Politics meet fun and faithful at US conservative confab

GOP Meets at CPAC as Conservative Gathering Focuses Attention on Elections

Buttons lampooning US President Barack Obama are displayed at the American Conservative Union’s annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Washington on Feb 9, 2012.
AFP
Friday, Feb 10, 2012
WASHINGTON – Take one large part strategising, throw in key stump speeches, mix in an orange rifle and a tea party-aligned California beauty queen and what do you get? The most vibrant conservative gathering ahead of the Republican National Convention.

If you’re lucky here, you’ll meet the ghost of Revolutionary War hero Button Gwinnett, a signer of the US Declaration of Independence who later died in a duel with a rival, or have your program signed by Texas Governor Rick Perry.

The Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, convening Thursday through Saturday in the nation’s capital, is understandably all business for buttoned up Republican Party insiders intent on crafting a path toward a White House victory in November.

It’s a crucial gathering for conservatives, and the top three candidates vying for the Republican nomination in the battle to oust Barack Obama from the White House – Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum – are speaking here on Friday.

But for many Americans who aren’t policy wonks and missed the candidates on the campaign trail, it’s a chance to get up close with many of the country’s top conservative leaders, or to caucus with people pushing like-minded issues.

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GOP Meets at CPAC as Conservative Gathering Focuses Attention on Elections | Democracy, elections, and voting at Democracy Chronicles