Sarah Palin: 'Take up your arms' means voting

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Sarah Palin told a crowd of 1,300 in Midland Thursday afternoon that the media has distorted the conservative message in an attempt to define it as inciting violence. "'Take up your arms' means voting," Palin explained:

Speaking for the Liberty and Freedom Foundation, Palin said that she felt very welcome in the Permian Basin.

"There’s such an appreciation here for your freedom," Palin said.

In addition to energy production, which she called one of her favorite subjects, Palin was focused on getting people out to reverse what she called the leftist direction of the county under President Barack Obama.

Palin said many Americans are opposed to the trillion dollar deficits incurred by the Democrats in Congress and the White House, and they are pushing back as "patriots standing up and speaking out and neighbors helping neighbors":

"What makes America exceptional is not her politicians, it's her people," the former Alaska governor said. "I see it in our brave men and women in uniform who are willing to sacrifice it all for our country.

"Freedom is a God given right and worth fighting for. Our government is supposed to be working for us. We're not supposed to be working for the government."

Palin stringently criticized the health care reform legislation just passed by Congress, saying, "Obamacare is not sustainable.

"It's impossible to fund. They say we would learn to like their programs if only we were smart enough to understand them. But we are smart enough to understand. We just don't like them."

The first woman to be the vice presidential candidate of the Republican Party said she would discuss energy production in detail at an evening event at the Petroleum Club, where at least 400 people had paid a minimum of $1,250 per ticket. The two events were fundraisers for the Liberty & Freedom Foundation.

- JP