Sarah Palin nails 'folksy' on the trail

by Jill Zuckman

WARREN, Ohio--Whether she's standing in dirt or speaking at a country club, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has folksy nailed.

At the Jefferson County Fairgrounds, inside a barnlike structure for showing horses, the floor is deep with dirt. Palin addresses the several thousand voters who have come to see her as "guys and gals." She tells them there needs to be some "shakin' and fixin' " when it comes to Washington and the financial markets. And when she refers to Sen. John McCain, she says, "I'm going to brag him up a little bit."

Later in the day, at the Brookside Country Club in Canton, Palin highlights the alleged similarities between Ohio and Alaska. She boasts that she's approved the shooting of wolves from helicopters, just as Ohioans kill coyotes even though it's "politically incorrect."

"It's a pretty darn controversial thing up in Alaska, but you've gotta do what you've gotta do," she declares as donors nosh on crab claws and potato-wrapped shrimp.

McCain shocked the political establishment when he tapped Palin to become his running mate 21/2 weeks ago. She has been the object of intense curiosity and passion since then, rejuvenating the Republican ticket and becoming a pop culture icon as "Saturday Night Live" produced a dead-on parody and a Sarah Palin action figure hit the market.

On the campaign trail this week for the first time without McCain, Palin's down-to-earth persona has generated wild enthusiasm and boosted McCain in the polls. But it remains to be seen whether swing voters will interpret that persona as showing a lack of sophistication and seasoning at a time when Wall Street is in crisis and the nation is at war.

Campaign officials continue to keep Palin relatively cloistered as she delivers her stump speech to friendly audiences. She will hold joint town hall meetings with McCain beginning Wednesday night in Michigan and will sit down for a conversation with Fox News' Sean Hannity. She also plans to grant an interview soon to CBS' Katie Couric and possibly appear on a Sunday morning news show

So far, Palin has held just two rallies and one fundraiser without McCain. She rejoined him for a rally Tuesday in Vienna, Ohio, and they plan to connect again in Michigan, Iowa and Wisconsin this week. Campaign officials won't confirm whether they will maintain separate, joint or intersecting schedules for the remainder of the race.

On the campaign trail, Palin is slowly revealing a little more about herself with a new stump speech, and she continues to present herself as a homespun antidote to the political establishment.

"It's no secret that I'm not part of that Washington elite," she said during an appearance in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. "You probably got a little hint of that readin' stories in the press lately."

There's no mention of lipstick or of Obama--just a single reference to "our opponents." She calls her husband "blue-collar" and expresses sympathy for voters' economic pain, a message that may resonate more coming from her than from the wealthy McCains.

"My husband Todd and I, we have a commercial fishing operation," Palin said in Golden, Colo. "My sister, she just opened a service station. Todd's folks, they own a hardware store. We've all built small businesses and worked hard to earn a living. We know the struggles out there."

Despite unveiling a new speech, Palin still includes references to things that non-partisan fact-check groups have said are wrong. She tells voters she rejected the infamous "bridge to nowhere," thought she initially supported it. She says that as governor she oversees nearly 20 percent of the domestic supply of oil and gas, when Alaska produces less than 10 percent.

Palin also described her portfolio if she is "blessed" to be elected vice president: She will concentrate on energy, government reform and helping families with special-needs children.

Regardless of the questions surrounding Palin, conservatives say they could not be happier.

In Colorado, Chenoa Jensen, a mother of four and candidate for school board, said she is excited to vote for McCain now that Palin is on the ticket.

"She seems to be a genuine human," Jensen said. "I think McCain has given a great gift to families and conservatives in the nation."