I could spend only 24 hours at CPAC because of another commitment, but what I did see told me all I needed to know. Lots of events going on in half-empty rooms of silver-haired attendees. (Not that there’s anything wrong with having silver hair.) The really packed events, including my own talk, were the ones sponsored by Ron Paul’s Campaign for Liberty, and full of young faces. Young Americans for Liberty (not Young Americans for Freedom, naturally) had a huge presence as well. Every single copy of Rollback, my new book, sold during my book signing; it took a full hour of signing at breakneck speed to get to everyone.

We know Ron Paul won the straw poll, of course, with 30% of the vote. Another 7% chose him as their second choice. This is terrible, say the seriosos, for why should Ron Paul’s supporters “hijack” the poll? A better question, never asked, is why the drones competing with him can’t inspire anyone to come vote. And as a friend of mine put it, it says something about the state of conservatism that Ron Paul is viewed as a hijacker of the movement, while Mitt Romney and Donald Rumsfeld are cheered and celebrated.

via CPAC and the Future « LewRockwell.com Blog.