Make no mistake, this race is Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s to lose.
Say all you will about vaccinations, about him once being a Democrat for Gore, or any myriad of things that Congressman Ron Paul, also of Texas, is sure to remind voters of in the coming weeks, Perry is the most-likely GOP nominee.
That makes his visit to Richmond tomorrow intriguing – and important.
What makes it doubly intriguing is that this event is a fundraiser for the Republican Party of Virginia and will be featuring Perry’s right-hand-man at the Republican Governor’s Association, now chairman of that organization, and our governor, Gov. Bob McDonnell.
This, quite possibly, will be the GOP ticket in 2012, and we’re going to see it for the first time tomorrow.
According to officials with RPV this ticket is a hot one. When you consider President Obama was in Richmond mere days ago, and could only muster 5000 free tickets on a university campus (his base), and this event with Perry is a fundraiser getting ready to draw more than 1000 – and climbing – not to mention the 70-plus press that will be there, including live-trucks, well, you get the idea.
Would the same happen for a Romney-McDonnell or Bachmann-McDonnell joint appearance? Quite frankly, I don’t think so.
The excitement and buzz is clearly with Perry right now.
So, Bearing Drift will be there. In addition to myself, contributors Brian Kirwin, Shaun Kenney, Jason Kenney, Lynn Mitchell, Norm Leahy, DJ Spiker, and Jane Dudley are all expected to be attending.
We will be posting audio, imagery, and getting interviews from as many people as possible – both those who are elected and those who are just coming to see the show. We also hope to have an exclusive…more on that as it develops…if it develops.
Streaming live tomorrow morning from Richmond from 5:30 AM – 9 AM will be Brian Kirwin and me, with the voice of Hampton Roads conservatives, Steve Batton on “Steve Batton in the Morning”, as we pregame this. Then, be sure to check out Bearing Drift throughout the day for comprehensive coverage of this important moment in the presidential campaign.
