AP Photo-Latrobe, PA

LATROBE, PA –Sarah Palin is doing a bus tour of Pennsylvania today making her first stop here before heading east across this must-win state that the GOP ticket is trailing in.

Although Election Day is only 4 days away it is still Halloween for the Palin kids and the Alaska governor introduced her family at this rally in an airplane hanger, “I’m happy to have up here also Piper and it’s Halloween so she’s the snow princess today. She’s just been dying to get to wear that costume and Willow and we have Trig with us also.”

7-year-old Piper is decked out in a full snow princess winter white dress with a tiara, and curls—clearly ecstatic to be dressed up for Halloween and by her mother’s side. Palin’s 6 month old son, Trig is outfitted in a very appropriate elephant costume.

Palin acknowledged that we are only four days away from November 4th and she asked the “Casey Democrats,” supporters of the much-loved former Pennsylvania governor Robert Casey who was a pro-life Democrat, to vote for her ticket, “And with your help, and with the help of the good Casey Democrats here in Pennsylvania too, that’s the spirit that John McCain and I will be able to bring to Washington.”

Former Chicago Bears coach and Pennsylvanian, Mike Ditka, introduced Palin and gave a hearty endorsement of the Republican ticket–and the crowd a pep talk.

“I’m not here because I’m a Republican, which I am, and I’m not here because I’m a conservative, which I am. I’m here because I am an American. It’s time in this country you put party lines on the backburner and you put your country first.” Ditka said, “When I was growing up, it was back in 1963. Then John Kennedy became president-he made a statement: ‘ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country.’ Now, it seems to be just the opposite. This is the land of opportunity. It’s not a land of handouts. If you’re willing to work, you can find a job. If you’re willing to work, you can find a job. I want to say how proud I am because I think Sarah Palin epitomizes all the good things, all the good values, of this country. She’s a wife, she’s a mother, she’s a hockey mom, she’s a part-time coach. She was a great leader and is a great leader in the state of Alaska, and she will make a great vice president of the United States, Sarah Palin.”

Damien Lavera, spokesperson for the DNC was quick to respond to Palin’s first stop on her Halloween tour across the Keystone state.

“Two of the least convincing Halloween costumes this year have to be Sarah Palin and John McCain dressing up like champions of the working class.”

AP Photo-Latrobe, PA

AP Photo - Palin With Ridge

ERIE, PA–Former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge introduced Sarah Palin at a rally in his hometown—just days after he said that he would have been a better pick to capture Pennsylvania for the Republicans than Palin.

The crowd was still enthusiastic for the Alaska governor—a crowd of 7,500 coming to see Palin, but it didn’t get off to such a good start when she congratulated the crowd on the Philadelphia Phillies winning the World Series last night, “So glad to be here in your beautiful hometown here in Pennsylvania, and I am thrilled to be here in the home state of the world champion Philadelphia Phillies.”

The crowd booed as Erie is split between fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Cleveland Indians.

She referenced her earlier speech on national security and accused the Democrats in Congress and the “far left” of wanting to cut defense spending.

“It’s the far left leaning Democratic party, not mainstream thinking, but way far left, the Democrat party, they’re preparing to take over the entire federal government, and according to their own stated plans, the first thing to go will be one fourth of the United States defense budget, “ Palin said. “One of the Blue Star moms said, ‘what are we supposed to do, throw a bake sale?’ What are they thinking? John McCain and I have a better idea, lets not retreat from wars we’ve almost won, and lets not gut the defense budget at a time of multiple conflicts and obvious dangers. This is a time where we need to grow our military, and let’s not entrust all the powers of the federal government to a one-party rule of Obama, Pelosi, and Reid.”

She has been warning voters on the stump about the potential “monopoly of power” if Obama is elected.

Palin will continue stumping in  Pennsylvania tomorrow doing a bus tour of the Keystone state. The GOP Vice-Presidential candidate will make stops in Latrobe, Somerset, New Paris, Breezewood, York, and Mechanicsburg hoping to close the polls in this must-win state.

AP

Who knew that Saturday Night Live would become the go-to place for the GOP ticket this year?

John McCain is scheduled to appear on Saturday Night Live this weekend, the second time he has hit the late night comedy show this year.

He last appeared on SNL on May 17 when he participated in two skits–one a faux address to the nation where he touted his being “really, really old” as an important reason to elect him and another on the Weekend Update segment where he called on Democrats to keep the primary race going as long as possible.

Runningmate Gov. Sarah Palin made her own guest appearance on the show two weeks ago.

No details on the nature of the skit this weekend or official comment from the campaign yet.

Actor Ben Affleck, an Obama supporter, will be officially hosting the show.

AP Photo-Erie, PA

ERIE, PA –With just five days before Election Day, Sarah Palin held a roundtable discussion focused on national security with advisers including former Pennsylvania governor Tom Ridge and gave a speech on why the GOP ticket will keep America safer than Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

Palin made the case for her running mate saying that he is the man that can protect the country from terrorism and Obama may be able to fill his events, but he does not have the experience to be president.

“I think in this campaign a lot of Americans are realizing that a man can be admired in many ways, and he can show great promise, and yet still not be ready for the most important and demanding job in the world. Rousing speeches can fill a stadium, but perhaps cannot keep this country safe though. For a season, a man can inspire with his words. But for a lifetime, John McCain has inspired with his heroic and trustworthy deeds.”

She told the crowd made up of College Republicans at Penn State University-Erie and professors that the country used to be able to pick a president according to what priority was greater: domestic issues or national security concerns, but those days are over and they are now intertwined.

“Even if a most immediate concern is economic, our recovery will still depend on leadership that can protect and advance security and our vital interests in the world,” Palin said.

The Alaska governor said it was “understandable” that Americans are more concerned about the economy when they may be losing their jobs, homes, and health insurance, but she warned that the country can not lose “sight of what matters most.”

She said that the outcomes of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq will either keep Americans safer or place the country in greater danger and then went after Obama calling his 30 minute television ad last night an “infomercial” and accused the Democratic nominee of wanting to take the focus off of national security.

“Barack Obama didn’t have much to say in that long infomercial of his last night about the stakes in the wars that America is fighting, or about the need to support the troops in the field, or why he supported cutting off funding for our troops in the war. He prefers it seems to wrap his closing message in a kind of that warm and fuzzy commercial message—that was scripted.” Palin said as she read off of a teleprompter, “He wants to soften the focus in these closing days, hoping that your mind won’t wander to the real challenges of national security that I believe he is incapable of meeting. But in this time for choosing, what we need is clarity! Now more than ever we need clarity. We need an alertness to the dangers that are still in our power to contain.”

AP Photo

MENTOR, OH — McCain may owe his closing argument to Joe “the Plumber” Wurzelbacher so he the man is entitled to a little praise but the GOP nominee was not holding anything back today.

At his early evening rally here in Thursday, McCain called him “an American hero and a great citizen of Ohio and my role model and the man I’m fighting for.”

At an earlier event today in Sandusky, McCain called him “the voice of small business, the voice of America, the voice and the strength and the courage of the United States of America and what the free enterprise system is all about, the hopes and dreams and aspirations.”

Sounds like Presidential Medal of Freedom material…

AP

WILLIAMSPORT, PA — After failing to mention the ongoing World Series during a three day swing through the Tampa Bay Rays’ home state this week, Democratic VP nominee Joe Biden finally gave a shout-out to his favorite baseball team, the Philadelphia Phillies, after their dramatic and controversial championship win last night.

“How about those Phillies?” Biden said as the crowd of 900 cheered wildly in the town that is the spiritual home of Little League Baseball.

While the Delaware Senator’s campaign duties kept him from seeing the big win in person, his wife made it through all of the deciding game 5 - both days of it.

“My wife Jill is from suburban Philadelphia. She is the most rabid Philly fan, most rabid Flyer fan, most rabid – any team in Philadelphia,” Biden said. “I’m on the campaign trail, she says ‘Joe I’m going to the series.’”

“So on Monday night in the rain, hair matted down, sitting outside soaking wet, she sat through the whole deal. And went back, she went back to the game last night and was there. And my, my wonderful wife, who has her doctorate in education, is a school teacher, is, looks like – I mean, you wouldn’t expect her to be a great fan.”

Mrs Biden even took a star turn on sports radio - and even gleaned some campaign advice from watching her beloved Phils. “I hear today, my wife is on WIP this morning on sports talk. And she’s talking about Brad Lidge,” said Biden, referring to the Phillies closer who didn’t blow a save in 48 tries all year. Addressing a nun in the audience, Biden joked “worries me a little, sister.”

“That must have given her an idea because when I called her to say look, she said Joe, you have to do what this campaign needs, what Brad did that night. Lights out tonight. Lights out. Lights out Lidge,” he continued. “Well let me tell you something I’m not going to be able to live up to that, but I tell you what — here we are in Pennsylvania, in a battleground state. And let me tell you this. The truth of the matter is this state is going to make the gigantic difference in who the next President of the United States of America is.”

Biden has professed allegiances to several football teams on the trail — from the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers to the New York Giants and the nearby Philadelphia Eagles. But he’s never backed away from his Phillies, who are now World Champions for the first time in 28 years.

AP

SANDUSKY, OH — After a minor mishap this morning, Joe “the Plumber” Wurzelbacher and John McCain finally found each other for a rally in central Ohio this afternoon.

In addition to leading a “Joe, Joe, Joe” chant, McCain lauded Wurzelbacher as “the straight talker, the voice of small business, the voice of America, the voice and the strength and the courage of the United States of America and what the free enterprise system is all about, the hopes and dreams and aspirations.”

For his part, America’s most famous plumber spoke very briefly and despite campaigning for McCain in recent days, Wurzelbacher spoke in very general terms about the election and offered up less than a ringing endorsement.

“The only thing I have been saying is just get out there and get informed. I mean really know what you are talking about when you are talking about it,” he told more than 6,000 supporters in the central square of Sandusky. “Don’t take everyone’s opinions. I came to my own opinions by research. Get involved in the government. That way we can hold our politicians accountable and take back our government. It is all ours.”

This is the first time the two men have met and comes two weeks after McCain cited Joe’s famous exchange with Obama at the last presidential debate to make the case that his Democratic rival wants to “spread the wealth around.”

UPDATE–5pm ET –McCain and Wurzelbacher took the stage at another rally in Elyria, OH just now where the plumber gave him a much stronger endorsement.

“If you want to vote for a real American, John McCain,” Wurzelbacher told the crowd.

AP Photo-Cape Girardeau, MO

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO– Sarah Palin rallied a crowd of 7,800 inside the events center of Southeast Missouri State University today. Palin asked the Show-Me State for their vote and told the crowd that her ticket’s “Country First” slogan–which is emblazoned on all of the GOP ticket’s signs, posters, and podiums—would be more than a catchphrase.

“So we’re gonna put government back on your side. It will always be country first, and I promise you after that victory on November 4th, those “Country First” posters won’t just be put away in some warehouse, just as some campaign slogan. That’s gonna be printed on every page in the federal employee handbook. Country First,” Palin told the cheering crowd.

Before the GOP Vice-Presidential nominee took the stage, she was introduced by the Republican Senator of this state, Kit Bond who criticized Barack Obama’s judicial philosophy. Bond attempted to accuse Obama of not wanting to appoint straight constitutional judges to the Supreme Court and said that the Democratic nominee wants judges who “show compassion” for minorities, teenage mothers, the disabled, and homosexuals.

“And speaking of fairness, just this past week, we saw what Barack Obama said about judges. He said, ‘I’m tired of these judges who want to swallow what the founding fathers said in the Constitution. I want judges who have a heart, have an empathy for the teenage mom, the minority, the gay, the disabled. We want them to show empathy, we want them to show compassion.’” Bond said, “He thinks this country should be a government, not a government of laws, but a government of compassion and empathy, not of laws.”

Palin’s next event is a national security roundtable in Erie, Pennsylvania where she will review security priorities with various advisers including former Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge. According to Palin aides, she is also expected to stress why the GOP ticket best understands the terrorist threat over Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

SARASOTA, FL - Last night Bill Clinton and Barack Obama held a joint rally - their first ever - in Orlando, where both men reminisced about the glory days: the 1990s.

“When I served you you had more than five times as many jobs as you’re gonna get out of this crowd. You had median family income across all racial lines going up, and now it’s down. We payed down the debt, they doubled the national debt. So don’t tell me about redistribution,” the former president said as the presidential hopeful applauded.

Obama himself, of course, had nice things to say both about Bill Clinton and his eight years in office - even after the bruising primary battle with Hillary Clinton. “When you listen to Bill Clinton, you are reminded
 of what it is like to have president who is engaged, who is passionate
, who is smart, who reaches out, who is inclusive instead of divisive
, who has energy, who has vision - and you start getting kind of
 nostalgic about 22 million new jobs and a budget surplus and an economy 
that is working for everybody,” the new party leader said glowingly. “It is time for the kind of
 peace and prosperity that we saw in the 1990s,” he added.

Bill Clinton remains wildly popular among Democratic voters, and Barack Obama has begun to compare his economic policies to those of the former president, while continuing to link John McCain’s plans to those of George Bush’s.

“All you have to do is look and see what works and what doesn’t. This is not complicated, we’ve done the experiment. You’ve got eight years of Bush economics and eight years of Clinton economics – it’s pretty straightforward. We’ve tried it John McCain’s way, we’ve tried it George Bush’s way – it hasn’t worked,” Obama said his rally this morning in Sarasota.

And it is possible that a President Obama would solicit the former president’s counsel on key issues. Last night Bill Clinton recalled Obama’s reaction to the initial news of the economic crisis last month and divulged that in addition to talking to his own advisors, Obama talked to both Bill and Hillary Clinton and their advisors.

“You know why? Because he knew it was complicated and before he said anything he wanted to understand. If we have learned anything, we have learned that we need a president that wants to understand and who can understand,” Clinton explained.

AP

ARNOLD, MO — Joe Biden ripped into John McCain for wanting to give tax breaks to oil companies when the GDP shrank in the third quarter and Exxon Mobile revealed record profits — but not before the Delaware Senator broke off on a mini-detour.

Delivering his longest speech in days - just under 27 minutes - to a crowd of 1,000, the VP candidate many describe as “gaffe prone” and undisciplined interrupted his riff comparing McCain to President Bush when he noticed Fox Senior High marching band in the stands of the high school gym. “Now look folks – hey, I didn’t even see the band up there. Hey folks! How you guys doin’?” Biden said. “Thanks for being here. That’s really nice of you. Thank you.”

“Um, that’s what you call getting off message,” he said to laughs. “But I tell ya, you guys look good.”

Biden has been described as “muzzled” in recent days, as Washington reporters accustomed to the verbose and free-wheeling Biden of Capitol Hill begin to notice the 15 minute speeches and ubiquitous tele-prompter on the trail.

But for Obama staffers, a muzzled Biden just means a candidate who’s getting better at delivering their message of the day without mucking it up with extraneous comments. Today, that message was bad economic numbers.

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