Even as we speak, a crowd of conservatives are smoking cigars at the Grove Park Inn. It’s all part of the 17th Annual Meeting of the State Policy Network. Quite under the radar, representatives of conservative think tanks from forty-eight states converged in Asheville for a four-day strategy meeting. Tonight, Fred Barnes addressed the group in the Grand Ballroom. The talk fell a little short of expectations. Barnes did at least point out that this year’s meeting was important in that the federal government is striving in leaps and bounds to drain more power away from the states.
I got to attend thanks to the nice people at the Asheville Tribune and the John Locke Foundation who slipped me in as a poser when Bill Fishburne announced he couldn’t attend. I always appreciate hanging out with the Lockers because they all know my name and are eager to introduce me to others. John Hood dared me to blog that the JLF’s answer to healthcare reform would be enforced Appalachian clogging. Kory Swanson assured me there would be nothing in the next two days worth attending. Like most meetings, all the work gets done behind the scenes.
The second funnest part was playing vacuum cleaner at all the literature tables. I picked up so much stuff, people were asking if I needed help. “Just psychological,” I replied. David Morgan tried to persuade me to pack everything into a GPI tablecloth. Instead, I opted for packing 8 or 9 inches of lit into a free “I heart kickin’* *big government * the status quo * tyranny *” T-shirt. It was so stretchy, it amused me acting like the Blob on the passenger side of the car as I drove home. I look forward particularly to reading materials from the Acton Institute, the Goldwater Institute, the NC Institute for Constitutional Law, and anything from libertarians in the state of Texas.
The first funnest was Hood’s opening remarks. He told how NC license plate slogans changed from “First in Freedom” to “First in Flight,” but since the Wright Brothers did most of their work in Ohio, NC was only “First in Wind.” That led to the etymology of the word bunk and NC’s rich history of dishonest, long-winded politicians. He regretted only two of the nine top ranking politicians from a few years ago were serving time in the federal pen. Two were put away in state institutions, but Hood wanted the taxpayers present from other states to help foot the bill for housing more of the folks North Carolinians elect to high office.
