Sarah Palin was chosen because John McCain had a 10 point gender gap to close. She is not going to help in the northeast where McCain will not do well, but she will not hurt. I wanted to see Liddy Dole, a woman fully capable of being a great president. She is 61 but hubby is in his eighties. She did the right thing to stay home. I also like Colin Powell and Mitt Romney, but addressing the gender gap problem won out.