McCain - Palin Colorado Springs Rally

Senator McCain and Governor Palin greeted more than 12,000 onlookers today inside a hanger at the Colorado Springs Airport. Many of the overflow crowd had to stand outside the hanger in the warm sunlight. The crowd stood for nearly two and a half hours while they waited for the guests of honor to arrive.

With many of Colorado's local politicians in attendance, the crowd was clearly there to see McCain and Palin. As the motorcade arrived several thousand American flags waved in the air to greet the Senator and his running mate.

At times, it seemed the louder reception was for Governor Palin, obviously a crowd favorite after just a very short time on the GOP ticket. Senator McCain was joined by his wife Cindy Governor Palin on stage. First to speak was Governor Palin. At times, her speech was interrupted with extended applause from the audience. Once Palin completed her speech she introduced John McCain who was greeted with chants of USA, USA and a very happy flag waving crowd.

Both McCain and Palin repeated most of their respective speeches presented at the GOP convention. While many of their words were now well known, the crowed reacted with delight at hearing them in person. Toward the end of his speech, Senator McCain took a pen from his pocket and held it firmly in his hand as he took on a much more animated look than normal, promising the GOP ticket would deliver once elected to the White House.

Organizers of the rally did not allow homemade signs to be brought into the rally. However, once inside, many members of the audience were provided with "homemade signs" with pre-determined slogans. For a party that wants to hear the voice of the people, they seem to want to ensure they had some control over what the media saw at today's rally.

Once McCain finished his speech, both he and Palin came down from the podium and to the delight of the crowd, spent several minutes shaking hands and greeting their cheering fans. Shortly thereafter, they departed on the "McCain Straight Talk Express" jet for New Mexico for a late afternoon rally.

Photography and story by Jeff Smith