According to the associate, Thompson will say: "Speaking of the vice presidential nominee, what a breath of fresh air Governor Sarah Palin is. Governor Palin is from a small town with small town values, but that's not good enough for those folks who are attacking her and her family. Friends, the selection of Governor Palin has the other side and their friends in the media in a state of panic. She is a courageous, successful, reformer, who is not afraid to take on the establishment. Sound like anyone else we know? She has run a municipality and she has run a state. And I can say without fear of contradiction that she is the only nominee in the history of either party who knows how to properly field dress a moose … with the possible exception of Teddy Roosevelt. She and John McCain are not going to care how much the alligators get irritated when they get to Washington, they're going to drain that swamp.”
The associate, who wishes to remain anonymous, said Thompson will also “tee up” the “contrasts between McCain and Palin versus the liberal opposition” but would not be naming the intended targets of the attacks specifically. “Obama’s name is never going to be mentioned,” the source said. “It won’t be specific by name, but they will be identified.”
Thompson will extensively discuss McCain’s, and his family’s, service to the country, according to the aide. “People forget that his son just got back from Iraq, just finished his first tour and is going back on Christmas Day for a second tour,” the associate added. “His younger son is attending the Naval Academy.” Like Obama, Thompson will not identify the sons by name, but will be a part of the speech.
In terms of McCain’s service to the country, Thompson will tell convention-goers: “If you want to know who John McCain is, if you want to know what John McCain values, look to the men and women who wear America's uniform today…For propaganda purposes, his captors offered to let him go home. John McCain refused. He refused to leave ahead of men who'd been there longer. He refused to abandon his conscience and his honor, even for his freedom. He refused, even though his captors warned him, "It will be very bad for you. They were right.”