SALON

Thursday, Mar 14, 2013 4:51 PM UTC

Mini golf for freedom!

A user's guide to the weirdest, craziest stuff at the carnival that is CPAC

By

Topics: CPAC, cpac 2013, merchandise, Ronald Reagan, Fashion,

Mini golf for freedom! A man in Revolutionary War garb at CPAC 2013 (Credit: Alex Seitz-Wald)

Sure, CPAC is a place for conservative leaders to share big ideas about rebuilding the movement, and for ambitious politicians to cut their teeth and earn the loyalty of committed conservative activists. But it is also basically one big carnival where, for example, you can play basketball for freedom.

And that doesn’t even start to describe the merchandise that’s available here: T-shirts, beer cozies, aprons, bumper stickers, and pins emblazoned with images of Ronald Reagan or messages like “I <3 Hyek.” Even Optimus Prime makes a cameo.

Here’s your guide to the best of the best CPAC weirdness (click on pictures for bigger images):

Apparel for freedom: Eberle & Associates, a GOP-affiliated direct mail firm, is handing out free tees with messages like, “Keep Calm and Fight Socialsim” in the style of the British WWII poster, and “Viva la Reagan Revolution” in the style of Che Guevara. All you have to do is tweet the hashtag “#fightsocialism” or like them on Facebook. Another booth offers “customized apparel for fraternities, sororities, and honor groups” (groups that tend to lean right), while another offers patriotic-themed clothing — all made in America, of course. And Marco Rubio’s PAC is selling $25 water bottles (get it?).

Minigolf for fiscal responsibility: The National Taxpayers Union is encouraging participants to play minigolf with goals like “repeal Obamacare” and “cut congressional pay.”

Basketball for freedom: Generation Opportunity brought in arcade-style basketball games to appeal to young people, though people seem more interested in shooting hoops than listening to their pitch.Read books for liberty: If you’re lucky enough to be visited by a man in a rubber Reagan mask passing out flyers, you can head down to the Charles Koch Foundation booth for a free coffee table book with picture of iconic conservative president. Meanwhile, you can pose with a cardboard cutout of Karl Rove at Edmund Wright’s booth promoting his new anti-Rove book.”

Alex Seitz-Wald

Alex Seitz-Wald is Salon's political reporter. Email him at aseitz-wald@salon.com, and follow him on Twitter @aseitzwald. More Alex Seitz-Wald.

Next Article

Related Stories

More Related Stories

Featured Slide Shows

The week in 10 pics

close X
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11
  • This photo. President Barack Obama has a laugh during the unveiling of the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas, Tx., Thursday. Former first lady Barbara Bush, who candidly admitted this week we've had enough Bushes in the White House, is unamused.
    Reuters/Jason Reed

  • Rescue workers converge Wednesday in Savar, Bangladesh, where the collapse of a garment building killed more than 300. Factory owners had ignored police orders to vacate the work site the day before.
    AP/A.M. Ahad

  • Police gather Wednesday at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to honor campus officer Sean Collier, who was allegedly killed in a shootout with the Boston Marathon bombing suspects last week.
    AP/Elise Amendola

  • Police tape closes the site of a car bomb that targeted the French embassy in Libya Tuesday. The explosion wounded two French guards and caused extensive damage to Tripoli's upscale al-Andalus neighborhood.
    AP/Abdul Majeed Forjani

  • Protestors rage outside the residence of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Sunday following the rape of a 5-year-old girl in New Delhi. The girl was allegedly kidnapped and tortured before being abandoned in a locked room for two days.
    AP/Manish Swarup

  • Clarksville, Mo., residents sit in a life boat Monday after a Mississippi River flooding, the 13th worst on record.
    AP/Jeff Roberson

  • Workers pause Wednesday for a memorial service at the site of the West, Tx., fertilizer plant explosion, which killed 14 people and left a crater more than 90 feet wide.
    AP/The San Antonio Express-News, Tom Reel

  • Aerial footage of the devastation following a 7.0 magnitude earthquake in China's Sichuan province last Saturday. At least 180 people were killed and as many as 11,000 injured in the quake.
    AP/Liu Yinghua

  • On Wednesday, Hazmat-suited federal authorities search a martial arts studio in Tupelo, Miss., once operated by Everett Dutschke, the newest lead in the increasingly twisty ricin case. Last week, President Barack Obama, Sen. Roger Wicker, R.-Miss., and a Mississippi judge were each sent letters laced with the deadly poison.
    AP/Rogelio V. Solis

  • The lighting of Freedom Hall at the George W. Bush Presidential Center Thursday is celebrated with (what else but) red, white and blue fireworks.
    AP/David J. Phillip

  • Recent Slide Shows

  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook
  • Thumbnails
  • Fullscreen
  • 1 of 11

Related Videos

Comments

 3 Comments

Comment Preview

Your name will appear as username

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href=""> <b> <em> <strong> <i> <blockquote>

follow salon

Most Read

Popular on Reddit

links from salon.com

From Around the Web

Presented by Scribol
listener_new_rect The Listener: "The Shelter Cycle": Raised in a cult

Recommendations