As a speaker, she's as good as Biden

Forget that headline. She may even be better.

That being said, it still won't surprise me if the New York Times, ABC News, and some other media outlets don't lead with some make-believe scandal, or a minor one about Sarah Palin's past.

Forget the vetting process and the lack of experience that the pundits keep harping on (many times the same ones who have drooled over Barack Obama, only casually mentioning his lack of experience).

John McCain, who just entered the convention hall, said, "Don't you think we made the right choice for the next vice president of the United States?"

When are people going to give McCain credit? The fact that he will be nominated for president tomorrow night is probably just as big an accomplishment as what Barack Obama did in the Democratic primaries. He backed President Bush on an unpopular war, but also ripped into Don Rumsfeld for mismanagement of the war, and when McCain's approach was finally taken by the president, the situation in Iraq rapidly changed for the better (though not anywhere near as good as everyone at the Republican convention keeps saying.)

With one stroke of genius, McCain has tore the heart out of two of the Democrats' best arguments. By choosing Sarah Palin, he has cut off a chunk of the alienated Hillary Clinton supporters (and don't think there won't be a sizable group who won't ever support Obama for his mistreatment or perceived mistreatment of Mrs. Clinton during and after the primaries), and also made it much harder to use the continuing the Bush administration argument that Barack Obama and Joe Biden have been employing.

While his views on many issues vary widely from mine, this is a man who made a considered effort to cut down the influence of big bucks on elections and has been a constant thorn in the side for President Bush, on almost every subject except the war.

This is a man who never really was considered the front runner at the beginning of this campaign, no matter what was said. At first, it was Rudy Giuliani, then later Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson. it was never McCain until he was the only one left standing and the pundits were standing around shaking their heads and wondering where they had gone wrong.

It appears that 2008 is going to be a big year for the Democratic party in the House and Senate, but anyone who underestimates John McCain is going to end up listening to his inaugural speech next January.