Thousands cheer Palin in Michigan for book tour

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) — College students ditched class, employees skipped work, and some huddled in the cold overnight just to make sure they got an orange wristband Wednesday that would let them meet Sarah Palin.

Thousands gathered outside a Barnes & Noble and chanted “Palin! Palin! Palin!” for the kickoff of the former Republican vice- presidential candidate’s “Going Rogue” book tour, which has taken on the feel of a political pep rally.

“She’s a person of faith, she has a family, she has gone through a lot of the trials and tribulations we have. I’d vote for her in a heartbeat,” said Lana Smith, a dispatcher at a bus company who took the day off work and had been waiting in line since 5:30 a.m.

Country music played as Palin’s tour bus, painted to resemble the cover of her book, pulled up to the Woodland Mall in Grand Rapids.

“I just can’t tell you how good it is to be back in Michigan,” the former Alaska governor told the crowd, which chanted “Palin! Palin!”

“Alaska and Michigan have so much in common, with the huntin’ and the fishin’ and the hockey moms, and just the hardworking, patriotic Americans who are here,” Palin said.

Wearing a “Palin Power” bumper sticker across her red sweat shirt, 72-year-old Rachel Baragar praised Palin’s honesty and down-to-earth manner.

“She could be your next-door neighbor,” said Baragar, of Caledonia.

The memoir was released Tuesday but has topped best-seller lists for weeks. At the Barnes & Noble, about 1,000 orange wristbands were handed out, allowing wearers to get two copies autographed by Palin at the three-hour signing event.

“Going Rogue” follows Palin from childhood to her departure last summer as Alaska governor. The title refers to her independent streak as a candidate, stemming from complaints within the campaign of GOP presidential nominee John McCain that she had gone “rogue” by disagreeing with the campaign’s decision to pull out of Michigan last October.