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Bush to address Republican convention via satellite
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-09-02 23:49

It was unclear whether Thompson had replaced former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani as the convention keynoter and, if so, why. Convention planners said Giuliani would address the gathering in prime-time Wednesday or Thursday, though they did not know whether he would remain the keynote speaker as planned.

Hamstrung by Gustav and distracted by the revelation that McCain running mate Sarah Palin's unmarried 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, Republicans were trying to get back on track Tuesday.

Lieberman, who left the Democratic Party after losing a Senate primary, has angered many Democrats by criticizing their nominee, Barack Obama.

"I'm not going to spend any time tonight attacking Sen. Obama," Lieberman told CNN, but he added that he would explain "why I am an independent Democrat voting for Sen. McCain."

The convention seeks to reintroduce Americans to McCain and provide a high-profile introduction for Palin. The governor of Alaska for nearly two years, she is little-known outside of her state.

So far, Palin has not conducted a formal news conference or taken questions from reporters, and no such sessions were scheduled Tuesday. Her only statement Monday disclosed that her daughter Bristol was pregnant and planned to marry the baby's father.

That news was followed by the announcement that a private lawyer had been hired to represent Palin in a state investigation into the dismissal of the state's public safety commissioner.

The man who led McCain's search for a vice-presidential nominee said he thought all the possible red flags unearthed during the background check had now been made public.