John McCain has selected Alaskan Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate. (I’d give you the official bio from her gubernatorial web site, but it was down when I looked for it.)

I’m writing my column for tomorrow’s Opelika-Auburn News on this subject, so I won’t get into analysis here, but suffice it to say that Palin’s pick isn’t the surprise it appears at first blush—and the McCain campaign is playing it—to be.

If you’re near a TV, check out her first appearance on the national stage as a VP candidate today at noon eastern on any of your cable news networks.

I’m one of the many observers who will be interested to see how the ticket looks on stage and how Palin introduces herself to the national media.