At CPAC: Ground Zero for John McCain

Kristen and I are at CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference) today. It doesn't begin officially until tomorrow, but we were able to attend a special event for those of us who helped fund the event.

Some observations:

This year will be the largest CPAC ever, according to Chairman David Keene.

President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Senator John McCain, Mitt Romney, and Mike Huckabee will all be addressing the event.

Most discussed: Whether or not the Conservatives will accept John McCain as nominee for the Republican Party. Will he be booed tomorrow when he speaks?

There has also been some disussion of the Human Events article by Jed Babbin that mentioned McCain's possible plans for his introduction.

One source told me last night that McCain is planning an all-out push at CPAC. At 3 pm tomorrow, McCain is scheduled to address the crowd expected to number over 6,000 activists. And McCain plans a very special introduction.

According to my source, McCain has prepared a video featuring President Ronald Reagan to make the introduction. If McCain uses this video, it is very likely to backfire badly. This is the group before which Ronald Reagan said in 1975 that, “A political party cannot be all things to all people. It must represent certain fundamental beliefs which must not be compromised to political expediency or simply to swell its numbers.”

Very few of the 2008 CPAC crowd will see McCain as the successor to Reagan and Reagan’s principles. McCain has sacrificed conservatives’ fundamental beliefs throughout his Senate career. If McCain uses this introduction, the boos will be very loud.

McCain faces a real quandary. If he fails at CPAC -- and doesn’t win the CPAC straw poll (he finished dead last in 2007)-- the word will be out that the conservatives are off his team this year. The results of the poll will be announced at about 2 pm Saturday. McCain can do a few things at CPAC that could help.