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GOP Presidential candidates visit Northwest
Armed with a smile, homemade signs and freshly baked sugar cookies, Brandon Blasberg didn’t seem to mind being outside in the chilly February weather.
“We’re here to see Ron Paul,” Blasberg said over the excited chatter of his preschool-aged daughter, Ava. “We just want to help people figure out he’s here.”
The self-described “political junkie” has been an admirer of Ron Paul since 2007, when his interest was sparked by the congressman’s performance in debates. “I’m excited for this. I want to see more people out here, I’d like more people to hear Ron Paul’s message.”
The Blasberg family made up just four out of the 2,577 that turned out to see Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul when he came to speak at the Spokane Convention Center on Feb. 17.
“Four years ago I was told there was a brush fire started here for the cause of liberty,” Paul said. “It looks like it’s much bigger than a brush fire now.”
Paul’s speech focused primarily on ways he would cut back on what he said is a government that is increasingly encroaching on civil liberties. He often contrasted his view of the Constitution with how he feels the president does.
“The president buys into this argument that if it’s not prohibited by the Constitution, he can do anything he wants,” Paul said. “But it’s written the other way, the only thing the president is allowed to do is things he is given explicit permission to do.”
The theme of Constitutionalism was a constant in the speech that was littered with a mix of Old Testament imagery and Colonial American historical references.
Paul compared the Patriot Act to the occupation of colonists’ homes by British soldiers, and stated that event as one of the leading reasons for the revolt in the colonies.
Paul said the Patriot Act flies directly in the face of the founding fathers’ intentions, saying that they specifically planned the Fourth Amendment to prevent such violations of privacy.
“If we can look at those X-rays on TV and say ‘Oh well, I guess we have to give up a little liberty to be safe,’ then there is something wrong with us and we need to change,” Paul said when discussing security protocol in airports and the use of full-body scanners.
Paul also addressed concerns he has with the Patriot Act being used as an excuse to raid homes for drugs, avoid legal necessities such as search warrants and eliminate due process. He also criticized the National Defense Authorization Act, which he said allows the government to assassinate private U.S. citizens at will.
“Bad people deserve trials too,” Paul said. He explained to the audience that if the rights of one group can be violated, the rights of all groups can be violated.
A common grievance heard at the rally was that Paul receives minimal coverage by the media, and despite the fact that most political commentators say Paul’s chance of winning the nomination is unrealistically slim, many attendees seemed to be holding out hope.
“The man is electable, especially when he has all these veterans supporting him,” said Marian Lonam, one of the volunteers at the rally. Lonam, a Gulf War veteran, has identified herself as a Paul supporter since 1995, and volunteered for his 2008 race.
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Doug Cameron received a very special Valentine’s Day gift this year.
“My heart just about jumped out of my chest, because he very well could be the next president of the United States,” said Cameron, who was one of the lucky few able to speak to GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum when the candidate visited Coeur d’Alene.
“I heard on the news yesterday, when I was driving home from the gym, that he was going to be here and I couldn’t believe it, I knew this is where I had to be,” Cameron said. “I would have driven a thousand miles to see him.”
Cameron wasn’t the only one star-struck by the presidential contender.
“I just wanted to catch a glimpse of him. I missed the speech, but I just wanted to see him once,” said Colleen Pryor who had rushed into the building after the rally, only to have missed seeing Santorum by seconds.
Santorum appeared to have a certain bit of rockstar appeal to the crowd from being the first out of three candidates to visit the area, with many in the audience seeming to be almost equally excited about being in the physical presence of a national figure they’ve been watching, as much as the substance of the candidate himself.
The Hagadone Events Center where Santorum spoke has a maximum capacity of 500, but was full to the brim with the 600 people who managed to squeeze into the large banquet hall.
An additional 400 people were not even allowed to enter the gate.
A few people just managed to make it inside the gate, but were initially locked out of the rally and given chairs outside the windows where they were permitted to watch the indoor proceedings.
Fortunately for the small but dedicated group, several security guards took pity due to the cold, snowy weather and let them “sneak” through a side door shortly before Santorum took the stage.
“It was just too cold out there,” said Larry Griffiths, an event center employee.
Santorum spent the majority of his speech talking about family, and accusing the government, particularly the Obama administration, of “a gradual erosion of states’ rights,” as well as religious freedoms.
Santorum also attempted to highlight a contrast for voters between himself and a Washington D.C. that he repeatedly described as being “centralized” and “elitist.”
“We [the Santorum family] fit into Idaho pretty well, I think,” Santorum said.
Glenys Leestma seemed to agree after hearing Santorum speak.
“He’s a regular guy,” Leestma said.
But more than a winning personality seemed to be at work in Santorum’s favor with voters.
Many in the audience seemed to be disenchanted Newt Gingrich supporters dissatisfied with the negative tone of his campaign, but too conservative to support Mitt Romney, who is generally perceived as a moderate.
Santorum has been reaping the benefits of the windfall, both in poll numbers as well as primaries, where he has become a serious challenger to the current leader in the delegates, Romney.
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Newt Gingrich didn’t ask much of his Coeur d’Alene supporters, just that they give him a little fuel for the road.
“I’m asking for one gallon of gasoline for the campaign,” said the presidential candidate during his speech to supporters at his recent rally in Coeur d’Alene.
The price of that gallon? According to Gingrich, a mere $2.50 if he is elected.
While the speech covered an assortment of national issues, the main topic was the rising prices at the pump, in contrast to his opponents, who have been focusing on the size and scope of the government in their own recent speeches.
“I represent $2.50 gasoline, he [Obama] represents $9 or $10 a gallon gasoline,” Gingrich said.
Gingrich promised repeatedly to return fuel prices to “pre-Obama” levels by allowing the development of the Keystone pipeline and re-opening the Gulf of Mexico for drilling as soon as he is elected.
He also attacked the Environmental Protection Agency, saying he would turn it into an “Environmental Solutions Agency,” and called it part of the reason for rising gas prices.
Gingrich also sought to draw clear distinctions for voters between him and the president.
“I represent paychecks and jobs,” Gingrich said. “He represents food stamps and dependency. I represent freedom of religion. He represents a war on the Catholic Church.”
He also referred to Obama as the “vanguard of a radical America seeking to force the rest of us down the road he believes in.”
“What we have to do is get rid of Obama,” said Gingrich supporter Rick Seward.
The pre-speech chatter in the crowd made it apparent that Gingrich’s biggest rival might just be Rick Santorum, who has been competing heavily with Gingrich to earn the “conservative alternative to Mitt Romney” mantle.
“I’m leaning towards Santorum, but I like some of the things Newt has to say,” said Megan Henkle, an undecided voter. “I just have some questions about him.”
Christina Villagomez is the current Managing Editor and former News Editor at the Sentinel. Described by a previous employer as being a jack-of-all-trades-writer and a bit of a spark-plug, Christina enjoys writing hard news stories when she's not attending board of trustee meetings in her spare time. Christina was previously a staff writer at the Panhandle Sun, and is the three-time winner of the Most Cheerful Award at her old elementary school as well as several Idaho Press Club Awards and a Region Ten Mark of Excellence Award from The Society of Professional Journalists for her news writing.