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The Tea Party Rally in Searchlight is being broadcast on C-Span right now. 9:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time.

We'll have a complete rundown on Saturday's "Showdown in Searchlight" tomorrow, but for now, we wanted to pass along Gov. Sarah Palin's message from Twitter thanking all of you for helping to make it such a fantastic event: . . . So how big was the event? Well, here's an aerial view of the rally - showing JUST ONE section of the crowd:

Palin To Tea Party Rally: Dump the Democrats ‘You're fired,’ she says of Senate leader Harry Reid in his hometown LAS VEGAS - Sarah Palin exhorted thousands of conservative tea party activists assembled in the Nevada desert Saturday to "fire" Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and other Democrats from Congress in the upcoming national election. The wind whipped U.S. flags behind the former Alaska governor as she stood on a makeshift stage, holding a microphone and her notes as she spoke to the cheering crowd in Reid's hometown. She told them Reid, fighting for re-election, is "gambling away our future."...

If the media outlets are going to report on tea party events, they're not likely to get any benefit of the doubt much of the time. Case in point - at the Tea Party Express event on March 27 in Searchlight, Nev., which former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin spoke, CNN's Fredericka Whitfield wasn't quite prepared to give the rally credit it was due as far as participation. She estimated that hundreds, but if not, "at least dozens of people" were in attendance. "Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin there in Searchlight, Nev., was the backyard of Senate Majority Leader Harry...

SEARCHLIGHT, Nevada (AFP) – Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin has urged Nevada voters to retire their Senator, Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid, at a massive rally near the dusty desert outpost where Reid grew up. The "Showdown in Searchlight" was the kickoff event for a 44-city, three-week US tour of political demonstrations by the Tea Party Express, a consortium of anti-tax, anti-Democratic groups that culminates in Washington DC on April 15, the day US taxpayers' returns are due. While there were dozens of speakers from local politicians vying for Reid's job to right-wing radio talk show hosts, the main draw...

Listen well because you may face similar circumstances one day. Video at link.

If the media outlets are going to report on tea party events, they're not likely to get any benefit of the doubt much of the time. Case in point - at the Tea Party Express event on March 27 in Searchlight, Nev., which former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin spoke, CNN's Fredericka Whitfield wasn't quite prepared to give the rally credit it was due as far as participation. She estimated that hundreds, but if not, "at least dozens of people" were in attendance. (h/t fstaff with assist from Mark Finkelstein) "Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin there in Searchlight, Nev., was...

Over 10,000 people showed up to hear Sarah Palin speak in Harry Reid’s hometown, population 1,000. People were camping out for two days in RV’s to Palin speak at her first Tea Party Express stop going around the country. And as always, the speech was awesome. ENJOY!

SEARCHLIGHT, Nev. — Sarah Palin told thousands of tea party activists assembled in the dusty Nevada desert today that Sen. Harry Reid will have to explain his votes when he comes back to his hometown to campaign. The wind whipped U.S. flags behind the former Alaska governor as she stood on a makeshift stage, holding a microphone and her notes as she spoke to the cheering crowd. She told them Reid, fighting for re-election, is "gambling away our future." "Someone needs to tell him, this is not a crapshoot," Palin said. About 7,000 people streamed into tiny Searchlight, a...

Palin at McCain rally in Arizona. If she runs, she WILL WIN. She is THAT good! VIDEO at link

Heads up. Sarah just walked onto the stage at Searchlight. On Fox News. Looks like a great crowd!

SEARCHLIGHT, Nev. – Sarah Palin told thousands of tea party activists assembled in the Nevada desert Saturday that Sen. Harry Reid will have to explain his votes when he comes back to his hometown to campaign. The wind whipped U.S. flags behind the former Alaska governor as she stood on a makeshift stage, holding a microphone and her notes as she spoke to the cheering crowd. She told them Reid, fighting for re-election, is "gambling away our future." "Someone needs to tell him, this is not a crapshoot," Palin said. About 7,000 people streamed into tiny Searchlight, a former mining...

LAS VEGAS – Thousands of tea party activists streamed into Sen. Harry Reid's hometown in Nevada Saturday morning, bringing American flags, "Don't Tread on Me" signs and outspoken anger toward President Barack Obama and his health care overhaul. The activists' star, Sarah Palin, will rally the crowds later Saturday from a makeshift stage in a patch of dusty desert about 60 miles north of Las Vegas. Organizers predict as many as 10,000 people could come to tiny Searchlight, the hardscrabble former mining town where the Senate Democratic leader grew up and owns a home. By midmorning, cars and RVs filled...

Tea Party Express staff on scene throughout the night to guide supporters into event as hundreds of RV’s & Cars Stream in *Crowd Size Projections Rise to Well-Above 10,000+ Supporters Throughout the night the staff of the Tea Party Express has been on-location at the site of today’s “Showdown in Searchlight” mega tea party rally. The staff is dispatched in teams from the entrance point back through the giant 160-acre parcel of land the rally is being held on to guide supporters who have been arriving in RV’s and cars all throughout the night. With hundreds of RV’s and cars...

SEARCHLIGHT -- Let the Tea Party begin. "Welcome to the real America," said Norman Halfpenny, retired Marine Corps master gunnery sergeant, as he and other volunteer Tea Party valets greeted hundreds of overnight campers who staked out prime real estate to get a front-row view of today's "Showdown in Searchlight."

Sunrise in Searchlight. The place is crowded already at 6:30am. Anyone else here?

HARRY: Money, Mob & Influence EXCERPT FROM Chapter 6 The Gaming Commission Exclusive To Free Republic After Reid’s early political career is interrupted by a failed Senate run in 1974, his next epic quest comes in 1977 when he was chosen by then Gov. O'Callaghan to run the Nevada Gaming Commission.  Did Reid near singlehandedly run the mob out of Vegas as the cultivated myth seems to imply?  Reid’s own account of his selection to chair the Commission sheds some light:   I woke today after the mayoral election a 35-year-old has been. I assumed that I was finished with...

I really need you to read this email. Please – it’s critically important! We urgently need you to join us in Searchlight, NV tomorrow (Saturday) and this email explains exactly why. Last night NBC Nightly News joined dozens of other national & international news outlets to report on the upcoming “Showdown in Searchlight.” The whole world is watching – and I’m not exaggerating at all. This is by far the biggest event in the tea party movement since Congress rammed through government-run heath care this past weekend. And as a result, everyone is waiting to see if the tea party...

Landowner of Searchlight Rally Location Invites Tea Party Supporters to Arrive Friday NightT.D. Barnes, the man who owns the property where we will be conducting Saturday's massive "Showdown in Searchlight" tea party rally has invited supporters to arrive Friday night and camp out if they wish.Many RV'ers from around the country are heading to Searchlight, but local campgrounds have totally sold out.  This will provide supporters the chance to get to the rally site early and avoid any traffic delays or congestion.The offer to camp out early for the "Showdown in Searchlight" was made via an interview with Nevada...

I'm hoping to get some info on the Tea Party Rally in Searchlight, NV this coming Saturday. I've gone to the Teapartyexpress.org website, but I'm looking for better info on where it actually is. We drove thru there a week ago on our way to Las Vegas, where we are now and I don't remember anyplace that could hold all these people. According to the Google map on the website it's at US 95 and Coyote Mind Rd. But what's there? Just a big open area in the desert? A grandstand? Will we have to walk a long way from...