CPAC: Pics and Reflection!

Well...today was awesome. If you didn't read my last post, I spent today at CPAC Chicago, listening to some great contributors to the conservative movement like Michele Bachman, Rand Paul, Chris Christie, Rick Santorum, Herman Cain and Bobby Jindal. I met some new conservatives as well and I'm leaving Chicago very, very inspired and energized for the continued fight to restore American values and common sense.

I won't ramble on about each individual speaker's remarks, but I have to say that I was very impressed, especially by Chris Christie and Bobby Jindal. I've heard these two speak before but never in person. Both of them were excellent in conveying their message without reading from a teleprompter or directly from notes. Both speeches were fascinating, also, because both of them are Governors of states in which they've had to face crises, be it self-inflicted crises or not.

Governor Jindal of Louisiana faced the traumatic BP oil spill in 2010. He related this event and the Obama administration's despicable handling of it to the President and his cabinet's overall incompetency. Governor Christie of New Jersey faced a challenge not from nature but from teacher's unions. (If you don't remember hearing about that ordeal, it's a blog post in itself!)

Overall, I was impressed with all of the speakers and noticed that many of those holding positions such as governor/senator (Governor Kasich of Ohio, Governor Christie, Governor Jindal, Senator Rand Paul, Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin) have all led by example in fiscal responsibility, making improvements to their states' financial situations with needed cuts and firm leadership.

I also had the privilege of meeting and getting a picture with Bobby Jindal and Michele Bachmann. It was great to finally meet such great patriots in person. Both were very friendly... and Michele Bachman now has one of my business cards :)

So finally, here are some photos from the day! I will have a photo of Michele Bachmann and I soon, as it wasn't taken on my camera. Also, if you want to see video clips of any of the speakers, let me know, becuase I videoed a little bit, if not all, of each of the speeches by Santorum, Paul, Bachmann, Jindal, cain and Christie.

Me and Governor Bobby Jindal of Louisiana

Kentucky Senator Rand Paul

Governor Chris Christie of New Jersey

I'll post my photo of Bachmann and I when I get it! Thanks for reading, hope you all have a safe, blessed weekend :) 

CPAC CHICAGO! And Scott Walker...

Hey ya'll! I'm sitting in Chicago right now waiting impatiently for tomorrow when CPAC Chicago will start at 8 AM! For those of you who don't know, CPAC is a conference (there are a few held at different times of the year in different places) with conservatives speakers and panels. Tomorrow's CPAC features Chris Christie, Rick Santorum, Rand Paul, Bobby Jindal, Michele Bachmann, and many other great conservative minds from across the country! I'm especially excited because two of my fellow blogging-friends and I got media credentials, so we have special access to the media room where we will *hopefully* be able to interview/meet/get pictures with some of the people I listed above. I've also got my digital camera and a flip video camera...so I'm hoping to get some good material and lots of inspiration for blog posts. :) Here's the schedule if you're curious... http://conservative.org/cpacchicago/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/CPAC-CHI-Schedule-v6.6.pdf

Also, I can't help but comment on the vast amount of Wisconsin liberals and union thugs who are most likely weeping in defeat right now after Scott Walker's epic victory in the recall election. Talk about inspiration. America still values fiscal sanity and responsibility and they proved it by keeping in office their Governor who is making positive changes to Wisconsin. There is hope!

And one more thing! If you're in the state of Missouri, you may want to check out the Republican Senate Candidate Debate at Lindenwood on Monday night. It's being hosted by 97.1 FM Newstalk and moderated by STL Radio personalities Jamie Allman and Dana Loesch. Here's a link to reserve tickets! http://www.971talk.com/debate/

Well, thanks for reading! Check back for updates and *hopefully* photos from CPAC! Follow me on twitter for live updates, as well, as I'm going to try to live-tweet the whole thing! My twitter handle is: @sarah_hinds76

God bless, have a great weekend!

Inspiring Summer Vacation...

I just returned home today from my family vacation to Virginia... we took forever to decide just where we were going to go this year, but decided once again on a place that's come to be our "old faithful" vacation spot. We love it! We went to Chincoteague Island, hung out on the beach there for a few days, and then I got into full history-nerd mode when we got to Colonial Williamsburg.

If you've never been to Williamsburg, please...do yourself and your family a huge favor and GO! I've been there more times than I can count, and it never gets old. If you've never been there... within the town of Williamsburg is an area that has been in existence since the very early days of America. The main street, Duke of Gloucester, is lined with restored buildings according to how the town looked in the 18th century. There are a few original buildings, too (my favorite...) including the George Wythe house, most notably. This house is where George Washington spent time before the siege of Yorktown (just a short drive away, also an amazing place to visit...). Reenactors dressed in 18th century clothing take on 18th century characters and you're really taken back in time when you visit the historic area. (And aside from the historic value, the food is amazing...) :)

I'm going to show my nerdiness here, but as I was walking down that street, seeing the original buildings as well as the restored and renovated ones like the Capitol and the Governor's Palace, it was amazing to me that people who were so instrumental in getting this fledgling nation off the ground had stood in the same spot I stood over two and a half centuries ago. When you're standing in front of a house in front of which George Washington and his staff stood and resided in before winning the siege of Yorktown, those people you only read about in textbooks in school become more real than ever!

Every once in awhile, I get discouraged and depressed as to where this country is headed. I look at the principles embodied in the Declaration and the Constitution, that our Founders believed so strongly in, and then I look at the self-interest and arrogance of political leaders today, and in the apathy and entitlement of American society today, and the past and present disturbingly contrast each other. But in that time that history becomes more than just words on a page is when I become more motivated. Motivated to do my part to protect the ideals that the earliest Americans pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor for; ideas of individual liberty--not widespread entitlement--and self-government--not the mindset that a few elites know best how to govern a dependent people.

In other words, this trip to Virginia was a huge inspiration to keep on doing my part, fighting the good fight to preserve liberty, and to continue relying on God to show me how I can serve Him and others.

Obama's Budget #Fail

Yesterday Obama' sent a budget to the Senate (and mind you, the Senate is controlled by Democrats) and it was so bad it was destroyed 99-0. Not even HARRY REID or any other Democrat in the Senate would vote for it. Ouch.

From Twitter:
A Root Canal: #morepopularthanobamasbduget

 I just can't stop laughing. But it's really pathetic, actually.

 In other news, check out my latest post on TheCollegeConservative, "It's Still About the Economy." In it I debunk just a few of the Left's many distractions that are an effort to keep us from focusing on the most pressing issue we're facing this election--THE ECONOMY. Check it out, comments are welcome!

 Hope ya'll have a great week and weekend! God bless.

Back for the summer!

Hey ya'll! I haven't posted on Present Day Patriots in quite some time. A lot has happened since my last post, both out there in the crazy political world and in my personal life. I'm finished with my first year of college, and my goodness, have I learned a lot about myself and what I truly believe! I'm enjoying pointing out the liberal bias in the classroom, though, and I'm probably going to declare a major next fall or spring. I'm now a staff writer at TheCollegeConservative. TCC is a blog with a bunch of college conservatives like myself who do an amazing job at ticking off liberals with a strong Conservative voice! I encourage you to check it out and like the page on Facebook as well! Also, I'm excited that I will be interning at Eagle Forum this summer, a great organization that has been dedicated to Conservative values for decades. I'm thrilled to be a part of it. I hope you all are doing great. I am hoping to update this blog with my political musings more now that summer is just about here and school out. Thanks for reading, and check back for another update soon :)

RIP Andrew Breitbart

Yesterday, the Conservative movement lost one of it's greatest patriots, Andrew Breitbart. He reportedly died of a heart attack in the early hours of March 1st. Breitbart was, quite literally, one of the most outspoken Conservative leaders and exposed numerous scandals and stories that the mainstream media refused to mention. He was 43 years old, and leaves behind a wife and four kids.



^ Andrew Breitbart speaking at CPAC just a few weeks ago.

This was really saddening news. But whats equally as saddening--and disturbing--is many on the Left's reaction to his death. On Twitter I was really shocked by the cruel and brutal messages people were posting, literally celebrating Breitbart's death. These people really showed their true colors, and ironically, many of them are the sort of people who tell Conservatives to stop the "hate." Check out this article to see some of the "tweets" I'm talking about:
http://campaign2012.washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/liberals-celebrate-death-andrew-breitbart/403471

This is truly saddening news, and I hope more Conservatives everywhere continue the fight for truth in a world where it is silenced more and more every day. I know I will!

My thoughts are prayers are with Breitbart's family. To close, here's a quote that shows how passionate Breitbart was about his work:

"I love my job. I love fighting for what I believe in. I love having fun while doing it. I love reporting stories that the Complex refuses to report. I love fighting back, I love finding allies, and—famously—I enjoy making enemies."