00:02:40
ITN
Bush praises White House hopeful McCain
Bush praises White House hopeful McCain
Sarah Palin takes the spotlight at the Republican convention later, amid the media furore surrounding the vice-presidential candidate. The Alaskan governor has gone to ground for the past 24 hours following revelations about her pregnant teenage daughter, her role in the firing of a public safety commissioner and the sketchy vetting process carried out by John McCain's team. The prime time television appearance for the mother-of-five comes just five days after the 72-year-old shocked the US political world by introducing the 44-year-old first-term governor and ex-beauty queen as his running mate at an Ohio rally. Mrs Palin, who will accept the vice-presidential nomination at the convetion held in St Paul, Minnesota, may possibly address the issue of her 17-year-old daughter Bristol's pregnancy and the investigation into whether she abused her power in having the Alaskan official fired. According to US reports, Mrs Palin was not subjected to a detailed background interview with the head of the Arizona Senator's vetting team until last Wednesday, the day before Mr McCain asked her to be his running mate, his officials have admitted. Meanwhile, embarrassing clips of her have surfaced on American comedy chat shows, with one showing showing her saying: "As for that VP talk all the time. I tell ya, I still can't answer that question until somebody answers for me, what is it exactly that the VP does, every day?" But Republicans claim she is not a liability. Fergus Cullen, chairman of the New Hampshire arm of the party, said: "She made her first impression on Republicans in Ohio on Friday when McCain introduced her. Now she can make a first impression on the rest of the country." And a McCain campaign official said of her impending speech: "We're just going to rock 'em, sock 'em. We kind of like it when people underestimate us." Meanwhile, the convention has also marked the passing of leadership in the party from President George W Bush to Mr McCain. Mr Bush praised Mr McCain, who was his rival in a bitter presidential nominating battle in 2000, saying: "He's not afraid to tell you when he disagrees. Believe me, I know." In a brief speech via satellite from Washington, but projected in a way that made it appear as if he was actually on the stage, he described Mr McCain as an independent man who thinks for himself and said he was "ready to lead this nation". Mr Bush focused on his military career, his time as a prisoner of war and how he will put that experience to work. He told the convention delegates: "I want to share some thoughts about our nominee: a great American and the next President of the United States, John McCain. "I know the hard choices that fall solely to a President. John McCain's life has prepared him to make those choices. He is ready to lead this nation. "If the Hanoi could not break John McCain's resolve to do what is best for his country, you can be sure the angry left never will. "John is a steadfast opponent of wasteful spending. As President, he will stand up to the high tax crowd in congress and make the tax relief permanent. "He will invest in the energy technologies of tomorrow, and lift the ban on drilling for America's offshore oil today."
ITN | September 3, 2008
