I want to congratulate Senator Barack Obama on his remarkable achievement. It may have been late in coming, but the election of the first African-American president will stand as a testament to our nation’s founding principle that ‘all men are created equal.’ I also want to extend my best wishes to his wife, Michelle, and two young daughters, as they embark on a new and exciting chapter for their family and our nation. We are all Americans first, standing above party and politics. It’s time to call on the good will of people everywhere to help our president-elect address the pressing needs of the nation.
John McCain is a decent and honorable man. He, too, will go down in history as a statesman and a patriot. I am proud to call him my friend. He carried the banner of the Republican Party in a politically challenging year. I look forward to working with Senator McCain, Governor Palin and many other Republican leaders in rebuilding the party nationally so that it can once again contribute to the great strength of our country. Together we can meet the challenges of a new century and leave our children and grandchildren with an America that is as strong and free as the one we know.
One day, four states. When you’re going through two time zones and add in a daylight savings clock change, it can get pretty confusing. Just ask Ron Kaufman. As we stood waiting with our bags in the lobby of the Kansas City Hyatt, waiting to depart, a puzzled Kaufman was returning from his morning jog. He broke all human speed records by showering, packing and getting back downstairs in 5 minutes.
After a morning rally in Kansas City, Governor Romney and crew flew to Cedar Rapids, IA, then it was off to Evansville, IN, before ending the long day with a rally in Toledo, OH, home of “MASH’s” Jamie Farr and the more-famous Joe Wurzelbacher, aka “Joe the Plumber.”
In Cedar Rapids, we got a look at still-uninhabitable homes from this year’s calamitous flooding, a real tragedy for residents in the region. Many familiar faces from Governor Romney’s Iowa campaign were on hand to greet him at the local Victory phone bank, where they were now working for John McCain’s campaign. Among the friendlies was “Joanie,” a Linn County Republican activist who squeals every time she sees the Governor (and loyal travel aide Will Ritter). We ate lunch at a local Cedar Rapids barbecue joint. The enthusiasm of the volunteers was high; all reported very positive voter contacts.
Every place we touched down, Romney took the time to remind voters of the stark differences between McCain and Obama on taxes, spending and experience, especially as it relates to national security.
In the hotel restaurant in Toledo, after the speechmaking and handshaking was over, we unwound by watching the Patriots-Indianapolis game.
We met our drivers early this morning at the Courtyard Marriott in Farmington, in the middle of oil and gas country in northwest New Mexico, for a quick 5-minute car ride to the FarmingtonMuseum.
Last night, after getting in late from Nevada, a plan to visit Four Corners was abandoned when we learned how long the drive would take. Instead, we visited the local bowling alley. We were met by hundreds of cheering McCain voters in the early-morning chill, where Governor Romney stood on a makeshift stage in the parking lot with U.S Senate candidate Steve Pearce, local candidates and party officials.
Romney made note of the fact that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, an Obama adviser, told a radio station that Obama wouldn’t raise taxes on people making less than $120,000. “As a senator, Barack Obama voted to raise taxes on people making more than $42,000. But as a candidate, he said he wouldn’t raise taxes on folks making less than $250,000, then he later said it was $200,000. Last week, Joe Biden said the number was $150,000, and now your own governor, Bill Richardson, said it’s actually $120,000,” Romney said, to hoots and laughs. “Eventually, they’ll get it down to $42,000.”
Following a short flight to Albuquerque, Romney presided over another rally at the Hilton Hotel, where the University of Utah football team was staying for today’s game against the University of New Mexico. Some of the players stood on their balconies cheering. After posing for photos and talking to the media, Romney stepped back on the plane for the hour long flight to Colorado Springs. His voice sore, he took the time en route to rest his voice.
In Colorado Springs, the biggest crowd yet – 900 people – was on hand to hear the Governor. Then, it was off to the Denver suburb of GreenwoodVillage, where the Governor grabbed a bullhorn, jumped in the bed of a pickup truck and encouraged the 300 people who came to “get out there and convince your friends and neighbors to vote for McCain-Palin.”
Our last stop: Kansas City, where a hotel bed beckoned. But first, the staff bowled some frames at the Lucky Strike Lanes in the Power and Light District.
