NJ Convention Delegates Psyched

I had the opportunity Thursday to sit with the New Jersey delegation on the convention floor and speak to two delegates that are charged up and ready to go for the McCain-Palin ticket.

Mr. Chris Smith and Mrs. Mary Devon O'Brien of Maplewood, NJ had some very strong feelings about what John McCain need to say to the assembled and were very vocal in their support of Sarah Palin - soundly putting down any doubters in their own party that might think Palin is not the best choice for John McCain's VP.

Me: There have been some conservative media types who have been overheard saying that the choice of Sarah Palin for the VP candidate is purely political choice - that she's not qualified.

Mr. Smith: Well I think they're wrong. I think she's a real good choice for the ticket - she's what we needed. I think she's going to help the ticket win.

Mrs. O'Brien: I agree I think what she does is she brings is good balance, energy and enthusiasm and good small town values as well as big state know-how to the ticket.

Me: What are you hoping to hear from Senator McCain tonight?

Mrs. O'Brien: I'm hoping what he'll do is outline more about his platform and tell us more where he thinks he intends to take the country and where he would like us as citizens to pitch in and help because its not a job for one person alone. And I hope that congress is listening, too because it's not a job that only the president does, congress needs to come and help,too They're the ones that do the bills and the laws and funding and without them on board they're the ones stopping. And may I remind people they're the ones that have the 9% approval - Sarah Palin has an 80% approval rating.

Mrs. O'Brien went on to expand on her thoughts on Congress after I mentioned that it does not look good for House and Senate Republicans this year. She is very disappointed in Nancy Pelosi was hoping for more initiative and leadership from her and less divisiveness. My thanks to Chris and Mary and I will check out the Lion's club...

The "official" New Jersey blog for the RNC, PolitickerNJ, echoes what I found among the state's elected officials, but also found some who were not so enthusiastic:

There were those not ready to sign off resoundingly on the Palin speech, lamenting what they heard as too much attitude and not enough pertinent factual information about their vice presidential candidate.

Some delegates made fast, "no comment" dashes in and out of the bar where a small but enthusiastic crowd drank and chatted while Fox News re-broadcast Palin's speech.

Others were no-shows.

"I'd like to have heard her talk about cutting taxes," admitted Assemblywoman Caroline Casagrande (R-Colts Neck).

Casagrande's thought was that Palin has a good story as a public servant. Maybe it wasn't the governor's fault, but the remarks absorbed too much of the culture of politics as celebrity rather than the politics of communicating achievement in government.

But then again, Obama has done the same thing, she conceded.