Looming Storm Shifts GOP Plans

By Elyce Taylor
8/31/08

John McCain's next move is critical. Monday is supposed to be the uplifting kickoff for his party's convention. But now the Republican nominee's Presidential campaign agenda has been overshadowed by the fast approach of Hurricane Gustav toward the Gulf Coast. All eyes are on Senator McCain as painful memories of Hurricane Katrina's devastation linger in Americans' minds. He has to prove he will do more than the Bush White House did on behalf of Gulf Coast residents before and after the storm hits.
 
McCain and his running mate Alaska Governor Sarah Palin changed their campaign plans and quickly went down south.  They have met Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour. McCain has also spoken by phone with Governors Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, Charlie Crist of Florida, and Bob Riley of Alabama.
 
Now McCain and other GOP leaders are trying to decide what to do with their convention plans.  They have indicated that having a celebratory convention while millions flee their homes seems inappropriate.  So a RNC senior organizer says they may turn it into a mass telethon where people can donate money in support of storm victims.
 
Meanwhile Vice President Dick Cheney and First Lady Laura Bush are still expected to speak on Monday in St. Paul, Minnesota at the convention. President Bush is expected not to speak in person but instead be on a satellite feed into the hall. Whatever form the convention takes on in the upcoming days, McCain and his camp seem forced to prove his leadership power.