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PARK CITY, Utah -- After two days of meetings, meals and hobnobbing with the candidate, his top advisers and leading figures of the Republican party here in this exclusive resort community, Mitt Romney's biggest donors and bundlers say they are fired up and ready to go.
Charles Dharapak / AP
Mitt Romney greets attendees at the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials conference in Orlando, Fla.
"I’m going to do everything that I can do. I’m going to bundle every penny I can get," said Michigan lawyer Rodger Young, a long time Romney supporter who, like the hundreds of other guests here, have raised or personally donated more than $50,000 to Romney's campaign. "I think I came here with the idea that we were all going to take on more finance responsibility and I’m certainly prepared to do that."
"It’s even more than hopeful," a donor from New Orleans said of the atmosphere at the retreat. "We are beyond that now."
It is precisely that spirit which Romney and his campaign are looking to capture with this weekend's retreat, designed as a rally, a reward and a launching pad for top donors to continue to support the campaign -- and get their friends and family to do the same.
To generate such goodwill, Romney's campaign invited the donors and their spouses here for two days of briefings on campaign strategy and policy issues, intermixed with opportunities to rub elbows with Republican stars like Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, as well as the candidate and his family.
On Friday night, the campaign hosted a welcome dinner at Park City's Olympic park. Guests were ferried from their hotels by bus, up the mountainside, and treated to spectacular views and a cookout-style dinner where former New Hampshire Gov. John Sununu and former Secretary of State James Baker warmed up the crowd, and introduced Mitt and Ann Romney. The couple gave remarks and mingled with guests who were also entertained by Olympic ski-jumpers practicing their technique on the ramps and pools at the facility, which remains a training center for Olympic winter athletes.
Saturday's festivities began with a breakfast and included a strategy briefing from top campaign advisers. Among the highlights of the day, according to several donors who attended the event, was a lunchtime speech by former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who received not one but two standing ovations for a speech one attendee described as "exhilarating."
Rice along with Ryan and Jindal are among the names tossed about as part of the weekend's other major storyline: with few exceptions, nearly every Republican thought to be under consideration to become Romney's partner on the ticket is also attending this event in some capacity. Sens. Bob Portman, R-Ohio, and John Thune, R-S.D., are on the guest list, as are former Govs. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota and Jeb Bush of Florida, as well as the current Virginia governor, Bob McDonnell.
The Romney campaign has been tight-lipped about the vice presidential vetting process, with only Florida Sen. Marco Rubio confirmed to be receiving a "thorough vetting."
But Romney's adviser in charge of that process, his former Chief of Staff Beth Myers, has also traveled to Utah, along with most of the top figures of Romney's high command in Boston, fueling speculation -- even among the donors and campaign advisers here -- that this weekend away from the rigors of the campaign trail may also figure in to Romney's vice presidential selection process.
Saturday evening and Sunday the event will wrap up with dinner, desert and dancing, according to a leaked copy of the agenda, and with the opportunity to play golf on Sunday at a private course in the area -- all designed to foster camaraderie amongst those most involved in financing Romney's campaign, and to get them excited about November.
To hear the donors tell it, the strategy seems to be working.
"Things are looking pretty darn good," Young said.
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A History Lesson in the Making or is it a Lesson in History Making?
Through the Dust of History
PHALANX!
POSITIONS!
Most people think that the reason that Osama bin Laden attacked America on 9.11.01 was because of the war between Christians and Muslims during the Great Crusades. This is not true. The real reason that Osama Bin Laden attacked New York was because he thought it like to be that of Old Babylon. A city that the ancestors of Osama Bin Laden, the Persians, under Darius the King of Persia had lost two battles to Alexander the Great by fleeing the battle because he only thought of his own protection instead of defending his city state, Babylon. Those in today's society who are not Muslim and despise Babylon are part of the ancestry of those Greeks who as Mercenaries in Darius' Army fought against Alexander at Gaugamela.
Those here in America who call theirselves Americans and spoke out badly against what happened to New York on 9.11.01 such as Jerry Fallwell, The West Borrow Baptist Church etc. are those that served on the side of Darius during the fight between Darius and Alexander. Osama Bin Laden attacked New York not because he knew he could ever conquer America with his army but if he was able to raise dissent in America through the extreme right wing attacking Americans like they did at Gaugamela in the service of Darius then Bin Laden's goal of causing a political turmoil in America would be complete in making certain that a President who was not strong militarily, like Romney, would be elected as a result of the cost of the war effecting Americans so that American (Alexander's Army) would pull out of the Middle East so that Osama Bin Laden and his Persian Army could slaughter all those who opposed him in order to return the Middle East to an all inclusive Persian (Osama bin Laden designed) empire of Persian like Bin Ladens. The war in the Middle East is not over oil or gas or religion but a war between Darius and Alexander the Great for the city of Babylon.
Most citizens think that Babylon fell into decay and then back into the Earth from where it came. Not true the entire planet is one large Babylon that Alexander conquered from the Persian's and no matter how hard they try they will never retake Babylon. Now you know why we were attacked on 9.11.01 and now you know why we need to side with the Syrians against Assad. Once Osama bin Laden was killed the spirit of Darius escaped and found its way into Assad of Syria. Once Assad is gone there will be very few bodies left for Darius to find a new home in so that slowly but surely Alexander the Greats goal of riding Darius down for betraying his men on the field twice will be complete.
I just love watching and reading about romney trying to buy the presidency of the united states.
Spend it romney, spend it, you don't have a chance in heck of ever becoming a president of the usa.
People will never elect a bain capitalist scumbag like you and never elect a religeous cultist to be their president.
But please continue to stimulate the economy by trying to buy the presedency with the money you stole from hard working american people.
To all you Prsident Obama lovers and loyalists to the deocratic party, we Republicans might have Romney and the Bain Capital issue, but we don't have an ex president (democrat) that didn't have intercourse but did sign the NAFTA treaty shipping our jobs and cheap labor South, North and across the pond and now another president giving illegals jobs taaking away from Americans.
Willard Mitt Romney was born Willardo Guante Romeo in Mexico by a mother who was a Mexican national and a father who was a French ex-patriot. His father's distant cousin George Romney took him when he was a boy to Michigan; where he changed the boy's name and obtained a fake birth certificate, in a grand plan to one day install him as President of the United States to destroy the country so as to complete Montezuma's revenge.
Obama does NOT understand anything other than street activism. He has proven it in the last three and one half years.
The democrat president certainly did that. However, the last republican president took us to war against two countries while not only not paying for it but lowering taxes at the same time. Additionally, he and his constituency put the finishing on financial deregulation that led to our financial meltdown. Clinton may have lied about sex but G.W. screwed us all (and we go no kisses). By, the way, I voted against Obama but you on the right are just as arrogant, incompetent and self serving. We are all screwed now.
Romneys Mormon founder speaks
Joseph Fielding Smith: "That negro race, for instance, have been placed under restrictions because of their attitude in the world of spirits, few will doubt. It cannot be looked upon as just that they should be deprived of the power of the Priesthood without it being a punishment for some act, or acts, performed before they were born." (The Way to Perfection, p. 43).
What happened to the idea that a campaign can't coordinate with the donors and super pacs? That clearly took place in Utah.
Barbara Jackson is clearly right about the private sector doing well. Corporate profits are at an all time high, the stock market is high and they are sitting on 2 trillion dollars they won't spend.
Despite the fact that most media outlets (except Fox) have reported that Rove's superpac leaders just "happened to show up" in the lobby of the meeting place, I have yet to see any coverage of this on msnbc. Why not? You can bet if the roles were reversed, the media would be screaming foul play. Guess its only foul play when the dems do it. After all, isn't the republican mantra that they alone know what is best for us i.e. who we can marry, how many children we can and cannot have, who and who cannot vote. etc. Yep, they know it all.