McCain introduces Palin, asks for money

John McCain sends an e-mail to his supporters in which he calls his new running mate "a trailblazer and a reformer."

Published August 29, 2008 5:42PM (EDT)

Unsurprisingly, soon after the debut of the full Republican ticket, John McCain was, like any good politician would, using the rollout to ask his supporters for money. In an e-mail, McCain introduced his new running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, calling her "a trailblazer and a reformer ... fearless -- exactly the type of leader I want at my side."

Here's the full letter:

My Friends,

I am honored to announce that I have chosen Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska as my choice for the Republican nominee for Vice President. As a father with three daughters, I can't express how proud I am to choose the first female Republican Vice-Presidential nominee.

Sarah Palin is a trailblazer and a reformer. As the first female governor of Alaska, she challenged a corrupt system and has been a tireless advocate for reform -- passing a landmark bill on ethics reform. She has taken on the old politics in Alaska and reformed the state's energy industry. She rejects wasteful pork barrel spending. She's fearless -- exactly the type of leader I want at my side and the type of leadership we will bring to Washington.

My friends, together Sarah Palin and I make the strongest presidential ticket and I know that she joins me in asking for your support as we head into our Convention week in Minnesota. We're shaking things up in this campaign -- and Governor Palin and I are ready to bring real reform to Washington.

The polls indicate this will be a tight race as we head into the fall campaign against Senators Obama and Biden. I expect the polls to remain close all the way up to Election Day and that is why any help you can give today will go a long way to make history on November 4th.

You may already know that I have decided to accept federal matching funds for the final months of this campaign -- keeping a campaign promise I made. But that means that August 31st marks the last day I can accept your primary contribution. Will you make an immediate donation of whatever you can give -- whether it's $50 or $500 to ensure Governor Palin and I win in November?

You can be assured that as President and Vice President, Governor Palin and I will always put country before all else. We are ready to lead and I ask that you join our campaign today. Your support is deeply appreciated.

Sincerely,
John McCain

P.S. I have chosen Governor Sarah Palin as my running mate and today we will hold a joint campaign rally in Dayton, Ohio. Please tune in to any of the cable news stations to watch this rally at noon eastern time. After watching the rally, I hope you'll visit my website to financially support our ticket as we head into next week's Republican Convention. Thank you.


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

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2008 Elections John Mccain R-ariz. Sarah Palin