DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, who made history as the first woman to win the Republican vice presidential nomination in 2008, told the inaugural "Tea Party" convention Saturday night her party would be "really smart" to "absorb" the fiscally conservative principles of their movement.
In the keynote address, and in an question-and-answer session afterward, Palin complimented the movement but warned it needed to avoid the pitfalls of political compromise. Claiming Republican Scott Brown's victory in the Massachusetts special election for Edward Kennedy's old seat was a sign of a new revolution, she denounced "phony" bipartisanship, particularly as exemplified by President Barack Obama's invitation to Republicans in Congress to work with him on the health-care overhaul bill, which she described as the "government takeover" of private-sector healthcare.
She also denounced the administration's handling of the attempted Christmas Day bombing, particularly the decision to read the suspect Umar Abdulmutallab his rights prior to interrogating him, which she described as typical of the type of thinking that "led to Sept. 11."
"We need a commander in chief, not a professor of law," Palin said.
Palin was warmly received by the crowd in Nashville, drawing several standing ovations, particularly when she mentioned the late President Ronald Reagan, who would have turned 99 Saturday; her son Track's service in the United States Army; and references to her youngest child, Trig, who was born with Down syndrome.
Following her speech, master of ceremonies Judson Phillips hosted a question-and-answer session with presubmitted questions for Palin. When asked the most important issues in the 2010 midterm election, she said reining in government spending and jump-starting domestic energy exploration programs.
Copyright 2009 Dow Jones Newswires
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