I attended the Upstate Republican Party (a coordinated effort of the Greenville, Spartanburg, and Anderson Republican Parties) rally on Wednesday evening where Newt Gingrich spoke to a crowd of over three hundred enthusiastic Republicans. The enthusiasm warmed my heart, and if we can garner even half that energy on election day Republicans will return to Columbia in record numbers.
One thing we’ve always known about Newt is that he tells it like it is. One of the reasons Newt is so effective is that he knows how it is. Newt began his speech by addressing the Mark Foley situation in D. C. He absolutely condemned Foley, but reminded us all that twenty years ago, when faced with an eerily similar scenario, Democrats not only supported like offenders but applauded them in their caucus.
Newt then moved on to the war on terrorism, and set the scene of Nancy Pelosi becoming third in line as commander-in-chief. He recounted, in detail that only comes from intimate knowledge, the series of failures whereby the Clinton administration, including both Bill and the president, abandoned their responsibility to defend this nation.
The Speaker then discussed health care with an acumen only an expert can muster. He examined the government’s monopoly in the form of Medicaid by proposing analogous government takeovers of auto sales other consumer choices. It was funny, but it also reminded us of the difference between Democrats (mostly liberals) and Republicans (usually conservatives). The former think government is the solution, the latter think freedom is the solution.
Gingrich delivered the best speech I’ve heard in a while. If he’s not the smartest guy running (as officially as anyone is running right now) for president, then I’m waiting to see his equal. I’m disturbed with Newt’s own baggage, but for sheer intellect, guts, and plain speaking, Newt is a leader for conservatives in America.

Wednesday afternoon (10/4) I was honored to take part in the 100th year celebration of Robert Bosch Corporation which happens to have 1300 associates employed in my district. At our Anderson plant, they manufacture 13 products, one of which is an oxygen sensor for several automobile manufactures (pictured). One interesting piece of information I learned was that 60,000 of these little doohickies are produced DAILY!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2006
Contact Charlie Szrom
(219) 771-3281
chair@mccainmovement.com
www.mccainmovement.com
Concord, NH – On Saturday, September 30, New Hampshire citizens saw the greatest outpouring of grassroots support for Senator John McCain since McCain’s 2000 primary victory in the state. Activists, part of a nationwide network known as the Draft McCain Movement, came from as far away as Indiana and as close as Boston to rally public momentum for a McCain presidential run with an outreach effort at the New Hampshire State Republican Convention.
“Granite Staters responded very positively to our efforts,” said Charlie Szrom, Draft McCain Movement chairman. “So many folks wanted ‘Draft McCain for President’ T-shirts that we ran out of them in the first 90 minutes and had to write down mailing addresses to get apparel to all of the McCain supporters there.”
“No other prominent contenders for the 2008 GOP nomination had grassroots efforts there, while we had 8 volunteers from across the country,” said Szrom. “The scale of and response to our presence shows that Americans want McCain, more than anyone else, to be their next president.”
Activists staffed a literature table, passed out materials highlighting how McCain best represents Republican interests, and conversed with convention delegates on the virtues of encouraging McCain to run. The Draft McCain Movement held its first grassroots event at the Iowa Republican Convention in June, has State Coordinators in 14 states, and has registered with the FEC as a Political Action Committee (PAC) under the name “Committee to Draft John McCain.”
Photos from the event can be found at http://www.mccainmovement.com?nh_convo. The Draft McCain Movement’s success stands even larger given that the general election in 2008 is still two years away; one can easily imagine such grassroots enthusiasm multiplying many times over in the next 24 months.

Monday night was spent with 300 of my closest friends at the annual Bronze Elephant BBQ for the Anderson County Republican Party. Many candidates spoke to rally the troops for the upcoming election. Rep. Michael Thompson and I were given the honor of presenting the Annual “Ronald Reagan Faith & Freedom Award” to Bennie Sue West. She is very deserving of this award as she has been in the trenches for Republican candidates for over 20 years. Congratulations Bennie Sue!