ST. PAUL — Carolyn Dunn, a farmer’s wife from St. John, said she will no longer speak tonight at the Republican National Convention. It was a convention decision, and she said it’s unclear whether her four minute speech will find a place in the final two days of activities here. Read More
EDINA, Minn. — He’s a jokester. He’s a politician. And he’s the guy so many people remember for his propensity to speak of himself in the third person.
He’s Bob Dole. And Wednesday afternoon he’ll be The Man at the “A Tribute to Bob Dole” in the swanky Westin Grand Ballroom. Former Sen. Fred Thompson, fresh off his prime time speech Tuesday, will be there — as will delegates from Kansas and Missouri. Some have rumored that other hot names will show up to honor the former presidential candidate. Read More
ST. PAUL — Sen. Sam Brownback said today he will no longer nominate Gov. Sarah Palin as vice president — someone else will. Brownback said it’s not clear why convention officials called him to cancel. But he speculated that his policy stances may be too similar to Palin’s and that the party wants someone from the other side of the Republican spectrum to pitch her to the national audience. “Things have been a bit up in the air,” he said.
But the Kansas senator still plans to address the National Republican Convention here just a few spots back from Sen. John McCain’s speech, a move seen by some as free publicity for a potential gubernatorial run and by others as a reward for quickly endorsing McCain after he dropped out of the presidential race nearly a year ago.
In an interview on the back of a golf cart zipping through security gates en route to a Fox News interview, Brownback also said recent news about Palin’s daughter being pregnant and an on-going investigation regarding her dismissing of Alaska’s public safety commissioner only make her stronger. Read More
EDINA, Minn. — Kansas Republican delegates will vote unanimously to nominate Sen. John McCain for president, a move that comes despite Mike Huckabee’s clear victory in the Kansas caucuses. When Kris Kobach, Kansas Republican Party chairman, asked whether anyone wanted to go with former Arkansas Gov. Huckabee at a breakfast today, the only sound was that of forks clanking on plates.
State party rules would otherwise require delegates’ first-round nominating votes to reflect how their caucus voted, which in most cases would be for Huckabee. In the second round, if needed, they could change their vote. But it appears that’s no longer a possibility.