Romney for President!

I had one of the coolest experiences I've had in my whole life this weekend! I drove down to South Carolina with a super fun group of people and we worked on Mitt Romney's presidential campaign. We were supposed to leave D.C. by 4:30 on Thursday so we didn't get there too late... Columbia South Carolina is an 8 hour drive away. We had a few hold ups in renting the van and getting out of here, so we ended up leaving at 6:30. The drive honestly wasn't too bad tho, even though we were driving through the night. Boyd was a champion and drove the whole 8 hours. We were given subsidized rooms in the Courtyard Marriott in Columbia. A donor to the Romney Campaign paid for most of the cost...super awesome! We got there around 2am and went straight to bed. The next morning, after being treated to a delicious southern style breakfast, we made our way to campaign headquarters to find out what they needed us to do.

Campaign Headquarters

 As soon as we got there, they got us loaded up with stickers and signs and sent us to a nearby Christmas tree farm where there was a rally in about a half hour. I was blown away... my first day in South Carolina and I might get to meet Mitt Romney?! I was so excited! I have liked Mitt Romney since the Olympics in Salt Lake City and have wanted to meet him ever since. My Grandpa Brent was also a huge fan and I wanted to meet Romney for my grampsy as well. We pulled up and there were already quite a few people there, and tons of press cameras. Boyd and I weaseled our way into the front and were literally 3 people back from the stage. I was so excited, we were bouncing up and down and chanting "Romney!" The old ladies around us really liked Boyd and were hitting on him while we were waiting, it was very entertaining.

The site of the rally

All the people lined up waiting

All of a sudden we heard the people behind us getting excited. I looked up, and there was Mitt Romney himself standing on a stage literally 10 feet in front of me. Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, was also there with him. She gave a short introduction, and then handed the microphone to Mitt. He was so relaxed and seemed so genuine just talking to all of us in the pouring rain. I couldn't make up my mind between snapping pictures and focusing on what he had to say. It was pretty much surreal. 2 weeks ago, I never would have imagined I would be this close to a man who could be the next President of the United States!

Mitt Romney

He talked to us for about 10 minutes, encouraging people to get out and vote for him and mostly taking shots at Obama. My favorite part was when he responded personally to Boyd. Boyd was yelling "I love you Mitt!" and right in the middle of his speech Mitt turned to Boyd and said "Now, that's only okay for Ann to say!" It was really funny. As soon as he was done speaking, Boyd and I ran over to the press lineup in front of Mitt's tour bus. We squeezed our way to the front and waited very patiently for him to come our way. I was so excited... I was hopefully going to shake his hand!! The first person down the line was Governor Haley. I smiled at her, but I was looking down the line and just waiting for Mr. Romney. Next thing I know, he is right in front of me, looking directly into my eyes and shaking my hand. My mind went completely blank and all I could say was "Hi!" Hahahaha just like in the movies... but it was real. He smiled and said "Thank you for coming" and moved on to the next person. I was still just thinking... OMG! I just shook his hand... and all I said was hi?! There are millions more eloquent things I could have said, some clever little thing, and all I had was hi! Ha needless to say, I was awestruck.

Governor Nikki Haley

Right after I shook his hand!!

After we all got over the initial shock of meeting the man himself, we piled back into the van and headed off to lunch. We ate at a little hole in the wall BBQ joint, and it was honestly some of the best pork sandwiches I have ever had. It looked a little scary, but it was delicious.

Pulled pork and mac n cheese

After we all ate and got full, we headed off to go and knock doors. We were given the names and addresses of registered Republicans in the neighborhoods around Columbia. We had a list of questions to ask them and some signs and fliers to hand out. I was worried they were going to hate us and be mad for disturbing them... we don't answer door to door people at my house... but the people were so nice! Southern hospitality is alive and well, and it was amazing to see. No one was rude to us, and everyone talked to us about who they felt was the best candidate. I had to bite my tongue when they said they were voting for Newt.... but other than that it was good.

Me, Maren, Brooke, Bryan and Emily

Out knocking doors

I totally understand what my brother does on his mission every day now. Approaching people with something you're passionate about is scary, but when people are receptive it is totally worth it. After a long day of knocking, we were exhausted. We fell into bed and went straight to sleep around 10. The next morning we woke up and headed back to headquarters. We were assigned to the phones, and spent our morning calling people and reminding them to vote. A lot of people were super unhappy, apparently their phones have been blowing up all week long. It reminded me of my telemarketing days... ha not my favorite. It was for a good cause tho, and we tried to have fun with it.

After lunch at Bo*Jangles (Boberry Biscuits are AMAZING!), we were asked to go outside and hold huge signs that said "Mitt Romney for President". Funny thing... it was pouring rain. The heavens were open and they were dumping water, with thunder crashing and lightning flashing. Ha but we were there to help Mitt win, so we went without complaint. Boyd and I ended up standing directly in front of the South Carolina Capitol Building, and a statue of a Confederate Soldier. It was actually really fun... Boyd was singing and dancing like a crazy man. Cars were honking, some were smiling and giving us thumbs up, others were flying the bird and yelling. It was definitely an adventure. We also had some Ron Paul supporters come and try to one up us with their numbers. Our signs were WAY bigger than theirs were... and they weren't very nice. We just ignored them and tried to get people to pay more attention to us.

Capitol of South Carolina

Boyd was so entertaining!

When it was dark and there was only an hour left in the primaries, we sloshed our way back to the campaign headquarters. I was soaked to the bone...my hair was a disaster... and we were off to the Victory Party. Unfortunately we found out soon after arriving that despite our hard work, it wasn't going to be a victory party after all. Ha that didn't make it any less cool though! I ended up standing directly behind Mitt Romney... I thought I would be hidden from view. Nope, I am very clearly visible standing right over his shoulder throughout most of the concession speech. If you want a good laugh... go watch the speech on youtube. Ha I obviously had no idea you could see me that well.

You can totally see me taking this picture with my phone if you watch the video of the speech... ha. Overall, it was an amazing experience, once in a lifetime. We left right after the speech and got home around 4:30 in the morning. I am exhausted, but happy. Its not everyday that you get to make great friends, travel around the East Coast, and meet the possible future President of the United States. Romney for President!