GREEN BAY — Republican presidential candidate John McCain and vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin continued their campaign Thursday night in Green Bay, saying Wisconsin could be the state that decides this presidential election.
Held next to Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers, McCain and Palin were introduced by Republican congressional candidate John Gard and Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen.
In their speeches, Palin and McCain focused on the issues of government reform, renewable energy and families with children of special needs, saying these would be at the top of the list.
“Let me offer a little advance warning to the big spending, greedy, do-nothing, me-first, country-second crowd in Washington and on Wall Street,” McCain said. “Change is coming; change is coming on Nov. 4.”
McCain criticized his opponent, Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama, for accepting money from real estate giants Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac, two of the major contributors to the real estate market crash, more than any other senator.
He also criticized Obama’s vice presidential running mate Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., for saying earlier Thursday morning in Green Bay that raising taxes is “patriotic.”
“That’s not patriotic, not a badge of honor — it’s just plain dumb,” McCain added. “It would kill more jobs during this tough economic crisis, and I’m not going to let that happen.”
McCain talked about his willingness to cross party lines, to go against special interest groups, his party and his administration to do the right thing, whereas Obama only follows party lines.
He also mentioned pork barrel spending, saying he and Palin will put a halt to the overspending in Washington by vetoing every pork barrel bill that comes across his desk.
Palin told the crowd of nearly 12,000 supporters this is the “moment when principle matters more than a party line.”
“We need to take the maverick of the Senate and put him in the White House,” Palin said.
Palin also talked about renewable energy and her desire to start drilling America’s offshore deposits of oil and pipe them to states such as Wisconsin.
Citing her experience as governor of Alaska, she boasted her knowledge of oil and energy and her past experience of helping America because of it.
“I know what works, and I know that America needs this,” Palin said. “We need American resources, brought by American ingenuity and produced by American workers. If [Obama had] been governor of an energy-rich state, he’d get it.”
Palin expressed her desire to help families that have children with special needs, a topic close to her heart, as her four-month-old son Trig has Down syndrome.
“…American families know that some of greatest joys of life come with unique challenges,” Palin said. “As vice president, I will make sure those families have a friend and advocate in the White House.”
However, while McCain preached change at his rally, Phil Walzak, state communications director for the Obama campaign, says Obama will be the change Wisconsin wants to see.
“People in Wisconsin want a new path, a new direction and a change in leadership,” Walzak said. “John McCain is someone who has been with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time. Obama will bring new and fresh ideas that this country needs.”
Visiting Wisconsin for the third time this month, Obama will campaign in Green Bay on Monday.
