\"Are you kidding me?\" <\/p>\n
When you ask the New Hampshire residents attending the inaugural Freedom Summit why they're here, there is a 98 percent chance this is the first thing that will come out of their mouth, followed up with a reverent recitation of the people that drew more than 700 people to a hotel conference center in Manchester on a sunny Saturday morning. <\/p>\n
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) speaks at a GOP Freedom Summit in Manchester, N.H. (Jim Cole\/ AP) <\/p>\n
There's Ted Cruz, whoJean Ferreira, 55, was most excited to see at the event which is organized by Americans for Prosperity, a group best known for the people who started it, the Koch brothers, and Citizens United, now synonymous with the Supreme Court decision that led to super PACs and the expansion of corporate political spending. <\/p>\n
Ferreira was wearing a \"Truth Has No Agenda\" T-shirt, but she had another in her bag that read, \"I Cruz With Ted.\" \"I'm praying he'll sign it,\" she said. <\/p>\n
Ray Shakir, who is 65 and can now qualify for what he deems \"socialist security\" was also looking forward to Cruz. Shakirvoted for Newt Gingrich in 2012, but he thinks Cruz is \"the strong, aggressive conservative we need today. He has the hmm, how should I put this. Thecojones.\" <\/p>\n
Shakir is a well-known Republican activist in New Hampshire, who hosted a fundraiser for former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty in 2011. He writes letters to Conway Daily Sun frequently aboutBorat Hussein OBummer,\" \"O'Bummercare\" and Hillary Rodham Clinton, who he calls \"Osama's Dream Girl.\" <\/p>\n
Rand Paul was the other person highly anticipated by the people attending the conference. Spec Bowers, a former New Hampshire state representative (and future one, he hopes), likes the junior senator from Kentucky. He voted for Ron Paul \"about 30 years ago,\" but didn't in 2012. \"I didn't think he could be elected.\" <\/p>\n
The conference marks Lauren Rumpler's first day on the job as a field coordinator with Americans for Prosperity in New Hampshire. Rumpler, who is 25 and also runs the YouTube channel \"Objectivist Girl,\" likes Rand Paul and his father quite a bit. Ted Cruz, not so much.\"He's all right, but I'm a libertarian,\" she said. \"I'm more of an anarchist, really.\" Rumpler moved to New Hampshire from Ohio to join the Free Stater movement, another reason she supports the Paul family. <\/p>\n
There is a far longer list of people who spoke at the Freedom Summit. There are former presidential candidates Mike Huckabee and Newt Gingrich, Tennessee congresswoman Marsha Blackburn and Donald Trump, all people who have expressed interest or have ended up on lists of possible 2016 presidential candidates. <\/p>\n
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Ted Cruz and Rand Paul are the big draws at the Freedom Summit<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \"Are you kidding me?\" When you ask the New Hampshire residents attending the inaugural Freedom Summit why they're here, there is a 98 percent chance this is the first thing that will come out of their mouth, followed up with a reverent recitation of the people that drew more than 700 people to a hotel conference center in Manchester on a sunny Saturday morning. Sen. Continue reading