Bittersweet SRLC (w/ pictures)

By Adrienne Ross - www.motivationtruth.com











SRLC 2010 is over, leaving me with some sweet memories, leaving me with a bitter taste in my mouth. One might say it was bittersweet.

I got stuck in traffic driving to New York City to fly out of state on Wednesday. It was horrendous, and I almost didn't make it. What should have taken about 2 1/2 hours took an extra hour. It was bumper to bumper for that hour, too. I was so rattled by the time I got to LaGuardia, I looked forward to just resting during the flight to St. Louis, Missouri. Once I landed, I was to take a small plane to Cape Girardeau--or so I thought. It turned out to be a toy plane! Ladies and gentlemen, it was a 10 passenger plane, and there were only 3 of us passengers! I'm talking, sitting right there with the pilots, the plane being tossed around because of the wind, and praying to remind myself that God has a plan for me and didn't bring me to Missouri to kill me!

My friend, Kristi King, met me at the airport and took me to her job to see where she works. From there it was on to her parents' house. They fed us well: chicken and dumplings and collard greens. Now, understand: I was raised in New York, but I come from a southern Black family. I didn't know white people could make collard greens, but Mama Earlene "put her foot in" those greens, as they say! They were right up there with my Aunt Mary's collards--and that's saying something! Southern folks can cook--period.

After a few hours there, we went to Kristi's and talked, laughed, prayed, and finally slept. The next morning we made the nine hour drive to New Orleans. I love road trips, and this was no exception. Again, we laughed, talked, sang, and listened to Going Rogue on CD. We had a wonderful time. The whole trip was that way: tons of silly times and tons of serious time--praying and talking.

At the conference, I met some people from the 2012 Draft Sarah Committee, C4P, and Team Sarah. Several times people came up to me and said, "Are you Adrienne Ross? I read your blog" or "I read your work on C4P." My favorite was when I'd hear, "Thank you for all you do for Governor Palin." Palin supporters are always looking out for her.

I can't count the times people told Kristi how much she looks like the governor. Some wanted their picture taken with her. One woman was following behind her to sneak a closer look, just to find out if it was Governor Palin. Now that was interesting! Mind you, Kristi is almost 6 feet tall, and with heels, she was over 6 feet! But they're right; you can't deny the resemblance.

Almost missing my flight was not the only unnerving situation. Somehow my registration lanyard disappeared off my arm and into thin air. I had to beg to get another one. It was time-consuming and utterly ridiculous. I'm glad I finally got one, for it was needed to vote for Governor Palin in the straw poll.

The poll brings me to the bitter part. It is low-down dirty how Mitt Romney and Ron Paul paid people's way to SRLC if they would agree to vote for them. Rather desperate and pathetic, and not just a rumor. I knew well before the conference Romney was doing this because someone I know, a Palin supporter, was offered a free ride if he'd but vote for Romney. Of course, the bribe was declined. My friend would not be bought. Even with the Acorn voting tactics being employed, Governor Palin came in third, which to me equates to first since the ones ahead of her bought many of their votes.

Of all the speakers, and there were some good ones, Governor Palin was the best, most energetic. She discussed energy at length and went into foreign policy issues. Her speech was substantive, passionate--and presidential.

Placed on each seat in the ballroom was Alaskan caribou jerky with a SarahPAC tag. This was very generous and creative of the governor--and yummy, I might add.

Above all else, there was indeed one definite highlight for me, an honor and a blessing--but I'll keep the particulars to myself! :) That's how I roll, y'all!

Late Saturday afternoon, Kristi and I headed out for the long ride back to Missouri. She had decided that the next day she would actually take me herself back to St. Louis for my flight because after seeing the toy airplane, she did not want me to have to get back on it. Praise God for that! Unfortunately, I was in for another nailbiter. We were following the GPS, and it took us on a wild goose chase. By the time I got to the gate, they were already boarding. I was like, oh my goodness...I can't get into Missouri, and I can't get out. What in the world?!
Honestly, I actually wasn't ready to go home, but one must work so one can eat!

I arrived in New York City Sunday after the hour and a half flight. Once retrieving my car, I drove the 2 1/2 hours to get home...and the rest, as they say, is history.

Those few days were filled with sweet moments, laughter, tears even. It also had the bitterness of StrawPollGate. But even that couldn't take away from the significance of the trip. I thank God for the opportunity, and as I always say, "The best is yet to come!"

* Pictures courtesy of Kristi King

Sarah Palin Serves Up Some Boston Tea

"Freedom is a God given right and Freedom is worth fighting for!"

-Sarah Palin

Sarah Palin gives a stirring speech on Liberty and Freedom in front of a huge crowd in Boston today:







This from the Boston Herald:

A roaring Tea Party crowd cheered on Sarah Palin on the Boston Common today as she slammed President Obama promising it’s "nothing a good old fashioned election can’t fix."

Palin, wearing a lipstick-red leather jacket, urged "less government" and "cut spending" and do more than "stall the spending spree we’ve been on."

The common-sense hockey mom praised Bostonians for electing upstart GOP star U.S. Sen. Scott Brown as she stood in the shadow of the Democrat-controlled State House.

"Bostonians have never been afraid to stand up for their freedoms," Palin said. "Shoot, look at what Massachusetts did in January. You shook up the U.S. Senate."

She called for taxes to be cut so families can "keep more" of what they earn. She tossed in a call for "drill, baby drill" and to stop America from "bowing to Saudis."

It was a speech aimed directly at the Democrats and it was the fuel that pumped up the Tea Party Express crowd.

The turnout – clearly well in the thousands – went beyond expectations, Tea Party organizers said. The crowd filled the Common to hear Palin who took the stage before 11 this morning.

Palin took to the stage to pound away at "Obamacare" and the borrowing that will tax future generations, she said.

"The first test will be at the ballot box in November," she said, calling on Tea Partiers to get out the vote.

Almost everyone said they came today to catch a glimpse of the conservative shooting star, but she’s not the only draw.

Check out reader submitted photos from the Tea Party Express rally.

Gold Star Mother Debbie Lee told the story of her son, Mark, who was killed in Iraq. She broke down in tears to remember a boy she lost to war who stood in the line of fire to save his squad.

"He did that for each and every one of you today," she said of her son’s death. "We’ve got political insurgents in Washington, D.C. And will you have the same response my son did? ‘Roger that. Let’s go get ‘em."’

The rally, which kicked off before 10 a.m. and will last until about 1 p.m., has made the corner of Charles and Beacon the epicenter of the Tea Party movement today.

"This may be our only opportunity to see her live on the East coast," said Dennis McHale, a police sergeant who worked a night shift on Long Island and then hit the road to the Hub.

John Philip Souza IV was the first speaker to take to the podium, where he railed against big government. "From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for the restoration of smaller government," he ended his speech with.

It’s still Palin who is the big draw.

"She’s a political up-and-comer and I’m excited to see her," said Franklin High senior Taylor Trenchard.

"It’s a great experience. I want to see Sarah Palin speak," said Nick Melfi, 18, also from Franklin High. He came along with others in his AP government class to witness democracy in action.

Historian and Plymouth preacher Paul Jehle said the Tea Party picked the perfect location to hold an anti-tax, anti-big government rally.

"There’s a hunger here to return to liberty and constitutional law – and that’s a good thing," said Jehle, who is dressed as a Minuteman as he works the crowd.

"In 1773, Boston voted against paying a 3 cent tea tax. It was lawful resistance to an unjust tax," Jehle said, adding he hopes the Tea Party movement can cling to those ideals.

As usual, Sarah was en fuego! She is on a mission to fire America up ahead of the upcoming November elections. I’d say she is doing a great job.

Hard to single out a favorite point in the speech because the entire message is rousing and inspiring. One point she made stands out though and that’s when Sarah reminded everyone that in the Land of Opportunity, Barack Obama’s regime is stealing our children’s opportunity. He’s stealing their children’s opportunity as well!

I also enjoyed it when she said the with Obama it’s: "All Alinsky all the time!"

The real thing that is so inspiring though is the fact that in every corner of our great nation ordinary, every day Americans are coming together and standing up for Liberty and Freedom and pushing back against the Marxist Obama regime.

For the first time, in a long time, Americans are realizing they can, and will make a difference. All they have to do is stand up and be heard.

This is a truly exciting time to be alive and an American!

How about a little Lloyd Marcus!







Video of Sarah's speech courtesy of The Right Scoop.

Sarah Palin: The Tax Man Cometh

April 14 The tax man cometh... while tax cuts soon expire. This takes away the private sector's opportunities to grow and thrive and create jobs, and it diminishes America's work ethic. According to the Tax Foundation, Americans worked for over three months of this year, from January 1 to April 9, before they earned enough to pay their federal, state, and local tax obligations. That's nearly 100 days out of the year to pay government, before we start earning money for our families and small businesses! Did you know that Americans will pay more in taxes in 2010 than we do for food, clothing, and shelter combined? The Tax Policy Center projects that 47% of American households will pay no federal income taxes this year. Either their income doesn't qualify, or they qualified for enough deductions and credits to have no income tax liability for the year. In fact, the bottom 40% of households on average will net money from the federal government in payments and services. It’s time to bring sanity to our tax system and to simplify the tax code. Please send what you can to SarahPAC today and help the campaigns of good, strong, commonsense Americans who will clean up the mess that Washington has created. America, as one people with one Constitution, deserves better. With an Alaskan heart and with support for real hope for the future, Sarah Palin

Paid for by SarahPAC Not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee www.SarahPAC.com

P.O. Box 7711
Arlington, VA 22207

Gov Palin Live at Boston Tea Party 2010

Gov Palin Live at Boston Tea Party

April 14, 2010 @ 1100 EDT

Tea Party Express Live Stream

- Posted using BlogPress from my Palin-Powered iPhone

SRLC: Kristi King & I Interviewed By AFP (w/ pics)

By Adrienne Ross - www.motivationtruth.com



Immediately after Governor Palin's speech at SRLC, my good friend and fellow 2012 Draft Sarah Committee Organizer (Missouri), Kristi King, and I were stopped and interviewed by AFP.

Writer Allen Johnson first highlighted the governor's speech:

Sarah Palin, one of nine presidential hopefuls on the weekend straw ballot at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference, brought cheering delegates to their feet as she advanced conservative policies for energy, nuclear weapons, and other issues for the congressional mid-term elections in November.

"The election is only seven months away," Palin said, then in a clear dig at Obama's signature theme, added: "Now, when they say - 'yes, we can', we stand up and say - 'oh, no you don't.'"

Palin advocated for stronger national security and economy by increasing domestic oil and gas production.

He also discussed Newt Gingrich's speech from the previous night:

Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House of Representatives and another candidate on the Republican straw poll for president, called Obama "the most radical president in American history."

In an address to the conference Thursday night, Gingrich accused Obama and his fellow Democrats of building a "secular, socialist machine" to expand government at the expense of taxpayers.

Gingrich also said Republicans who win congressional seats in November should refuse to fund the Obama administration's health care reforms. A Republican Party icon, Gingrich says he has not yet decided whether to run for president.

He introduced his interview with Kristi and me by piggy-backing off those two speeches:

Meanwhile, Palin's 27-minute address on Friday to Southern Republicans, seemed to energize her supporters at the conference, especially women.

"Newt Gingrich is a very smart man," Kristi King, 36, a retail manager at an optical company in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, said moments after Palin's address.

"But he's not Sarah," said her fellow delegate Adrienne Ross, 39, a 7th grade English teacher at Hudson, New York.

"She doesn't talk over people; her appeal is common sense conservatism," said Ross, one of the few African-American delegates at the conference. Part of Palin's appeal is her unequivocal support for Israel, said Ross, adding: "Our president is sort of flip-flopping on Israel right now - that makes me nervous."

Allen Johnson certainly captured my approval of Governor Palin's substantive, passionate, and energetic speech.

My one beef with the way he wrote up the article is the manner in which he quoted Kristi. It comes off like she was talking up Newt Gingrich and I was interrupting to state that Governor Palin was better. Actually, when asked about Gingrich, Kristi made it clear that his intelligence was to be respected, but that he did not have the appeal, energy, or support of Governor Palin. She made it clear that although Gingrich was definitely deserving of admiration, Governor Palin was the clear leader. The night before, in fact, during his speech, Kristi tweeted:

Is listening to Newt Gingrich...he's a smart man but he ain't no Sarah Palin!

Of course Kristi was right, and I agreed wholeheartedly with her. Governor Palin espouses common sense conservative principles and articulates them in such a way that has caused multitudes to stand up and take notice.

Read Johnson's full article here.

*** Check back to read more on SRLC and see pictures of Governor Palin and others.

Mitt Romney’s Louisiana (Straw Poll) Purchase

How sad and pathetic is the effort to prop up Mitt Romney, to make him look like a viable candidate for 2012? Pretty sad.

As is done at every big political gathering, a straw poll was held at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans. These things are generally worthless as a predictor of who is a viable candidate though, Bill Frist won the previous poll at the SRLC, for example.

At this year’s CPAC event, Ron Paul won the polling, making a mockery of the entire process. In fact, so many shenanigans have been going on lately, there has been talk of ending the practice of conducting straw polls at these events altogether.

After the SRLC, that may just happen.

Now look, I’m all for competition, and certainly respect well organized efforts to support a favorite candidate, but this has just gotten ridiculous. What we are seeing now are ACORN style tactics by candidates and their supporters in order to win an absolutely meaningless poll!

Oh sure, they get a headline for a day, but so what?

When Ron Paul won the CPAC poll absolutely everyone knew it was because a group of supporters were paid to vote that way. That pay coming in the form of tickets to the event, in exchange for the vote. The same thing happened in New Orleans with not only the Ron Paul people, but the Mitt Romney people as well.

Look, no one has a problem with folks actively campaigning to win these things, as meaningless as they are. I mean a candidate gets some short term bragging rights, and for some, a little name recognition. I don’t even have a problem with folks advertising and handing out goodies. We wrote earlier about the tasty Alaskan treats Sarah Palin’s SarahPAC was handing out, in an effort to remind people to donate to the effort to fund Conservative victory this fall.

Mike Huckabee was there promoting HuckPAC, though I don’t know if his group were handing out premiums. The group "Evangelicals for Mitt" was handing out pink piggy banks with info about Romney. All of this is well and good, but the Romney group went a lot farther.

CBS News' Brian Montopoli reports:

I spoke to a young female delegate who said she planned to vote for Romney in the poll. I asked her how she had ended up at the conference.

She said Evangelicals for Mitt had contacted her and offered to pay for her to have a limited-access ticket — as long as she agreed to vote for Romney in the straw poll.

Asked how Evangelicals for Mitt got her name, she said she didn't know. But she said that she was on the e-mail list for Romney and speculated that the Romney team had given out their e-mail list.

The folks over at the Daily Paul got a hold of a copy of the "Evangelicals for Mitt" solicitation:

Subject: Calling All Socially Conservative Catholics, Evangelicals, Mormons, and Jews

Hey Fellow Mitt Supporters,

I’m the co-founder of an organization called "Evangelicals for Mitt" which is a grass roots political organization that supports Gov. Romney for President in 2012.

I’m writing because the Southern Republican Leadership Conference is the kick-off of the 2012 Presidential election, in New Orleans in April. "Evangelicals for Mitt" is trying to get people there who would vote for Gov. Romney in a straw poll there. It is customary for potential Presidential candidates to make an effort to get friendly people at the conference to help their showing in the straw polls, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.

If you have politically minded friends who’d be interested in the largest gathering before 2012 voting, please tell them about this offer. So far, Sarah Palin, Bobby Jindal, and Newt Gingrich have confirmed as speakers. Sadly, Gov. Romney is not a confirmed speaker — but all the more reason to show up and send him a message: Southerners Love Mitt!

A good time will be had by all, and it’s always a great deal of fun to participate in the democratic process in a small yet meaningful way. In addition to voting in the straw poll, we’ll provide tickets that will enable you to get into all of the speakers if there’s room. Also, you’ll have access to all of the break-out sessions, and a large Friday night party called The Taste of Louisiana. We’ll also have free autographed copies of Gov. Romney’s book "No Apologies" and tee shirts there, and there will also be plenty of great food!

Anyway, please fill out the below form and we’ll get you registered. Also, if you think you’d be able to help us find people to go vote for Mitt in the straw poll, or if you would be interested, please call or e-mail. I’m attaching the info that I’ll need from you below.

Thanks!
Nancy

"Evangelicals for Mitt" is offering tickets to the SRLC for FREE (normally $119). Here is what attendees receive:

1) Access to the main sessions via live simulcast television. As space allows, during any session, you'll have access to the main ballroom.

2) Great food and hospitality at the Taste of Louisiana Party on Friday night. Trust me - you will experience some great food!

3) Complete access to breakout sessions, the exhibit hall, and the straw poll.

4) Not only will you have the opportunity to see many Conservative notables speak in person, but the Conference shares the weekend with the French Quarter Festival, where you can enjoy over 150 musical performances, as well as the cuisine and culture of the Big Easy. It's guaranteed to be a terrific weekend!

To be fair, Romney’s people claim no affiliation with "Evangelicals for Mitt" but questions remain. For example, how was the group able to obtain hundreds of autographed copies of Romney’s book? I know there are probably plenty of copies laying around, sales aren’t that brisk, but still, it takes some effort to get that many books signed. It takes coordination.

And then there is the question of the e-mail lists. And where exactly, did all the money to purchase the tickets come from?

More than a few things bother me about this, besides the sheer ridiculousness of the effort to win a poll that everyone knows is meaningless because they are always skewed by the makeup of the attendees. We expect this nonsense out of the Ron Paul folks, but for a supposed "serious" contender, it just looks bad.

One thing that’s hard to get past is the fact that Romney was so conspicuous by his absence. Everyone who is anyone was there speaking to the crowd. Romney used the excuse he was on his book tour. Really? It’s not like he’s got huge crowds, or people sleeping outdoors, overnight, just to get a chance to see him. He could have put that little adventure on hold.

Maybe he’s avoiding a conservative gathering because he has no answer to the reasoning behind his epic failure: RomneyCare, as well as his continued defense of that disaster. And make no mistake about it, RomneyCare, which is both the blueprint for ObamaCare, as well as the canary in the coal mine, is a disaster of biblical proportions!

The thing that really bothers me though, besides the fact that Romney thinks he can buy his way into the presidency, is that while every serious speaker at the SRLC was concerned with 2010, and winning back Congress, this guy, who has nothing to add to the conversation, is so focused on 2012. It’s like he couldn’t care less about the fight ahead, just as long as he wins in 2012.

Where has Romney been while others have been fighting tooth and nail to save the Republic and stop Obama? He certainly can’t call Obama out on his government take over of health care, because RomneyCare is so similar. This is the fight of our lifetimes and Mitt Romney is on the wrong side of history!

We have real leaders out there fighting every single day. We have folks like Sarah Palin who stand up and take it to the Obama regime with gusto, never backing down, never failing to rise to the occasion. There are others as well who put forth a maximum effort daily. These real leaders are focused 100 percent on 2010 and winning back Congress. 2012 is a lifetime away, politically, and if we don’t succeed now, 2012 won’t matter much. There won’t be much of a country left to be President of.

I guess the real question is not whether or not it’s cool to buy your votes at a meaningless straw poll, in order to generate a favorable headline. No, the real questions are: Why do we need Mitt Romney? What good is he? What is he doing to advance the cause of liberty and freedom and help secure this nation from the enemies within? What is Romney doing to stop the Obama regime from destroying America?

So far as I can see, absolutely nothing.

Oh, in case you wondered, at the end of the day, Mitt Romney edged out Ron Paul by a single vote 439 to 438, a virtual tie for first place. Sarah Palin came in third, beating Newt Gingrich by nine votes, 330-321. No one else even came close; Mike Huckabee followed with 4% of the vote. Tim Pawlenty and Mike Pence got 3% each, Rick Santorum got 2%, and Gary Johnson got 1%.

There were 1800 total votes cast, which is about half the number of total attendees.

Interestingly, Sarah Palin and Newt Gingrich topped the list of second choice selections.

I saw this comment online that seems to say it all:

Romney- Buys 500 $119 tickets= $59,500 =TIE FOR FIRST
Paul- Buys 800 $119 tickets= $95,200 =TIE FOR FIRST
Palin- Buys 500 Caribou Jerky= $1,500 = SECOND PLACE

WHICH ONE IS FISCALLY CONSERVATIVE?
WHICH ONE GOT MORE FOR THEIR MONEY?

That really does put it all in perspective, doesn't it.

A Move Toward a Better Way for America: A Post by Conservative Girl with a Voice

Sarah Palin ROCKED the Southern Republican Leadership Conference this past Friday. Once again, she spoke so articulately that common sense conservative message- a message that is so needed today. Sarah is not afraid to stand up and speak out, and I am so glad that she is unafraid to tell it like it http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifis. Like Ronald Reagan before her, Sarah gives us hope that America will once again take its place as that Shining City on a Hill. Thank you so much, Sarah, for speaking the truth and doing so with such emotion, conviction and pure common sense. This Conservative Girl with a Voice thanks you for what you're doing and continue to do in the name of the First Amendment, freedom and liberty!!!

Make sure to check out two great blogs fohttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifr more on this: The Design Conservative and Motivation: Truth.

(Click here to visit Conservative Girl with a Voice and become a follower. Follow me on Twitter @rachellefriberg.)