BBC NEWS | The Reporters

Live from Phoenix

Matthew Price
5 Nov 08, 01:45 AM GMT

2149 MT The price of a "McCain Palin victory '08" T-shirt has dropped from $15 to $2.

2119 Sarah Palin with John McCain on stage now here in Arizona, giving his concession speech. His voice is breaking.

2113 We expect McCain out soon. We're at the main party, a few metres from the stage. I just spoke to John Voigt, the actor and father of Angelina Jolie, who said he's proud of John McCain and hands his congratulations to, as he put it, President Obama.

2048 The party here in Phoenix is under way, and the drinks are flowing. The floor is full, and people are pushing through, trying to find where the real fun is being had. There's a good atmosphere, but I can't find any sense of fun. There's been some country music of course, and most people have dressed up in their finest evening wear. Some though are filtering away. There are still many thousands here, but they know they are on the losing side.

I just chatted to a senior Republican here who said that while the figures are not all in yet, the "trend" is clear. She said however that there is no way McCain will lose Arizona. One speaker on stage said he doesn't give up until all the votes are in, for which he received a huge cheer, but it sounded pretty hollow.

1958 There are some young Republicans talking about 2012. They have read the writing on the wall. One network says McCain and Palin are meeting at the moment. That would be fun to see.

1940 I'm told that John McCain is just arriving here at the swishy resort where he's going to hold what one local newspaper said would be a BBQ party. When will he make his speech? Sooner rather than later I expect.

1845 More and more people are arriving at this election party for John McCain. I just bumped into a senior Republican official from Arizona who says the figures "are not looking good". She said we may well know the general thread of this election in an hour and a half, "or if it's really bad" even earlier.

1821 The bar at what I'm calling the C-list Republican party here in Phoenix is doing a roaring trade. The Phoenix boys' choir is on stage singing rather nicely. But apart from a small TV monitor there's no screen showing the projected results.

1756 John McCain has arrived back in Phoenix and is on his way - we hear - to this party. He chatted to reporters on his plane as he flew in. He's relaxed.

Comments

1. At 04:19am on 05 Nov 2008, Sankari wrote:
Well, that's it; McCain is yesterday's man. A mere irrelevance now.

Palin's people had better start getting ready for her 2012 run.

Congratulations Obama.

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2. At 05:02am on 05 Nov 2008, paul939 wrote:
An Obama win is predicted. Finally. WE may have some peace after all.

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3. At 05:04am on 05 Nov 2008, kbwong wrote:
Listening to McCain's concession speech off the BBC live feed, I was struck by two things.

One, McCain was extremely gracious and also prescient in that he conceded the race with words of reconciliation and with promises to work with his new President, who he knows is going to have a tough time of it — I was impressed with McCain's speech and demeanor. This was again the man who, up until he chose Sarah Palin as a running mate, I wouldn't have minded having as a president. He quickly became not that man, with Palin leading the baying packs of racists, bigots, and ignorant people. He seems to be finding his way back again. Good.

Two, it must have been extremely hard for McCain to have to plead with his own followers who helped him lose this race among the more moderate and left-leaning voters to quit being racist, bitter, and refusing to work with each other for the good of the country. Whatever else McCain is, I don't believe he's actually racist, or if he is, he works hard not to be, and it must be horrible to realize that it was the spectacle of those among his camp who were racist, bigoted and ignorant that drove less crippled voters away from his campaign.

I'd love to say that I feel sorry for these kinds of people, but unfortunately one hasn't the luxury, as they tend to make way too much trouble and cause far too much pain to other human beings to let them run amok as they'd like.

Those of us who knew George W. Bush would be a disaster had to put up with his election (no matter how squirrely they seemed), knowing that at least we only had 8 years to suffer. We now see the end result of putting someone like Bush in the Oval Office. We still had to work with our fellow Americans who thought Bush was just dandy, for the good of ourselves, themselves, and the rest of us Americans. Now it's the turn of those who didn't vote for Obama to do the same.

And, oh please someone, figure out a way to keep Sarah Palin out of politics forever.

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4. At 05:12am on 05 Nov 2008, Jordan D wrote:
McCain's speech was fantastic. Absoultely brilliant and a credit to the man.

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5. At 07:32am on 05 Nov 2008, Merthyrmiddleeast wrote:
The speech was excellent. I especially liked the way he dealt with the banjo hecklers.

Concur on the Sarah Palin comment made in #3 and wonder if #1 is at all serious.

The republicans will need to find someone with at least half a brain to fight Obama in 2012. My money's on Bobby Jindal.

Now that would be an interesting contest.

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6. At 08:51am on 05 Nov 2008, Sankari wrote:
Post #5; Merthyrmiddleeast wrote: "Concur on the Sarah Palin comment made in #3 and wonder if #1 is at all serious".

Half serious. I don't want that woman anywhere near the White House, and I certainly don't think she should be running in anything more sophisticated than a village cake-baking competition.

But I believe she is ambitious, and she does have a rudimentary support base.

Regardless of what the larger Republican party wants, she may decide to launch a presidential bid in 4 years' time. There have been some mutterings on this subject over the past week or so.

All I can say is, thank goodness Obama won - and won convincingly. McCain hasn't just been defeated; he's been utterly crushed. Can anyone remember when a presidential candidate was so overwhelmingly destroyed in the polls? I'd be interested to know.

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7. At 2:26pm on 05 Nov 2008, vcm1967a wrote:
Sankari wrote in Post #6...

"But I believe she (Sarah Palin) is ambitious, and she does have a rudimentary support base."

She is... and she does. Never mind the fact that she is an attractive woman. Even I will not deny this.

Never mind that she allegedly abused executive power as Governor of Alaska for personal gain.

Never mind that the "great unwashed" in this country will continue to run those aforementioned bake sales and gush "Golly! She's just like me!"

To this, I would tell those people...

"No. She's not like you. Far from it. She is a woman who wears clothes that cost as much as you make in a month... that is, if you have not lost your job by now.

She is a woman who is very aware of the power she has, and is not afraid to use it against you or your loved ones to get what she wants.

She is a woman who uses religion as a tactic to scare you into adopting her ideals."

No, actually, instead of telling them, I think I would grab them by the shoulders, shake them a bit, then yell in their faces. Maybe they would get it... maybe not. but then, you can't save everyone... even if you try.

Oh!! In answer to your query. Walter Mondale had his butt handed to him in the 1984 election. Although he did well in the popular vote, he only carried 10 electoral votes to Ronald Reagan's 525 electoral votes.

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8. At 09:03am on 06 Nov 2008, Sankari wrote:
Post #7; vcm1967a wrote: "She is... and she does. Never mind the fact that she is an attractive woman. Even I will not deny this.

Never mind that she allegedly abused executive power as Governor of Alaska for personal gain.

Never mind that the "great unwashed" in this country will continue to run those aforementioned bake sales and gush "Golly! She's just like me!"

To this, I would tell those people...

"No. She's not like you. Far from it. She is a woman who wears clothes that cost as much as you make in a month... that is, if you have not lost your job by now.

She is a woman who is very aware of the power she has, and is not afraid to use it against you or your loved ones to get what she wants.

She is a woman who uses religion as a tactic to scare you into adopting her ideals."

No, actually, instead of telling them, I think I would grab them by the shoulders, shake them a bit, then yell in their faces. Maybe they would get it... maybe not. but then, you can't save everyone... even if you try".

Very well said. Couldn't have put it better myself!

"Oh!! In answer to your query. Walter Mondale had his butt handed to him in the 1984 election. Although he did well in the popular vote, he only carried 10 electoral votes to Ronald Reagan's 525 electoral votes".

Thanks. :)

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