If there is one moment that truly has defined this election cycle, it is McCain's choice of Sarah Palin for the VP slot. For all the talk of "change," Sen. Obama has not been able to claw ahead far enough from McCain in the polls to guarantee himself victory in November. Now, it looks like his chances are slipping further, and now the advantage is McCain's.
By any measure, the Palin choice has been brilliant: both in how it has energized the conservative base of the Republican Party, and how it has attracted the irrational hatred of the liberal media. Thanks to her, McCain now leads Obama in an RCP average by 3.2 points, and in one poll by a margin of 10 points (USA Today/Gallup).
So what is it about Palin that attracts us to her? Is it the articulate manner in which she expresses her home-grown conservative values? Or maybe it's the wit with which she derides Obama's lack of experience (yes, Palin is more experienced than Obama)? These are rhetorical questions, of course. Palin stands on the right side of the issues. She is for lower taxes - not just for the middle class, but for everyone. She is against pork-barrel spending. She is for the right to life. In short, she practices and preaches Reagan conservatism.
Many are quick to forget that, in spite of the fact that we have had Republican presidents for 20 of the last 28 years, we have had only one conservative - Reagan. Even if we elect McCain, that number will remain the same. But by electing McCain, we are electing a conservative - Sarah Palin. America is a conservative nation. It's time to have another conservative in our higher offices.