Alaska Governor Sarah Palin As John McCain's Runningmate: What's Her Experience?

John McCain rolled the dice. He picked Sarah Palin as his runningmate. But wait, Who is Sarah Palin?

She is the governor of Alaska who has been in office for a year and a half. Nobody knows much about her. 98 % of the country does not know her. How can they vote for her? What has John McCain been thinking?

This must be a calculated risk by the camp of John McCain to get those disatisfied by the loss of Hillary Clinton. John wants to go after the voters who would have voted for Hillary Clinton.

Any way, Sarah Palin is the new face on the Republican ticket.

Thus far, Hillary undecided may have a new shot at supporting a woman. That is what John McCain wants to see. But Sarah Palin does not have a lot of experience in office. Before being governor, she was serving in a small town where she raised taxes. How can she stand up to argue with veteran foreign policy maker, Joe Biden? Sarah has a lot to crunch in order to be ready for the task.

Content of the Indictment Against Longest Running Senator Ted Stevens

A federal grand jury in the District accused Stevens of concealing on financial disclosure statements lucrative gifts from the now-defunct oil company Veco and its top executives, including a Viking gas grill, a tool cabinet and a wraparound deck. At one point, Veco employees and contractors jacked up the senator's mountainside house on stilts and added a new first floor, with two bedrooms and a bathroom, the indictment says.

The senator, who once oversaw more than $900 billion in federal spending each year as chairman of the Appropriations Committee, said he has "temporarily relinquished" his senior posts on several committees, in accordance with Senate rules, while he focuses on the legal battle ahead.

Stevens, 84, the first sitting U.S. senator to face criminal charges in 15 years, adamantly denied the allegations in a statement yesterday afternoon.

"I have never knowingly submitted a false disclosure form required by law as a U.S. senator," said Stevens, whose more than five decades of public service date to the missions he flew for the Army Air Corps during World War II. "The impact of these charges on my family disturbs me greatly. I am innocent of these charges and intend to prove that."

Political Earthquake: Quake Shakes L.A.; Indictment Shakes Washington D.C and Alaska Senator Ted Stevens

On a day when parts of Los Angeles were rattled by a 5.3 earthquake, Alaska Senator Ted Stevens was rattled by an indictment against him. He has been charge with taking large gifts from a builder who renovated his home. He was the architect or the senator who brought so much money to Alaska for the "Bridge to Nowhere." Ted Stevens has been the longest running senator in Alaska. He has been an honorable man until these charges. He is being accused of accepting $100,000 in gifts while he claimed that he paid for all the work on his house.

It seems that some of the Senator's moves were a way to pay back his good friend, Bill allen who headed VECO.

"t is VECO that is at the heart of the Stevens indictment handed down Tuesday, and prosecutors outlined hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial favors VECO allegedly did for Stevens.

What was less clear was what Stevens did for VECO, though the indictment mentions -- without elaboration -- that VECO asked for his help with projects in Pakistan and Russia, among other favors."

In addition to doing extensive remodeling on Stevens' home, VECO has paid his son, Ben, at least $364,000 in lobbying and consulting fees since 1996.

Ben Stevens, who was an Alaska state senator until last year, has also been ensnared in the VECO scandal but has not been charged.

Reactions from other writers and bloggers keep surfacing:

"Rich Lowry, the editor of National Review, thinks the news provides John McCain with a campaign opportunity. Lowry writes at The Corner, his magazine’s staff blog: “McCain should absolutely unload on Stevens, and frame it as the sort of dysfunction and corruption in Congress that he has long railed against. A good way to get some indie cred without upsetting any conservatives.”

-Patrick Ruffini, a Republican Internet strategist, writes at The Next Right: “At a minimum, Stevens must abandon his re-election campaign if not resign. Let’s not act like Democrats, who shield their William Jeffersons. But who to replace him?”

-Erick Erickson of the conservative community site RedState agrees that Stevens should step down. He writes: “While people are innocent until proven guilty, we know enough facts to suggest Mr. Stevens is going to be looking for a deal. And the voters of Alaska, committed to reform, are going to throw him out of office. This is one seat that should stay in Republican hands. It will not, however, if Ted Stevens decides to hang on. For the longest time Ted Stevens has done all things for the good of Ted Stevens. Now is the time for him to fall on his sword and take one for the GOP team.”