(Jason Gillman enjoying the convention.)

Just wrapping another fantastic night at the Republican National Convention.  Monday I lamented the fact that we weren't going to get a chance to hear the President of the United States and it looks like the universe heard me.  The karma tornado touched down and delivered to the attendees the 43rd President via video conference.  Another one of those great, personal "geek moments."

It wasn't the first or the last of the event.  

I showed up at the Xcel Energy Center a few hours early to take in the entire arena.  I walked around the different levels, hung about outside for a bit, explored the bowels of the facility complete with massive work-areas devoted to most of the nation's leading newspapers... and then I swung upstairs to the reserved "special press" observation level.

I was settling in, watching the various state delegations come and go on the bright red floor below when suddenly the mic went live for a test.  I instantly recognized the voice, looked, and the man at the podium... America's Mayor, Rudy Giuliani!  

He wasn't scheduled to speak during the evening but it was a cool little cameo.

Once we gaveled to session a video tribute to those who've passed in the last four years played on the giant video monitors behind the podium.  The culmination of the memorial, a moving piece about Michigan native President Gerald Ford.  Then again, maybe moving is the wrong word... I mean, it was... but wow... later in during the event a video told the story of Navy Seal and Medal of Honor winner Michael Monsoor who gave his own life to save the lives of two additional seals.  The men and his sister were in attendance and as the crowd showed their appreciation with unending applause his sister began to cry.  First her cheeks were wet, then she choked up a little further and as the crowd continued she simply broke down.  

Cindy McCain was seated next to her and they reached for each other and embraced while men and women all over the Xcel broke down themselves.  Moments later the convention was introduced to five additional Medal of Honor winners and a host of former Vietnam POWs.  The auditorium broke out in chants of U-S-A and THANK YOU before finally settling down and preparing for the rest of the program.

By virtue of their seating arrangements the Michigan delegation looked to receive plenty of face time tonight.  They're located in front of Texas (and their cowboy hats) just to the right of the podium (from the audience side).  They had a front row seat to speeches not only from Giuliani but from Senator Norm Coleman (R-MN), House Republican Leader John Boehner (R-OH), the First Lady in a more formal, political setting and my personal highlight of the evening, Fred Thompson.

Some folks still give me a hard time for being a staunch Fred Head but c'mon now, the man was in Die Hard 2.  Roughly translated: Haters, bite me.  It didn't hurt that Fred kicked all kinds of lefty backside...

"We need a President, and Vice President, who will take the federal bureaucracy by the scruff of the neck and give it a good shaking. And we need a President who doesn't think that the protection of the unborn or a newly born baby is above his pay grade."

Amen and PREACH!  I want to give that quote another standing ovation from here in front of my laptop.  

"Outstanding," said Northpointe, Michigan's Joan Jackson.  "Fred Thompson was outstanding and it was just what we needed to hear.  We have a wonderful ticket."

Of course the keynote of the evening was Senator Joseph Lieberman (I-CT).  The man isn't exactly a conservative but is typically 100% right on foreign policy issues.  And if anything, he's a maverick.  We are talking, after all, about the 2000 Democratic Party Vice Presidential nominee who was less than a decade later drummed out of his own party by the extreme left wing.  The man is not afraid to ruffle a few feathers.  

And the locals were more than welcoming to the man from another Party.

Grandville resident and former State Representative Harold Vorhees was impressed.  "Joe Lieberman really spoke out to the people who are on the fence.  Spoke on the issues about how it is time for America to come together under John McCain.  I thought it was just dynamic.  This is my fourth convention and I'm telling you, the speeches tonight with Joe Lieberman and Fred Thompson were just fantastic!  Top notch."