Sept. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin defended herself against criticism that she's inexperienced, saying she carried a bigger load as a small- town mayor than Democrat Barack Obama ever has.

``Since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves,'' Palin, 44, said tonight at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota. ``I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a `community organizer,' except that you have actual responsibilities.''

Obama, 47, a first-term Illinois senator, has held up his work as a community organizer in Chicago as part of a record that he said shows his ability to lead. Palin, now the governor of Alaska, took aim at that approach and showcased in her first address to a nationwide audience the issues she and presidential hopeful John McCain will tackle.

Palin is seeking to dispel questions about her qualifications and self-described status as a reformer that have swirled since she became McCain's running mate on Aug. 29. Palin is also trying to move past the attention drawn by the disclosure that her 17-year-old unmarried daughter is pregnant.

``From the inside, no family ever seems typical,'' Palin said tonight with a smile. ``That's how it is with us.''

Washington Elite

Her speech may have been the most anticipated of the convention, which was shortened by almost a full day because of Hurricane Gustav. After campaigning with McCain in the days right after the announcement, Palin largely dropped out of view.

Yesterday, she skipped a scheduled appearance with an anti- abortion group, meeting instead with leaders of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee at her hotel. McCain's campaign also released a photograph of her meeting privately with First Lady Laura Bush and McCain's wife, Cindy, in Minneapolis.

Illustrating the stakes for Palin tonight, a CBS News poll taken over the first two days of the week found that 60 percent of Americans had no opinion of her.

Palin, a 1987 graduate of the University of Idaho, spent the first part of her speech talking about her husband, Todd, and five children, including baby Trig, who was born with Down syndrome. She made a promise to parents of special-needs children. ``I pledge to you that if we're elected, you will have a friend and advocate in the White House,'' she said.

`Hockey Mom'

She painted herself as a typical ``hockey mom'' who strove to make life better for her children first by signing up for the local PTA and later by running for political office. And she rebutted criticism of her experience by taking on reporters.

``I've learned quickly, these last few days, that if you're not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified,'' Palin said. ``I'm not going to Washington to seek their good opinion. I'm going to Washington to serve the people of this country.''

Throughout the last two days, top Republicans defended the choice of Palin, a first-term governor and former mayor of Wasilla. Before Palin spoke, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani told delegates that ``she's already had more executive experience than the entire Democratic ticket.''

McCain, 72, and Palin will take on Obama and his running mate, Joe Biden, in the Nov. 4 general election. The two Democrats, like McCain, are U.S. senators. Obama is in his first six-year term after serving as a state legislator; Biden, 65, has represented Delaware in the U.S. Senate for 35 years.

Energy

The choice of Palin energized a group of Republicans who had been lukewarm in their support of McCain: social conservatives. Religious leaders and top conservative officials said they got a flood of interest from people who wanted to work for the campaign after the announcement.

Gary Bauer, president of the Arlington, Virginia-based advocacy group American Values, said he got calls from all over the country from people ``who were holding out, who were really excited'' in the days after the announcement. ``These are activists that tend to be key to turning out the vote and have lots of resources to do that,'' Bauer said.

McCain's crowds have also swelled. McCain and Palin held a rally for 10,000 people in Pennsylvania on Aug. 30 and an event for 22,000 in Missouri on Aug. 31. McCain, of Arizona, had largely appeared at town-hall events with a few hundred people until he chose Palin as a running mate.

McCain briefly appeared on stage with Palin after her speech. ``Don't you think we made the right choice for the next vice president of the United States?'' he asked the cheering crowd. He also paid tribute to her ``beautiful family.''

Mocked Message

Palin tonight said she and McCain will focus on spurring the development of alternative energy sources, while building more nuclear plants and drilling for oil and gas in new areas. Palin also mocked Obama's message of change.

``Here's how I look at the choice Americans face in this election,'' she said. ``In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.''

The Obama campaign responded in kind, saying McCain supported President George W. Bush's positions 90 percent of the time in the Senate. While giving credit to Palin for a ``well- delivered'' speech, Obama spokesman Bill Burton said it was more of the ``same, divisive, partisan attacks'' that have characterized Washington under Bush.

``If Governor Palin and John McCain want to define `change' as voting with George Bush 90 percent of the time, that's their choice,'' Burton said. ``But we don't think the American people are ready to take a 10 percent chance on change.''

To contact the reporters on this story: Kristin Jensen in St. Paul at kjensen@bloomberg.net; Catherine Dodge in St. Paul at cdodge1@bloomberg.net;

Last Updated: September 3, 2008 23:52 EDT