THE VILLAGES, Fla. -- A day after Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Barack Obama made a campaign stop in Daytona Beach, Gov. Sarah Palin -- Sen. John McCain's running mate -- gave a speech to thousands of people at The Villages.

"Sa-Rah! Sa-Rah!" they chanted at every mention of her name, applauding loudly and waiving tiny American flags that were distributed -- along with free water bottles -- by local volunteers. The fire chief estimated the crowd at 70,000, Local 6 News partner Florida Today reported Monday.

Palin talked about the financial crisis in the United States and took a jab at Obama, saying he "voted present" last week on how to handle the situation. Palin said Obama voted "present" about 130 times while he was a state senator in Illinois.

"The problems in Washington and on Wall Street are hurting people on Main Street. We need a president who will stand up for small-business owners," Palin said. "Truly there is one man who can fix our economy, and that man is John McCain."

McCain echoed Palin's comments in Baltimore on Sunday, saying Obama behaved more like a politician than a leader, both on matters of national security and on last week's near-meltdown of the financial system.

Addressing a meeting of the National Guard Association, McCain faulted Obama for not offering a plan to stabilize financial markets after a crisis in the mortgage industry led to the collapse of two investment banks and the government bailout of housing agencies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and insurance giant AIG.

"At a time of crisis, when leadership is needed, Senator Obama has not provided it," McCain said.

Palin said helping families by bringing reform to Washington will be the No. 1 priority of their administration.

"In a McCain-Palin administration, we will never forget that we are there to work for you -- the people of America," Palin said.

The second priority will be energy independence, Palin said.

"We need American energy by American resources produced by American workers," Palin said. "And we are going to drill now to make this nation energy independent."

Palin also said new efforts would be made to help families with special-needs children.

Palin finished the speech by touting McCain's military record and asking voters to elect him as the next president of the United States.

The Alaska governor made her first campaign visit to Florida, but The Villages is no stranger to candidates.

During the primary season, McCain and contenders Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney and Fred Thompson also stumped for votes at The Villages. Also, President George W. Bush spoke to a welcoming crowd of about 15,000 during his 2004 re-election campaign.

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