wide support in the conservative and moderate wings of the Republican Party and his immigrant past offsets McCain's white heritage. If McCain had won the presidency, he would have been the oldest president ever inaugurated to a first term. Heightening the speculation, McCain invited Jindal, Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida, Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and McCain's former rivals Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee to meet at McCain's home in Arizona on May 23, 2008, according to a Republican familiar with the decision; Romney, Huckabee, and Pawlenty, all of whom were already well acquainted with McCain, declined because of prior commitments. The meeting may have served a different purpose, such as consideration of Jindal for the opportunity to speak at the 2008 Republican National Convention, in a similar fashion to Barack Obama at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, cementing a place for him in the party and opening the gate for a future run for the presidency. Speculation was fueled by simultaneous July 21, 2008, reports that McCain was making a sudden visit to Louisiana to confer again with Jindal and that McCain was readying to name his running mate within a week. However, on July 23, 2008, Jindal said that he would not be the Republican vice presidential nominee in 2008. Jindal added that he "never talked to the senator [McCain] about the vice presidency or his thoughts on selecting the vice president." Ultimately, on August 29, 2008, McCain chose then-Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska as his running mate. While Jindal was given a prime-time speech slot at the party convention, he was not offered the keynote speech. During the presidential campaign, Jindal expressed admiration for both Senators McCain and Obama, and maintained that both have made positive contributions to the nation. Republican response to President Obama's address to Congress On February 24, 2009, Jindal delivered the official Republican response to President Obama's address to a joint session of Congress. Jindal called the president's economic stimulus plan "irresponsible" and argued against government intervention. He used Hurricane Katrina to warn against government solutions to the economic crisis. "Today in Washington, some are promising that government will rescue us from the economic storms raging all around us," Jindal said. "Those of us who lived through Hurricane Katrina, we have our doubts." He praised the late sheriff Harry Lee for standing up to the government during Katrina. The speech met with biting