Twenty-two members of the Republican faithful braved the wind and rain last night to come here to the Lake County GOP office, housed on the first floor of the Painesville Senior Center.
They were there for one thing: to see if "their girl" as some called her - Republican Vice Presidential Nominee Sarah Palin - would hold her own against her Democratic counterpart, Joe Biden.
And as far as they’re concerned, she delivered.
They cheered the moose-hunting hockey mom when she took aim at Wall Street and the financial crisis bankers created.
Palin: “We need to ban together and say, "Never again, never will we be exploited and taken advantage of again."
They also liked it when she talked about Iraq, cutting taxes and opposing gay marriage.
Palin: “I don't support defining marriage as anything but between one man and one woman.”
The last few weeks haven't been kind to John McCain's running mate. Her approval rating fell from 42 to 35 percent in Ohio and Anne Hassoldt-Fennof of Willoughby Hills thinks she knows why:
Hassoldt-Fenoff: "A left leaning liberal media. Period.”
That seemed to be the consensus among these Lake County GOP volunteers. They say the media were sexist in questioning Palin’s ability to be a good mom and vice president. They also thought the network TV interviews of Palin were unfair.
These Republicans say the negative press has taken its toll. But after a week that worried even the staunchest conservative pundits, Brian Wollet of Mentor said Palin showed America her true metal.
Wollet: "I think if people had listened to the Katie Couric interview or had even watched CNN or MSNBC in the last few days, they were probably expecting a woman who could not walk and chew gum at the same time. What they saw was the woman who beat two guys whose first names were governor."
Lake County Republican Party Chairman Dale Fellows said Palin hit a home run with her zingers and mastery of the material. More importantly, as Fellows saw it, Palin’s aggressive stance had the longtime Delaware senator running scared.
Fellows: "He had to really answer to her which I thought was exactly what you wanted to do in the debate.”
Fellows and the others weren’t bothered by Palin’s not only not answering many questions put to her, but announcing that she wouldn’t necessarily talk about what the moderator wanted, she would talk directly to the American people. This crowd ate that up.
Lake County is by no means Republican country but it is contested territory in Northeast Ohio which is largely a democratic stronghold. Bush won just under 51 percent in Lake County in 2004. With Palin’s star dimming in recent weeks she needed to reassure the base that she’s got what it takes.
She did that in this debate. As, one debate watcher here said, she showed that she’s a hometown girl. “She’s spoke to us.” Whether Palin won over any undecided voters or independents is quite another question.
Caitlin Johnson, 90.3