Updated FAIRFAX CITY, Va. — Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska may have hijacked Senator John McCain’s presidential campaign, but Mr. McCain is acting more and more like the happy captive. And why not? Probably the biggest crowd of his 2008 campaign turned out this morning at Van Dyke Park in northern Virginia, chanting “Sarah, Sarah, Sarah!’’
The Fairfax City fire marshal this afternoon estimated the crowd at 15,000, their numbers clearly evident as they covered the grassy hillsides and spilled down to a large outdoor stage. “I am so grateful for this turnout!’’ shouted Mr. McCain, who attracted crowds in the low hundreds before he selected Ms. Palin as his running mate.
Both candidates stuck to their stump speeches, and then worked the crowd, Mr. McCain in a dark suit and tie, Ms. Palin in a black suit with ruby red, patent leather heels at least three inches high.
Afterward they headed to Dulles Airport and boarded separate campaign planes, parked side by side on the tarmac. Ms. Palin was headed for a homecoming in Alaska, more than 10 hours away. Mr. McCain was headed for an economic forum at the Down Home Diner in Philadelphia, in front of his first post-Palin crowd since the conclusion of the Republican National Convention.
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