VIDEO: Allen West at CPAC 2011

The first 8 and a half minutes is David Keene's introduction to Allen West.  Jump to the 8:45 mark for the beginning of Allen West's keynote address.  This video cuts off about 5 minutes short.  You can view the end of West's speech at The Right Scoop.

Allen West is everything Obama pretends to be, highly intelligent, well spoken and patriotic.  Of all the new TEA Party candidates, West is clearly the ideal.  


What saddens me is that West is about a decade too late getting to the national scene.  Had he been elected ten years ago, he could  be finishing up a term or two as governor of Florida.  He would destroy Obama in two seconds flat, because he is a man of solid convictions who knows how to wage and win a war.


My hope is that West will pull another term in the House and then seek a governorship somewhere.  After a term or two as a governor, he should seek the White House.  Then he could easily be one of the best GOP candidates the nation has ever seen.


Via: Drudge

VIDEO: Ron Paul at CPAC 2011

Once again Ron Paul looses me on foreign policy. In some aspects, I think Ron Paul is correct. Why are we still paying for defense in Europe and Japan?  Let these nations pay for their own military needs. We can no longer afford to pick up their slack.  I also agree that when we prop up dictators we pay for it in the end. The number one reason why America plays footsie with dictators is because we lack energy independence. It is this lack of independence why we must compromise our principles of freedom and democracy .

However, even if we were energy independent, America simply cannot bury its head in the sand.  As we retreat from the world stage others rush in to fill the void. In our absence the world gets shaped into ways unlike our own and eventually those conflicting views will come knocking on our door. It would be far better to get our energy independence and then engage the world with true principles of freedom and democracy.

Foreign policy aside, I think Ron Paul is a man ahead of his time on the spending issue and the Federal Reserve. Sadly though, Donald Trump is right, Ron Paul will never be president. I think on of the biggest stumbling blocks for Ron Paul getting elected is his supporters.  It seems so many of them are brash and cult like.  Some of them refuse to realize that winning a campaign means building a coalition. You cannot build a coalition by shouting down those you disagree with or insulting those you do not share your vision.  If Ron Paul supporters truly want their guy in the White House, then they will have to take the time to win over some hearts and minds in the Republican Party.  It's not impossible, they are a dedicated lot.

VIDEO: Mitt Romney at CPAC 2011

In the words of the Black Eyed Peas, that speech was so 2000 and late.  Through out the whole speech I keep saying to myself, nice stuff, but where was all that tough talk over the last two years when conservatives needed him? Also, don't think I did not notice that ObamaCare was not mentioned once during the entire 20 minutes.


Mitt Romney is a very polished career politician.  He has groomed himself for the White House with the right style, all the needed positions and all the right connections.  Unfortunately for Mitt the landscape he based his rise to White House on has now shifted drastically.  Things like strong convictions, authenticity and honesty are now all in high demand.  Romney is falling short on all three.  


He still has a shot at the nomination so long as conservatives cannot quickly rally around a candidate.  Should conservatives become confused or dispirited like they were in 2008, Romney will be our nominee by default.


Via: CPAC Live

VIDEO: Herman Cain at CPAC 2011

Herman Cain is on my shortlist for 2012. Aside from the obvious (he's a another black conservative) I like the fact that Herman Cain is a long time businessman and an outsider to Washington.  My only concern about him is that he has never run a national campaign before.


I am concerned about this because 2012 is going to be brutal.  First, the left has set new standards for low with their continued attacks on Palin.  All that nasty stuff they throw at Palin will be thrown at the GOP nominee, make no mistake about that.  Is Cain ready for all that? Nothing would be more devastating than to have a good man like Cain tarred, smeared and defeated because he wasn't ready for the grinder.


Hopefully the GOP nomination will be extra nasty so that we can gauge how well Cain handles himself.


Via: CPAC Live

Video: Ron Paul supporters heckle Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld at CPAC

Talking Points Memo: Dick Cheney just popped up here at CPAC to introduce his old pal and Bush administration colleague Donald Rumsfeld. Fans of Ron Paul turned what should have been a friendly moment before an audience of fellow conservatives into a screaming match and protest action that resembled what a Cheney-Rumsfeld hug at the Netroots Nation convention might look like.

Rumsfeld is being given CPAC's "Defender Of The Constitution" award, a concept that apparently rankled Paul supporters in the crowd. Many of them got up and walked out en masse at the mention of Rumsfeld, though some stayed behind in the conference hall to heckle the architects of the invasion of Iraq.

One shout of "where's Bin Laden?" rang out as Cheney spoke of Rumsfeld.

That led to the pro-Cheney contingent (which it should be said greatly outnumbers the opposition) to shout the hecklers down with the familiar "USA, USA" chant.

Methinks the Ron Paul supporters were still chaffing over Donald Trump saying Ron Paul can't win.

Via: Memeorandum

Via: Talking Points Memo

Via: The Hill

Video: Donald Trump at CPAC

This was a sales pitch, pure and simple.  I can easily see where some Republicans would find the Donald quite appealing.  He is a straight talker, has a reputation (fair or unfair) as a successful businessman and seems pretty ready to get tough with America's adversaries.  


I have met Trump in person several times.  For a wealthy man with celebrity, he does not have a pretentious bone in his body.  A very rare characteristic when among America's movers and shakers.  That being said, I don't think I will be voting for the Donald anytime soon.


For starters, America has been transformed into the land of Crony Capitalism.  Because of this, we need a true patriot to undo that mess or we risk electing a man who would know how to take complete advantage of the situation. I hear a lot of patriotic talk from the Donald, but is it really true?  I am not too sure. I say this because of his new declaration that he is Pro-Life.


A quick Google search reveals that the Donald said in his own book he was Pro-Choice. If Donald Trump can try to fake an issue like abortion, I don't have a lot of faith when it comes to his patriotism or anything else. The decision the nation makes in 2012 will be as serious as a heart attack. There is no time to waste on posers or opportunists. Trumps's 11th hour conversion to Pro-life reeks of opportunism. Sorry Donald, keep on moving.


Via: Memeorandum
Via: The New York Times
Via: CNSNews

Palin and gay rights, where does she stand

Yesterday, I shared with you all the video clips of Sarah Palin's interview with David Brody of CBN.  Well, today it appears the blogs are all buzzing about Sarah Palin's answer on CPAC.  The big issue is whether or not she supports GOProud being involved with CPAC this year and where she stands on gay rights.

Sarah Palin:Well, I’ve never attended a CPAC conference ever so I was a little taken aback this go around when I couldn’t make it to this one either and then there was a speculation well I either agree or disagree with some of the groups or issues that CPAC is discussing. It really is a matter of time for me.

But when it comes to, and David, perhaps what it is that you’re suggesting in the question, is should the GOP, should conservatives not reach out to others, not participate in events or forums that perhaps arising within those forums are issues that maybe we don’t personally agree with? And I say no. It’s like you being on a panel shoot, with a bunch of the liberal folks whom you have been on and you provide good information and balance, and you allow for healthy debate, which is needed in order for people to gather information and make up their own minds about issues.

I look at participation in an event like CPAC or any other event along kind of in that same vein as the more information that people have the better.

From her answer, Palin gives the impression that she doesn't have a problem GOProud's involvement in CPAC.  Some are taking this as support for GOProud in general.

I have followed Palin very closely and I have not heard her come out strongly against  gays.  On Don't Ask Don't Tell, her only real criticism was the timing. On gay marriage she said during the Vice Presidential debates that she did not support gay marriage (just like Joe Biden), but seemed to go out of her way to state she was quite tolerant of different lifestyles.

If I had to guess, I would say Palin is probably a lot more tolerant than the left gives her credit for and probably a lot more tolerant that some on the right might be comfortable with.

Via: Memeorandum

Via: The Note

Video: Sarah Palin's interview with David Brody on CBN

Here are the videos from Sarah Palin's interview with David Brody the Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN).  This is the interview where Sarah Palin says that Egypt was Obama's 3 AM call and it went to the answering machine.  The interview took place right after her keynote address at the Reagan ranch.


On Egypt

On Obama's handling of Egypt

On the MSM

On running in 2012

On attacks in the media

On Faith

On CPAC

Via: Memeorandum
Via: CBN

Sarah Palin turns down CPAC keynote

The Note: UPDATED: After skipping the popular Conservative Political Action Conference for the past three years, Sarah Palin has once again turned down the invitation of CPAC officials to address the conference this year.

CPAC organizers invited Palin to deliver the closing-night keynote speech on Saturday Feb. 12, immediately following the announcement of the results of CPAC’s annual presidential straw poll,  but after several days of negotiations, she declined.

“We’re disappointed that she wasn’t able to make it this year,” American Conservative Union Chairman David Keene said through a spokesman on Thursday. He noted that Palin "expressed interest in wanting to come this year," but said that it came down to "a scheduling issue." [MORE]

It turns out that Palin maybe putting family first.  Both her birthday and an Iron Dog ceremony are happening around that date.

Honestly, I don't know why every year everyone makes such a fuss about Palin skipping CPAC.  When you think about it, CPAC doesn't offer Palin anything she doesn't already have.

Most Republican candidates seeking the White House use CPAC to gain notoriety, polish their conservative credentials or to make a good showing in the non binding straw poll.  Palin already has all of those things so why fly almost 4,000 just to get what you already have?

If I had to guess why everyone tries to make Palin's skipping CPAC into a big story, it would have to be because no one want to acknowledge that Palin is actually bigger than CPAC. That or one more "Palin controversy" is always good for the media's readership.

Via: Memeorandum

Via: The Note

Via: Conservatives 4 Palin

Huckabee bashes CPAC

 

Politico: Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee blasted the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Saturday as outdated, nearly corrupt and unrepresentative of the conservative movement.

Huckabee, a 2008 Republican presidential contender and potential 2012 candidate who had spoken at the conference for years, said the reason he blew it off this year was that the meeting has become dominated by libertarian activists.

“CPAC has becoming increasingly more libertarian and less Republican over the last years, one of the reasons I didn’t go this year,” Huckabee said in an interview with Fox News, where he is a paid analyst and has his own show.

He was responding to a question about whether he was upset by his single-digit showing in the conference’s straw poll, which was won by libertarian-leaning Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas).

But it wasn’t the only criticism the Arkansan leveled at CPAC.

Huckabee said the rise of the tea party movement had “taken all of the oxygen out of the room,” rendering the venerable conference far less relevant than it had been in previous years.

“Where CPAC was historically the event, the tea parties are having their ow nevents all over the country and a lot more truly grassroots people are getting involved because of the tea parties,” said the former governor.

If I had to guess what is really sticking in Huckabee’s craw, it would be because he is bitter about becoming less relevant in 2012. Huckabee is GOP old school. He was probably counting on his 2008 showing to propel him to the top in 2012, but now finds that the political sands have shifted and the old paths to the nomination are no longer guaranteed.  Add on the Maurice Clemmons issue and Huckabee’s 2012 chances diminish further.

Bashing CPAC won’t help Huckabee’s situation, grassroots bloggers are already getting ticked off, see Da Techguy, The Lonely Conservative and Left Coast Rebel, just to name a few.

Via: Memeorandum

Via: Politico

Ron Paul wins CPAC straw poll?

Ron Paul wins CPAC’s straw poll? I must hand it to the Paul supporters, they sure are a persistent lot and once again Mitt Romney’s much talked about organizational game doesn’t seem to be paying any dividends.

Here are the results:

Ron Paul 31%

Mitt Romney 22%

Sarah Palin 7%

It would have been interesting to see how this turned out if Sarah Palin had attended and given a speech. 

One year, I wish CPAC would find a way to really gauge support for presidential hopefuls. Perhaps having people submit their vote at the point of entry and then again when leaving.

The way things work now, it is too easy to game the system. 

Via: Memeorandum

Via: Fox News

My Notes on Glenn Beck's Speech

I jotted down a few notes as I watched Beck’s speech on Fox. Sorry but they are not in the best of order because I wanted to concentrate on the speech. However, they are my first impressions.

This was an excellent speech by Beck. In some aspects this was a tough love speech for Republicans. While many of the speeches at CPAC were a little bit of a “yahoo” for Republicans doing well in 2010, Beck’s speech was a reminder to Republicans that after getting elected we expect them to stand for something.  This was a speech from the conservative/ Tea Party perspective.

One immediately noticed the Tea Party perspective from the choice of music played at Beck took the stage, "Uprising" by Muse.  The song kicks in right at this part of the lyrics:

“They will not force us,

They will stop degrading us,

They will not control us,

We will be victorious"

Is this not how Tea Partiers feel about big government, elites and the media?

When Beck mentions Rush Limbaugh’s appearance last year at CPAC, I could not help but contrast the two speeches. Rush’s speech was inspirational to conservatives. Rush let conservatives know that just because Republicans lost power, conservatives need not despair and that we ourselves could move conservatism forward. Beck’s speech is now building on that momentum by keeping conservatives focus on our principles as we move forward in opposition to the progressive agenda.

You could tell during some parts of the speech that his words were not being well received, particularly when he called out Republicans. You could tell from the silence, which tells me that the CPAC audience is predominantly Republican rather than truly conservative. This should give you some idea of the differences between Republicans and the Tea Parties. The Tea Parties are not just expecting Republican victories; they are expecting the Republicans to walk the walk after those victories.  Take note Republicans, the days of simply enjoying power because the Democrats to fuck up are over. 

One of the things that keep coming back to my mind while listening to the speech was how it contrasts with speeches by liberals. Many on the left often paint a picture of America as this down and out place that requires a great hero to save it. Beck’s speech paints an America were we the individual is the hero. We are the ones who will save the day by recognizing the true problems and doing the hard work to solve them.

Items of note:

Hello Mr. Chalkboard: This was a nice touch by Beck, bringing his trusty sidekick the chalkboard to CPAC.  No Sheeples Here has a very funny Automotivator that goes: “the chalkboard is mightier than the teleprompter”.  Oh, so true.

Calling out Progressivism: Anyone who has watched Beck for more than a few episodes, will know his number one foe … Progressives. By introducing this topic, Beck is able to serve up the tough love Republicans desperately need. Here Beck uses the phrase:

“… it is going to be a very good year, but it is not enough just to not suck as much as the other side”.  Is this not the very game so many Republicans play when they serve up Democrate-Lite policies?

Alcoholism and Tiger’s apology: Beck used both of these examples to paint an accurate picture of the Republican’s failure. Beck, a recovered alcoholic himself, sees the need for Republicans to admit their mistakes (big spending, big government programs) and like Tiger, needs to come clean with the American people about it.

The Big Tent: “America is not a circus” says Beck in answer to some Republicans calling for a bigger tent. I could not agree more. Watering down ideals for the sake of a few votes has not bought Republicans any glory, just look at Bush and McCain for that.

Politicians and letters: I am so glad Beck mocked this stunt. I cannot stand the compassion pimps on both sides of the aisle who “read letters” from someone to make an emotional appeal for government action. The so-called “letters” are the biggest bunch of BS you will ever hear, enough of them already!

Liberty’s poem: This had to be the best part of the whole speech. It resonated with me deeply, because it has been way too long since I have heard anyone in this administration speak passionately about American exceptionalism.

Full Video: Glenn Beck’s CPAC Speech

Sorry for the long intro, but this is the only full version of Beck's speech I could find. If I see one that has the intro edited out, I will switch up.

H/T: Freedom’s Lighthouse

Marco Rubio makes a big splash at CPAC

Anyone who has seen Rubio speak before CPAC would not have been surprised that he would have been a big success at CPAC. Rubio has all of the things the GOP always say they are looking for, he is Hispanic, he is young, he can easily express the conservative message.  The GOP would do well to study Rubio and start recruiting more candidates like him. 

Via: Memeorandum

Via: Politico

I’ll take a whack at that! Pelosi piñata and Reid punching back at CPAC

Looks like someone at CPAC has a sense of humor. 

Attendees at a conservative conference in town this week will have the opportunity to whack a pinata ofSpeaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). 

Conservative Political Action Conference “CPAC” begins Thursday here in D.C. There will be a conservative-themed party Friday evening not sponsored by CPAC, where guests will have the opportunity to whack a Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) pinata. 

Three famous D.C. residents will be taking a turn as guest "whackers" at the pinata during the annualConservative Political Action Conference, which starts on Thursday. The guest "whackers" will be at the party, to be held at George in Georgetown.

Mary Christopher, outreach coordinator for CivicForumPAC, said the Pelosi piñata will be filled with favorite Pelosi sayings, bills and candy. The party hopes to invite the well-known D.C. residents to smash the piñata first, before others in attendance will be invited to try to take the Speaker down.

“We’re hoping to have the females whack the piñata and males try their hand at a Harry Reid punching bag,” Christopher said. 

No doubt the left will shriek about how this is promoting violence against women or some such nonsense. Quite frankly, given how Pelosi has whacked the American people with outrageous spending, I think a little turn about is fair play.   Now how do I get one?

Via: Memeorandum

Via: The Hill