McCain 'doesn't run with the herd,' Palin says

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Monday described her running mate as "the only man in this race who's got what it takes to lead our country."

LEE'S SUMMIT, MO (MCT) - In a campaign stop in the battleground state of Missouri, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin on Monday described her running mate as "the only man in this race who's got what it takes to lead our country."

And later she said of John McCain, "he doesn't run with the herd."

In her short stump speech, Palin recited a litany of her own achievements in Alaska that have already becoming familiar fare to many Americans.

For instance, she once again described her decision to reject federal money to build the infamous "bridge to nowhere" because she said if her state wanted the bridge it would build it itself. It has been widely reported, however, that she first championed the project and kept the federal appropriation for Alaska even after the bridge idea died.

Palin's speech was interrupted numerous times by chants of "Sarah, Sarah, Sarah" and "John McCain, John McCain."

When McCain got his chance, he stressed the importance of Republicans winning Missouri in November."We must win this state, and we will to win the presidency of the United States," he said.

He described himself as a maverick, adding "now we have a team of mavericks. We understand that who we work for. We're going to work for you and we're going to drain the swamp in Washington, D.C., and take on the special interests. And we're going to reform the government."

He criticized Obama for decrying earmarks while seeking nearly $1 billion in those special appropriations.

"It's remarkable," McCain said.

He also knocked his Democratic rival for once saying that he had helped his country by increasing defense spending. But another time, McCain complained, Obama had claimed he had cut tens of billions of dollars in defense spending.

McCain also cited an ad campaign by the liberal group MoveOn.org that portrayed Gen. David Petraeus, then commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, as "General Betray Us." McCain claimed that Obama refused to vote on a Senate resolution to condemn that ad.

McCain told the crowd that "you may not always agree with me, but you will always know exactly where I stand."

© 2008, The Kansas City Star.