Delegation of 90 Maine College Republicans to Attend Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC)

February 6, 2008
Release No. 08-01
Contact: Ralph Kettell, (207) 660-5062

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 90 Maine College Republicans to Attend Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC)

Maine Delegation will be One of Nation’s Largest at Washington, DC Conference

AUGUSTA - The Maine College Republicans announced today that the statewide organization is bringing a delegation consisting of 90 students from 15 Maine colleges/universities and high schools to the 2008 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). The conference will take place in Washington, DC from Thursday, February 7 to Saturday, February 9. Students from Bates College, Bowdoin College, Colby College, Husson College, Kennebec Valley Community College, Saint Joseph’s College, Thomas College, University College of Bangor, University of Maine, University of Maine-Augusta, University of Maine-Farmington, University of Maine-Fort Kent, University of Maine-Presque Isle, University of Southern Maine, and Lewiston High School will be attending CPAC. This year will mark the sixth consecutive year that the Maine College Republicans have brought one of the nation’s largest college delegations to the conference.

Hosted by the American Conservative Union (ACU), the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) is the largest annual gathering of conservative activists in the United States. Prominent CPAC speakers include President George W. Bush, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former White House Press Secretary Tony Snow, and FOX News Host Sean Hannity. Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney and John McCain are also slated to make appearances at CPAC. The conference will also feature book signings by leading conservative authors, live broadcasts of national and local radio talk shows, and hands-on training sessions from grassroots activism to media strategy.

Nathaniel Walton (Bates ’08), State Chairman of the Maine College Republicans, offered the following statement regarding the Maine College Republicans’ trip to CPAC 2008:

“This year, Maine is once again bringing one of the nation’s largest college delegations to Washington, DC for CPAC 2008. This achievement reflects the continued strength of our statewide organization, which was named “Best State Federation in America” by the College Republican National Committee in 2007. Last year, Maine College Republicans carried the banner for conservative values on Maine college campuses from Fort Kent to Wells, and while doing so, strengthened College Republican chapters and recruited hundreds of new members across the Pine Tree State. As a result of these efforts, our members are more ready than ever to play the crucial grassroots role for Maine Republicans and help send a Republican back to the White House in 2008.

The Conservative Political Action Conference is an awesome opportunity for the most dedicated Maine College Republicans to enjoy each other’s company and reenergize their enthusiasm for conservative values as they work towards achieving great Republican victories on November 4.”

Utilizing technology and new media will be critically important to Republican efforts during the 2008 election cycle, and, beginning this weekend at CPAC, Maine College Republicans will be leading the way. Online coverage will be available as Maine College Republicans will be posting new pictures and videos on the statewide organization’s website (http://www.mainecr.org) on each day of the conference. A new issue of the Maine College Republicans’ official newspaper, The Pachyderm Press, will be available on the same website Thursday and will also be widely distributed in paper form at CPAC. These efforts will allow Maine College Republicans to reach a much wider audience than ever before while attending the conference, and, in doing so, encourage more young Mainers to get involved in the political process.

In recent years, the achievements of Maine College Republicans have been repeatedly recognized by state and national Republican leaders, and the statewide organization has become widely regarded as the national standard for state College Republican federations. In 2007, the College Republican National Committee (CRNC) recognized the Maine College Republicans as the “Best State Federation in America” for the second time in three years. Major accomplishments in recent years include delivering the grassroots margin of victory for numerous Maine House and Senate candidates in 2006, ensuring the Republican Second Congressional District candidate a spot on the 2006 ballot, and delivering the Maine youth demographic for President George W. Bush in 2004. Over 5,000 students on 24 of Maine’s college campuses claim membership to the Maine College Republicans.

Chairman Walton is available for interviews/further comments about the Maine College Republicans’ trip to CPAC 2008. Chairman Walton can be reached by telephone at (207) 240-4549 or by e-mail at chairman@mainecr.org.

For more information on the Maine College Republicans, please visit the statewide organization’s website at http://www.mainecr.org.