My Reactions to Night 4

Here's the post where I'll put my Twitter comments for this final night of the GOP Convention. I'm only going to look at John McCain's speech. Frankly, the lineup for tonight is pretty bland compared to the last two nights. They should have had at least one fiery speaker right before McCain.

• Cindy McCain speaking now. Nice tribute video - lots of medical missions around the world.
• Based on the reviews of Tom Ridge's speech, it's a good thing he wasn't chosen for VP. The ticket would have died before leaving St. Paul.
• My opinion - Cindy's going on too long. She's awfully low key and the audience is having trouble figuring out when to clap.
• Cindy certainly has the humanitarian creds that Michelle Obama will never have. There's nothing angry about Cindy.
• Okay, Cindy's done and I think we have a bio video of McCain coming next. It better end on a high note after Cindy's low key speech.
• My wife: "When the TV focuses on Sarah I just think 'there's my friend'" I think a lot of ladies are thinking the same thing.
• The bio video is now playing - starts on the Vietnam experience. Nobody can tell that story like Fred Thompson did.
• To those people worried that McCain will just drop over after taking office, they should check out his 96-year old mother. Sharp as a tack.
• Video really plays up the POW angle which just drives the lefties nuts. MSNBC is probably having a stroke right about now.
• Fred Thompson now doing a dramatic reading - that guy's good. Here comes McCain to the stage.
• Giant flag waving on the screen behind him. Not a Greek Temple in sight.
• Moving the podium into the crowd was a good move. The camera shots from any angle except head-on show him surrounded by crowds.
• He's just not that good on teleprompter, I'm afraid. You can see him staring at it as he starts. Some dummy now trying to protest.
• McCain pays tribute to Bush for leading us "in these dark days following the worst attack on American soil and keeping us safe."
• Somebody needs to go throw that protester off the balcony.
• I don't remember Republicans interrupting the Obamessiah's speech. The lefties are such children.
• "I won't let you down!" repeated three times. Thanks uncommitted voters for giving him an opportunity to earn his trust.
• Offers his respect and admiration to his opponents. More unites us than divides us. Didn't hear that much in Denver.
• "We're going to win this election!" And, he just might.
• "We will reach out our hand to any willing patriot..to get this country back on the road to prosperity and peace. Code Pink interrupts.
• "Please don't be diverted by the ground noise and the static" Big cheer. This doesn't make the left look very good.
• "America wants us to stop yelling at each other". He keeps getting interrupted by protesters. How did those idiots get in there?
• Praising Palin now - not hard to do with that crowd.
• "Change is coming" to the "me first, country second" crowd.
• He promises to "stop leaving our problems to some unluckier generation to come".
• Just out of curiosity, are all Code Pinkos lesbians? Sure looks like it.
• Future rule - nobody wearing a pink nightie gets in.
• Promised to veto pork barrel spending and threatens to "make them famous - you will know their name!"
• Giving a list of the various entities he's fought - trial lawyers, union bosses...etc. Fought for the surge when it wasn't popular.
• Thanking General Petraeus (sp?) and the men and women who protect us.
• McCain shows the bracelet he wears for a fallen soldier in Iraq. A bracelet with McCain's name used to be worn by others.
• Lileks reports he got film of the Code Pinkos being dragged off - that should be good.
• "We believe in rewarding hard work...faith..service...a culture of life...personal responsibility..judges who don't legislate from the bench
• "A government that makes sure you can make choices for yourself" Drawing difference with Obama's policies.
• Touting his tax cutting and spending cutting plans. Getting rid of failed programs. When has that ever happened?
• "My opponent promises to bring back old jobs by wishing away the global economy" Good line
• Delivery still not up to Obama or Palin. He's just a lot better off a teleprompter.
• "Education is the civil rights issue of this century" Promises to promote school choice. "Empower parents with choice"
• "Help bad teachers find another line of work". There goes the teacher's unions, which he never was going to get anyway.
• "We're going to stop sending 700B to countries that don't like us very much"
• "We will drill new wells offshore and we'll drill them now!" Has Palin convinced him on ANWR yet?
• Mentions lots of alternative energy sources - no mention of ANWR. He needs to fix that.
• "It's time for us to show the world again how Americans lead." When he mentions "healing the world" I cringe.
• Detailing world threats - al Qaeda, Iran, Russia. Warning Russia not to try to reassemble the Russian empire.
• We face many threats, but I'm not afraid of them, I'm prepared for them. I know how the military works, what it can do and shouldn't do.
• "I hate war. It's terrible beyond imagination. I'm running for president to keep my country safe.
• When he talks about remembering Pearl Harbor it tends to emphasize his age. Good story,but maybe self-defeating.
• Blasting "constant partisan rancor" and people who go to Washington to work for themselves and not for you.
• He "has the scars" to prove he's fought unpopular battles in Congress. Obama has not.
• My wife has fallen asleep - she was riveted last night. Not a good sign.
• "I've been an imperfect servant of my country for many years, but I've been a servant first, last and always
• "I've never lived a day in good times or bad that I didn't thank God for the privilege. I was blessed by misfortune. POW story coming
• He should stop here and play Fred Thompson's narrative from Tuesday.
• The convention has heard the POW story several times and it might have worked better to downplay it in his speech.
• "They worked me over harder than they ever had before, and they broke me. I was ashamed to face my fellow prisoners
• "I wasn't my own man anymore, I was my country's" Effective line.
• "My country saved me and I will fight for her as long as I have breath, so help me God" Took a little shot at Obama right before that.
• "Comfort the afflicted, defend the oppressed." Could I add 'educate the wacky left?
• "Fight with me, fight with me!" He's rolling now. "Stand up and fight!" " We never give up, we never quit!
• Well, he ended on a high note. Could have used a lot more humor. Won't go down as a great speech.
• Cindy joins him on stage - no big kiss like Al Gore in 2000 (thank goodness).
• Here comes the Palins. I think a lot of Republicans are glad to see her and shudder at who might have been standing up there with McCain.
• Here come the balloons to stirring music. They couldn't do that in Denver. God refused to hold the balloons for Obama.
• Well, that's it. Okay by McCain standards, but it will probably get low marks from the pundits for delivery.
• Thanks for tuning in - we now return you to your regular programming.

The wife warns that John McCain has to be careful not to become Prince Charles, the guy who accompanies the person everyone wants to see as happened with Princess Diana. Right now Sarah Palin is playing Diana.

We'll see how this speech plays with the audience, but I don't think he added to the Palin bump, and might have hurt it a bit. The speech was pretty programmatic, and that can get a little boring. He didn't really fire up until the very end.

By the way, where's the nice Obama video congratulating McCain for his nomination? You know, like the one McCain did for Obama? Obama doesn't have that much class.