McCain Picks Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin for Veep

'Maverick’ was always top pick: Mac camp

(NEWSER) - Alaska Governor Sarah Palin was a strong contender to be John McCain's running mate all along, his campaign has revealed. Looking to diffuse speculation that Palin was a hasty, last-minute choice, aides told the Washington Post that she was high on McCain’s list since their first meeting in February. Advisers also divulged that Cindy McCain played a major role in the veepstakes. More»

Campaign aims to do the opposite of McCain

(NEWSER) - Team Romney’s rule of thumb: Do the opposite of everything John McCain did in 2008, or so reports Politico in a look at the campaign's strategy. The approach applies broadly, say advisers—focus hugely on the economy, fully engage in fundraising, integrate early with the Republican National Committee—but comes most into play in the search for a VP. The campaign doesn’t want to end up with its own version of Sarah Palin, so it is going to great lengths to avoid anyone who could be seen as unprepared. The goal, according to one official: Go with an "incredibly boring white guy." More»

(NEWSER) - John McCain's choice of Sarah Palin continues to hurt his chances of winning Tuesday's election, a poll from the New York Times and CBS shows. In the survey, 59% of voters said Palin is not qualified to be vice president, up 9 points in a month. About a third of voters said the VP choice would be a major factor in how they vote, and most of those people are picking Barack Obama. More»

His poise, her bungles shove inexperience argument out window

(NEWSER) - When John McCain picked Sarah Palin, he hoped she’d measure up nicely against Barack Obama's rock-star appeal. “The choice is Obama vs. Palin,” Lindsey Graham explained, “and she has done things rather than talk about things.” Instead, Palin is proving just how impressive Obama is, writes Jonathan Allen of CQ Politics. “In nearly two years on the campaign trail, the Democratic nominee has never once looked as lost as Palin” did in her televised interviews. More»

Maybe shielding Palin from the media was a bad idea

(NEWSER) - John McCain and Sarah Palin sat down for a joint interview with Katie Couric last night, and it was hard to avoid the impression that McCain was chaperoning his running mate “to keep her out of trouble” writes Time TV critic James Poniewozik. McCain accused Couric of “gotcha journalism,” when she confronted Palin with a statement the would-be veep made at a pizza parlor contradicting his stance on Pakistan. More»