DENVER -- Colorado congresswoman Diana DeGette said Friday that John McCain's choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate is an insult because it signals that he thinks putting a woman on the ticket means "women would suddenly vote for him."

The Democratic representative from Denver also said Palin, a first-term governor and former small-town mayor, doesn't have the experience to replace McCain, who turned 72 on Friday.

"We need to remember that the vice president is a heartbeat away from the presidency. It's especially poignant today on Sen. McCain's 72nd birthday," DeGette said.

"I think it is an insult to women that the McCain campaign would think that simply because he picked a woman as his running mate that women would suddenly vote for him," said DeGette, who had endorsed Hillary Rodham Clinton for president.

Colorado Republican Party Chairman Dick Wadhams said it was DeGette who was committing the insult.

"What's the insult is that Diana DeGette still serves in office," Wadhams said.

"Diana DeGette and her ilk don't have anything in common with a successful governor of Alaska who has fought hard to control government spending and to develop oil resources," he said.

Republican Marilyn Musgrave, Colorado's other congresswoman, didn't immediately respond to request for comment.

Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar was more tepid than DeGette, saying he doesn't know much about Palin.

"I have never heard of her. It is, in my view, still about what this election is all about, that we can't have four more years of George Bush," Salazar said. "His selection of someone we've never heard of from Alaska I don't think will change a thing for this election."

Salazar also questioned whether Palin has the experience she needs but said the Democratic vice presidential candidate, Delaware Sen. Joe Biden, does.

"Joe Biden could step into the presidency if something were to happen to Barack Obama," he said.