Inside the Beltway

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Gilmore to Gingrich

A virtual Who's Who list of right-thinking men and women -- a record crowd of 5,000-plus attendees -- fills the agenda board for this week's 34th annual Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC 2007, which kicks off Thursday at a sold-out Omni Shoreham Hotel.

Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo, California Rep. DuncanHunter, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, former MassachusettsGov. Mitt Romney, former Virginia Gov. James S. Gilmore III, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback are some of the familiar Republican names one organizer rattles off, adding that attendees also will include Vice President Dick Cheney, former U.N. Ambassador John R. Bolton, Indiana Rep. Mike Pence and former University of California regent Ward Connerly.

Inside the Beltway's question to J. William Lauderback, executive vice president of the American Conservative Union, is: "How important is CPAC 2007 for Republicans to retake control of Congress next year, not to mention hang on to the White House?"

"The GOP doesn't have a shot at regaining the majority in Congress and keeping the White House if it continues to treat conservatives like some part-time constituency who are only due a seat at the table during the pre-general election primary season," Mr. Lauderback tells this column.

"Conservatives have always been driven by the issues, not personality, with RonaldReagan possessing a rare and unique combination of both. Nonetheless, conservatives welcome candidates who have a proven record of fighting for shared principles and who can articulate a clear vision for achieving their goals."

One of the more timely titles of CPAC's slate of panel discussions: "The Left's Repeated Campaign Against the American Soldier."

Clean slate

Fire them all. Or so recommends Lawrence J. Korb, director of National Security Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York and senior fellow and adviser for the liberal Center for American Progress and Center for Defense Information.