It was a packed house. I'm not surprised considering how conservative the Brighton and Howell areas are. The Livingston County Republicans Chair is a friend of mine and said there was 650 seats. They had to make room to put a few tables in the corners away from the stage.
I saw a few faces I recognized from other events. I'm not that active these days outside of voting and following campaigns/issues, but have been a convention goer before. Local talk radio star Thayrone X was there. I don't listen to political talk radio very often, but when I do, I listen to WAAM from 3-6. He's one of the better ones.
Thanks to redistricting, I was put in a state senate district that has Livingston County instead of the city of Ann Arbor. I've gone from Rebekah Warren to Joe Hune which is like going from a communist to one of the top 3 conservatives in the state. Hune was Master of Ceremonies of the event. A lot of elected officials were there, mostly from their county, but some from other counties as well. Patrick Colbeck most notably. They seem to know and like him quite a bit in Livingston County for someone from Wayne County.
Most of the MIGOP leaders were there. I took that as a good sign. Maybe they aren't going to push a coronation next year.
The speech was mostly good, although it was certainly scripted. Unfortunately a old joke I've actually heard before (Joe Biden - that's the punchline) became the news. Most there think when it's primary election time that nobody will care.
Common Core was rather strongly disliked, and religious liberty is very important to the crowd there. I think that may have received the biggest applause. Knowing that area, I'm not surprised.
What Cruz got that did not get reported by the media is that most of all people are tired of politicians who say one thing and do another. The people there didn't trust most politicians including republicans. They liked their locals whom they knew. Most in the room like two or three candidates. Cruz, Walker, or Rand. A few liked Rubio and Kasich as well. I didn't hear much positive about Jeb, and none about Graham, Huckabee, Carson, Pataki, or the others.
Personally, I'm making up my mind between Cruz and Walker. Cruz at least seems to get the climate of lack of trust with our political class, that so many have a tin ear about going back to the George W Bush years and before.
Report from a FReeper in attendance.
As stated, I prefer Cruz, mainly because he handles the media better than anyone on the right has in a long time. The idea that he is reflexively the most conservative candidate has unfortunately been undermined by his vote on the Trade agreement, and his H1 Visa stance.
Unlike the Cruz or lose folks, I think Walker is someone we can trust, someone I could enthusiastically get behind, I just prefer Cruz.
Fortunately, more than 90% of Cruz supporters see it that ways as well.
Good luck making up your mind, fortunately there's a long way to go, debates and campaigns will shape the landscape and we can see more clearly as the first real votes come near.