unimaginable collapse by either his speechwriters or the candidate himself tonight, he will give a barn-burning performance...

Hillary, dressed to avoid a hunting accident, was all about Hillary last night at the convention. She didn’t tell us about Barack Obama’s character, his ability to lead the United States in a troubled world or even how he would thump John McCain in November. Her speech boiled down to: Obama’s the nominee and I support Democrats, so I support Obama. That is it. She even got in a couple of nice digs . . .

Exclusive sources deep within the DNC have revealed Sen. Joe Biden’s vice presidential acceptance speech, causing an uproar among Obama campaign staffers. Biden is not expected to address plagiarism charges leveled against him. Here are selected excerpts from Biden’s speech: I’m John Kerry and I’m reporting for duty.

Anyone else notice that Michelle didn't Thank her Mom in her speech? Didn't hear any of the pundits comment on this last night. All it would have taken was six words, Thank You Mom, I Love You. Opportunity of a lifetime to honor the person who raised and cared for you, gave you a great video intro, and you missed it. Shame on you Michelle.

For those of you who really want to see how superficial her speech was... One only needs to check out the Foxnews captions. :) Obama wants to better the economy Obama will bring us together Obama: Treat people with dignity and respect Mrs Obama describes family life Obama: I know the American dream endures Obama: Your word is your bond. Do what you say. Obama: America should be a place where you can make it Obama: I stand at the crossroad of history Mrs Obama: I love this country Obama: Barack committed to our children's future Obama: Barack is same...

Sounds like a good drinking game for political geeks. Michelle Obama is so much fun because she is sort of like Joe Biden; endless parades of gaffes followed by corrections and revisions, when we all know they meant exactly what they said when they said it. So with Michelle’s big speech tonight, it has got to be nail biting time in Camp Obama. Of course there is not much room for error when she’s reading the thing. Obama’s guys probably took one look at her Princeton thesis and decided she wasn’t going to write it either. But, as they say,...

Can a city stop people from posting a link to its Web site? That’s the question at the center of a federal lawsuit brought by a Sheboygan woman against the mayor and other officials there, in what appears to be a first-of-its-kind case, according to an Internet law expert. Jennifer Reisinger says the Sheboygan city attorney ordered her to remove from her Web site a link to the city’s police department, in what she believes was retaliation for her support of recalling Mayor Juan Perez, according to the suit filed last week. The city went further, the lawsuit claims, launching...

I might have misheard it, but is sounded as though Obama said redeployment of troops should be done in close CONFRONTATION with the commanders. Maybe he meant close consultation. It would be nice to review the actual audio on that and listen carefully. If he said confrontation it's a major Freudian slip.

Do's and don'ts for attending Obama's speechThe Associated Press Article Last Updated: 08/15/2008 02:30:46 PM MDT DENVER — If you were lucky enough to get tickets for Barack Obama's acceptance speech, organizers want you to come early, share a ride and leave your umbrella and noisemakers at home. City and party officials released a list of tips, rules and warnings Friday for thousands of non-delegates who will be on hand when Obama gives his big speech on Aug. 28, the final night of the Democratic National Convention. **SNIP** The tickets, called "community credentials," list a specific section of the stadium,...

Yelling homophobic or racist names is free speech protected by the Oregon Constitution if the insults don't lead to violence. In a unanimous ruling...The Associated Press PORTLAND — Yelling homophobic or racist names is free speech protected by the Oregon Constitution if the insults don't lead to violence.

If all storms had a name, this one would start with the letter F. As Tropical Storm Edouard closed in on the Texas Gulf Coast last week, a storm of a different kind was brewing inside the sporting goods section of a Wal-Mart store in La Marque. It started with the F-word. And now a 28-year-old single mother must go to court if she wants to fight a ticket for using profanity.

Traveling Museum Of White House Memorabilia To Visit Colo. DENVER -- Sharon Stewart couldn't believe her good fortune -- two tickets to Sen. Barack Obama's historic night in Denver for $15 apiece. She bought them on Ticketmaster for the American Presidential Experience" at Invesco Field at Mile High and invited a friend to join her as Obama accepts the Democratic Party's presidential nomination. But it turns out her tickets weren't for Obama's presidential experience but for a traveling museum of White House memorabilia. And the tickets are no good anyway because the museum won't be open to the general public...

Blog Shut Down by 'Christian' Apologist's Threat Contact: Pastor Dustin Segers, Coalition of Concerned Bloggers, ChristianResearchNetwork.com, 336-848-7197 MEDIA ADVISORY, July 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- Pastor Dustin Segers submits the following and is available for comment: How safe are our blogs? That question was raised again when on the evening of July 26, 2008, a popular religious blog was shut down by an Internet service provider. A complaint filed by Christian author and apologist, Richard Abanes, claiming that one article on the religious opinion site, Apprising.org, had slandered him, caused the web host, IPower, to send its publisher, Ken Silva, a...