CPAC 2011 Friday Evening

Around lunchtime, I went to see Pam Geller of AtlasShrugged.com and her presentation of The Ground Zero Mosque controversy. She's is right in the thick of it as I've come to expect with her.The panel, with Spencer speaking

Her associate, Robert Spencer, said: "This is a mosque of triumph. “The Second Wave of the September 11th Attacks.” He compared the mosque to Muslims building the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aqsa Mosque on the site of the sacred Jewish Temple Mount, which they did immediately after conquering Jerusalem in the 7th century.

Pam got up and said the trailer for her new film on the Ground Zero Mosque controversy might be too graphic for 9/ll family members to see. She had a hard time getting a hold of the footage and was told by authorities in NYC that the film clips were “embargoed.” She eventually got them and incorporated them into the film. When she began projecting the trailer for us, there were technical difficulties. We saw most of it and it was gut-wrenching. We watched footage of people who jumped. We heard the sound of them hitting the ground. We saw what remained of them on the pavement.The young woman in the middle lost her brother

One woman then spoke about her brother, a fireman, who died. She read from the autopsy report the family got when they identified his body. It was difficult even to listen to. Another woman from the 9/11 families had to leave because she became too emotional.This woman lost her son

Another woman lost her son. "My son is one of the 1100 victims who never were recovered," she said, fighting tears after almost ten years. "The authorities have been trying to suppress the horror," she said. Forty percent of uniformed victims were never found. She fought back tears throughout her remarks.

This was very emotional. This was powerful. Why does media suppress it? It needs to be part of a major propaganda campaign about Islam, about its history, about its lack of respect for other religions and for all those who have to live with the aftermath of terrorism done in the name of Islam. All this was made powerfully evident in that room today.

“[This was] an attack orchestrated by demonic cave-dwelling barbarians. My son is an angel murdered by demons,” the woman said. She was an extremely powerful speaker.

This was the most moving presentation I've seen so far at CPAC 2011.

Next was Texas Governor Rick Perry back in the big ballroom

I was reluctant to leave the 9/11 families presentation, but I wanted to see Perry. It was hard to readjust my mood from room to room, and they were late bringing Perry out. I had to listen to the tail end of the Ron Paul speech in the big ballroom and I had to flash my press credentials to get in past a long, long line of Paulies who couldn’t get access because of fire codes. Finally, though, Paul stopped talking. It was 12 minutes past the hour before all Paulies started filing out and that took longer. I was annoyed again because I could have spent the time listening to more testimony at the Geller presentation.

The guy who stepped up to the mike to introduce him said Perry went from tenant farmer to the Governor’s office. He got a very enthusiastic standing ovation when he came onstage.“I stand here to talk about the willful neglect of the federal government responsibilities,” he said with chutzpah. I liked him. He had passion. He discussed border issues and slammed the federal government for doing what it shouldn't be doing, and neglecting what it should - like policing the border. "The bad actors in Mexico are getting worse,” he said. “We still need a thousand National Guard troops on the border. We need predator drones. Our kids are being trained to operate these things. They could gather data and evidence." With which to go after the perpetrators, I guess.

“The tenth amendment casts a narrow role for the federal government and the governmnet closest to the people really governs best,” he said, and then recited it:

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people

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“Nowhere in there does it say the [federal] government is responsible for solving every problem,” he added. “Return to the vision of our founders. Heaven knows that the time is right.”

Perry went on about the meaning of last November's vote: “[Voters] said, ‘We are fed up. We’re fed up and want to take our country back.’ Americans are fed up with the so-called Progressive Movement," [and] “It cuts across party lines, I’ll tell you that.” He’s spoke without notes and he didn't look at the teleprompter. He used his hands. He was very into what he was saying.I like this guy.

“They ought to be pointing to Texas and saying, you know, that is what the rest [of the states] should be doing.”

He’s doing well, but he’s talking too long.

“At least two federal judges have determined that Obamacare is unconstitutional . . . We need to push back on this federal government."

Next was Herman Cain. Now he can speak. He's a former CEO of Godfather's Pizza and executive at Pillsbury and a conservative radio host in Atlanta. He spoke out last year against charges by the NAACP that the tea party is made up of "racist elements."Herman Cain

The problem with this country is too much “ations," he said. Regulation, legislation, etc. and Obamacare is a disaster. I'd never heard of this guy, but he had the crowd interested."The cost of regulatory compliance [with government] is $10,000 per employee," he said, and that was outrageous. That, and the uncertainty hanging over this economy because business people are afraid of what government may do next is holding everything back he claims, and I agree of course. He wants government to shrink drastically and let business thrive.

I liked Cain, but I was tired and hungry. I wanted to go to my room and have a glass of wine, and I did. Checking out some other sites, I'd saw on the Daily Caller that Jimmy McMillan, former candidate for governor in New York representing "The Rent is Too Damn High Party" showed up in the hallways of the hotel. I missed it. Could have used the comic relief.

With media credentials, I can be one of the people kneeling down in front of the dais snapping pictures. Nice results, huh? I love my 18-270 mm lens. Best photography investment I ever made.