Day 2 of CPAC is done, and here are a few of the highlights:

Tea Party It's interesting to hear how the Republicans react to the presence of the Tea Party. Nearly all of the speakers who mentioned the Tea Party said something along the lines of that it's important to listen to the ideas of the Tea Party. House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said that it is important to hear the Tea Party out, but that the Republican Party should not co-opt them. I think if the Republican Party or the Tea Party is to succeed in the short term, they'll need each other. Long term, however, I think that the Tea Party could make it work if they become more organized. It could cause short-term problems for conservatives, though, as it is likely that the conservative base would split between the two parties.

Young Folks The chorus of Peter, Bjorn, and John's "Young Folks" certainly doesn't apply to the people who organize CPAC. These people understand that Republicans got slaughtered in 2008 by the Democrats in the younger demographics, so they're making a great effort to reach out to college students. I talked to Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) about this today, so tune into Newspulse Sunday to hear his comments. One way that CPAC is reaching out is by having the XPAC lounge at CPAC. nationally syndicated radio talkers Stephen Baldwin (yes that Stephen Baldwin) and Kevin McCullough set it up to give the younger crowd something to do without having to leave the hotel. As I'm writing this blog, I'm listening to conservative comedian Ellen Karis, and the guys who do Auto-Tune The News on YouTube are expected to be here later. There have also been politicians in and out of here all day, so they're definitely paying attention to the kids.

Zingers The conservative comics aren't the only ones getting one liners in here at CPAC. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney drew laughs yesterday when he said that Lindsey Vonn lost her gold medal in skiing because President Obama is going downhill faster than she was. This morning, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty said that conservatives could learn a lot from Tiger Woods' wife Elin Nordegren because, as Pawlenty said that conservatives should "take a page out of her playbook and take a 9-iron and smash the window out of big government." With Glenn Beck and Ann Coulter on the agenda for tomorrow, I expect to hear several more before the weekend is done.

Pence Push Right after his speech, Mike Pence had his speech referred to as "one of the most important speeches ever given at CPAC." He was also likened to Ronald Reagan by former congressman David McIntosh, who called him the "next great communicator." I asked the Congressman whether he will run for President in 2012, and I'll play the answer for you Sunday on Newspulse.

Tomorrow is the final day of CPAC. Scheduled speakers include the aforementioned Beck and Coulter, as well as former UN Ambassador John Bolton, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, and pundit Bill Bennett.

Tune in to Newspulse Sunday at 5:30 on 88.3 FM The Sting!

Day 1 of CPAC is all but done, and here are some of the highlights:

Venue change The conference moved across the street to the Wardman Park Hotel from the Omni Shoreham for this year, and I've got to say that I'm not so sure that I like the change. It definitely allows more people to be here (organizers are expecting somewhere in the neighborhood of 10,000), but the room is set up so that it's nearly impossible to get from one end to the other without going through the kitchen. Here's hoping that gets fixed before tomorrow...

Sneak Attacks The American Conservative Union (the organizers of CPAC) chose to kick it off with a bang today, as they pulled 2 "sneak attacks" on the crowd. The first was the surprise appearance of former Vice President Dick Cheney, who spoke before his daughter Liz. The other surprise appearance came from Senator Scott Brown (R-MA), who said that he actually drove his now-famous truck to DC to introduce former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

Attitude One can definitely sense a change of attitude at the conference from last year to this year. Last year, the focus seemed to be how conservatives were going to deal with the Obama administration. This year, conservatives have more momentum on their side and as such, you can tell that the speakers at the conference are going on the offensive.

Marco Mania Marco Rubio, a candidate for the US Senate out of Florida, led off the conference this morning, and many of the speakers after him seemed to be stumping for him as well. Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) said that he would like to see 30 Marco Rubios in the Senate. The push he has gotten from the nationwide conservative movement could very well push him over the top in the Republican primary, where he will take on Gov. Charlie Crist.

Check back tomorrow, as I'll be talking Tea Party and how young people have shaped CPAC.

Tune in for the AP Radio News at the top of every hour and local news updates at 6:03, 7:03, 8:03, 11:30, 1:30, and 3:30 today on 88.3 FM The Sting!