A week of GOP speeches and furor—all unfettered by —came to a close Thursday evening with Mitt Romney officially accepting the Republican Party's nomination to challenge Barack Obama come November.
Romney's remarks, delivered with a personal touch not overly common for the once-Massachusetts governor, dealt with both the abstract and specific. Romney praised Americans' optimism, and spotlighted the vexation many citizens feel when the gasoline counter hits $50.
Romney was preceded by speaker and host-of-sort Marco Rubio, Florida's U.S. senator. And before Rubio came a surprise speaker, Hollywood's Clint Eastwood.
The western-movie tough guy delivered a quick, folksy chat with an invisible Obama, pegging the president for hypocrisy and failure. But the 82-year-old icon seemed less-than-eloquent, at times stammering.
Local delegates from Rockland, Westchester and Putnam weighed in from Tampa Bay over the course of the week, sounding off on stirring speeches and a energetic atmosphere.
Sen. Greg Ball (R-Westchester/Putnam) , simultaneously updating his Facebook page with photos from the function.
Vincent Reda, Rockland County's chairman of the Republican Committee, .
Meanwhile, on the homefront, Rep. Nita Lowey(D-Rockland/Westchester) and U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) stopped by Nyack, standing in front of the camera and .
"[Paul Ryan] is just wrong," Lowey said.
Check in next week as Patch chats with local Democrates heading to the Democratic Nation Convention in Charlotte, NC. New Rochelle mayor Noam Bramson, Rep. Kenneth Zebrowksi (D-Rockland) and a host of others will check in with their thoughts and opinions.
