we always knew you would.
it is a relief to have it "official".

on a different note, I sure miss you & yours!

ditto congratulations.

Regarding the Palin buzz--
True that typically a VP never sits in office during those 4-8 years, although it certainly has happened, and some of those who really dislike her are concerned that McCain seems less likely to last that many. My dad has said from the beginning that McCain will never last 4 years. He feels his health is questionable. I, myself, am not so persuaded.

But, that being said, it is possible.

The benefit to the sitting VP is the high probability of being nominated following the successful term of your president. It is very common for the VP to be the next nominated candidate for that party. That would be Sarah Palin in this case. McCain himself has gone on record as saying that his reason for giving her a nod as opposed to an "insider" was to usher in a new generation of Republicans. He certainly has done that!

And although she may not have direct influence, I think her presence and popularity may. And on top of that, her nomination automatically brought the important issue of federally supported abortion on demand front and center once again, after being pushed to the back burner for quite some time. It is a hot issue once more. The recent financial disaster has brought economics back to the center, but I think her presence and her life story will continue to keep pro-life rhetoric in the lime light.

And McCain has a 100% pro-life voting record; this is not a new posture for him. But he doesn't talk about it as a primary concern. In my opinion, he was the only acceptable candidate before, but I really was not excited. He is not a man of great character as far as I can tell, but with a running mate like Palin, I can be excited. It moves her into a position for future impact.