Hawaii, Alaska and the presidential race: History will be made

The obvious historical implications of John McCain's pick of Sarah Palin as a running mate, hot on the heels of Barack Obama officially securing the Democratic presidential nomination, were quickly and duly noted: One way or the other, a demographic breakthrough will occur in this year's election.

Less noted was this: For the first time since they joined the union not quite 50 years ago, the nation's two most far-flung -- and youngest -- states each have a horse in the White House race.

Obama's native Hawaii had been a state slightly less than two years when he was born there on Aug. 4, 1961 (its admission date: Aug. 21, 1959).

Palin isn't an Alaskan by birth, but she came pretty darn close -- she was an infant when her family moved there from Idaho in 1964. At that point, it had been a state for about five and a half years (admission date: Jan. 3, 1959).

Either way, a milestone will be achieved for a state never before represented at the highest levels of the executive branch.

-- Don Frederick

Michael Moore links Hurricane Gustav, GOP convention

Yet another lesson in what should be a simple truth -- if one must wish ill of one's political foes, leave the weather out of it.

Earlier this summer, a Christian conservative couldn't resist publicly calling upon the higher power of his belief to deliver a downpour upon Barack Obama as the Democrat accepted his party's presidential nomination. (As it turned out, the Rocky Mountain evening could not have been lovelier.)

Now, as Hurricane Gustav threatens to disrupt the proceedings of the Republican National Convention, filmmaker and enfant terrible Michael Moore couldn't resist seeing divine intervention at work.

He made his foolish comments to Keith Olbermann on MSNBC, and our colleague Mark Silva has the details at the Chicago Tribune's Swamp blog.

-- Don Frederick

Arnold Schwarzenegger nixes GOP convention visit, due to pressing business

Campaigning -- as all-consuming as it can be -- is easy. Governing is hard.

Just ask Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The California governor -- unlike many fellow Republicans of a moderate ilk -- not only planned to attend the GOP national convention in Minneapolis/St. Paul, he was slated for a high-profile speaking spot Monday night.

Not now.

As he had said he would do, if necessary, Schwarzenegger has canceled his trip because of the continuing stalemate over passing a state budget on Sacramento (the spending plan is two months overdue).

Appropriately, given the acting background they share, Fred Thompson will take Schwarzenegger's role. Indeed, a Schwarzenegger aide told The Times' Michael Rothfeld that Thompson will give the same speech (but with a markedly different accent) that the governor was going to give. It traces John McCain's life story, including his time as a prisoner of war.

Given their contrasting styles, we suspect Thompson will go ahead and make some alterations. [UPDATE: The Schwarzenegger people now tell Rothfield that the speech will have the same "storyline," but will be reworked with Thompson's cadence in mind.]

Meanwhile, McCain and his staff can only hope that for former Tennessee senator can muster a bit more zest for this assignment than he often displayed in his failed bid for his party's presidential nomination.

-- Don Frederick

Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images

Sarah Palin: pro and con

Amid the torrent of coverage of the heretofore obscure Sarah Palin, there comes today a classic clash -- via dueling columns -- from two noted commentators on whether John McCain hit a home run by tapping her to be his running mate or struck out.

From the right, making the case for the round-tripper (with a caveat), is the Weekly Standard's Bill Kristol. Says he in an editorial for his magazine:

Millions of Americans -- mostly but not only women, mostly but not only Republicans and conservatives -- seemed to get a sense of energy and enjoyment and pride, not just from her nomination, but especially from her smashing opening performance.

Palin will be a compelling and mold-breaking example for lots of Americans who are told every day that to be even a bit conservative or Christian or old-fashioned is bad form. In this respect, Palin can become an inspirational figure and powerful symbol.

Kristol's one caution is summarized by the piece's headline -- he opines that the McCain camp must "Let Palin Be Palin" if it's to fully benefit from her.

From the left comes the alternative take by Newsweek's Jonathan Alter, and the headline and subhead for his piece make his view clear:  "McCain's 'Hail Sarah' Pass ... His choice for veep is all but set up for failure in the fall."

Alter writes that for all the initial excitement Palin's selection sparked within the GOP, "there's a reason that rookies" usually flail about on the main stage of U.S. politics. In predicting that fate for the former mayor of a small Alaskan community (referenced in this passage), he writes:

It's not her lack of name recognition; America loves a fresh face, especially one that's a cross between a Fox anchor and a character on "Northern Exposure," the old TV show about an Alaska town about the size of Wasilla.

The problem is that politics, like all professions, isn't as easy as it looks. Palin's odds of emerging unscathed this fall are slim.

On election day, one of these pundits will be able to pat himself on the back; the other will hope folks forgot what he wrote.

-- Don Frederick

Sarah Palin makes a fundraising pitch

John McCain's surprise selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate sparked exultation among socially conservative Republicans -- many of whom, prior to the pick, had a "hold-your-nose" attitude as they contemplated voting for him.

With greater enthusiasm comes more cash; indeed, a McCain campaign aide said the campaign raked in $7 million in the immediate aftermath of the announcement of Palin's elevation to the GOP ticket. And today brings this direct fundraising appeal from Palin.

Interestingly, the pitch doesn't mention "family values" or her commitment to the causes near and dear to social conservatives -- probably because there's no need for her to do so.

Instead, it includes a stress on one of the main points McCain made as he introduced the largely unknown Palin to the rest of the nation Friday: her credentials as a Washington outsider.

Here's part of the e-mail sent out under Palin's name:

Some of life's greatest opportunities come unexpectedly, and this is certainly the case for me. I never set out to run for office. But life has taken me on a course that first led to the Alaska Governor's office and now the country's first female Republican vice presidential candidate.

I want you to know that John McCain and I will challenge the status quo in Washington. We're ready to address our nation's great challenges - from reducing our dependence on foreign oil to cutting wasteful spending and creating good jobs for Americans. I look forward to working with him to achieve every goal he has set out during this campaign to improve the lives of all Americans.

As the mother of a son serving in the U.S. Army and the commander of Alaska's National Guard, there is no doubt in my mind that John McCain is prepared to serve as our next Commander in Chief.

Barack Obama's campaign also was hard at it on the online fundraising front, sending an e-mail to supporters keyed to Sunday's end of the monthly reporting period. With that deadline looming, the donation request says "we have an opportunity to show that a campaign funded by ordinary people can go toe-to-toe with the Washington lobbyists and special interests lined up behind John McCain and the Republican Party."

Those who pony up $15 or more receive a "first edition" Obama/Joe Biden car magnet (who thinks up this stuff?).

-- Don Frederick

Ticket Notice: Sunday guests--Giuliani, Dodd, both McCains

ABC This Week: Cindy McCain; Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC/McCain supporter) and John Kerry (D-Mass./Obama supporter); round table with Sam Donaldson, Cokie Roberts, George Will and Matthew Dowd of ABC News.

CBS Face the Nation: Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani (keynote speaker, Republican National Convention); Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn./McCain supporter); Carly Fiorina (senior advisor, McCain campaign); David Brooks of the New York Times.

CNN Late Edition:
Campaign '08/Republican convention: House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio); Govs. Charlie Crist (R-Fla.), Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.) and Mark Sanford (R-S.C.); former GOP presidential contender Fred Thompson; Rep. Eric Cantor (R-Va.); Nancy Pfotenhauer (McCain campaign advisor); former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.). Hurricane Gustav: FEMA Administrator R. David Paulison.

Fox News Sunday: Sen. John McCain
 
NBC Meet the Press: Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.); round table with historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, GOP strategist Mike Murphy, and David Gregory and Kelly O'Donnell of NBC News.

--Andrew Malcolm

Photo credit: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

John McCain once owned a 'Vette; Barack Obama was a Chrysler guy

Now that we know all of the major political players in this year's presidential election, let's get down to the important stuff.

What do they drive? And, given that high gas prices are on the minds of voters, what kind of mileage are they getting?

Both John McCain and Barack Obama have promised to fix the country's energy crisis, but what they have parked in the garage may be more revealing than political rhetoric.

Ken Bensinger, over at the LATimes.com car blog Up to Speed, did some digging today and has this to report:

McCain: Cadillac CTS sedan (19 mpg). His first car was reportedly a 1958 Corvette.

Obama: Drove a Chrysler 300 with a V-8 engine (18 mpg) until last summer, when he switched to a Ford Escape hybrid (30 mpg) after getting bad press about driving a gas guzzler.

Joe Biden: He sometimes drives a 1967 Corvette (no mpg rating).

Sarah Palin: As Alaska's governor, she drives a state-owned Chevy Suburban SUV (16 mpg). In July, it sustained several thousand dollars in damage when she was involved in a multi-vehicle accident while going to work. She also has been known to drive her husband's snowmobiles.

-- Kate Linthicum

Sarah Palin's first 15 minutes of fame on John McCain's GOP ticket

It's a long ways from the deck of one of Sen. John McCain's uncountable houses in Sedona, Ariz., to the modest city of Wasilla, Alaska, that Gov. Sarah Palin calls home with her fisherman husband Todd and their five children to the Buckeye Corner sporting goods store in West Columbus, Ohio.

And to the home pages and front pages of a nation seemingly fascinated by the sudden explosion onto the political stage of a fresh, bespectacled face among a crowd of too-familiar folks who've been yada-yada-ing about the same old stuff for nearly 20 months now.

Now, just in time for Labor Day, a new drama series to follow.

But in a matter of hours the dramatic selection of the 44-year-old reform Republican woman with the sharp elbows under the basketball hoops as McCain's running mate suddenly changed the subject away from last night's immense Democratic evangelical gathering at Denver's Invesco Field.

And it instantly energized much of the GOP's conservative base that has been yawning its way through the summer with the aging Arizona heir to its party nomination.

Charlie Black, a senior McCain advisor, told The Times' Maeve Reston that he was just in a room with 300 conservatives where James Dobson, the Focus on the Family founder who reaches millions of evangelicals daily with his radio broadcasts and was once threatening....

Schwarzenegger likes the man-woman ticket

It didn't take Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger long to figure out why John McCain and Sarah Palin would make for a good Republican ticket. He likes the gender balance.

When asked about McCain’s vice president choice at an appearance in San Diego on Friday morning, Schwarzenegger said it would be “terrific” to have “a man and a woman running things together” for the first time in the White House.

"I’m a big believer that women can do just as great a job if not a better job than guys can do, and I’ve seen this is in my own house,” Schwarzenegger went on to say. For more of the interview, visit LA Now, our sister blog.

To learn more about what kind of woman Palin is, check out Jacket Copy, The Times' books blog, which has a post about Palin's biography. The book is called "Sarah: How a Small Town Mom Turned Alaska's Political Establishment on Its Ear." It was penned by Alaskan writer Kaylene Johnson, who interviewed Palin's childhood basketball coach, her aerobics instructor and her pastor, among others.

Jacket Copy's Carolyn Kellogg reports that sales of the tome have taken off since McCain announced Palin as his vice president.

The book started the day with an Amazon sales rank of about 300,000. By noon it, it had risen to No. 775. Shortly after 6 p.m., it was No. 24. Epicenter, the book's publisher, is figuring out how to fill the new demand -- Barnes & Noble alone wants 15,000 copies.

-- Kate Linthicum

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Sarah Palin says she and John McCain are practically strangers

John McCain and his new running mate, Sarah Palin, are spending some quality time together today. After this morning's rally in Dayton, Ohio, they boarded McCain's bus for the six-hour ride to Pittsburgh.

That's a good thing. Because McCain and Palin are practically strangers.

At least that's what she told a reporter two weeks ago. In an interview with the Washington, D.C., newspaper Roll Call, Palin said she had met McCain only once or twice.

She said she was introduced to McCain at the 2006 Republican Governors Assn. meeting.

The pair met again this week, according to McCain campaign spokeswoman Jill Hazelbaker. In a news release, Hazelbaker said Palin arrived with an aide in Flagstaff, Ariz., on Wednesday evening to meet with McCain advisors Steve Schmidt and Mark Salter.

On Thursday morning, Palin met with Cindy McCain and John McCain at their home in Sedona, Ariz. That, according to Hazelbaker, is where McCain made his big revelation: "At approximately 11:00 a.m. Thursday August 28, 2008, John McCain formally invited Governor Sarah Palin to join the Republican ticket as the vice presidential nominee on the deck of the McCain family home."

For more Palin-related news, check out Michael Finnegan's assessment of what a McCain-Palin ticket might mean in November.

-- Kate Linthicum

Photo: Meagan McCain is a regular fixture on her father's tour bus. Soon Sarah Palin will be too. Credit: Mary Altaffer / Associated Press