RNC "View from the Floor" Day 2

That's more like it! After Monday's respectfully abbreviated session, Tuesday kicked things off as the RNC got back into the swing of things. The day started off great with Gov. Mitt Romney speaking to the Mass. delegation at our morning breakfast meeting. He is such an amazing individual. The energy in the room when he arrived was incredible. Living up to the "Country First" theme, he came out strongly for John McCain and Sarah Palin. Still, I still could see in his eyes that he wanted to be the man making the acceptance speech on Thursday.

The evening's session at the Xcel Center was incredible. It's fascinating to see the activity on the floor, which you don't get from watching TV. Admittedly, during the less prominent speakers, folks are mulling around the center. It's a great opportunity to not only meet with others in the Mass delegation, but to talk with the other states to get their views. I met with a delegate from California, who was covering making a documentary of the campaign. Also, as you can probably guess from the TV coverage, the Texas delegation is full of energy - in their matching shirts and cowboy hats. Certainly, the highlight is seeing how others dress up for the occasion. My favorite was Honest Abe, representing Georgia of all places.

Before getting to the main event speakers of the evening, there was a tribute to Ronald Reagan, which really fired up the crowd.

We again had the privilege of hearing from First Lady Laura Bush, who introduced President Bush, who unfortunately spoke via satellite, from Washington. While the President may not have high ratings from the nation as a whole, you couldn't tell that from the convention.

Next up was former Senator Fred Thompson, who was exactly the speaker we needed to set the tone for the convention. His testament to John McCain was moving, but he clearly outlined what was at stake in this election. He had many folks on the floor wondering where was this sort of speech from him during the primaries. Things may have turned out much differently.

The final speaker was Joe Lieberman. I'll be honest, there were mixed feelings about having him there. For sure, he's been a strong supporter of McCain, and it was a powerful image to have Joe speak to undecided Dems and Independents, but for the strong conservatives the crowd (like myself), it highlighted the reason why we sometimes worry about McCain's "maverick" persona.

That said, Wednesday is the night many of us are really looking forward to. Governor Romney will be speaking. We're looking forward to having him sit with the delegation for the roll call of the states. More importantly, we're looking forward to getting our first up close look at Sarah Palin. There's a lot of buzz on the floor about her, most with very high expectations. We all hope she can deliver.

Lastly, be sure to keep a close eye out for the Mass delegation tonight. Red Sox Nation will be properly represented!

...Mark