By Margaret Bauman
Alaska Journal of Commerce

Fans and foes of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin turned out by the hundreds in Anchorage Sept. 13 in separate rallies supporting and criticizing the governor and Republican vice presidential candidate on her political positions and readiness for the national post.

The larger of the gatherings was in Midtown Anchorage, where Palin opponents vastly outnumbered supporters. Concerns ranged from the governor's stance against abortion to her opposition to listing polar bears under the federal Endangered Species Act.

A sea of signs above the crowd bore messages critical and in praise of Palin. The messages ranged from “Bush In A Skirt” and “Candidate To Nowhere” (a reference to the governor's support and then rejection of a multi-million dollar bridge for Ketchikan) to “Sarah Palin is My Hero” and “I Love My Alaska Girl.”

A number of women wore clothes hangars wrapped in white paper, with the message “This is not a surgical instrument. Keep abortions safe and legal.” Other signs included “Smearing Alaska's Good Name One Scandal at a Time,” and “Sarah Palin, Undoing 150 Years of American Feminism.”

Supporters of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama carried signs saying “Hockey Mama for Obama,” “Jesus Was a Community Organizer” and “Community Organizers are the Real Patriots.”

A smaller group at the Loussac Library demonstration shouted their support for Palin. Their placards included “We Luv Our Lady Guv” and McCain-Palin signs, in support of the GOP presidential ticket.

Claire Charlie, who works for the municipality of Anchorage, said she was there to protest against Palin's stand on abortion and more.

“I'm Native,” she said. “I love my subsistence food. And I'm opposed to (opening) ANWR,” (the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge), for oil and gas exploration).”

“We need change,” said Michelle Estell, a nursing assistant, there with relatives, including her 7-year-old niece, Amara Butler. “Obama is about change. He is all about the grass roots.”

“Palin doesn't have the experience,” said Michele Champion, who works for the Anchorage School District. “I'm upset about the way the Republican Party is using her. She doesn't have any foreign policy experience.”

Champion also was critical of Palin's caustic comments about Obama in campaign speeches and her stance on more drilling for oil and gas.

“We are not going to solve our energy problems until we look at our lifestyle,” said Champion, who opposed the $1,200 energy rebate that Palin authorized for every Alaskan eligible for this year's permanent fund dividend check. “I'd rather see my money going toward alternative energy.”

Labor lawyer Nancy Shaw, also an Obama supporter, agreed. “Just going shopping isn't a way to do public policy,” she said, referring to Alaska residents who will spend those checks on shopping sprees.

Mary Ellen Harris, who trains people in the use of electronics equipment, criticized Palin for “refusing to acknowledge evolution and global warming being caused by human action. She's a redneck and I want someone in the White House at least as sophisticated as I am,” she said.

A couple of hours earlier, at the new Dena'ina Convention Center in Downtown Anchorage, Palin addressed a smaller but enthusiastic crowd armed with digital cameras, many of whom clamored for autographs from Palin and her family. The crowd started lining up at 7:30 a.m., two hours before Palin actually spoke at the center.

Spokespersons for the McCain-Palin campaign refused to allow any protest signs into the convention center. One protester who managed to get into the center with a banner protesting the war in Iraq said Palin supporters ripped the sign from his hands and pushed him and another protestor. “When I asked a state trooper for help, they threw us out for creating a disturbance,” said Todd Brown, of Anchorage.

Palin supporter Dean Radcliffe, who was in charge of a machine to shoot confetti into the air at the finale of Palin's speech, praised the governor for “her genuineness.”

“She's done well for Alaska and she will do well for the nation,” said Radcliffe, who said he would have no qualms about Palin having to step into the role of president. “She doesn't hesitate to make decisions.”

“I wasn't really that surprised at her selection,” said William Strous, a union carpenter and longtime Anchorage resident. “She's a woman, she's young and she's smart.”

And what if she should have to step in as president? “She's tough. She could do it,” he said.

“I think it's time we put someone in office besides men who don't know what they are doing,” said Tom Flichum, a real estate property manager visiting from Blacksberg, Va.

“She's going to be all about making change for the right reasons,” said Herbert Everett, director of safety for Westmark Hotels in Anchorage.

Everett, whom Palin appointed to the Governor's Safety Advisory Council, said the governor is “a very down to earth individual. I think she'll be very approachable.”

Lee Carruthers, of Cheyenne, Wyo., in Alaska to visit with friends, said he wanted to hear Palin speak but hasn't decided yet who he will vote for.

“I like that Palin is energetic, but I also like the fact that (Joe) Biden has so much experience in foreign policy,” he said.

Anchorage residents Roger and Megan Benedict, real estate managers, said they came in part to see the new convention center.

“The ads on both sides are simplistic. I'm tending to listen to what the candidates say rather than what's on the Internet,” he said.

Other visitors at the Palin rally included Bill and May Uttal, of Phoenix, Ariz. They said they were surprised at the small turnout for the rally.

Anchorage resident Kathy Ariel, on the other hand, thought that the rally was great.

Ariel, who works for a federal housing agency, said she shared Palin's views on abortion. “I am a Christian,” she said.

Ariel said she had no concern, should Palin become vice president and suddenly be thrust into the role of president. “Anyone in that high a position has advisors around her all the time,” she said.

Margaret Bauman can be reached at margie.bauman@alaskajournal.com">margie.bauman@alaskajournal.com.