Showdown in Searchlight

Let me sum it up in two anecdotes:

1. The story of the T-Shirt vendor (there is a sub-culture of camp followers who sell Tea-Stuff) who lost his billfold with $4000 in it. You guessed it. It was returned to Lost & Found with nary a devalued Federal Reserve note missing.

2. As I drove in from LA via I-15, as I took the left in Searchlight off Nipton Rd., there was a commotion of sign-holders and protesters. As I was following a small caravan of Tea bumper-stickered cars, we all slowed down because we were anxious to be among our own. The "We Love Harry" signs made me realize I had to follow the GPS as it said another 2 miles out of town. BUT...the small group from Reid's lair (barely a minion) turned out to be as nasty as we have heard and seen (on YouTube.) Andrew Breitbart (God Bless him!) wades right into the swamp every time (remember the CPAC lobby?...or the Pasadena Tea Party?) Here he is engaging the local yokels and, SPOILER ALERT, they not only threaten and harras AB but EGG the Tea Party Express busses as they pass! Turns out they are upper level Reid and DNC NV management. (HT: IOTW)

So here's another video of my experiences that can never really explain the level of emotion and camaraderie present. Remember, TPX picked this dust bowl of a former mining company, planted a flag in it, rolled up a flatbed and 30,000 plus showed up. Seems we were able to mine a little more gold out there. My friends on the Tea Party Express, the Rivolis, Lloyd Marcus, Darla Darwald and Amy Kremer, were in fine form and absolutely revved up. They treated us like family. Thanks guys! Victoria Jackson, my new Pasadena Patirot friend and fellow Free Radical (new video coming soon,) was in fine form with her "I Hope I Don't Get Sick." It was Victoria who helped me to no end, with the VIP pass, getting me to meet THE people so I have a shot at getting on the next tour and generally being in my corner when she was there to perform. Thanks, VJ! Stacy McCain and Ali Akbar missed half the show because they booked for Las Vegas after Palin.

Say your prayers, boys and girls, and young Cakeman might get a seat on the bus soon.

Random observations:

When Palin arrived it was like Shea Stadium when they ushered the Beatles through the screaming girls.

Sky-writing that upstaged the speakers

Windy, blowing dust and it was chilly at noon even though it was your basic desert.

TPX has three busses now. One for the admin. One for staff and one ofr musicians (new gold one)

At least 25 large RV's and just as many smaller ones...people arrived the night before and camped.

The three-lane road was overwhelmed (remember Arlo Guthrie in the Woodstock movie:" The Thruway is closed, Man!") into and again out when the crowd started to caravan to the Ann Coulter event in LV.

Victoria asked me to be her "teleprompter" along with her friend, Brenda, as the wind was nasty and lyrics would have flown away. I was honored.

Same crowd that was in DC...Ma and Pa Kettle, Granny and Grandpa, lone wolves and wingnuts (of course, Media Matters focused on the "Obama in a headdress" poster and applied that to all 30,000.)

Moment  that summed it up for me: Vicky, Joe the Plumber and Senate candidate Chick DeVore (vs. Boxer) all conversing about their love of the country.

 And a must-see: KTNV's aerial footage of the miles of cars and the size of the crowd