SAN DIEGO -- Bursting with emotion, Jack Kemp made quite an impression during his first public speech since being tagged as the GOP vice presidential candidate, according to a Jackson woman who was in attendance.

Donna Lichtenegger, an alternate delegate to the Republican National Convention, heard Kemp speak Wednesday afternoon before a Small Business Administration gathering.

"He was so pumped. If had gotten any more hyper, he would have been flying out of his skin," Lichtenegger said. "Personally I can't wait for the first vice presidential debate."

Lichtenegger believes the speech, which she said "touched on everything," served Kemp as a good warm-up for his appearance before the convention.

"I think it was a really good chance for him to get the jitters out of his system."

Kemp's choice as Bob Dole's running mate is being well received in San Diego, she said.

"Without a doubt, this was the smartest political move Bob Dole could have made," Lichtenegger said. "People here are just ecstatic."

One thing no one is ecstatic about, she said, is San Diego traffic.

"You just don't, if you have a car, try to get down to the convention area," Lichtenegger said. "It's very congested; security is very tight; and there is no place to park."

While at the convention, Lichtenegger also has had the opportunity to rub elbows with celebrities. She had a photograph taken with actor Charlton Heston at Planet Hollywood and attended a book-signing featuring Gary Aldrich.

Aldrich wrote "Unlimited Access," the recent tell-all book about the Clinton administration.