McCain, Palin tout 'maverick' qualities in central Pa. stop

LANCASTER -- Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin already had the crowd chanting her name -- "Sarah," not "Palin" -- as she stepped up to the stage in the center of crowd full of nearly 7,000 Pennsylvanians. She didn't need help whipping her supporters into a frenzy as she and John McCain appeared at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster.

But the Alaskan governor got it when she turned to a line that has continued to haunt Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama since he uttered it in San Francisco almost a half-year ago. McCain doesn't think "bitter" Pennsylvanians "cling" to their guns and religion, Palin said.

"Wherever he goes, whoever he's speaking with or whoever is listening, John McCain is the same man," Palin said to raucous cheers from the crowd.

It was the opening line of a what has become Palin and McCain's stump speech in recent days, which features the two candidates weaving familiar GOP themes into a speech marked by their commitment to bringing a "maverick" attitude to Washington. Testaments to reducing government size and winning in Iraq stood side-by-side with promises to change a government more interested in serving special interests than the American public.

"In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers," Palin said in a not-to-veiled reference to Obama. "And then there are some candidates like John McCain who use their career to promote change."

McCain's visit to south-central Pennsylvania was the second from a presidential candidate in the last week -- Obama campaigned only a few blocks from McCain last week. The frequency of visits, even to a low-profile area like Lancaster, is not surprising. Both candidates have acknowledged Pennsylvania as one of, if not the, most important state this November. Both sides think a victory here could ensure the presidency.

Recent polls have shown Obama's lead, once standing at 5 to 7 points, dwindling to half that number since the conventions.

McCain, speaking after Palin, said the Democratic nominee doesn't have a track record of change.

"My opponent, Senator Obama, has never ever gone against anybody in his own party," McCain said. "We're proud of the fact that for the good of the American people, we have."