Election 2008
(2008-09-04)
Convention workers hurriedly rebuilt the stage where John McCain will formally accept the Republican Party's presidential nomination Thursday night, embarking on his final drive for the White House after a vigorous sendoff boost from running mate Sarah Palin.
Elsewhere, on the final day of the Republican National Convention, a lot of the talk was still about Palin, who gave her big introductory speech Wednesday night, less than a week after being chosen for the ticket.
McCain's wife, Cindy, suggested in one interview that she doesn't agree with Palin's support for a nearly total ban on abortions.
And Democratic vice presidential nominee Joe Biden declared that some news coverage of his Republican counterpart had been sexist.
Parts of the platform at the Xcel Energy Center were removed by construction workers on Thursday to bring delegates closer to where McCain will give his acceptance speech, giving the stage a T-shape. Organizers said the change reflected the town hall-type forums in which McCain has campaigned.
"The extended podium will serve as a fitting complement to John McCain's preference for direct interaction with his fellow citizens," said Maria Cino, a convention official.
Meanwhile, party leaders added two speakers to the night's lineup. Former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., will speak prior to Cindy McCain. Both are close to McCain. Ridge was considered a finalist for the No. 2 spot before McCain picked the Alaska governor. And Graham has appeared frequently with McCain on the campaign trail.
Delegates will also vote Thursday night to make the convention's nomination of Palin official. And McCain himself will close out the activities with his prime-time acceptance speech.
The speech was expected to provide the climax to the four-day convention. His wife, Cindy, admitted that she was nervous about addressing delegates herself.
"I'd like people to know what makes me work and what makes me tick and who I am, what I'm all about and where I come from," she told ABC's "Good Morning America." ''I have an interesting story to tell as well in that it combines the two of us and makes us a couple and what we will represent."
© Copyright 2012, Associated Press
