Palin’s visit to Omaha draws thousands

The Associated Press

OMAHA -- A surprise visit by vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin to Omaha’s Civic Auditorium Sunday had many in the state wondering if it’s a sign the GOP ticket is worried about losing the district and its electoral vote.

Palin told a crowd of 2,500 -- and an overflow crowd of 3,500 more -- it wasn’t so.

“I’m going to Nebraska because I want to go to Nebraska,” Palin said. “I asked to come to the heartland of America.”

But her visit to Omaha is clearly a defensive move, and the latest in a series of unlikely events in a Republican-heavy state that rarely sees candidates visit this late in the campaign.

Since 1964, all five of the state’s electoral votes have gone to the Republican presidential candidate.

But Nebraska is unusual: It’s one of just two states that can split its electoral votes.

And Democrat Barack Obama has opened two Omaha offices to compete for the electoral vote tied to the state’s 2nd District. Republican nominee John McCain has so far relied on a volunteer effort in the state.

But McCain visited Ashland July for a fundraiser, and now his running mate has come to town. Obama hasn’t been back since a February visit before Democratic caucuses, but Nebraska U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson hinted Sunday of a possible “October surprise.”

Yvette Cordell, 41, of Omaha, said even though she plans to vote for Republican John McCain, she’s not sorry Obama decided to campaign in the 2nd District because “we like the attention.”

“Palin wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t that threat,” said Cordell, an independent.

The one electoral vote tied to the state’s 2nd District -- which includes Omaha, the biggest city in the state -- would be essential to victory if the election ended in a 269-269 electoral tie, neither candidate reaching the needed 270 electoral votes. If Obama won the 2nd District vote, he’d have 270 to McCain’s 268.

Republican Gov. Dave Heineman told the crowd Sunday that Palin “shares our values and our beliefs.” Palin said a vote for Obama would bring higher taxes, bigger government, activist judges and retreat in war.

And she promised a McCain-Palin administration would bring about energy independence, because “the cost of energy can make the difference between turning a profit and losing the farm.”

Palin also again mentioned Obama’s connection to Bill Ayers, a founder of the violent Weather Underground group during the Vietnam era.

Palin has said Obama “pals around with terrorists” because of Obama’s association with Ayers.

She said Sunday that the Obama campaigns claims that he’s “just someone in his neighborhood” isn’t true, and she said Obama “is not a man that sees America as you and I do.”

Obama and Ayers served on the same Chicago charity and live near each other in Chicago. Ayers also held a meet-the-candidate event at his home for Obama when Obama first ran for office in the mid-1990s.

Nelson said earlier Sunday that Palin’s talk of Ayers was “Swift Boat politics” and “a thinly veiled strategy to try to change the subject.”

Across the street from the Omaha rally, 22-year-old Trisha Clark held a sign that said: “I wear lipstick too but will never vote for you.”

She said Obama running mate Joe Biden “has done more for women’s rights than Sarah Palin ever will.”

“She’s no Hillary Clinton,” the Omaha Democrat said, referring to the former Democratic presidential contender.

But Connie Marmo, 53, an Omaha Republican, brought her own sign: “Sarah Palin for the Good Life.”

“I like her down-home talking,” Marmo said. “She’s a go-getter.”

Palin’s visit to Omaha is a boost for Republican Congressman Lee Terry, who’s seeking re-election in the district. The key to Obama’s Omaha effort is a huge voter registration drive, and thousands of new Democrats added to the rolls could boost Terry opponent Jim Esch, an Omaha Democrat.

Terry said the visit shows McCain is taking the 2nd District seriously, which he’s been suggesting since the Obama effort here started.