"THE VILLAGES — With thousands of supporters packing the streets and sidewalks of this massive retirement community, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin said Sunday that she and John McCain would reform Washington, put America on the path to energy independence and nurse a struggling economy back to health."
Governor Sarah Palin is packing out stadiums without fanfare and without the help of the liberal media. This woman was unknown until recently and now she is filling arenas with people wanting to hear what she has to say.
Obama, when he made his acceptance speech, coming down from heaven and landing in the "temple of Obama" with the pagan Greek columns, with 60,000 adoring worshippers, needed national liberal news media and free advertisement to bring the people in.
Sarah Palin is the real thing, and the liberal news media is going to have to broadcast this phenomenon because she is coming to a city or town near them.
Sarah Palin is attracting people without advertisement and without the media. This is truly amazing to watch.
Susan ~ But it is all true, Sarah is coming to a city near every liberal and they will see she is attracting lots of people. She will turn this election in record time, and liberals will be crying foul once more in November.
Nicholas, I hope you are right. The pols right now aren't too encouraging. Although, I just read a piece about the election in 2004. On the eve of the election they had Kerry up by several points and winning all the battleground states. we know how that turned out.
Susan ~ Fear not, polls in key battleground states including Florida have McCain up by five. This is pulling towards McCain, we shall see after the debates and how people react to Obama not reading from teleprompters.
My mother-in-law went to the Palin event. She was near the area where Sarah Palin walked out and she got a chance to shake her hand. She said the place was electric in energy. She states that there were people from all over Central Northern Florida there.
Have no fear Susan, the electoral college will be more than enough to put McCain/Palin above the 270 needed. It'll be bigger than you might think.
Nicholas, with all due respect, "Sarah Palin Packs Stadiums With 60,000" makes much more of an impact than the more accurate quote from The Orlando Sentinel "estimates ranged from 25,000 to 60,000." While even 25k is impressive, the headline was rather misleading.
And if in fact it was 60k, would Palin not be an even bigger celebrity than Obama? Until now, this campaign has defined celebrity as being a buffoon. So, is being a celebrity no longer bad, since that is the best single word to describe Palin as at the moment?
JAY ~ With all due respect, the newspaper got it wrong. That is a big divide 25,000-60,000? Can you even believe that. Please. It was over 60,000 people from people actually on the ground. The local news had helicopters and they reported the same. Perhaps, you would do some good and take your movievoice and follow her around and report what you feel is the proper estimate. But do your homework before trying to convey 25,000 to 60,000. Even you can read between the lines....lol
I don't regard her as a celebrity at all. I think she resonates with the people because instead of seeing a Messiah, they see her as "one of us" and that gives REAL hope for REAL change! Great post Nick.
Your post begins "The Orlando Sentinel states" - therefore, it is important to show the fact that the newspaper actually states "25,000 to 60,000."
If you're saying you believe 60k, does that not make this recently unrecognizable person the biggest celebrity?
Simon ~ Thank you Simon for the features. I also don't think she is a celebrity at all. She actually is one of us, she is not a millionaire, she is a middle class Governor of Alaska who will bring reform to Washington.
Jay ~ It makes her someone who people want to meet. Finally, a candidate who actually is one of us. It is a phenomenon and it makes liberals skin crawl. It took billions of dollars to make Obama what he is, a celebrity. But, it only took one speech to resonate what Sarah Palin is to the American public.
Her speech proved she's a skilled politician. It is important to note the fact that Clinton has been a name of national recognition since the early 1990s and that McCain has been a name of national recognition since the 1970s and since the 1980s from politics. Obama has held national recognition for roughly four years. Obama has opened the door for someone like Palin to move from obscurity to national headlines in a couple of years.
Obama is one of us just as much as Palin is - Palin can see Russia from her state, so Palin probably understands Russian ideals more than what's important to us in the "lower 48".
Jay ~ Obama is not one of us. He is an elitist. He is a Marxist, he is not one of us. He has gone to a church for twenty years that preached hate and hatred for America. That is not one of us. Not my church, and I have a black pastor who would never say that.
That's too much work with all the HTML code Nick! You'll have to e-mail me the short cuts - along with the other thing you were going to e-mail me today! :)
Regarding elitism... McCain has 7 houses, 13 cars and a jet. Obama owns according to most reports - 1 house, 1 car and 1 bicycle.
Regarding religion... How many sermons have you heard from the past 20 years at Obama's church? One a year might be a fairly reasonable number to attend to determine what the church preaches. I imagine, neither of us have attended enough sermons at his church or Sarah Palin's Pentecostal church to have a fair understanding of their teachings and what sort of impact they might have on someone with the intellect of Obama or the intellect of Palin.
The lot on the left is the subject of the "Rezko" deal. Rezko bought the lot for the asking price, and the Obamas got $300,000 off the asking price. Rezko was recently found guilty of "influence peddling" related charges in the federal court in Chicago.
Obama is an elitist. How many houses did you buy and get $300,000 off the asking price from a convicted felon?
And Jay ~ Would you want me to send you the CD's of Obama's pastor. I can send you many years of CD's of just about every sermon has racist remarks and black militant rhetoric. He just didn't wake up one day and preach a sermon like that. Take a look at his website.
Sarah Pallin is more "grass roots" than Obama will eer be. My very first thought when I think of Sarah is "purity of intention." I don't see any hidden agendas. When she is asked a direct question by the media she gives a direct answer--no "slickness" I find Obama on the other hand to be calculating--every step of the way. Good post, I just hope we can change a lot of minds. The Obama bumper stickers in Sun City just kill me--how people who have attained the age of 55 and up could fall for the liberal drivel is amazing to me.
She has definitely engaged the conservatives in our great country to take this election serious. I just read a post suggesting the very real possibility that the electoral college could end up in a tie, at which time the constitution allows the newly elected House of Representatives one vote per state to choose the next President. This is as good a reason as I've ever heard to toss a ton of people out of Congress.
Nicholas, your $300k figure is wrong. In the February 24, 2007 edition of the Chicago Tribune it was reported that Rita Rezko bought the parcel for $625,000 and then "Rita Rezko transferred a 1,500-square-foot strip of her land to Obama for $104,500. Her recent sale of the rest was for $575,000." Therefore, the original lot was purchased for $625k and sold for a combined profit of $54k. No one lost or profited by $300k anywhere in the transaction in question.
Let's say that Obama is an elitist and let's use your inaccurate $300k figure. In an era of $10k shower curtains and multimillion dollar automobiles. Do you really believe that in the year 2008 that $300k would make much of an impact on an "elite" person?
It would take quite some time to gather all of the information, but what figures can you find on any of McCain's homes?
Obama Bought Home Without Rezko Discount, Seller Says (Update1)
By Timothy J. Burger
(Bloomberg)
June 15, 2005, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) purchased his Kenwood mansion from Fredric Wondisford and Sally Radovick. According to a February 18, 2008, articleby Bloomberg News' Timothy J. Burger:
The couple who sold Barack Obama his Chicago home said the Illinois senator's $1.65 million bid "was the best offer" and they didn't cut their asking price because a campaign donor bought their adjacent land.
The sellers hadn't previously made their side of the story public out of concern for their privacy, according to Bill Burton, a spokesman for Obama's campaign. They approached Obama's Senate office 15 months ago and agreed to break their silence now through the campaign out of concern that the story was being distorted in the media, Burton said.
The sellers "did not offer or give the Obamas a ‘discount' on the house price on the basis of or in relation to the price offered and accepted on the lot."
"...in the course of the negotiation over the sales price"
"Obama and his wife, Michelle, ‘made several offers until the one accepted at $1.65 million, and this was the best offer the sellers received on the house.'"
Nicholas, Just trying to sort through facts from fiction. There is a lot out there on both sides of the ticket that is presented as half truths.
Having a hard time keeping track of the facts? Here are eight things to know:
1. They met in 1990. Obama was a student at Harvard Law School and got an unsolicited job offer from Rezko, then a low-income housing developer in Chicago. Obama turned it down.
2. Obama took a job in 1993 with a small Chicago law firm, Davis Miner Barnhill, that represents developers -- primarily not-for-profit groups -- building low-income housing with government funds.
3. One of the firm's not-for-profit clients -- the Woodlawn Preservation and Investment Corp., co-founded by Obama's then-boss Allison Davis -- was partners with Rezko's company in a 1995 deal to convert an abandoned nursing home at 61st and Drexel into low-income apartments. Altogether, Obama spent 32 hours on the project, according to the firm. Only five hours of that came after Rezko and WPIC became partners, the firm says. The rest of the future senator's time was helping WPIC strike the deal with Rezko. Rezko's company, Rezmar Corp., also partnered with the firm's clients in four later deals -- none of which involved Obama, according to the firm. In each deal, Rezmar "made the decisions for the joint venture," says William Miceli, an attorney with the firm.
4. In 1995, Obama began campaigning for a seat in the Illinois Senate. Among his earliest supporters: Rezko. Two Rezko companies donated a total of $2,000. Obama was elected in 1996 -- representing a district that included 11 of Rezko's 30 low-income housing projects.
5. Rezko's low-income housing empire began crumbling in 2001, when his company stopped making mortgage payments on the old nursing home that had been converted into apartments. The state foreclosed on the building -- which was in Obama's Illinois Senate district.
6. In 2003, Obama announced he was running for the U.S. Senate, and Rezko -- a member of his campaign finance committee -- held a lavish fund-raiser June 27, 2003, at his Wilmette mansion.
7. A few months after Obama became a U.S. senator, he and Rezko's wife, Rita, bought adjacent pieces of property from a doctor in Chicago's Kenwood neighborhood -- a deal that has dogged Obama the last two years. The doctor sold the mansion to Obama for $1.65 million -- $300,000 below the asking price. Rezko's wife paid full price -- $625,000 -- for the adjacent vacant lot. The deals closed in June 2005.Six months later, Obama paid Rezko's wife $104,500 for a strip of her land, so he could have a bigger yard. At the time, it had been widely reported that Tony Rezko was under federal investigation. Questioned later about the timing of the Rezko deal, Obama called it "boneheaded" because people might think the Rezkos had done him a favor.
8. Eight months later -- in October 2006 -- Rezko was indicted on charges he solicited kickbacks from companies seeking state pension business under his friend Gov. Blagojevich. Federal prosecutors maintain that $10,000 from the alleged kickback scheme was donated to Obama's run for the U.S. Senate. Obama has given the money to charity.
Rezko is a Syrian immigrant who rose to power inside Chicago, becoming a well-known "slumlord" and a player in Illinois politics. He was convicted in June of 16 counts of corruption. According to the charges, Rezko ripped off $6 million from the state of Illinois through kickbacks while working for the administration of current Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Rezko was also one of Obama's earliest supporters.
In 1995, when Obama ran for a seat in the Illinois Senate, Rezko, through two of his companies, donated thousands of dollars to the Obama campaign. Ironically, Obama won the election in a district that included 11 of Rezko's 30 low-income housing projects.
In 2003, Rezko held a lavish fundraiser at his Wilmette, Ill., mansion for Obama's Senate election. In fact, Rezko raised big dollars for Obama.
Still, Rezko and Obama had more than just a political relationship. In 2005, when Rezko was under federal investigation for influence peddling, Obama and Rezko's wife, Rita, bought adjacent pieces of property from a Chicago doctor.
The doctor sold one parcel to Obama for $1.65 million, $300,000 below the market price, while Rezko's wife paid full price, $625,000, for an adjacent vacant lot. Curiously, Mrs. Rezko made a $125,000 down payment and obtained a $500,000 mortgage when financial records shown at the Rezko trial noted that she had a salary of only $37,000 and assets of $35,000. The court records also show her husband had few assets at the time.
Obama claims that in buying his house in 2005, he also got a low mortgage rate from Northern Trust bank because another bank made a competitive bid for his loan. The only problem is the Obama campaign refuses to identify the other bank or show any proof of a competitive loan offer.
Six months later, Obama purchased a 10-foot wide strip of the Rezko property, paying Rezko's wife $104,500. According to Obama, the 10-foot strip was for a bigger yard. Still, the deal also rendered the Rezko parcel too small to build on, thereby increasing the value of Obama's property.
So the house (or mansion) that Obama built allegedly has some interesting foundations. Of course, the mainstream media is nowhere to be seen covering this explosive combination. Still, the old axiom of dogs and fleas proves true. One does not have to look far to find an infestation inside Obama's house.
Burton said Obama, 46, toured the property with Rezko for 15 to 30 minutes at some point before the purchase. Burton said Obama wanted Rezko's opinion of the property because Rezko was a real-estate developer in the area. Burton said he didn't know when the pre-sale tour occurred.
The Obamas submitted three bids: $1.3 million on Jan. 15, 2005; $1.5 million on Jan. 21; and $1.65 million on Jan. 23, according to a copy of the sale contract shown to Bloomberg News.Obama received more than $1.2 million in book royalties and a book advance in 2005, the year he was sworn in to the U.S. Senate, his financial disclosure statement shows.
I sold my previous home last summer to buy a smaller more economical home for myself. The home was listed by my broker and built by his cousin. Asking price $230,000.00 and they sold it to me for $153,000.00 Good thing he and I are not in politics or it sure would come back to bite us in the rear.
Homes across the mountain on the Colorado River in Bullhead/Laughlin consistently go for $150,000.00 to $300,000.00+ less than asking price in almost every sale.
This is more a case of guilty by association than any fact or evidence as to what you suggest is truth. How well I personally know that scenario. I am a Christian who knows Jesus hung on the cross and shed his Blood for me BUT several say I am not a Christian if I vote for Obama. I am found Guilty by association as is millions of others.
Not trying to argue Nicholas. I am learning to agree to disagree.
Nicholas as you can see it will always be always be good vs. evil. Keep the positive attitude and stick with your beliefs and you will always come out on top. Only the strong will survive!!!
Nicholas, the other key factor is that statistically, all those people who showed up for the Palin rally in Florida WILL vote, being of the retiree demographic, whereas many if not most of those who show up for Obama's rallys WILL NOT vote in the election.
back to the original topic, McCain/Palin rallies are increasing in size with crowds getting larger. Obama/Biden rallies crowd sizes are decreasing. There is a trend.
There was an article in both the Palm Beach Post and Sun-Sentinel saying that the "60,000" was actually 6,000. Either a reporter added one too many zeroes or it was GOP propaganda.
Steve ~ I have first hand information and reporters saying over 60,000. Sun Sentinel? The most liberal slanting newspaper in Florida, yes I would believe them, and the Palm Beach Post, they lost credibility when they back Bob Wexler for Congress when he doesn't even live in the state of Florida. They said it was it was "no big deal".
This came in from a good patriot friend of mine and he has information for you doubters out there about the 60,000 people going to see palin in Orlando.
Hi Nicholas,
I'm not a member of AR yet, so I couldn't post this as a comment on your blog, but I thought it might help you, as you seem to be getting hammered on the 60,000 figure.
My parents live in The Villages, so anytime I see a news item on The Villages, I check it out. On sunday, Drudge had this headline on his page - "PALIN DRAWS CROWD OF 60,000 IN FLORIDA", which lead to the story, here http://news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080921/NEWS0107/80921022 .
In the 4th paragraph, it states, "The fire chief estimated the crowd at 60,000."
Also, here's a picture showing just part of the crowd - http://news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=A4&Date=20080922&Category=NEWS01&ArtNo=809220802&Ref=PH&Profile=1001&Params=Itemnr=17. There are 2 "Squares" at The Villages (so far), and they are quite large.
Where are any pictures of this massive crowd? The picture referenced above at news-press.com shows about 2,000 people.
It is also worth noting that The Villages (Sumter County) and the adjacent counties have a population of nearly 2 million residents. With a high percentage of non-working, retirees she should have easily drawn a crowd of many more than 60k - but the lack of pictures would indicate that she drew a respectable, albeit considerably smaller 25k if not much less.
Jay ~ Go drink the koolaid again, but the fire chief gave the estimate of 60,000. Please, stop this craziness. Do you have to always be right? Now you are calling the fire chief a liar or must be mistaken. You have a better view from your computer than he has actually being there?
Nice pictures, but where are the pictures that show this massive crowd? The picture, from Shea Stadium, below shows a crowd of less than 55k. However, it dwarfs the crowd size from your pictures.
Why would the GOP have a massive crowd for Palin and only show a partial shot? Evidently the few thousand people she attracted (and yes her celebrity status) would look more impressive in "partial shots" and from the ground than it would from an aerial perspective.
Did any of you see her interview with Katie Couric? Anyone who watched that interview and still votes GOP is either a brainwashed moron, or greedy (afraid of paying more taxes)
Thanks, this brainwashed moron and greedy voter will be voting for Mccain and Plain and proud of it. Your messiah is a corrupt politician and you are too blind to see it. Thanks for stopping by.
"Sa-Rah! Sa-Rah!" they chanted at every mention of her name, applauding loudly and waiving tiny American flags that were distributed -- along with free water bottles -- by local volunteers. The fire chief estimated the crowd at 60,000. said the Fort Myers journalist Bill Cotterell • news-press.com capital bureau • September 21, 2008
Jay ~ Stop being an ass, fire chiefs and other officials stated 60,000 and not you or any other can deny that, especially since YOU weren't there.
Florida officials don't have a very good record when it comes to counting. Perhaps the fire marshal is related to Palin, as was the case with Bush and another Florida official - Katherine Harris. Mike Tucker, the local fire marshal to whom you refer was made available to the press by the McCain/Palin campaign. For what other large events has Mr. Tucker counted the crowd?
McCain aide Kimmie Lipscomb told reporters on Sept. 10 that an outdoor rally in Fairfax City, Virginia, drew 23,000 people, attributing the crowd estimate to a fire marshal.
Fairfax City Fire Marshal Andrew Wilson said his office did not supply that number to the campaign and could not confirm it. Wilson, in an interview, said the fire department does not monitor attendance at outdoor events.
In recent days, journalists attending the rallies have been raising questions about the crowd estimates with the campaign. In a story on Sept. 11 about Palin's attraction for some Virginia women voters, Washington Post reporter Marc Fisher estimated the crowd to be 8,000, not the 23,000 cited by the campaign.
Nicholas, I haven't used the word "moron" - I'll use your word instead... what ass believes 60k when there are no pictures that show more than 5k? What ass thinks that it is not odd that there are no pictures of the full crowd for the campaign's largest event?
Jay ~ Get over your self, the asses you are referring to are the very ones that were actually present. But I am tired of arguing this point to you and your obstinate quest to be right. Ok, you are right, the fire chief the people on the ground, the helicopter reporters are all wrong, and you and your liberal reporters are right. Congrats!
For every video, there will be another from the opposing side.
For every point, there will be a counter point. >SIGH<
I'm sure that if you search youtube and other political blogs, you'll find enough examples of both sides sputtering. flip-flopping, flubbing, and then some.
Biden the plagiarist. Watch these, and see if Biden can think for himself, or will he parrot another.
Obama, the incoherent. Watch these--- remember, he's been running for president for the last two years. He should be more polished and faster on his feet.
Nicholas Goglucci, CRS ~ CLHMS, e-PRO ~ Re/Max Professional in South Florida
Nicholas - don't hold your breath waiting for the media - if it hasn't happened by now, it's not going to. We are on our own...