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White House hopeful John McCain and running mate Sarah Palin hit the campaign trail as a team yesterday, seeking to build on the momentum of her surprise addition to the Republican ticket even as Hurricane Gustav
threatened to overshadow next week's party convention.
The Arizona senator and Alaska governor will fly to Mississippi today to view preparations for the hurricane, adding a last-minute trip in an effort to contrast their would-be administration with President George W. Bush's slow response to Hurricane Katrina three years ago.
The two candidates will visit a storm command center in Jackson, a spokeswoman said.
Forecasts showed Gustav could come ashore as a powerful storm in Louisiana by late tommorow or early Tuesday.
Mr McCain told a rally in Washington, Pennsylvania, he was keeping the people in the Gulf Coast in his prayers and said in a taped interview that the convention could be postponed.
"It just wouldn't be appropriate to have a festive occasion while a near tragedy or a terrible challenge is presented in the form of a natural disaster," he told Fox News.
The rally marked Mr McCain and Ms Palin's second full day in public as a political ticket. People shouted, "Sarah, Sarah!" as the Alaska governor took the stage with McCain, whose vice presidential pick on Friday ignited fundraising and drew Democratic scorn.
Mr McCain and Ms Palin will be nominated officially at the convention in St. Paul, Minnesota. Bush is scheduled to speak there tomorrow evening, but White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said the administration was making contingency plans that could include an address via satellite instead.
"We continue to track the path of the storm and there is no scheduling change to speak of yet," she told reporters.
Republican convention organizers said they were also monitoring the storm and considering contingencies.
Democratic nominee Barack Obama, campaigning in Ohio, spoke by phone with Louisiana's governor and the mayor of New Orleans about the storm.
Both Mr Obama and Mr McCain have sharply criticised Bush's response to Katrina and are eager to assure voters they would handle a natural disaster in the United States differently.
"Obviously this is a very serious situation," Mr Obama said of Hurricane Gustav, adding he was monitoring events closely.
"The main priority had to be making sure that everything is being done on the ground to prevent a repeat of some of the tragic situations we saw several years ago."
Mr McCain and his wife, Cindy, spent time getting to know Ms Palin, her husband, Todd, and their children on Saturday, visiting voters at a diner in Pittsburgh and holding a rally in the town of Washington with a crowd estimated at some 10,000.
Ms Palin, the first woman to be nominated as vice president on a Republican ticket, drew boos from an otherwise enthusiastic crowd when she referred to New York senator Hillary Clinton's failed bid for the Democratic nomination.
The Arizona senator announced his vice presidential choice on Friday after hosting Ms Palin at his Arizona home on Thursday. It was only the second time the two had met in person.
Obama's running mate is Delaware senator Joe Biden.
Ms Palin's conservative credentials, including strong anti-abortion views and a record of confronting entrenched interests during less than two years as governor of Alaska, energized conservatives, who poured money into the campaign.
The campaign raised nearly $7 million on Friday alone, its best single day of fundraising yet, officials said.
Mr Obama, who would be the first black US president, praised Ms Palin but ducked questions on whether she was prepared for the job. "I think that govenor Palin is a compelling person. She's got a great story," he told reporters.
"I think you guys can take a look at govenor Palin's and Joe Biden's record and make your own judgments in terms of who you think has what it takes to be an outstanding vice president," said Mr Obama.
