Posted on 09/18/2008 4:56:29 PM PDT by TalonDJ
Here is my after action photo 'blog' of the Palin-McCain rally that went down this morning in Cedar Rapids Iowa. Enjoy! (If you get bored of the pictures the hippy zot is toward the end)
So we got there just before 8. It was a beatiful day here in Iowa.
They directed us to park in this huge field and had a line of busses waiting for us. 
The Busses hauled us around to the other side of the airport to a hanger near the FedEx facility. 
There we got to wait in another line: 
Waiting to go through security (almost like we were at an airport or something...) 
From there it was across a short field and into the hanger they had all set up. 
It was just starting to fill up when we got there. 
We were there pretty early so we staked out a spot on the front left in front of the press tables. 
The press was right there so some people near us got interviewed. A hispanic homeschooling mother of 9 was got interviewed next to us by I think channel 9 (it was 9 or 7). My wife JenB got interviewed by the Wallstreet Journal. He seemed a little confused that she did not like the sound of an Obama tax plan. The local (state?) party chair was MCing and introduced a number of local and state officals (and hopefuls). Since I can't tell most of them apart looking at these pictures I will not bother with posting them unless someone is interested.
A fellow was introduced and sang some songs. I forget his name. 
Before long, (It was a heck of a wait) the Boy Scouts teamed up with the VFW to bring in the Colors. 
A retired general I think led us in the pledge. 
A couple ladies sang God bless the USA. 
Miss Iowa '04 sang the Star Spangled Banner. 
After that was some more warm up speaches from local reps and a canidate for the US House. Here is Marionette Miller-Meeks who is running for the US House 
They had a lady from Wasilla AL who had just happened to mroe to Iowa recently speak a little 
Then there was a lot of waiting
... and more waiting
Oh wait what is that? 
A plane! Finally! 
Took them long enough. 
Cheering and sign waving! Gah! Can't see... 
Is that? 
Can't tell... 
Is it? 
It is!!! 
Yaa! Sarah! 
Oh and that guy too... 
It was a great little speech. She is even better in person than on the media. 
She introduced "Alaska's First Dude". 
He was standing over by McCain. Sharp looking guy. 
More Sarah speaking. 
More... 
Still more. 
Some of that guy she is running with. 
More of him. 
Now he gets to speak. 
He gave a decent speech.
If you want to know what he said look it up somewhere. 
So twice during all this some halfwits from the oposition tried to make a nusense of themselves. First, in the middle of Sarah's speech it was a group of 4 lesbians (unshaved legs with skirts and all)(not that there is anything wrong with that [ew, yes there is, shave already]). The unfurrled a banner and started chanting something. They got the banner about 90% on rolled when some lady jumped them. About 5 seconds later three of them were bing hauled off toward the cops by some ladies and the other one vanished. I was right behind them when this went down. I only had a brief instant to wonder if I would be in trouble for acosting them when the squad of Sarah fan women took them the heck out. It was sweet. My wife JenB snapped a shot of them after the cops had hauled them out to a safe distance. 
Then in the middle of John McCain's speech some guy starts shouting something about how he lost Vietnam. Here he is getting led away by a cop while doing the 'I am not a crook' pose (huh?). 
After that the show was over. 
Here is Sarah and John's caravan off to tour the flood damaged parts of Cedar Rapids. 
Out be the road was the forlorn little group of protesters with nothing better to do. 
Estimates were something lik 6 or 7 thousand people. Looking at this parking 'lot' I believe it. 
Great pics, love the commentary lol thanks for sharing :)
Please...please done’t tell me that’s a giant Mexican Flag hanging inside the hanger under your line:
“From there it was across a short field and into the hanger they had all set up. “
please
Er, that’s the Iowa flag.
I thought the very same thing.
“We were there pretty early so we staked out a spot on the front left in front of the press tables”
So you were staked out by the liars club. Hahaha
Here’s a video of the second group of protesters being removed:
http://www.gazetteonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080918/NEWS/809189985/1001/NEWS
The first group, the hippy lesbian chicks, weren’t as fun, they walked out yelling about “my body my rights” but didn’t have to be manhandled or anything.
“Er, that’s the Iowa flag.”
Thank the good Lord!
I was about to puke.
phew...
About 18 seconds in on that video you can see me. I was wearing a red shirt and have a diagonal shoulder strap of my camera bag and the camera in my right hand. They walk out right behind me.
Miss Iowa 2004. Well, she might be in the Republican ticket in 2040... Who knows?
That was great! Thanks TalonDJ.
Excellent reporting.
“America First”, I like that slogan.
Of course in my time it was “America, Love It or Leave It” and “America Right or Wrong, still My Country”.
Sorry for being so politically incorrect. Hope I didn’t offend anybody.
Watch her in all the other pictures.
She doesn't look very happy.
Who is she?
Looks like Chelsea’s long lost twin.
Look at photos 30, 33, 34, 37 and others that follow. There is a young woman wearing a read blazer behind and to the left (from our perspective) of Senator McCain that bears a striking resemblance to Chelsea Clinton. And I do apologize to the young woman for pointing this out.
It would be fun to post this on the internet of evidence that Chelsea is supporting McCain/Palin.
Great report you two!
I’ve heard a rumor that they may even be coming to Washington state in a couple of weeks. Maybe I can go see them too? Would be fun.
(s) so that is what bitter people look like...(/s)
notice, no pictures of biden’s crowd.
no they are not coming here......wish they would....
No? dang. Medved said something about it on his show last week. I wish they would.
Washington’s only down by 2 points lately. Astonishing as it might seem... A McCain Palin trip with a couple of stops in Washington, say, Bellevue and Spokane (which they could do in one day) ~might~ give them enough inertia to flip the state. Miracles do happen. :-)
There’s a lot of libs in King county, but not so many elsewhere, and many of them don’t vote anyway because they don’t think they have to.
Rossi is going to bump the R turnout, and I think he’s going to win by a decent margin. Decent enough that King county won’t be able to manufacture enough votes to steal it this time. The Rossi effect is a little imponderable. Could it be that there will be Rossi coattails for McCain this time? Maybe so. We’ll see.
A visit could really have a huge effect, I think.
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