Sarah Palin received a rousing welcome on her frist trip home to Alaska tonight since being tapped as John McCain's running mate.
Arriving in Fairbanks at around 7:30 local time, Palin, joined by her husband Todd, was met on the airport tarmac by hundreds of supporters chanting her name and waving "Welcome Home" signs that were printed just for the heavily-anticipated return.
In a sign of just how much of a political sensation Palin has become, CNN carried the arrival live and for a chunk of time had cameras affixed on the runway, awaiting the charter plane carrying the Republican vice presidential nominee.
Palin took to a stage set up in a hangar and recited many familiar lines from her convention-turned-stump speech. She also included some language intended to please her home crowd, noting to cheers that she and McCain had been "talking all about Alaska."
McCain, she assured, is "a friend of Alaska."
Palin also won applause from the audience with a heavy focus on Alaska's oil and gas resources and a salute to the military (Fairbanks is home to a handful of military installations).
And she got knowing smiles by explaining some local lingo.
"It's a snow machine, not a snowmobile," Palin clarified.
Todd Palin, a champion snow machiner, was recognized as the "First Dude" and the governor seemed to nudge him to the podium. But he only waved to the crowd and smile
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