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For Lexington woman, attending GOP convention 'a dream come true'

Wednesday, September 3, 2008 12:07 AM PDT

By Erik Olson

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For Lexington mother Heidi Shaw, a former history teacher, the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., is an event 28 years in the making.

Shaw, a 38-year-old alternate GOP convention delegate, has been a political junkie since 1980, when Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy led a spirited fight to wrest the Democratic nomination from President Jimmy Carter, and a former actor named Ronald Reagan emerged as the star of the Republican party.

She’s followed the national conventions of both parties closely ever since, and she’s excited about the role she’s playing this week to help nominate Arizona Sen. John McCain as the Republican candidate.

“This has been just a dream come true for me,” Shaw said on her cell phone from St. Paul.

Shaw didn’t start as a McCain backer. She was the campaign chair in Cowlitz County for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who easily won the county’s caucus despite dropping out of the race the week before the vote.

Shaw said she liked Romney’s business background and hoped McCain would add him to the ticket. But she added she’s warmed to the former Navy pilot and prisoner of war after seeing his performance at a recent debate hosted by evangelical leader Rick Warren.

“The more we got to know about him, the more respect we’ve gotten for him,” Shaw said of McCain.

She and her husband, Chris, who works at Kaiser Permanente, have seen a number of big-name Republicans, including former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott and Grover Norquist, a leading conservative thinker.

Party conventions are normally choreographed down to the color of the speakers’ ties, but the threat of Hurricane Gustav on the Gulf Coast has forced the GOP to improvise on the fly. An appearance by Vice President Dick Cheney was scrapped, President Bush’s speech was moved to Tuesday from Texas as he observed the hurricane damage, and the focus shifted from celebration to fundraising for hurricane victims.

“Yesterday (Monday) it was very subdued. The whole point of yesterday was service,” Shaw said.

The other big story from the convention has been McCain’s surprise vice presidential pick, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, whose husband’s aunt and uncle live in Longview. The 44-year-old mother of five, an abortion opponent, was seen as an outside-the-box choice who could attract female voters and shore up much-needed support with social conservatives.

Over the weekend, the little-known Palin revealed her unwed, 17-year-old daughter was pregnant, and questions have arisen about the registering of her husband, Todd, with the Alaska Independence Party, which has advocated in the past for the state’s secession from the United States.

However, Shaw said the buzz about Palin at the convention has been positive, and most people think the media should let her family life remain private.

“People are so excited about Sarah Palin,” Shaw said. “She has really pulled together people.”

Shaw also followed the Democratic National Convention last week. She said she liked what Sen. Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee, had to say, but she’s happy with her party’s choice.

“I appreciate Obama, but I just really like that McCain has the experience and leadership,” Shaw said.

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cheney119 wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:25 AM:

" But she added shes warmed to the former Navy pilot and prisoner of war after seeing his performance at a recent debate hosted by evangelical leader Rick Warren.
Ah the "debate" where McCain said that when faced with evil he would defeat it. Man what a simp. Golly John what will do in your second term, that is after you've defeated evil? Isn't evil somenthing that what 3000 years of civilization has failed to even dent? That's just an example of a stupid question, asked by a stupid questioner, in a stupid forum, for a very very very stupid audience. You know there is a politic axiom that states that both parties want what's best for the country they just have diffrent views of how to get there. I personally do not believe this axiom. I think republicans want what is best for themselves, their only motivation is self-interest and greed and they don't give a damn what's best for this country. That's is why this theme of "country first" is so utterly and completely Carl Rove political tactics and just plain laughable. So is this clown in the article whose dream it was to attend a convention of sociopaths. (sociopath is a person with no conscience i.e. a republican) "

l-town mom wrote on Sep 3, 2008 11:57 AM:

" Wow, Cheney119....tell us how you REALLY feel. "

country gal wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:00 PM:

" If you don't like it, why don't you put your name on the ballot and run for the President of the USA? Let's see if you can solve the problem yourself. Not Obama or McCain, just you. I would be very curious if you can get us out of this mess. "

kelso alum wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:07 PM:

" Cheney119, you have such hatred in your heart. Was there some "Republican" in your young life that mortally offended you? Just because you defeat evil once doesn't mean that it will go away. John McCain spent 5 1/2 years at the Hanoi Hilton defeating evil every day. What he was saying was that he wouldn't run from it, and that he wouldn't proliferate or tolerate it. You say he doesn't believe in service first? Why did he change the RNC to ensure that those people in the gulf states were afforded assistance by those of us who could help? Why were there references posted for websites you could visit to offer SERVICE to those people who need it? Why were there hurricane relief efforts going on before the gavel dropped, and why was the only speech session given that day by the First Lady and Cindy McCain about giving SERVICE to those in need? Why did John McCain - not the republican party - charter jets for the delegates of the effected states to go home if they wanted to? And why did Barak Obama not respond in kind to John's call to SERVE YOUR NEIGHBORS for several hours? Who wants what's best? I think you know and you just don't want to admit it. McCain/Palin - COUNTRY FIRST "

cheney119 wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:28 PM:

" Why did they suspend day one of the republican convention, because during Katrina Bush and McCain sat around eating birthday cake in Arizona, while 10,000 poor black people were dieing. Country First? You're doin a heck of a job Brownie. You just didn't want to look as bad as you did then, Politics First, Last and Always more like. You can't undo history; poor pathetic greedy sociopath republicans. Notice all the blacks and other minorities at their convention, I guess it's white folks first for the republicans too. "

Thought wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:29 PM:

" You go gurl.. The next President and vice President need your support at the moment. All the Obama dogs are unleashed because they are seeing action not just words.. Anyone that knows anything about Palin would know its a good choice for this country.Its easy to sling mud from afar but wait until this lady starts speaking for herself.This lady is going to chew them up and spit them out. I could go on and on but there is no need for the fireworks are about to start.

I am Thought and I approve of this message!! :-) "

Girth VonPhister wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:39 PM:

" I think McCain has just about used up the "Hanoi Hilton" arguement. Just because he was a prisioner of war does not make him a good or even competent leader. That well has been sucked dry. Move on already. Convince me that we won't have to suffer through 4 more years of Bush's failed policies/leadership. This country will not survive 4 more years of Bush's policies. We need change if we are going to survive. Period.... "

Lance Johnson wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:40 PM:

" Dont you know that George Bush is creating the hurricanes just to show how prepared the country is now? There is a great atricle in the Wall Street Journal toady that looks into O's domestic policies and states his tax cut for his version of "middle class" is nothing more than a 648 million dollar welfare program for people who dont even pay taxes currently. I was just joking about my first line, but there are some mentally ill folks in this community that probably believe that. "

TheGenius wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:40 PM:

" Geez, Cheney, maybe you should sit by the campfire with the other commie liberals and smoke the hippie lettuce to calm your nerves. "

TDN Bad Boy wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:41 PM:

" Please forgive Cheney, his Liberalism sometimes gets in the way of any good brain activity. Of course you have to have a brain for activity, but that's another discussion. McCain/Palin have it right - Country First. A Democrat once said it wasn't what your country could do for you but what you could do for your country. The Demoncrats have forgotten that. All they can do is expect America to provide for them -- welfare, social security, communist medical care -- hand outs, hand outs, hand outs. Fortunately these women are attending an event where people don't look for handouts. They look for ways to improve America though ideas and hard work. John McCain could have come back from POW torture and demanded something from America. My God, he was owed wasn't he? Not John McCain. He went to work improving America. Working with Republicans and Democrats on important legislation. What has Obama done. Well he was a key figure behind farm subsidies -- again welfare. He hasn't authored any important legislation or been a leader of any kind. His wife says she isn't proud of America. His minister is a racist, hate monger that he supports. So sit down and ask yourself. What kind of man does America need? One who fought for her, suffered for her or one who thinks that America is better with hand outs? There is no debate. John McCain and Sarah Palin are for Country First and a better America. "

Kelsonian wrote on Sep 3, 2008 12:51 PM:

" From kelso alum: "John McCain spent 5 1/2 years at the Hanoi Hilton defeating evil every day."

And he'll never let us even think about forgetting it.. POW POW POW!!!

Apparently evil got the upper hand when his plane went down...

McCain is a putz... sure, a war decorated "hero"... but a putz just the same. And a putz who has picked a complete noob to be the VP "

dh wrote on Sep 3, 2008 1:19 PM:

" Wow, cheney119, I wonder if you would have the cajones to spout this hatred all over the place if you had to sign your real name to it. Aren't liberals all about free love and making everyone "just get along"? You aren't doing a good job for your party. Where's TDN Bad Boy? I like his stances far better than yours. "

DUH wrote on Sep 3, 2008 1:56 PM:

" Well well well, here's a quote from TDN Bad Boy that he made in a comment on another story..."People like Cheney, Duh, 1209, Local Yokel, and Jackie are convinced that women only vote based on their reproductive organs." Seems to be just the opposite to me. Here's a quote from this story...The other big story from the convention has been McCains surprise vice presidential pick, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, whose husbands aunt and uncle live in Longview. The 44-year-old mother of five, an abortion opponent, was seen as an outside-the-box choice who could attract female voters and shore up much-needed support with social conservatives." Seems like its the Republicans that think women only vote with their reproductive organs. I love it when ones own words get thrown right back in their faces. OBAMA 08! "

TDN Bad Boy wrote on Sep 3, 2008 3:27 PM:

" No election is about abortion until the Liberals like Duh, Cheney, and 1209 throw it in. Sarah Palin didn't say the above words. The writer did. And as most Americans know, newspaper journalist in this country are 85-90 staunch Liberal Democrats. So I would guess that those words came straight from the mouth of Liberal Democrat. I have not heard Sarah Palin say one word against abortion. She merely has talked about the support she has give her daughter's decision to have her baby. The only ones who think her daughter's pregnancy is a big issue are the Liberal Democrats who intend to scare every female voter in this country over abortion rights. That's the only reason people like Duh, Cheney, and 1209 believe that women vote. Sarah Palin stands up for her family and that all that is important in this discussion. Abortion was never an issue until the Liberals tried to make it one. All the Liberals can do is use scare tactics -- abortion rights, gay rights, the deficit, the war, gas prices, or whatever the issue is. Like Obama, they have no real concrete ideas, they have no idea what will make America better. They only have words -- most meant to scare and intimidate. But it doesn't work. Most people know the difference between hollow words and a great course of action. Obama is a talker and nothing more. McCain is a leader and he's always been one. "

Common Sense 24 wrote on Sep 3, 2008 4:22 PM:

" Wow, TDN Bad Boy. Thanks for saying all I didn't bother to. It is nice to hear someone else with some intelligence here instead of the usual liberal dribble. I am refreshed to see a candidate who is not a CAREER POLITICIAN. How many of usual politico's do you think have seen your side of the street of life? She has not been corrupted by the business as usual political crowd. Do you people bashing her experience really think any politicians even know how much a gallon of milk costs. When someone like Spitzer can spend 10s of thousands on a prostitute and his wife doesn't notice the missing money, do you think they are in any way going to relate to people struggling to make it. If you spend your money conservatively, you should be voting the same way. "

TheGenius wrote on Sep 3, 2008 5:05 PM:

" Last time I checked, the process for the overturn of Roe v. Wade would break down like this: local court, then state, then state appeals court, then federal circuit court, then the Supreme Court, based on the fact that they or any of the lower courts would hear any such case that would challenge Roe v. Wade. The hardest thing is going to be finding a case that would challenge the previous ruling. Honestly, this ruling isn't getting turned over anytime soon. Pro-lifers, I know that's not what you want to hear, but you gotta deal with it. Pro-choicers, you're starting to annoy the pants off of me, so just take solace in the fact that women can keep deciding to kill their unborn babies without fear of consequence or persecution from "The Man." "

Cheney119 wrote on Sep 3, 2008 5:43 PM:

" I wouldn't put Sarah Palin in charge of a girl scout troop; let alone the United States of America.* Anybody that thinks any different is a republican liar; Oh that's the same thing republican and liar. She is a poor parent; she gave her poor pregnant daughter no amumunition in the war against pregnancy. She is a currupt governor; firing anyone that disagrees with her narrow and pathetic point of view based on superstition (ie religion) I am so sick of republicans, you have this country on the ropes. How much more will smart voters take? "

TDN Bad Boy wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:52 PM:

" Well after watching her speech I can only say, what was McCain thinking about? How come he kept this woman under wraps for a whole week? She is absolutely fantastic. Pride, poise, power, intelligence, humor, a woman whom I would be proud to have in any sitaution with foreign leaders. She is American as American can be. Anyone want to question McCain's ability to make big decisions? Only the Liberals will. And as America's mayor said, all you have to do is compare the resumes of McCain and Obama and you see the incredible difference in experience, knowledge and character. And now Palin on the ticket. She is absolutely great. I thought Hillary was the top female politician in America until tonight. America has a new star and her name is Sarah Palin. Can you imagine what Brain Dead Joe Biden is thinking tonight? I finally get a chance as VP and I have to debate that incredible person. Well Brain Dead Joe life just isn't fair. I can't wait until the next polls. America got a week of Obama's hate and weak rhetoric, and then America got introduced to a new star. Palin will tap directly into the heart of America. Families will love this woman. Successful women will love this woman. Men will respect this woman. This is Geraldine Ferraro or Hillary Clinton. This is a woman with strength and dignity, pride and poise, funny and wise. A great pick by McCain. "

country gal wrote on Sep 3, 2008 8:53 PM:

" I listened to her speak tonite. Personally, I'd rather vote her in as President. But I'll settle for McCain/Palin. I'm excited! "

DUH wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:20 PM:

" I can't wait to see all the 250 word responses to my comment... I watched her speech too. I'm still not impressed. OBAMA 08! "

Lance Johnson wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:25 PM:

" Tides have turned. We got the Demos on the run! I didnt think it would be this easy, but she made zer"O" look like a complete fool. Rudy really slammed good too. USA USA USA USA! Better look into getting into Canada friends. BOOM OUTTA HERE! "

Thought wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:31 PM:

" Great speech. This woman truely is a Pitbull wearing lipstick and she wasn't even really warmed up.Re- Cheney My vote negates your vote. 80% approval rating from those she represents. . Nuff said. "

sociopath wrote on Sep 3, 2008 10:31 PM:

" In response to Cheney119 - I am a Republican, what you deem a sociopath (a person without a conscience). Allow me to provide you with concrete examples of how I as a Republican follow the dictates of my conscience.
As a Republican I serve on several boards of charitable organizations that serve the needs of the poor and vulnerable and have done so for years. I helped establish an affiliate of Habitat for Humanity at my university. I volunteered as a Big Brother to a wonderful young man. In my church I regularly visit and help shut ins, the disabled, those suffering from the loss of a loved one, and those searching for a job. As a Republican, my conscience demands I help and serve my fellow members of the community.
In my profession, I stand up for the little guy. I despise injustice and fight it every step of the way. My conscience compels me to act in defense of the rights of the most poor and vulnerable.
As a Republican, I provide for the needs of my family and prepare my children through education for the future.
I could cite additional examples from my own life and the lives of other "sociopaths" that convincingly refute your misguided conclusion that Republicans are devoid of conscience.
Name calling does not advance the discourse. Cheney119, I encourage you to raise the level of your posts and refrain from name calling. "

greenbean wrote on Sep 4, 2008 9:50 AM:

" TDN, please monitor comments more strictly. I think it's unacceptable to allow Cheney119 to call this lady a "clown" for wanting to attend the convention. Those comments really have no relevance to the story. "

LongviewFam wrote on Sep 4, 2008 8:25 PM:

" TDN, I agree with "greenbean," please monitor this thread. That's not a nice thing to say about this woman. Her beliefs are not necessary Cheney119's and that is okay with her, but he always resorts to name-calling. Talk about your sociopaths...To Mrs. Shaw's credit, she doesn't support Obama but had the CLASS to say she can appreciate Obama anyway. When was the last time Cheney119 had ANYTHING positive to say? Sheesh, I'm getting tired of these people who have NOTHING better to do than blog all day long and be negative with everyone. "

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