VANCOUVER, Wash. — Republican John Koster got a double- barreled energy boost for his congressional campaign Saturday.
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, one of the Republican Party’s most recognized conservatives, endorsed him for Congress on her Twitter site.
“Proud to endorse John Koster, Congress-WA-2. John’s pro-family, pro-business, rock-solid commonsense conservative!” read her tweet posted in the afternoon.
Koster said he knew it might be coming.
“I like the things that Sarah stands for,” said Koster, a Snohomish County Councilman who is challenging U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash. He did not know if Palin would follow up with an appearance at a fundraiser.
Palin’s tweet came out about three hours after Koster earned a standing ovation for his speech to 1,200 delegates at the state party convention in Vancouver.
In it he blasted the actions of President Barack Obama and Democratic-majority Congress — a chord struck repeatedly by speakers Saturday — and said the party needed to seize the moment to elect Republicans.
“We’re going to take this country back,” he said, evoking a roar of approval in the Vancouver Convention Center.
Afterward, Koster said he had “never felt that kind of energy,” not even in the watershed year for Republicans of 1994.
“I think this is the strongest I’ve seen this party in a long, long time,” he said.
Saturday’s convention marked the re-emergence of the party’s conservative voices and the arrival of new ones from tea party chapters and associated groups.
Their involvement pushed attendance to nearly double the turnout in 2006 which was the last convention in a year without a presidential election. Another 450 alternates and interested individuals populated aisles, hallways and overflow rooms.
They made their presence felt early in the day when they gave U.S. Senate candidate Clint Didier a louder and more boisterous welcome than his opponent Dino Rossi.
Delegates spent the morning listening to candidates and the afternoon debating the party platform. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney spoke midway through.
Most of the day’s speeches included calls for restoring fiscal restraint in the federal government and repealing the new federal health care bill. Both issues are expected to be dominant themes in federal elections this fall.
While conservatism ruled the conversation throughout the day, speakers steered clear of social issues including abortion and same-sex marriage.
Instead, they continually focused on the Republican Party’s resurgence and its ability to revive spirits of conservative voters in Washington and across the nation.
The stage is set to make 2010 “the year that America woke up and reclaimed its destiny,” Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane said.
Larry Stickney of Arlington, leader of Protect Marriage Washington, a coalition of religious and social conservative groups departed Saturday’s convention with a supersized smile.
“The party moved away from its core values for a decade and they are finding their feet again,” he said. “It makes everyone feel it’s okay to be a conservative,”
Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623; jcornfield@heraldnet.com.
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