We’re live from the Collesium. Video, pics and reports throughout the day.
Update: 10:28 AM :: We’re off and running. The McDonnell video is so good I’m almost put back by it. As someone who works in professional political consulting I can’t imagine a better looking candidate. We’re talking Hollywood casting. Good stuff.
Update: 10:42 AM :: Heart felt speech by the father of an officer who lost his life in the Cole bombing.
Update: 10:45 AM :: Kick butt mother who tracked down her kids’ molester giving props to McDonnell for his tough stance on crime. This is a serious theme throughout the campaign which plays nicely to Bob’s strengths. Of course, the other side of the coin is that the Dems SUCK on the issue of crime. Look for that to be the point of the opposition spear.
Update 10:55 :: Quirky video of the Bob McDonnell family. His daughter is up now.
Update 11:02 :: Bob is up on the podium… accepting the nomination.
Video of the Mitt Romney press conference can be had here.
Update 11:14 :: “Get our state back on track… ”
Update 11:24 :: I’m not sold on the Just Say Yes motif but it seems to rev up the crowd. I’m not sure Bob is comfortable with it either.
Update 11:39 :: Bob’s entire family is good looking. Sean Hannity is revving u the crowd in a major way.
Update 12:09 :: Candidate speeches… stay tuned.
Update 12:21 :: Just interviewed Eric Cantor at bloggers row. Rep. Cantor believes that 2009 will be a harbinger of possible GOP victories in 2010.
Update 12:24 :: Muldoon just pulled out his massive machine gun and started lobbing hand grenades simultaneously in Bill Bolling’s direction.
Update 12:29 :: Muldoon could actually pull some support from Bolling if he wasn’t so smug about this. He comes off like: “I know I’ve lost but let me stick it to you one more time.”
Update 12:33 :: Brownlee starts off real well, leaving the podium and pays homage to his opponents.
Update 12:38 :: Don’t Tread on Me flags being passed out on the floor. Look for a big to do at the end. I like the approach.
Update 12:44 :: Cuccinelli coming out strong. He looks good… he played the economic hand in the opening audio but is leading the speech out with family first issues.
Update 12:55 :: Good line on David and Goliath but Foster comes across a little bit too slick.
Update 1:00 :: Crowd pretty much died off after Cuccinelli
Update 1:02 :: Good line from Foster. “Don’t you miss the days when ACORN stood for a nut and not a bunch of nuts. ”
Update 1:22 :: Mullins just simply rocks. He’s got a lotta energy.
Update 1:30 :: Voting now. Please let it be a first ballot. Not because I want an instant Cooch victory but because I’m anxious to get home and see “UP”
Update 1:41 :: Mary Katherine Hamm is swooning over the boys Acapella group.
Update 3:23 :: Right now we’re listening to an awesome cadet giving the best speech of the convention. Sorry I dropped off there. Conducted video interviews with Barbara Comstock and Jay Conville. I will tell you this… I am REALLY impressed with the slate of local delegate candidates
Breaking news… looks like first ballot will do it. Official results soon
Update 3:48 :: McDonnell, Bolling, Cuccinelli and Mullins
Some pictures after the jump:
From the press conference last night with Mitt Romney
Lots of kids throughout the event. This one has her bib on at the Saturday morning breakfast
I’m in a tie but some opted for the candidate tees.
Can you say multi-tasking
A quick salute for the camera
Cute trio which I made pose for me
Too funny
Cuccinelli sticker giver – LI, did you get one!?
Quick stogy before the event
The stage is great
Great set up for bloggers to do interviews
Ken Cuccinelli makes his way down the aisle
Bow ties are in
Bloggers row
Two of Shaun Kenney’s kids
Acapella group from UVA
Bill Bolling
More soon
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May 30th by Justin Hart
Low man out rule in effect? If yes, starting which which ballot?
bwana
on May 30th, 2009Third ballot, B.
Justin just got some face time with Eric Cantor
Brian Schoeneman
on May 30th, 2009Dropoff starts after second ballot.
Kevin Allen
on May 30th, 2009Oh, and to correct the record…bowties are always in style…but only if you can tie it yourself.
bwana
on May 30th, 2009Well, that means I’m never gonna be in style, I guess.
Ric James
on May 30th, 2009That cadet has a bright future in politics. He put most of the candidates to shame with both substance and delivery.
Brad Smith
on May 30th, 2009The cadet was the highlight of the convention, I am hoping to download his speech and send it far and wide.
Excellent pictures, good reporting and fantastic ticket!
Loudoun Lady
on May 30th, 2009The cadet was good, very good. Excellent young man with a terrific story.
We have our ticket it is time to go to work.
Congrats to Bill and Ken on their victories.
G. Stone
on May 30th, 2009Cuccinellis Intro was great, Where can I see the Cadet Speech video? It was awesome.
I actually liked the Just Say Yes portion, It makes it hard for the dems to paint us as the “party of no”
PWConservative
on May 30th, 2009I thought the RPV website was supposed to podcast the convention…can’t find it.
MaidMarion
on May 30th, 2009It must feel pretty pathetic to be relentlessly bashing a candidate for months who ends up winning in a landslide. That goes for several of our most regular posters on here.
NovaConservative
on May 30th, 2009This is an absolute disaster. We just nominated a candidate for AG who believes the government is tracking him with his Social Security Number. Shannon just got elected Attorney General. I can’t believe we are this stupid.
James
on May 30th, 2009Thanks for the pictures. We were so high up in the nose bleed section that we did not feel as though we were part of the convention!!! We were the pigeons in the rafters but without the fun of dropping poop.
Dorothy
on May 30th, 2009“It must feel pretty pathetic to be relentlessly bashing a candidate for months who ends up winning (the Republican nomination)in a landslide.”
Wait till November. I’m saving it so you can’t say I caused what’s about to happen to us then.
The Bulletproof Monk
on May 31st, 2009That’s fine, Bulletproof—but in the meantime, are you going to do everything you can to avoid what you see as this inevitable conclusion?
You shouldn’t want a self-fulfilling prophecy. But I get the feeling that a few of you would rather be proven right than keep the AG seat. And that would make you no better than the “puritans” you constantly chide.
Regardless, its worth remembering just how far off a few of you were–who really thought that Brownlee was going to pull this out. You were even starting to have me convinced. I should have known better. Cuccinelli had this locked up months ago, yet I got flack for even suggesting that he was the favorite going in. Whatever.
NovaConservative
on May 31st, 2009i agree with bulletproof. BUT, cuccinelli has real workers, the real in-the-trenches workers on his side. let’s see if they can overcome the dem’s “cuccinelli is only concerned about abortion” & “cuccinelli is my way or highway” politician. those comments, & worse will be directed at him.
i thought McDonnell’s videos were great.
kelley in virginia
on May 31st, 2009Kelly, will you be helping to elect Cuccinelli? I think KC knows what is going to be thrown at him, he can win despite the D’s aatacks but he will need all of our support.
Loudoun Lady
on May 31st, 2009BPM, given that there were 12,000+ in attendance (I think that’s what someone said), KC must have gotten 6,000+ votes. Still convinced it’s a conspiracy? If so, it’s pretty vast, I’ll grant you that.
I don’t like every single thing about McDonnell or Bolling. But … we finally have a ticket the entire party can get behind with some enthusiasm. How about we just pull together and make it happen? Yes, we can.
Linda B
on May 31st, 2009loudon lady: i will be helping the ticket.
as a long time Republican veteran, i went to the convention this year mainly to get to know our Lunenburg delegates because i believe to take back our country, we must start right at home.
my sense of our delegates was this: several were upset with the entire system & these were the ones that voted for muldoon because they just wanted to clean out the entire political pool.
then we had the rabid social conservatives. they didn’t cheer for anything or anyone but cuccinelli. if the coliseum had been bombed by terrorists, they would have talked about the evils of abortion.
then we had the fiscal conservatives, defense hawks. we like mcdonnell & brownlee.
i suspect we will all pull together here in our little part of the world before november.
kelley in virginia
on May 31st, 2009Let me tell you how Ken runs, because I saw it first hand in 2007 during his Senate race. He runs close to the ground, he talks about the bigger conservative issues but he always dovetails them into local and kitchen table issues . . . its why he was the last man standing in 2007. He runs very disciplined, issue-oriented campaigns. Its how he ran this convention campaign. A lot of people on both sides will have preconceived notions about how Ken runs as a candidate, but he is an incredibly disciplined and hard worker. The Oleszek campaign sat around for seven months waiting for Ken to say something “kooky” banking on that to win, but he never did. Trust me, watch him build an army on the right to shore up McDonnell and Bolling.
Chris
on May 31st, 2009Kelly, The terrorist bombing comment was unnecessary and meant to inflame rather than coalesce, and it gives me insight to your tolerance level for social conservtives. It is akin to LI’s. I’m sorry to hear this, because we need to unite and the circular firing squad needs to cease. Everyone was excited for their candidates and I saw plenty of Brownlee supporters with attitude, but that is how it is. I saw many of the Brownlee supporters in our section leave as soon as he took the stage with Foster, didn’t want to see KC get the glory? I don’t know, I hope they were just all trying to beat traffic.
Also, you don’t include KC in your “fiscal conservative” group with McDonnell and Bolling. Can you explain why?
Loudoun Lady
on May 31st, 2009Nova Conservative… The answer to your question regarding BPM is NO. BPM and Loudoun Insider are simply licking their wounds. They WILL begin attacking Sen. Cuccinelli sooner than later because they fear men of substance and principle, qualities they both lack. You’ll also need to prepare for BPM & LI too que the “we hate conventions” hand wringing. LCRC Chairman Caroline needs to replace the GOTV / 24Hour / Election Day Chairman immediately. Forgive the formatting of this reply, I don’t normally enter the fray. I have lurked this site since it began its destructive attacks on Loudoun Republicans. I encourage more of my friends and colleagues to take some time from our families & careers to stand up to the vitriolic hatred that is directed at Social Conservative Republicans on this site. Too Conservative needs to change the tone now that we have a unified ticket.
Tom Potter
on May 31st, 2009Screw you Potter. I’m not attacking Cuccinelli from here on out, but he will lose. That’s my honest assessment.
I fear men of substance and principle??? What a load of horseshit that is. As we’ve seen with Cooch’s crowd, substance and principle takes a backseat for many of them to winning at all costs. Did someone of “substance and principle” put together that bullshit crying child robo-call? I despise hypocrites, which the Cooch crowd is full of. It’s Revenge of the Nerds.
Conventions suck. Period. Only people who can’t win on a larger stage go with conventions.
Loudoun Insider
on May 31st, 2009LI, Remember, in the end the Nerds won.
Loudoun Lady
on May 31st, 2009This time, LL, that doesn’t mean victory in November.
Loudoun Insider
on May 31st, 2009NC, it’s not that big a deal for me, nor is it the first time. I voted for Dole in ‘96.
I hope that Cuccinelli can pull things out in November. If not, I don’t think I’m going to be in any mood to say I told you so to anyone – this election is too important.
But I think it’s going to be a bloodbath in 2013 when we see Bolling and Cuccinelli run against each other, assuming Ken wins.
Brian W. Schoeneman
on May 31st, 2009For those who have now proven they don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground it is time to reach up grab your ass and remove it from your shoulders and get in the game.
Ken C won. he won big ! he won because he was the best candidate with the best organization. This is not that tough to figure out, this is politics 101. He out smarted, out hustled his competitors. He has wide support and a ground game that works. He can and will do the same in November.
Ken has lent his endorsement, his team and expertise to others running for republican offices in NOVA. He has worked with any or all republicans at all levels. ken is a team player. it is time for others to do the same and activly support this man and this tickets.
Now for those of you who lecture the rest of us about being a part of the team it is time time to shut up and put up. Ken C. will do everything in his power to help this ticket win, for that you can be certain.
G. Stone
on May 31st, 2009[...] Justin Hart over at Too Conservative, [...]
RPV Convention ‘09 « The Dillard Doctrine
on May 31st, 2009Here, I’ll shock everybody by agreeing with LI on one point (actually I’ve agreed with him plenty in the past, but not on this thread)..I hate conventions too. There was no reason to have a convention this year–the Democrats are also having a primary, and we could have had a joint primary on June 9. No Democrats would have “interefered” by voting Republican because they had their own tight races to worry about.
After June 9, the Democrats will have had anywhere from 140-250,000 people invested in their primary process by voting. We have 6800. That’s not good. Now I believe that had we taken this to a primary vote, Cuccinelli would have won just as easily–so I think it would have been the same result. But I think we have to do more to include people in this process, not less. I’m at a point where I’m more worried about bringing people in than I am worrying about having a “pure” primary. As I said, we could have.
The other option is to have satellite locations for the convention–have a Nova and a Hampton Roads location where you can go and vote electronically, and be connecting via video. Our military fights battles using teleconferencing, you can’t tell me we couldn’t do this from a technology standpoint. Many good, working families are excluded from the convention process because they simply can’t get all the way to Richmond. That’s a shame and its unfair.
So there you go–I agree with LI on that point.
I’ll take his word for it for now that he will do everything he can to support Cuccinelli and the ticket. But actions speak louder than words, so the jury will be out for the next 5 months. I’ll tell you one thing–I certainly hope that we won’t be seeing the same kind of attacks on him on this site. I happen to disagree with him, BPM and others on electability. I think you guys are overestimating how many people have even heard of Ken Cuccinelli. Both he and Shannon are relative unknowns to the general public and will be starting from the same place. Unlike the other candidates, with KC you are getting an entire army of volunteers that will hit the pavement like right NOW to work for him, and by extension the rest of the ticket.
That’s not a small thing. He’s got an excellent shot to win in November, but some of you are going to have to practice what you preach with regard to putting your differences aside and supporting the ticket.
NovaConservative
on May 31st, 2009That army is a miniscule portion of the statewide electorate, NC. And Cooch will fire up an equal if not greater number of liberal fanatics. You are right that he is relatively unknown in many parts of the state, as is Shannon. But you differ from me in thinking that that is an advantage. The mainstream press will define Cuccinelli, and not in a good way.
Loudoun Insider
on May 31st, 2009LI–you’re kidding yourself if you think that Brownlee and Foster wouldn’t have been defined in the same way. Particularly Brownlee. Every hispanic in the state would have heard all about John and his best friend Tom “Latino KKK” Tancredo. I could go on, but there’s no point, its over.
The mainstream press isn’t going to give us a break–from McDonnell on down. At least we have a candidate now who is used to this and has won with it before. The grassroots activists that actually do the work are ALWAYS far less than the larger electorate–but the point is that KC has plenty of them that will work hard to reach everyone else. That’s a good thing.
NovaConservative
on May 31st, 2009[...] (view a slide show of this weekend’s RPV convention here) [...]
VA GOP 2009 = 2010 Victory? - RightSideRedux’s blog - RedState
on June 1st, 2009Stop worrying about the WAPO and get to work.
G. Stone
on June 1st, 2009