Have a Coke Float with Jeff Atwater

Continuing his tradition of having ice cream sundae parties at Republican events, CFO Jeff Atwater is hosting a "Coke and a Float Party" to wrap up Presidency 5 (which starts tomorrow! Get excited!) on Saturday, September 24, from 8:30 pm to 10:30 pm. Details below:

(Click image to enlarge)

Find this and lots of other great events at the "Events" tab at the top right of this page.

Reality check on LeMieux's "conservative" voting record

As the Republican primary battle to be Florida's next Senator has developed over the past few months, one claim that I have seen over and over is that George LeMieux had a "conservative" voting record during his short tenure as a Senator. 

I have heard many Republicans express hesitation because of LeMieux's long association with former Governor and former Republican (and current Morgan & Morgan spokesman) Charlie Crist, but then cite his allegedly conservative voting record as if that might be able to cancel out the rest of it. Well, I know I'm not alone in thinking that LeMieux's years of being Crist's "maestro" aren't so easily dismissed (not to mention the ongoing debacle of L'Affaire de Greer), but even if you don't agree with me on that, LeMieux's voting record isn't really as conservative as he likes to claim, and here's why:

Adam Hasner Townhall column on Israel

Florida Senate candidate Adam Hasner has written a powerful op-ed for Townhall on the topic of Israel, and how the Obama administration has failed our ally:

Townhall | Adam Hasner | A Time to Act: Defending Israel and Doing What is Just

Florida: Kind of a Big Deal

You stay classy, Orlando!

Ron Burgundy liked to say that he was "kind of a big deal," but the reality is that as the 2012 election cycle heats up, it's Florida that really is a big deal.

Last week, CNN and the Tea Party Express hosted a Republican presidential debate in Tampa, and now this week will see both CPAC Florida and the Presidency 5 debate and straw poll.

Governor Rick Scott was interviewed on Fox & Friends yesterday, and remarked that Ronald Reagan, George Bush, and Bob Dole all won Florida's straw poll and then went on to win the Republican presidential nomination, so he believes that whoever wins the Presidency 5 straw poll will be the 2012 Republican nominee:

I'm now posting at Truth About Bills

Back in April, I linked to Truth About Bills in a post titled "Stuff You Should Be Reading." TAB is a great conservative site founded by  Andrew Staroska and Mike Simpkins, and they have have been adding additional authors in the past few months, including yours truly.

I just cross-posted my discussion and video from Newt Gingrich's speech at the Seminole County Reagan Day Dinner, and will continue to post content at TAB from time to time. They have a lot of great content that I encourage you to check out, especially their detailed discussion of pending Congressional bills.

Link to my posts at Truth About Bills
Truth About Bills home page

Words Have Meaning: LeMieux's Palestinian Faux Pas

Here's your #facepalm moment of the day: George LeMieux, the once-and-would-be-future-Senator, sent an email to his supporters in which he referred to "Palestine," which is not a recognized country.

The timing is especially troublesome, coming the week of a crucial United Nations vote on the very subject of an independent Palestinian state. Supporters of Israel have stood strong and refused to accept a Palestinian state as long as they continue to engage in terrorism and deny Israel's right to exist. Referring to "Palestine," as if it were already a country with legal status, is, at best, imprudent.

The Adam Hasner campaign issued a scathing press release this afternoon, sharply criticizing LeMieux's poor choice of words:

Allen West's Weekly Video Address

Congressman Allen West has started releasing weekly video addresses. Here's the latest edition, in which West critiques Obama's so-called "jobs" bill and discusses a variety of topics including the economy, the NLRB vs. Boeing dispute, the upcoming vote at the United Nations regarding Palestine, and his support for Israel:


YouTube | AllenWestFL | West's Weekly Video Address 9/16/2011

You can help Allen West's reelection campaign for only the cost of a postage stamp, by signing a petition to put West on the ballot (link here). Until redistricting is complete, a registered voter anywhere in Florida can sign a petition for a Congressional or state legislative candidate.

More about that awesome Ford ad

Last week, I posted a great Ford commercial in which a customer named "Chris" states that one of the reason that he bought a Ford truck was because the company was "standing on their own" instead of taking government bailouts like GM and Chrysler.

Ed Morrissey at Hot Air has an excellent write-up about the commercial, including a followup video from Chris:

Adam Hasner on Fox & Friends Monday

Fox and Friends will be broadcasting live from The Villages, Florida, on Monday, September 19, 2011 in celebration of the 15th anniversary of the Fox News Channel, and Florida Senate candidate Adam Hasner will be one of their special guests.

Tune in to the Fox News Channel at 7:30 a.m. next Monday to see Hasner participate in a panel discussion on some of the challenges currently facing our country.

Gotta Love Gingrich

There are two things that Newt Gingrich does extremely well: tell a good story, and give a direct answer to a question. I got to see him do both of those things on Wednesday evening in Lake Mary as the keynote speaker at the Seminole County Reagan Day Dinner, sponsored by the Ronald Reagan Republican Assemblies of Florida, Inc.

Before the dinner, Newt and Calista Gingrich took photos with everyone who was in attendance. State Representative Scott Plakon was nice enough to invite me and two other members of the Orange County Young Republicans to join his family at his table. Representative Plakon's very talented daughter Jeanne sang the national anthem and several other songs during the evening's program. (Check out this video of Jeanne singing at the 2009 Opening Session of the Florida House of Representatives.)

Gingrich's speech was mostly anecdotes about Ronald Reagan (ahem, it was a "Reagan Day Dinner," after all), some of Gingrich's own memories with the former President, but also many other great stories from throughout Reagan's life. Some highlights:

Adam Hasner on Running for the Senate

Florida Senate candidate Adam Hasner released another "Conversation with Adam Hasner" video today. This latest video discusses his decision to run for U.S. Senate and why he believes "America is at a critical crossroads and in desperate need of conservative reinforcements:"


YouTube | adamhasner | Adam Hasner On Running For The Senate

To learn more about Adam Hasner:

Adam Hasner website
Adam Hasner on Facebook
Twitter: @AdamHasner

CPAC FL - All The Cool Kids Are Doing It

Wow. Oh wow.

The American Conservative Union released the agenda for CPAC Florida today, and it is definitely going to be a don't-miss event.

Check it out here:

CPAC FL | Schedule of Events (pdf)

I am so excited about having CPAC come to my hometown. Can't wait to see all of you here in Orlando, and this is going to be a truly memorable week, with Presidency 5, the FoxNews debate, and now this epic-levels-of-awesomeness CPAC FL schedule.

More information about the speakers, programs, and registration after the jump:

Getting ready for the CNN/Tea Party Express Debate

I'm at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa, Florida and ran into Americans for Prosperity's Statewide Director for Florida, Slade O'Brien (pictured).

There is a huge crowd here, both waiting to get into the debate and at the Tea Party Express Dinner & Debate Watch Party.

You can follow my comments during the debate on Twitter @rumpfshaker (www.twitter.com/rumpfshaker) and I'll post blog updates when I can.

I'll also be giving some live post-debate commentary with Fox 35 Orlando (@myfoxorlando) at 10 pm so make sure to watch!

- Sarah

Is George LeMieux working with Guetzloe?

Why would George LeMieux willingly work with Doug Guetzloe, the man who spent last year engaged in a direct assault on both the Republican party and many tea party movement organizations and activists around the state (see my post from last month here with lots of links about Guetzloe)?

Or - and maybe this is worse - is LeMieux really that ignorant about the tea party? That doesn't seem that farfetched, considering the swirling gossip about LeMieux's contempt for grassroots conservatives. Or is he so desperate for positive press as L'affaire de Greer grinds on, that he'll take it from any source, no matter how low he has to stoop?

Here's what we know so far:

Town Hall with Newt Gingrich on Wednesday in Orlando

The East Side Tea Party and Central Florida Tea Party Council are hosting a Town Hall Event with Newt Gingrich on Wednesday. Here's all the info:

Morning Coffee Reading for September 12, 2011

Here's your morning coffee reading for today:

• L'affaire de Greer continues to burn, and it hasn't escaped the notice of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. In a recent post, the DSCC lands some devastating blows on George LeMieux, including link after link after link to news articles showing the years of connections between LeMieux, former Governor (and former Republican) Charlie Crist, and former RPOF Chairman Jim Greer:

DSCC | Adam Hasner Says You Broke The Law. What Say You, George LeMieux? --& (Crickets)

• The New York special election to fill Anthony Weiner's Congressional seat is shaping up to be more of a challenge than the Democrats expected:

Michelle Malkin | Doug Powers | Race to Replace Anthony Weiner Update: Poll Finds Republican Leading by 6 Points

RedState | PPP (D) Poll: Turner (R)/Weprin (D) 47/41 in NY-09

More thoughts on the day

I've been spending the day like many of you probably have - quietly reading articles and blog posts online and watching the news coverage. As I posted earlier this morning, it seems surreal that it's been a decade since that awful day that changed America forever.

I thought I'd share with you some of what I've been reading and watching today:

Never Forget

It has been ten years since September 11, 2001, but it often seems like it just happened yesterday.

It is a sad reality that every modern American generation has been united by its own horrific tragedy. For our grandparents, it was Pearl Harbor. For our parents, JFK's assassination in Dallas. And September 11th will forever define my generation. These are the "I will always remember where I was when I heard" moments that draw a brutal demarcation across our history: the Before and the After. We can rebuild, we can find our own ways to cope and heal, but life is never, ever the same.

In 2001, I was in law school at the University of Florida, engaged in the mundane task of getting ready for class, when my roommate called out that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. How could this be? What had happened to the pilot that the plane couldn't avoid such a tall building? What a terrible accident...

Then the second plane hit.

I think the next car I buy will be a Ford

Here's why:


YouTube | Ford Drive One: "Press Conference: Chris" Commercial

An amazing story of courage from September 11th

September 11th, 2001 will go down in history as a day of tragedy, but also a day of heroism. Here is a story of one of those heroes:

Washington Post | F-16 pilot was ready to give her life on Sept. 11 

Late in the morning of the Tuesday that changed everything, Lt. Heather “Lucky” Penney was on a runway at Andrews Air Force Base and ready to fly. She had her hand on the throttle of an F-16 and she had her orders: Bring down United Airlines Flight 93. The day’s fourth hijacked airliner seemed to be hurtling toward Washington. Penney, one of the first two combat pilots in the air that morning, was told to stop it. 

The one thing she didn’t have as she roared into the crystalline sky was live ammunition. Or missiles. Or anything at all to throw at a hostile aircraft. 

Except her own plane. So that was the plan...

[Click here to read the rest of the article]

With no ammunition, pilot ordered to take down United 93