The Republican National Committee concluded its 3 day summer meeting Friday night in Tampa – with a visit to the Tampa Museum of Art, which included getting treated to a speech from controversial freshman Allen West, who has become a big favorite of Tea Party types.
Late Friday afternoon, RNC Chair Reince Preibus and others with the RNC leadership addressed their membership at the Marriott Waterside Hotel. Preibus, who just took control of the party in January, discussed himself in his speech.
He says friends asked him occasionally if he is having fun on the job. He said his ambitions are about more than just getting the party out of debt or running a "killer victory program." For him, and he suggested for all Republicans, the thing that animates him is simply one thing: freedom. "To worship God, to chase dreams, to have freedom of press, the freedom to take risks and the freedom to defend ourselves."
This article appears in Aug 4-10, 2011.