The road to the White House runs through…Carson?

Two very unusual things happened in Carson on Saturday.

A female, Republican vice-presidential candidate held a free rally in Southern California.

And, it rained.

Leaving the latter point for the meteorologists of the world - it was the former that consumed my Saturday, as ATVN’s Kate Cagle and I traveled to cover a rally featuring Gov. Sarah Palin (R-AK) at the ADT Tennis Stadium of the Home Depot Center.

The turnout was certainly overwhelming. Configured to hold about 10,000 people, the stadium was filled to capacity by the time Gov. Palin arrived, and according to the campaign, an overflow area had to be opened up to handle the demand. Most I polled seemed to come from Orange County and points South. Some came down from Los Angeles. And others - from destinations even farther than that.  In fact, I met one woman who is such a big fan of Sarah Palin, she came all the way from Alaska to see the Governor of her own state.

We heard a number of the same lines we always hear from each of Gov. Palin’s stump speeches and rallies - but that goes for any political candidate. She was also a politically typical 30 minutes late.

The protestors were there too - a handful inside the gates of the Home Depot Center, but most lining the streets outside. Accompanying those beyond the gates, a huge, lighted sign paid for by the California Democratic Party, lodging various points of complaint with the McCain/Palin ticket..

And then, of course, there was the private plane - flying around the stadium while towing a banner behind it that touted an opposition to Proposition 4, recently dubbed “Sarah’s Law.” (For those who don’t know - that’s the 48-hour holding and parental notification period for minors seeking an abortion).

It all seemed to add up to your typical political rally. Except - in politics, nothing is really typical. A number of things about this rally struck me as odd or interesting throughout the day. So much so, in fact, I made a bit of a diary along the way. You’ll find it below, for your viewing pleasure...(all times approximate).

8:00am - Arrival: So the satellite and microwave trucks get to park right next to the entrance, but the rest of the media has to go to the distant lot with the general crowd? I guess I’ll be getting my exercise hauling camera equipment today.

8:15am: Home Depot Center security lady says “only the TV guys running cable and bringing equipment can go in right now. You can’t.” Uhhh, lady, don’t you see the equipment in our hands? Luckily, McCain staffer is close by to talk some sense into her. Nice of him to help us out considering we’re students.

8:30am: For some reason - the campaign is blasting some pretty hard and heavy music over the stadium loudspeakers. New campaign theme, or did the workers just want a change of pace? I guess we’ll see.

8:45am: We’ve pre-set our equipment, and we have a great spot. All of the equipment is covered in case it rains, and now, well, we have to leave. The Secret Service has to do their security sweep. Unfortunately, the McCain camp has picked a venue with no morning-ish food nearby, so it’s back in the car and off for some cheap breakfast!

9:30am: Back from breakfast, and the line is growing noticeably. There are probably about 500 people here already, and the gates don’t open for another two hours. The Secret Service is starting to put up signs letting people know what they can’t bring in. One item of note: umbrellas. That’s going to go over well when the rain clouds open up. But before they do - time for some interviews!

10:15am: We’ve done a number of interviews now, and found a surprisingly diverse group of people: A proud Republican Latina, a former Clinton supporter and life-long Democrat turned McCain/Palin fan, even a guy with a USC hat, who plans to make it back to the game later. More power to him. We also found a group of OC college students - one carrying a book containing what looked like all the works of Plato in a single bound copy. “Oh, it’s just homework,” she says.  Riiiight.

10:30am: We were just stopped by a disabled veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who was extremely upset - and seemed to have a very reasonable complaint. He wondered why - with so many parking spots available right next to the venue - even people with disabilities were being forced to walk from a remote parking lot. This is, after all, the campaign of the candidate who fought in a war, was taken prisoner, and still suffers lingering effects of his treatment in Hanoi. Seems like something the McCain campaign should have thought of, considering their base. (As we were talking to this gentleman, a man with an artificial leg passed us by - another wounded warrior).

11:00am: Here come the protestors! A group of about 20 Obama supporters has engaged what now seems like about 2,000 McCain supporters in a heck of a debate. Meanwhile, out on the street, another group of protestors has begun heckling drivers. And a few of the drivers have responded back - with a particular hand gesture I’ll leave to your imagination.

11:30am: Doors open for the people and the press. It’s a slow and painful process. Oddly, just as was the case for the Democratic National Convention in Denver, the TSA is assisting the Secret Service with security screening. I half expect to hear a flight announcement. Kate and I enter through a press entrance, and are searched and wanded before being allowed in. A much shorter line...but explain to me why they let us put our metal objects back on and into our pockets, before getting wanded? Counter-productive, if you ask me.

11:45am: We’re back on the press riser now, and the crowd is filing in. The music is decidedly more “normal” for a Republican rally. As I sit here for a couple of hours waiting for the event to start, I realize that despite the crowd, and the likely message that McCain/Palin can win California, there’s really no chance of that. This rally is being held for money. Bring people in for free - and hopefully they will be “rallied” to donate. California is, after all, a cash cow in politics.

1:30pm: The McCain campaign touts the capacity crowd as the event begins with a number of local elected officials expressing their support for McCain. The crowd is told the event will be (oddly) held in three parts, the first of which will include local officials, the second a Hollywood celebrity, and the third, the Governor and vice-presidential candidate. Intermissions at a political rally? That doesn’t seem very exciting, but we’ll see if they pull it off.

2:00pm: Part two now - and it’s none other than Jon Voight, who came to USC not too long ago. He goes on for much longer than the campaign anticipates (indicated by the staffer giving him the wrap signal a number of times). At the end of his speech, he goes after the media, saying we should all just “get out of here.” The crowd turns and boos us. Really? Before the headline speech gets broadcast to millions of people, Jon? I can think of a few different ways to spend my Saturday. Most of my professional colleagues get paid whether there’s a rally or not. If you really want us all to leave.....

2:30pm: No Sarah Palin yet - and it seems, no back-up plan for music. The Governor is late, and so they play...easy listening jazz? The crowd is falling asleep here!

2:45pm: The crowd is chanting “Sarah, Sarah, Sarah...” The Governor landed in Long Beach over three hours ago. Traffic couldn’t have been that bad.

3:00pm: Half an hour late, but here comes the Governor, along with a leader from NOW, the National Organization for Women. The NOW rep gives a rather boring speech about being a life-long Democrat, but supporting Palin. The crowd isn’t quite sure how to respond...it’s half boos, half cheers.

3:05pm: The Governor speaks!

3:15pm: Zing! It seems the Governor came to play. In one thought, she attacked critics of her interview with Katie Couric, went after those who said she didn’t read newspapers, and attacked Sen. Obama for what the New York Times published about his alleged connections to “domestic terrorist” William Ayers. The crowd erupts - and it seems the 30-days leading up to the election will be fun to watch.

3:20pm: It’s raining! We, like all of the TV crews in attendance, scramble to cover our equipment with rain gear (which for us means plastic grocery bags...hey, we’re in college folks), while the Governor jokes “I guess you want me to hurry up if it’s rainin’.” The crowd feels otherwise.

3:30pm: The rain stops, the speech concludes, the crowd reacts wildly, and the Governor spends about 30 minutes walking the crowd, signing autographs, and waving. Brooks and Dunn’s “Only in America” blares over the loudspeakers. She spends quite a long time with the crowd, it seems, compared to other political rallies. It’s obvious the Secret Service agents around her are getting a bit tired of it.

4:00pm - Departure: We pack up and head out. And just as we get into the parking lot - a downpour! People start to scramble for their vehicles, as I pull out my “well, since you’re the media, you can go ahead and carry it” umbrella. Looks of jealousy come from all directions, as Kate and I remain mostly dry. It’s quite a crowd heading for the 91 Freeway. But major kudos to the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department. Some of the best traffic control I’ve seen leaving a major event. It could have taken much longer.

Thanks for reading - and for highlights of the event and the Governor’s speech, be sure to check out my story here at the politics section of ATVN.org! It should be up in the next couple of days…

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