ST. PAUL -- The only elected delegate from Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin's hometown of Wasilla listened to Palin's acceptance speech Wednesday night cheering some parts but bristling at others.
Tammy McGraw, 47, who runs the internet cafe in Wasilla, was elected as a Ron Paul delegate, not a McCain delegate. So, McGraw is especially sensitive to issues involving taxes and the constitution. As a birth instructor, Tammy McGraw taught Palin 20 years ago how to prepare for those five babies Palin would have.
(Mark Bieganski/Sun-Times)
(Mark Bieganski/Sun-Times)
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"I think she did a pretty good speech," McGraw said. "I like that she said that her running mate won't raise the taxes. I like that she said she will be a spokesman for people with special-needs children."
But one line that rankled McGraw was the jab Palin took at Democrat Barack Obama over the prison for suspected terrorists at Guantanamo Bay.
"Al Qaida terrorists still plot to inflict catastrophic harm on America, and he's worried that someone won't read them their rights," Palin said to cheers and hollers of support from many of the delegates Wednesday.
"I didn't like that she said she didn't think that in Guantanamo that they dont have rights," McGraw said. "According to our constitution, they do have rights and I would hope Sarah would study up on that before she takes office. I think it is a step away from the constitution. I think she misstepped."
McGraw is overall a Palin fan and liked most of the rest of the speech. But when Palin was mayor, she did not like Palin raising the town's income tax.
"She did cut the operating budget but she raised the taxes on the oil companies," McGraw said. "My husband works for the oil company."
McGraw's husband, David, is an alternate delegate for McCain.
The controversies about Palin over the past five days "don't have anything to do with her ability to be an effective administrator as vice-president," McGraw said. "Personally, I love her."
Dick Stoffel, 65, a carpenter from Palmer, the smaller town a few miles from Wasilla, has known Palin for 10 years, since her first run for mayor of Wasilla. He said it was a great speech and he loved seeing her whole family on stage.
"They'll do everything they can to try to discredit her, but I believe it will roll off her like water off a duck's back," Stoffel said.
Like McGraw, Stoffel is an elected Ron Paul delegate.