Amidst fears of Hurricane Gustav hitting the Louisiana coastline – a region that continues to be affected by Hurricane Katrina – McCain postponed all program activities beyond official business that had to be conducted in accordance with party rules and United States law on Monday. The party originally feared the cancellation of several events prior to the start of the convention; however, when the hurricane was downgraded from a category four storm to a category two, party officials decided to move on with the convention as previously scheduled.

Chris Callaghan of Waterford, one of McCain’s pledged delegates and a member of the rules committee, is currently attending the convention in St. Paul. He said although the hurricane turned out to be less an event than everyone had originally feared, it was good that everyone including the party took the storm seriously.

“It was appropriate for us not to pretend that nothing was going on when we were facing a tragedy, but you also have to remember that we held a presidential election during the civil war – Democracy has to continue and there is business that is required by law and we took care of that on Monday,” he said.

Speaking from St. Paul, Wednesday, Callaghan said the atmosphere at the convention up to that point had been very good.

“We are having a wonderful time,” he said. “It is an exciting process to participate in and St. Paul is a great city.”

Callaghan said unlike the Democratic convention, the Republicans didn’t need to help explain to voters who John McCain is and whether or not he is ready to lead America – a point that Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson made in his speech Tuesday night although his main duty was to retell the story of John McCain’s life.

“He has a great life story and he is a true American hero not just because of his service in Vietnam, but also his experience in the United States Senate,” Callaghan said. “If you look up leader in the dictionary you will see John McCain’s face.”

Other locals attending the convention include Callaghan’s wife Liz, who is serving as an alternate delegate, Waterford Mayor J. Bert Mahoney, Fred Acunto and Jeff Cleary.

What might have been the most important revelation during the convention was the introduction of Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin as McCain’s choice for Vice President. Palin is the first female Vice Presidential nominee in the history of the Republican Party and the second in American history – Democrat Geraldine Ferraro became the first in 1984.

McCain announced his decision Friday, Aug. 29 – a day after the Democrats finished their own nominating process. Since then, Palin has faced fierce attacks from media outlets over the pregnancy of her 17-year-old daughter and a current investigation over her abuse of power as Governor – an incident that stems from the firing of her Commissioner of Public Safety Walt Monegan in July 2008. Monegan has stated he was let go due to his failure to fire Palin’s ex-brother-in-law who was in his command. Still, Republicans are standing behind their nominee.

“She has a great background in reform and she will be new to Washington and that is what people are talking about. We need some new people in there to look at things in ways that will bring us together as a nation and stand strong against terrorism and other threats to our country,” Saratoga County Republican Committee chairman John “Jasper” Nolan said.

Nolan said he also didn’t think the attacks from the media would have a lasting effect on the McCain/Palin ticket, and that she could potentially take some of the Hillary Clinton voters who were disheartened by the nomination of Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Callaghan also feels Palin will help add to the strength of the Republican ticket.

“I think it is a great choice and she is an exciting woman who brings to the table a very different resume from what we usually see in politics,” he said.

Once the convention is over, Callaghan and Nolan intend to start focusing more on the general election. Nolan said the Saratoga County Republican Committee plans to print up brochures which will be distributed door to door and by mail. The party also intends to hold rallies in each town located in Saratoga County as a way to reach out to local Republicans. The committee also intends to hold a county rally on Sept. 18 at the Saratoga County FairGrounds.

The nominations of both McCain and Palin have now solidified both major party candidates for the Nov. 4 general election. No matter what the outcome, history will be made either with Obama becoming the first African-American president or Palin becoming the first female to hold the Vice Presidential position.