The Mill Valley Community Center was awash in red, white and blue as hundreds of Republicans, Independents, Libertarians and self-described conservatives gathered for a rousing networking event on Sunday afternoon to promote their brand of change.
The so-called Groupa-Palooza event, was billed by sponsor Bay Area Patriots as the "largest gathering of conservatives in the Bay Area" and when we arrived shortly after 1 p.m., there were at least a hundred people lined up outside waiting to get into the already jam-packed event. There were a few colorful characters sprinkled among the flag-wearing grandmothers and preppy business types, but overall it was a pretty sedate bunch.
Not so sedate were the handful of Lyndon LaRouche supporters who waved Hitler-style Obama posters while shouting anti-Obama slogans at the crowd.
Sally Zelikovsky, the event organizer and founder of Bay Area Patriots was quick to point out that although "they're exercising their right to free speech, they're not with our group."
What was missing in this very liberal county, was the opposition. Nary a protest or Democrat sign to be seen anywhere. Sitting nearby, however, was Deborah Phelan, a local Progressive Party organizer who had waged a one-woman fight against the conservative event.
"The decision was that we were not going to protest," said Phelan, "Because we don't give any credence to the people who are sponsoring this event."
Terry Inscoe an Independent from Ross, who was standing in line, was one of those who gave the event credence.
"I'm not with any particular group," he said, "I wanted to hear what peoples views are. I'm concerned with deficit spending and I prefer a small government to big government and I don't like the health care bill."
Inside, political groups ranged from the traditional like the 72-year-old California Federation of Republican Women to the more fringe My Liberty San Mateo 9.12 Project a group inspired by Glenn Beck. If there was a unifying theme at the event, it was a preponderance of buttons and placards reading "Reset 2010." It is the rallying cry of conservatives everywhere as they make the push for a change in the political makeup of Congress with next November's election.
"It's a clean sweep in November," said Hubbard, "And for Harry Reid come November, the only thing he's going to be pushing through the house, is a broom."
(We assume he meant 'house' not House as Reid in in the Senate.)
Party faithful pitched their particular passion; heath care reform, guns, taxes or immigration. There were speeches and tributes, and a particularly beautiful a-Capella rendition of the national anthem sung by a quartet of schoolgirls.
There were also a lot of political candidates pushing their platforms from the well known (Carly Fiornia for U.S. Senate) to the lesser known (Doris Gentry for State Assembly, 7th District). Everyone was giving away some kind of swag--hats, buttons, pencils and postcards but if you wanted the hot item of the day, a "Reset 2010" button, that set you back two bucks.
Speaking pointedly about the Democratic leadership in Congress, Zelikovsky echoed the reset theme as she addressed the crowd-
"And remember, you'll all be eating humble pie in November when we reset the Congress in 2010- and debug the political system that has been corrupted by politicians like Reid and Pelosi."
