ATLANTA — Conservative activists at the RedState Gathering appear to have taken notice of Carly Fiorina. While RedState event organizers did not air the earlier GOP candidates’ forum in which she participated on Thursday, several hundred people turned out to listen to the former Hewlett Packard CEO speak in Georgia on Friday.
Fiorina took direct aim at Democrats during her time onstage, and said she was ready to brawl with progressives.
“2016 is going to be a fight a real fight between conservatism and the progressivism that has completely dominated the Democratic Party,” Fiorina said. “Sometimes we tend to think of politics as a sport and a game. … It’s not a game. We must win in 2016.”
“We’re going to have to have a nominee that throws every punch; that never pulls her punches.”
Fiorina’s debut on the GOP presidential debate stage drew widespread praise from members of the media. Activists at the RedState Gathering enjoyed her performance there too, and called her candidacy “a breath of fresh air” in the Republican Party.
Rebecca Landau, a RedState attendee, told the Washington Examiner she had not heard of Fiorina before the 2016 election cycle began, but has begun to take a sincere interest in her campaign.
“I’ve been very impressed with how direct she is,” Landau said. “You ask her a question, you actually get an answer to the question asked and she’s very strong and forthcoming. I like that. Every time I see her, I’m more and more impressed.”
Landau said Fiorina has moved into her top three choices for president, but she has not yet made any decision on who she prefers most.
Despite the fact that she did not appear on the primetime stage, RedState editor Erick Erickson said he believes Fiorina won Thursday’s debate.
“Holy cow,” Erickson said of Fiorina’s performance on Thursday. “It’s refreshing. … She’s a phenomenal speaker and a great American.”
Fiorina’s next challenge has become translating applause at events filled with GOP primary voters into support in the polls.
“I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing,” Fiorina told reporters after appearing onstage. “I learned long ago that the most effective way to compete is to play your own game.”
