Why McCain picked Palin

last updated 8 January 2015

John McCain tapped first-term Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to be his running mate on Friday, said Chris Cillizza in The Washington Post’s The Fix blog, and his “surprise pick” is “sure to shake up the race.” Palin, who was the mayor of a small town just two years ago, is “totally unknown and untested on the national stage,” but she has impressive credentials that should reinforce McCain’s image as a reformer.

They say the selection of a vice presidential candidate is a nominee’s first big test, said Steve Benen in Washington Monthly’s Political Animal blog. “If that's the case, John McCain would apparently be a very odd president.” McCain’s central theme is that Obama isn’t experienced enough to be commander-in-chief, but in that department, Palin is “in a league of her own.”