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High Expectations For McCain's RNC Speech

ST. PAUL (CBS) ― Thursday's the big night for Republican John McCain as he prepares to deliver his acceptance speech as his party's presidential nominee.

He's got big shoes to fill. His vice presidential pick, Sarah Palin, captured a whopping 37 million viewers Wednesday night, just 1 million shy of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama's speech last week.

CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery reports the stage at the Republican National Convention in the Xcel Center in St. Paul, Minn., has been reconfigured for Thursday night's culminating speech by McCain. It will allow the nominee to move out among the delegates, just as he did during dozens of town hall-style meetings earlier in this campaign.

"The town hall is his venue," U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood said. "When he was down and out, he went to New Hampshire and had a hundred town halls and… that was his comeback, after that. So, I think it will be a good format."

"You know, he kinda does things in a folksy way and people aren't going to expect, I don't think – or shouldn't expect – this great, the speech of all time," said Illinois House Republican leader Tom Cross.

Veteran Illinois Republicans expect McCain to offer specific details Thursday evening about his plans for America.

Former Gov. Jim Thompson said he expected McCain to focus on, "the areas important to America's voters – the economy, jobs, taxes, energy and how we leave Iraq with honor."

"If he hits those high points, and then distinguishes himself from Barack Obama and Joe Biden on those same issues, he'll win," Thompson added.

"I think he will speak from his heart, because he has a very caring heart and that was very evident this week when he focused the delegates in the convention on helping others," said McCain delegate Margaret McSweeney.

And the Illinois delegation is still buzzing about Palin's Wednesday night speech.

"There was a lot of people that really like her," said state Sen. Dan Cronin. "A lot of people feel the media's treated her unfairly. These people are in the independent voting group that… is the jump ball in this election. This is a very close election, the independent voters, the suburban voters, the moms, those are going to be the people that are going to determine the outcome of this election."

"Their attacking her, also, is a double standard, because they would not attack men for the same issues that they're attacking her," said Rep. Sydney Mathias of Buffalo Grove. "We are in the age of equality and everyone should have the right to progress and do whatever their talents bring them to, and she certainly did show last night that she does have the talent to be our next vice president."

The delegates CBS 2 spoke with really liked the talent she displayed in attacking the news media, a message that resonated with many of the Illinoisans at the RNC.

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)

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