In Far-Reaching Speech, Palin Vows To Advocate For Women Worldwide

From CBS News' Scott Conroy:

(LAS VEGAS) - In the days after Sarah Palin was introduced as John McCain’s running mate in late August, her stump speeches were peppered with allusions to the historic nature of her candidacy. Over time, Palin’s allusions to “breaking the glass ceiling” for women became less and less frequent as she focused on other topics.

But at a rally here today, the Alaska governor’s stump speech was dominated by women’s issues, as she was joined on stage by five female leaders.

“And if I’m given the honor of serving you in the White House, I intend to advance that creed in our own nation and beyond because across the world, there are still places where women are subjugated and persecuted as they were in Afghanistan, places we’re they’re bullied and brutalized and murdered in honor killings, places where women are sold like commodities in the nightmare world of the sex trade, and places where baby girls are unwelcome as a matter of state policy and their mothers are forced to have abortions,” Palin said.

“Now no one person, no one leader, can bring an end to all of those ills, to all of the injustices inflicting upon women, but I can promise you this, if I am elected, these women, too, will have an advocate and a defender in the 47th vice president of the United States.”

Palin called the Democratic ticket “presumptuous” for assuming they would win the women’s vote and questioned Barack Obama for not making Hillary Clinton his running mate.

“When it came time for choosing some how Barack Obama just couldn't bring himself to pick the woman who got 18 million votes in his primary and that seems to be too familiar a story isn't it?” she said. “How it is for so many American women that the qualifications are there, but for some reason the promotion never comes. There is always some long explanation for why they got passed over or some unseen barrier, some excuse and that's just one of the things I so admire about John McCain he is not someone who makes excuses."

Palin said that Obama “talks a good game” about equal pay for women, but his record does not match his rhetoric.

“According to the Senate pay roll records women on his own staff get just 83 cents for every dollar that the men get,” Palin said. “That's $9,000 less every year that he pays the guys.

“Does he think that the women aren’t working as hard? Does he think that they are 17 percent less productive? And Barack Obama cant say that this is just the way that its always been done around the Capitol, because I know one senator who actually does pay equal wages for equal work, Sen. John McCain.”

Obama senior advisor Anita Dunn issued the following response: “Senator Obama has fought for equal pay for an equal day's work, while Senator McCain has suggested that women don't get equal pay because they need more education and training. While Senator Obama has proposed a plan to help working women, the McCain-Palin campaign offers just more negative attacks and distortions.”