Arizona Sen. John McCain's surprise pick of Alaska governor and "hockey mom" Sarah Palin to be the first woman on a Republican presidential ticket was the buzz of the GOP's convention the night before he was to give the biggest speech of his political career.
And it was his talk about Palin that swayed the crowd again last night, said Tanya DeGenova of Marblehead, an alternate delegate to the Republican National Convention and unsuccessful candidate for state representative who witnessed McCain's speech live in St. Paul, Minn.
McCain told delegates he was "blessed with misfortune" for spending more than five years as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War.
It was a time he fell in love with America as a tortured prisoner in the infamous Hanoi Hilton.
"My country saved me, and I cannot forget. I will fight for her as long as I draw breath, so help me God," he said to loud applause.
"I thought it was a great speech," said DeGenova, a retired FBI agent, who said McCain was able to delineate the differences between himself and his Democratic rival, Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.
Last night, standing on a platform jutting out into a sea of delegates, McCain gave his acceptance speech to be the Republicans' nominee for president of the United States.
"Tonight, I have a privilege given few Americans, the privilege of accepting my party's nomination for president of the United States. I accept it with ..." and he was drowned out by chants of "USA! USA!" before he added, "I accept it with great humility."
He expressed gratitude to President Bush "for leading us through these dark days," before pointing out his wife, Cindy, his seven children and his mother, Roberta McCain.
"She doesn't want me to say this, but she's 96 years young."
He also made a plea to undecided voters and saluted Obama.
"You have my respect and admiration. Much more unites us than divides us. We are fellow Americans."
But then McCain took off the gloves.
"Let me make no doubt about it my friends, we are going to win this election."
The night before, the convention reached a fever pitch as Palin, who has been cast as an outsider, gave a biting speech amid a swirl of questions about her background and family — her 17-year old daughter is five months pregnant, it was learned since her the announcement she would be McCain's running mate last Friday.
Palin won loud cheers during mentions of her, DeGenova said.
Palin was there again last night, too, lauded in a video as a "mother, governor, maverick," in a nod to McCain's nickname.
"The original maverick," the video said, "made a maverick decision."
McCain said the term Maverick had both good and bad connotations for him, but he said, "I understand who I work for, I don't work for a party, I don't work for a special interest. I don't work for myself. I work for you."
McCain promised to shake up Washington with Palin being introduced to the "do-nothing ... crowd."
"Change is coming," McCain said, taking a line from Sen. Obama's campaign.
"I think he had a very good response from the crowd in the arena," DeGenova said. "He talked a lot about change people could trust, reaching across the aisle."
During McCain's speech, an apparent heckler in a pink undergarment interrupted the speech, and the delegates chanted "USA!" to drown out the protester.
McCain said, "Please don't be divided by the brown noise and static ... Americans want us to stop yelling at each other."
DeGenova, speaking on a cell phone from the street after the speech, said she liked McCain's specifics on health care, education and cutting off foreign aid to countries who are not friendly with the United States.
"He talks to the common man," said DeGenova, who wants to run to be a full delegate for the next GOP convention, so she can sit on the floor with the state delegation during the speech.
