Sunshine State at Red State!

Hello everyone! I am in the lovely city of Charleston, South Carolina for the 2011 RedState Gathering and having a great time. I love events like this...it's very energizing to be with so many other smart conservatives who are so passionate about politics and protecting our country's future. (Missed out on the RedState Gathering? Fear not, you can come hang out with me in Orlando at CPAC Florida next month!)

RedState contributor Moe Lane wrote earlier tonight that this year's RedState Gathering is showing "enthusiasm" at a "higher intensity" than in past years, and one of the RedState founders, Josh Trevino, put up a great post aptly titled "This Day. This Moment." about how RedState is proud to be a part of the conservative movement and very excited about tomorrow's program. (If you somehow missed the chatter, besides all the great conservative speakers, Texas Governor Rick Perry is apparently definitely going to announce he is running for President during his speech tomorrow afternoon.)

The Sunshine State is well-represented in Charleston this weekend. Besides your humble blogger, Governor Rick Scott spoke earlier tonight and State Representative Scott Plakon traveled with him. I got a quick, fun interview with our Governor and will post it later. YouTube... uploading... takes... forever... sigh...


Charleston's Southern hospitality apparently meant that the city wanted us Floridians to feel welcome...it is hot and humid as it is at home. Everyone is melting into little puddles but we're all having such a great time that no one cares too much. ;)

Florida Senate candidate Adam Hasner will be speaking tomorrow. Another great conservative candidate from Florida gave a speech at a RedState Gathering in 2009, and it was part of the events that summer that steadily snowballed into his election to the United States Senate last November.

Definitely one of the best things about RedState is how it finds, supports, nutures, and encourages excellent conservative candidates. The RedState endorsement has become for many conservatives the equivalent of a "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval" for candidates.

Erick Erickson, the current captain of the RedState ship, gave a great speech at the reception tonight to introduce South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who he called his "favorite Governor in America." Governor Haley was equally gracious, saying that "RedState didn't care who could win, they cared who should win," and that she believes that she would not be Governor without RedState's vital support early in her campaign.

For the record, Governor Haley is one of the nicest human beings you could ever meet, definitely one of the nicest politicians. She is a perfectly charming hostess for the weekend and took the time to pose for photos and chat with everyone at the reception (there were hundreds of people in attendance). Haley was one of the last people to leave, and her staff was incredibly gracious as well. I got a great interview with her as well...come on YouTube...hurry up...

Also attending tonight, Texas Senate candidate Ted Cruz, who I met at CPAC earlier this year. Cruz is a great guy and I've endorsed his candidacy. YouTube is slowly uploading (apparently frame by frame) an interview I got with him discussing his campaign, as well as today's ruling on the Obamacare appeal. (Cruz is an attorney who has worked on some high profile constitutional law cases, like a certain 2000 Supreme Court case.)

OK, another big day tomorrow and my eyelids are getting heavy. I promise I'll post the video interviews tomorrow...Good Night!