There's been a fair amount of discussion about the fact that George Bush, errr... I mean John McCain, held a rally this morning that attracted a fairly large crowd (I'm hearing estimates ranging from 8,000 to 20,000 people). Of course we can expect the GOP to begin saying this large crowd means that it's clear they're going to win Virginia. The main problem with that is that there were many people who are undecided and others who actually were just attending the rally because they wanted to hear Sara Palin speak so they could see what the fuss was all about. People in both crowds were disappointed because all the GOP offered were carefully crafted speeches prepared by professional speechwriters.
To make things even worse, those carefully crafted speeches weren't even completely forthright with those who came to hear what the McCain campaign had to say. At a press conference just a short distance away from where McCain held his rally, for instance, Del. Kris Amundson pointed out that the American public simply wants to hear the truth but they don't seem to get that from the McCain campaign. Even the Wall Street Journal, which isn't exactly known as a member of the so called "liberal media," has pointed out how the facts don't support the stories Sarah Palin continuously tells on the campaign trail. Yet these stories still were given top priority at the pep rally this morning instead of a speech that could have addressed the concerns that the people in the crowd really have - trying to how to figure out ways to properly feed their families, ensuring their children are able to receive a quality college education, a desire for more high quality jobs, and what to do about falling home values.
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Sen. Chap Petersen, who also spoke at the press conference, also thought the rally didn't offer solutions to the concerns people have here in Fairfax. The senator pointed out that even though it was exciting that both candidates have now come to the district that he represents, he did notice a sharp difference between the two visits. John McCain simply held a pep rally that might present him with a few photo opportunities while Barack Obama tried to address the concerns of the local citizens by taking questions at the town hall he attended a few weeks ago. Obama's campaign has also been on the ground talking to voters across our great Commonwealth about their concerns for a long time, but McCain's campaign seems to just now be realizing that it needs to pay attention to Virginia. The difference in approach seems to be a prime of example of how it's the Obama campaign that really values what Virginians have to say.
Despite the fact that the McCain campaign continued to tell stories that weren't supported by the facts, there was something good that came out of the pep rally. It showed that even the Republicans know Virginia is in play during this year's presidential election and that Virginians believe it's important to be an informed electorate. As Chap pointed out, it's also exciting to see Virginia receiving this much attention. He even mentioned that this was the first time a presidential candidate has held an event in Fairfax City since 1908 when Hubert Humphrey made a brief appearance during a whistle stop tour. Chap believes that the excitement here about the race is a good thing for our democracy and will have a positive affect on our community. The more people interested in what our government is doing and holding our elected officials accountable, after all, the better.