Free Republic

Two things happened over the weekend in the race for the 2016 GOP presidential nomination. 1. Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul led the field in a national poll conducted by CNN/ORC International. 2. Paul won the straw poll at the Northeast Republican Leadership Conference. 3. Those two events come just a week after Paul cruised to another 2016 straw poll victory at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Add those things up and it's quite clear that Paul is the candidate of the moment on the Republican side. There's no one -- not even Ted Cruz or Jeb Bush -- who has...

The 2014 Conservative Political Action Conference drew a fairly international swarm of conservatives possessing a variety of ideas about limiting and specializing the role of civil government. The obfuscations of a (to use Congresswoman Michele Bachmann’s term) plus sized, overreaching bureaucracy have made some young people wonder why we need a civil government in the first place and why we can’t have anarchy instead. How do you respond to the statement: ”The system isn’t broken; the system never worked”?...

Though Karl Rove, Ronald Reagan, and Barry Goldwater weren’t in attendance at the 2014 edition of the Conservative Political Action Conference last week, the contrasting visions each had for the Republican Party were well represented. Championing Rove’s cynical realpolitik wing that believes in winning simply for winning’s sake was New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who essentially told the CPAC audience the GOP should keep doing what lost the last two presidential elections — but do it even worse. Showing he’s either out-of-touch with reality or really just a liberal, Christie even said Republicans have lost because they’ve been nominating candidates...

At a panel discussion on CPAC’s main stage Friday, libertarians and social conservatives agreed that while they share some core beliefs, they remain at odds over the issue of same-sex marriage. Tom Minnery, president and CEO of CitizenLink, said there are many things that social conservatives appreciate in the Libertarian Party’s platform. “Libertarians have led the way in helping us understand the need to cut back wasteful government and to get government out of our lives,” Minnery said. “But we also find this in that party platform: Government does not have the authority to license personal relationships. Consenting adults should...

(VIDEO-AT-LINK)The recent Conservative Political Action Conference provides a forum for big names. But it’s also a platform for the murmurs and asides from political strategists who’ve been everywhere and done everything, and like to speculate. Such is the case when the potential presidential candidacy ofHillary Clinton was parsed by a pair of insiders. Would she run? Maybe, if her health and vigor remain strong. But is she holding a place for someone else? Could be. The take-away suggestion: Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is seriously being groomed as a White House contender. “Maybe in the lead role, maybe the running mate....

Gun controllers and gun grabbers of the intolerant left have long tried to promote this idea that gun owners are a fraternal order of good ole boys. That ALL gun owners can be encapsulated in a caricature of being a bunch of old fat white guys. Nothing could be further from the truth. Personal protection, freedom from tyranny; these are sentiments that translate regardless of age, gender or color.

The question is not, “Is America falling?” but, rather, “Why is America falling?” I’m currently writing from CPAC 2014, the nation’s largest gathering of conservative political junkies. The event is being held at the beautiful Gaylord National hotel, adjacent to the scenic shoreline of the historic Potomac River. We’re just a few short miles from Washington, D.C., which, at least for now, remains the modern-day equivalent of the Roman Empire. I say “at least for now” because America finds itself skipping along the primrose path to Rome’s ill-fated finale. I needn’t trouble you with evidence to that effect as this...

This weekend I was listening to a talk radio show discussing the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), where the subject of “women’s rights” came up. Sirius XM radio host David Webb had a liberal and a conservative guest providing opposing perspectives on the purported pay disparity between men and women. While it has been conclusively discredited that, as of current, women are being paid less than men as a matter of systematic discrimination, what never ceases to amaze is how liberals continue to parrot the charge that this is indeed the case. It appears that no matter what evidence is...

It was difficult to miss Ian Jacobson at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Known as Rooster, he was 33, with an ample beard, earrings and a towering orange-and-aqua spiked Mohawk haircut. But he also sported a pinstriped suit, French cuffs and a natty contrast collar. Mr. Jacobson’s sartorial contradictions matched those of his politics: He is among the young Republicans who are pro-free market on fiscal issues and libertarian on social ones. While his views represent a potential growth wing for a party that is losing among other demographic groups, they also show an emerging tension with the older social...

Sarah Palin fired up thousands of conservative activists who came to hear her give the closing speech of the Conservative Political Action Conference outside Washington, D.C. this weekend. Palin hasn’t held elected office since she resigned as Alaska governor in 2009. But at this gathering of 11,000, she was an A-list star. The wind-up included a video montage of her greatest hits and tributes, and an introduction by NRA Executive Director Chris Cox. “Does anybody here love Sarah Palin?” Cox asked, getting a loud cheer. “Now, if I walked out there and asked 100 of you why you love Sarah...

A liberal blog surmising why the media always covers CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) to the point of obsession described the conference (and conservatives) as "These f***ing people are delivering crazy to the crazy."...LOL...oooooookay!There are thousands upon thousands of graphics out there, but I rounded up 24 that make arguments against liberals or for conservatism that no reasonable person would deem "crazy."In fact, only crazy people (liberals) would disagree with them...

CPAC, that great annual gathering of conservative red meat and can-you-top-this condemnation of President Obama, came to an end Saturday (with a petulant, syntax-challenged stemwinder from Sarah Palin, natch). In passing, Lexington mentions something that's long puzzled me: "It is traditional for journalists to be a bit sniffy about CPAC straw polls, and with reason…CPAC attracts a very specific slice of the conservative movement, and its straw polls have a woeful record of predicting actual presidential nominees. Half the voters in this year’s effort were aged between 18 and 25, and two-thirds were male. Many seemed keen on Mr Paul’s...

> Sarah may not be running in 2016 - but she's still a potent force in the Liberty movement, likely to pull some good Congressional candidates across the finish line this year. We are now in the process of evaluating this year's CPAC, and that's something I intend to properly address in a day or two, but meanwhile, I was doing a little housekeeping, cleaning out old emails and email drafts and found one about a person that has been enormously influential, but of whom, very little discussion has been made lately. The main reason perhaps, is that it seems...

Agitated by the “rousing reception” Sarah Palin received at CPAC 2014 over the weekend, MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski called the former governor of Alaska a “multi-million dollar moron.” As keynote speaker, Palin brought down the house Saturday with a speech that featured her very own rendition of Dr. Suess’ “Green Eggs and Ham,” proving that when it comes to firing up the conservative base, she stands alone. Brzezinski’s slur was in response to MSNBC contributor Mike Barnicle, who asked: “What does it say about CPAC, where the most popular speaker they had, the one who received the most rousing reception is...

I like what Allen West said; "What I saw missing from CPAC was an understanding that Americans hunger for a particular image. Americans thought Obama possessed it — an image of concerned and caring leadership. It is an image that exemplifies the best of America and reflects the triumph of the indomitable American individual spirit. It does not spring from numbers and detailed calculations. It is conveyed by someone Americans believe they can invite into their homes who cares for them and their future. The image should not be of someone who offers handouts, but if there is no compelling...

Republicans should learn from Pope Francis how to better communicate their message, Rick Santorum, former Pennsylvania senator and 2012 Republican presidential candidate, argued Friday at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Republicans focus too much of their message on attracting business owners rather than workers, attacking President Barack Obama and explaining what they are against rather than what they are for, Santorum claimed. Instead, Santorum urged Republicans to reach out to those who are hurting and to talk about how their policies will help them. And to do that, learn from Pope Francis. "I think we need to take a lesson...

Count me as one who was not suprised at the size of Rand Paul’s victory [1] in the CPAC straw poll. I’m only surprised it wasn’t bigger — even though he nearly tripled the votes of his nearest rival Ted Cruz.You could almost say that Paul is the ONLY interesting candidate on the immediate horizon — Republican or Democrat. I’m not going to badmouth the Republicans (I may have to vote for them), but Hillary is as dull, predictable and reactionary as Obama, if that’s possible. Neither of them has evidenced an ounce of creativity, or even an original...

WASHINGTON, March 9, 2014 — The third and final day of CPAC brought everything full circle. Most of Radio Row leaves after Friday, and the vendors pack up early Saturday afternoon. Yet all is not quiet on the CPAC front. Two events conclude the event, one meaningful and one meaningless. The meaningful event is the keynote speech. In recent years, Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck have brought the crowd to its feet with rousing closing remarks. This year offered Sarah Palin as the grand finale. The meaningless event is the straw poll, won virtually every year by retired congressman and...

What with all the sweetness and light going on this weekend at CPAC, there really hasn’t been much room set aside for the Hawt Media Topic of the Conservative Civil War. Well, let’s wrap up the weekend with a bit of mudslinging from upper chamber. Doing an interview with the New York Times, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell addressed the issue of three high profile Republican senators who are facing primary challenges from the Right. His conclusion?We’re going to crush you like the worms that you are, peasants. Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell predicted the GOP establishment will destroy...

Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) was on “America’s News Headquarters” today, where he discussed Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul’s speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference. In his speech, Paul said that the NSA monitors all phone calls. […] “I think it’s an ignorant strategy which shows that he’s unfit to be a leader of a party. To say that the NSA is monitoring people’s phone calls—the NSA does not listen to anyone’s phone calls, cannot record the conversations of anyone’s phone call, unless there’s a court order, and that can only be obtained after [they’ve] shown direct contact with a terrorist...